French Dinner Party

The style, the sophistication, the accent — ah, nobody does it quite like the French, whose influence on popular music extends from homegrown icons Édith Piaf and Yves Montand to "outsiders" who have traded on France's fabulously sexy language. Roll those wanton rs to Earth Kitt's "Je Cherche un homme."

You've had your starters; now it's time for a perfectly seasoned main course of French classics. The legendary Charles Trenet's nickname was "The Singing Fool," but his rendition of "Boum" is little short of genius: it's practically impossible to listen to this jaunty track without an enormous sense of wellbeing.

We've left the most exotic cuts for last; fact is, if they gave out Michelin stars for music, this batch would score highly. Neorealist popsters and champions of the new French chanson, La Tordue, give "Les Lolos" a ska flourish; Air makes electronica retro-groovy on "Les professionels;" and Wyclef cranks up the Haitian patois on "Douce.

Those of you who thought French music was all accordions, heaving bosoms, and Gauloise-stained rasps are in for a surprise with our playlist of the best in French — and France-inspired — popular music. Alongside national treasures Johnny Hallyday ("The French Elvis") and Serge Gainsbourg, our collection delivers part-time Francophiles Frank Sinatra and Doris Day, as well as a dash of Middle Eastern exotica ("Ne me quitte pas" by Natacha Atlas) just for spice. Vive La France!