Les Rita Mitsouko - Marcia Baila
Les Rita Mitsouko was a French pop rock group formed by guitarist Fred Chichin and singer Catherine Ringer. The duo first performed as Rita Mitsouko at Gibus Club, Paris in 1980. They went on to become one of the most acclaimed musical acts in France.
According to the French Wikipedia the name of the group was chosen to reflect the band's extremely diverse musical reference: Rita refers to the South American music (and cult actress Rita Hayworth). Mitsouko is a Japanese first name and is also the name of a perfume by Guerlain. The group originally went by the name "Rita Mitsouko" but in 1985 "Les" was added when they realized that many people believed the name of the group was that of the singer.
Rita Mitsouko began performing in the early 1980s in alternative spaces such as the Pali-Kao, a squatted factory building in Belleville, Paris.
The band first achieved major popular success in 1985, with the release of the second single from their first album: "Marcia baila" rose to number 2 on the French record charts that summer. Philippe Gautier directed a vibrant and widely viewed music video to accompany the record. "Marcia Baila" is an homage to Argentine choreographer and dancer Marcia Moretto, with whom Catherine Ringer had studied and performed in the 1970s. Moretto died of cancer in 1981 at the age of 32.
On Wednesday 28 November 2007, Fred Chichin died from cancer while the band had just cancelled their previous concert dates in Paris. He was only diagnosed with the disease two months before.
Catherine Ringer toured under her own name following the death of her partner and Les Rita Mitsouko collaborator, Fred Chichin.
The song hit #27 on the US dance charts in 1985.
--Wikipedia
[font color=green]This was heard on the club scene back when Ecstasy was still legal. The video includes unusual choreography, multiple costume changes, cheesy French video effects, the strong vocals of Ringer (esp. at the 3:30 mark through the end), and COWBELL![/font]
