Franck Pourcel (Marseille, August 11, 1913 – Neuilly-sur-Seine, November 12, 2000) was a French composer, arranger and conductor of popular music and classical music. Pourcel started learning the violin at the age of six. Later, Pourcel studied violin at the Conservatoire in Marseille, and drums because he loved jazz, and spent a year in Paris at the Conservatoire.
He immigrated to the United States in 1952 but returned to France the following year to record “Blue Tango” and the follow-up “Limelight”. In 1954, Pourcel recorded his first album on the Pathé-Marconi record label, with whom he would record a total of nine albums in a three-year period. In 1956, he recorded his version of “Only You”, which sold over three million copies by 1959, and was awarded a gold disc. It peaked at #9 on the Unite States Billboard pop chart during a 16 weeks chart run.
By 1958 Pourcel started recording classical music in a series of Pages Célèbres. In 1961 with Paul Mauriat he co-composed the hit “Chariot”, which was recorded by Petula Clark and followed up by Peggy March as “I Will Follow Him”. The song became the main theme for the film, Sister Act. Pourcel recorded 250 albums, over 3000 songs, and he conducted famous orchestras such as London Symphonic Orchestra, BBC Orchestra and Orchestre des concerts Lamoureux.
He created the series Amour Danse et violons (54 albums) and the classical series Pages Célébres. His first recordings from 1956 to 1962 were released under the series Originals.
Recordings by Franck Pourcel you can hear at Instrumentals Forever:
| (Manuel Benitez) El Cordobés |
| (The Long To Be) Close To You |
| (They Long To Be) Close To You |
| 007 (From Russia With Love) |
| 15 ans |
| À demain sur la lune |
| A Man Without Love |
| Abacachi |
| Adagio pour un vénitien anonyme |
| Adam And Eve |
| Adelaide |
| Adelita |
| Adieu Jolie Candy |
| Adieu mon amour |
| Adoro |
| Aleluya No1 |
| All By Myself |
| Anitra’s Dance from ”Peer Gynt” |
| Applewine |
| Après toi |
| Aranjuez mon amour |
| Aria |
| Au service secret de sa majesté (On Her Majesty’s Secret Service) |
| Baby Sitter |
| Bahia |
| Ballerina (Nabucco) |
| Ballet Egyptien (Luigini) |
| Be My Love again |
| Black Bottom |
| Blue Bach |
| Blue Concerto |
| Blue Moon |
| Blue Tango |
| Bonanza |
| Borsalino |
| Brigitte |
| Butterfly |
| Ca c’est Paris |
| CaminoLa Ciudad |
| Campanita de Cristal |
| Can You Give Anything |
| Canción Latina |
| Caravan |
| Carnet de bal |
| Casino Royale |
| Ce n’est rien |
| Cecilia |
| C’est magnifique |
| Chall-Ha-Dichall |
| Chanson populaire |
| Charleston |
| Che sera |
| Chitty Chitty Bang Bang |
| Christina |
| Chuva do Brazil |
| Cielito Lindo |
| Comme j’ai toujours envie d’aimer |
| Concorde |
| Congratulations |
| Conticino |
| Cousin cousine |
| Cry Me A River |
| Cuando tú No Estás |
| Cumbia del Papagayo |
| Dancing In The Sun |
| Dancing Queen |
| Day By Day |
| Degüello |
| Deguello du film ”Rio Bravo” |
| Delicado |
| Diamonds Are Forever |
| Do Not Forsake Me |
| Do You Know Where You’re Going To (Theme from ”Mahogany”) |
| Don’t Fence Me In |
| Don’t Let It Die |
| Dreamworld |
| Drôle d’embrouille (Foul Play) |
| Easy To Love |
| Ebb Tide |
| Eloise |
| Emmanuelle |
| Esta Tarde Ví Llover |
| Fascination |
| Fernando |
| Flamingo |
| Fluty |
| For All We Know |
| Forever And Ever |
| Fractured Fiddle |
| Friends |
| Frühlingsstimmen |
| Gentleman Cambrioleur |
| Genuine Plastic |
| Geschichten aus dem Wienerwald |
| Girl |
| Gold und Silber |
| Goldfinger |
| Good Morning Starshine (Hair) |
| Goodbye |
| Habib El Omr (Amour de ma vie) |
| Hagamos un trato |
| Harry Lime Theme du film ”Le troisième homme” |
| Hello Dolly! |
| Help |
| Here There and Everywhere |
| Hernando’s Hideaway |
| Highly Delighted |
| Hole In Your Soul |
| Holiday For Strings |
| Honesty |
| I Got Rhythm |
| I Love Paris |
| I Love You |
| I Me Mine |
| I Want To Be Happy |
| I Wonder |
| If You Could Read My Mind |
| Il était une fois dans l’ouest |
| Il pleut sur la route |
| I’ll Never Fall In Love Again |
| Imagine |
| In The Still Of The Night |
| Insencible |
| Intermezzo For Debbie |
| Io e te |
| Isle Of Capri |
| It Must Be Him (Seul sur son étoile) |
| I’ve Got You Under My Skin |
| J’ai encore rêvé d’elle |
| Jalousie |
| Je pense à toi |
| Je t’aime… moi non plus |
| Je t’appartiens |
| Jeux interdits |
| KV 467 Andante (Mozart) |
| L’ oiseau |
| La Balanga |
| La Bamba |
| La chanson d’Hélène (du film ”Les choses de la vie”) |
| La Cucaracha |
| La Cumparsita |
| La Flor de la Canela |
| La gata bajo la lluvia |
| La La La |
| La Malagueña |
| La Nave del Olvido |
| La panthère rose (Pink Panther) |
| La petite valse |
| Lady D’Arbanville |
| Land Of Hope And Glory |
| Lara’s Theme du film ”Dr Zhivago” |
| Las Mañanitas |
| Last Tango In Paris |
| Laura |
| L’aventura |
| Le bleu de l’été du film ”Alamo” |
| Le bon la brute et le truand (The Good The Bad And The Ugly) |
| Le lac majeur |
| Le petit ballet |
| Le premier pas |
| Le ruisseau de mon enfance |
| Le temps de ma chanson |
| Leila (Danse de Leila) |
| L’enfant roi |
| Les diamants sont éternels (Diamonds Are Forever) |
| Les divorces |
| Les gars de la marine |
| Les sept mercenaires du film ”The Magnificent Seven” |
| Let It Be |
| L’été indien |
| L’étoile filante |
| Letter Of Love |
| Lili Marlene |
| Listen To The Radio |
| Live And Let Die |
| Lo dudo |
| L’orage |
| Louise |
| Love At First Sight |
| Love Me Tonight |
| Love Story |
| Love Theme (De rêve en rêverie) (A Star Is Born) |
| Love Will Keep Us Together |
| Lovin’ |
| Ma langue au chat |
| Make It Easy On Yourself |
| Mama Inez |
| Mamy Blue |
| Manhattan Skyline (Saturday Night Fever) |
| Maria Elena |
| May We Introduce |
| Merci chérie |
| Michelle |
| Mickey |
| Midnight Cowboy du film ”Macadam Cowboy” |
| Miette |
| Misty |
| Momentos |
| Mon coeur d’attache |
| Mon Paris |
| Mona Lisa |
| Moonlight Serenade |
| More From The Maestro |
| Mourir d’aimer |
| My Boy |
| My Love |
| My Reason |
| My Sweet Lord |
| Nabucco |
| No |
| No Pisen las Flores |
| Noche de Ronda |
| Nougoum El Leil (Les étoiles de la nuit) |
| Olé Guapa |
| On A Clear Day You Can See Forever |
| On Her Majesty’s Secret Service |
| On ne vit que deux fois (You Only Live Twice) |
| Once Upon A Time In The West |
| One Man Woman One Woman Man |
| Opération tonnerre (Thunderball) |
| Opus 35 de Tchaikovski based on the Violin Concerto |
| ”Opus 35” Tchaikovsky |
| Osmunda |
| Papillon |
| Parade d’amour |
| Paris canaille |
| Paris je t’aime d’amour |
| Paris sentimental |
| Paris violon |
| Parlez-moi d’amour |
| Pas sur la bouche |
| Passing Dreams |
| Penny Lane |
| Petite Fleur |
| Pilar |
| Pink Panther |
| Pomp and circumstance march no. 1 |
| Pour une fleur |
| Pour une poignée de dollars (A Fistful Of Dollars) |
| Procession du Sardar (Mikhail Ippolitov-Ivanov) |
| Putting On The Ritz |
| Quand valseront les lilas |
| Quand vient le soir on se retrouve |
| Qu’est-ce qui fait pleurer les blondes |
| Rain and Tears |
| Rain Rain Rain |
| Raindrops Keep Fallin’ On My Head |
| Rencontres du troisième type (Close Encounters Of The Third Kind) |
| Revoir Paris |
| Rotor Motor |
| Runaway |
| Sad Lisa |
| Samson & Delilah |
| San Francisco |
| Schatzwalzer |
| Scheherazade (Rimsky-Korsakov) |
| Schwarze Augen |
| Sebastian |
| September In The Rain |
| She |
| She’s A Lady |
| Si toi aussi tu m’abandonnes du film ”Le train sifflera trois fois” |
| Si tu t’appelles mélancolie |
| Singing In The Rain |
| Snowbird |
| So In Love |
| Soleado |
| Solenzara |
| Song Sung Blue |
| Sous les toits de Paris |
| Star Wars |
| Stranger On The Shore |
| Suavemente |
| Summer Night City |
| Summer Place |
| Summertime |
| Sunny Cuckoo |
| Sunset Beach |
| Superman |
| Sur un marché Persan (Ketelbey) |
| Sympathy |
| Tequila |
| Thank You For The Music |
| The Ballad Of Bonnie And Clyde |
| The Call Of The Far Away Hills du film ”Shane” |
| The Day You Came Along |
| The Entertainer |
| The Fool |
| The Good The Bad And The Ugly |
| The Green Leaves Of Summer |
| The Importance of Your Love |
| The Lark (Alouette) |
| The Last Time I Saw Paris |
| The Lonely Season |
| The Long And Winding Road |
| The Magnificent Seven |
| The Muppet Show Theme |
| The Name Of The Game |
| The Song Of My Life |
| The Wiz |
| The World We Knew |
| Theme du film ”Histoire d’O” |
| Theme from ”Love Story” |
| Theme from ”Serpico” |
| This Melody |
| Thunderball |
| Tico Tico |
| Too Beautiful To Last |
| Top Hat White Tie And Tails |
| Tous les bateaux tous les oiseaux |
| Tout est permis quand on reve |
| Tres Palabras |
| True Love |
| Tu te reconnaitras |
| Tweedle Dee |
| Un banc un arbre une rue |
| Un homme qui me plait |
| Un jour se lève |
| Un jour un enfant |
| Un Rayo de Sol |
| Une belle histoire |
| Une fille aux yeux clairs |
| Une larme aux nuages |
| Unforgettable |
| Vale la pena intentarlo |
| Valentine |
| Venezuele Suya |
| Ville d’amour |
| Vivre et laisser mourir (Live And Let Die) |
| Vivre pour vivre |
| Voyage au bout de l’enfer (Deer Hunter) |
| Wand’rin Star |
| We Shall Dance |
| Wein Weib und Gesang |
| Wheels |
| When I Fall In Love |
| Why Oh Why Oh Why |
| Wiener Blut |
| Without You |
| Yesterday |
| Yo Vendo Unos Ojos Negros |
| You Only Live Twice |
| You’re The One That I Want (Grease) |
| Zomoroda (Danse de Zomoroda) |