I remember during my final term in the sixth form (1973) hearing this on the radio one day (John Peel?)
It seemed distinctly exotic and weirdly French! I did not note the Cockney Rebel reference until much later. (More to come on that) Now I know the track did extremely well in Europe but not in the UK. It stuck in my mind and resonates there decades later .....
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This song bring back memories of a trip to England in the 70's, but also of an absolutely obsolete music phenomenom: Dial-a-Disc!
If you went into a phoone booth (remember them?) you could for 2p hear the disc of the week. The sound quality was below par to say the least, but late at night this wasn't an issue...