“It wasn’t a waste at all, it was… hard,” says ANNE PIGALLE, reflecting on the last three years. She describes the period with her old record company, ZTT, as a learning process. Signed up in the label’s early days, Pigalle’s album was endlessly delayed and finally released to mixed reviews. She was portrayed as the classical chanteuse, a tenacious torch singer, some obscure descendant of Edith Piaf. But the presence of Trevor Horn didn’t exactly precipitate a harmonious relationship. “When you hear a Trevor Horn thing, then you know it’s a Trevor Horn record. But that’s not what I want to do,” Pigalle says, “so I’m starting from fresh.” By this she means fresh band, fresh manager and fresh record company. The former, all unknowns, are working on manufacturing a harder, less jazzy sound than before, while the middle component is Nick Fry, manager of Cafe De Paris, who, according to Pigalle, has “a very refined touch, which makes a difference from all those big people who don’t have a clue”. As for the record company, she believes that will come as soon as she finds the right producer, “somebody who captures what you’re trying to do rather than just puts their stamp on it”. She has recently returned from a productive six months in Japan, and her immediate plans include a month-long weekly residency at London’s Madame Jo Jo nightclub from November 4th, a possible gig in the main Gare de Lyon station in Paris, and a number of European dates with BAD, who she “knew from punk”. Her buzzword is longevity. “I’m hanging out until I get the right sort of deal,” she says, pursing her lips defiantly. “Record companies are quite keen because they know that the sort of thing I do is not one hit and then it’s finished. I don’t like that Top Of The Pops thing. England’s starting to see that doesn’t last long.”
WORDS HUGH MORLEY
PHOTOGRAPHY STERLING