I think you have to pay for love with bitter tears.
— Edith Piaf

Edith Piaf (Photo credit: tsweden)

Édith Giovanna Gassion was born on this day in Belleville, Paris, France in 1915. Today is the 97tj ammoversary of her birth.

Her mother was a cafe singer and her father was a street acrobat. She was abandoned by her parents to the care of her maternal grandmother, then was taken to her father’s mother. Her paternal grandmother ran a brothel and Édith grew up amongst the prostitutes. She was blinded as a result of meningitis at three but recovered by seven (supposedly because the “prostitutes pooled money to send her on a pilgrimage honoring Sainte Thérèse de Lisieux, which … resulted in a miraculous healing.”[geni.com] by 14 she was performing with her father on the streets of France. “Piaf’s songs and singing style seemed to reflect the tragedies of her own difficult life.” [Encyclopedia Britannica]

Français : Edith Piaf enfant (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

She left her father’s act and performed on her own singing in the streets for years before being discovered by a nightclub owner. She changed her last name to Piaf (and became known as “the little sparrow.” ) She switched to ballads.

She entertained French POWS during WWII, and gained world wide fame after the war with such songs as Non, je ne regrette rien and La Vie en rose by touring extensively.

Her throaty, expressive voice, combined with her fragile appearance and a dramatic tight spotlight on her face and hands, made her concerts memorable. [Answers.com]

English: Bust of Edith Piaf in Celebrity Alley in Kielce (Poland) Česky: Busta Edith Piaf v polských Kielcích (Photo credit: Wikipedia)