''À l'Olympia'' (meaning ''At the Olympia'') is the second

live album An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as Digital distribution#Music, digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early ...

by Canadian singer

Celine Dion Céline Marie Claudette Dion ( ; born 30 March 1968) is a Canadian singer. Noted for her powerful and technically skilled vocals, Dion is the best-selling Canadian recording artist, and the best-selling French-language artist of all time. Her ...

, released on 21 November 1994 by

Columbia Records Columbia Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music, Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the North American division of Japanese Conglomerate (company), conglomerate Sony. It was founded on Janua ...

. It features primarily French-language songs, mainly from '' Dion chante Plamondon'' (1991), but also includes English-language hits: " The Power of Love", "

Where Does My Heart Beat Now "Where Does My Heart Beat Now" is a song recorded by Canadian singer Celine Dion for her ninth studio album, and first English-language album, ''Unison (Celine Dion album), Unison'' (1990). It was released by Columbia Records as the third Single ...

", "

Love Can Move Mountains "Love Can Move Mountains" is a song by Canadian singer Celine Dion, recorded for her second English-language studio album, ''Celine Dion (album), Celine Dion'' (1992). Written by Diane Warren and produced by Ric Wake, it was released as the fourth ...

" and "

Calling You "Calling You" is a song from the 1987 film, ''Bagdad Cafe''. It was originally recorded by Jevetta Steele. Bob Telson, the songwriter, also recorded his version. Both versions appeared on the movie soundtrack. The song was nominated for the A ...

". ''À l'Olympia'' was certified Platinum by the

International Federation of the Phonographic Industry The International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI) is the organisation that represents the interests of the recording industry worldwide. It is a non-profit members' organisation registered in Switzerland and founded in Italy in 19 ...

, denoting sales of over one million copies in Europe.

Content

The album was recorded on 28 and 29 September 1994, during two sold-out concerts at the

Paris Olympia The Olympia (; commonly known as L'Olympia or in the English-speaking world as Olympia Hall) is a concert venue in the 9th arrondissement of Paris, France, located at 28 Boulevard des Capucines, equally distancing Madeleine church and Opéra G ...

. Among songs from singer's previous French album '' Dion chante Plamondon'', Dion performed also "

", (

Academy Award The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...

-nominated song from ''

Bagdad Café ''Bagdad Cafe'' (sometimes ''Bagdad Café'', titled ''Out of Rosenheim'' in Germany) is a 1987 English-language West German film directed by Percy Adlon. It is a comedy-drama set in a remote truck stop and motel in the Mojave Desert in the U.S. st ...

''), "Quand on n'a que l'amour" (originally by

Jacques Brel Jacques Romain Georges Brel (, ; 8 April 1929 – 9 October 1978) was a Belgian singer and actor who composed and performed literate, thoughtful, and theatrical songs that generated a large, devoted following—initially in Belgium and France, l ...

), and a medley of songs from the '' Starmania'' musical, including two songs unavailable on Dion previous releases: "Quand on arrive en ville" and "Naziland, ce soir on danse" (full English version of that song called "Tonight We Dance (Extravagance!)" was recorded by Dion and included on the ''Tycoon'' compilation in 1992). Although ''À l'Olympia'' was unavailable in most important music markets (United States, United Kingdom, Japan, Australia), the B-sides of English singles released there in 1995 and 1996 included tracks from that album. The video with this concert was never released. "Quand on n'a que l'amour", "Elle" and "Medley Starmania" were included on Dion's 2005 French compilation ''

On ne change pas ''On ne change pas'' (meaning ''We do not change'' or ''One does not change'') is the first comprehensive French-language greatest hits album by Canadian singer Celine Dion, released by Columbia Records on 30 September 2005. It features songs rec ...

''. Shows at the Olympia were a part of

The Colour of My Love Tour The Colour of My Love Tour is the fifth concert tour by Celine Dion. The tour was organized to support her third English-language and twelfth studio album ''The Colour of My Love'' (1993). History The set list included mainly songs from ''The ...

Critical reception

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

said that "the material sounds great live" and Dion's "voice as always a technical marvel".

Commercial performance

The album has sold one million copies in Europe alone and was certified Platinum by the

IFPI The International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI) is the organisation that represents the interests of the recording industry worldwide. It is a non-profit members' organisation registered in Switzerland and founded in Italy in 19 ...

. ''À l'Olympia'' has sold 200,000 copies in Canada and was certified Platinum. It was also certified Platinum in France. The album peaked at number three in Quebec, number ten in France and number 31 in Canada, as Quebec sales did not factor into the Canadian Albums chart at that time. On the Belgian Wallonia chart, which is available only since April 1995, ''À l'Olympia'' reached number 19.

Track listing

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications and sales

Release history

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:A L'olympia 1994 live albums Albums recorded at the Olympia (Paris) Celine Dion live albums