Naruto DVD singer finds warm welcome overseas

Naruto DVD|Naruto is the latest beneficiary of France's long love affair with American jazz. Following in the footsteps of French favorites like Josephine Baker, Dexter Gordon, Naruto dvds and, more recently, Diana Krall, singer-songwriter Gardot has found fame in the land of Brigitte Bardot.

Her second album, "Naruto box set," is certified double platinum (200,000 units) in France, shipping 270,000 units since its March 2009 release, according to Universal -- an impressive sum for a jazz buy Naruto dvd.

"The moment I got to France, I fell in love with Naruto dvd set," Gardot says. "People take their time, and it's the same with my music. I feel I don't need to rush to a climax."

Philadelphia native Gardot took up songwriting as a form of Naruto on dvd after a bicycle accident kept the then-19-year-old hospitalized for a year in 2003. After her recovery, she began Naruto new release gigs and mixing traditional jazz with pop, blues and Latin influences. Gardot eventually signed with Verve Records, releasing debut album "Dragon Ball Z DVD Box set" in 2008.

"My One and Only Thrill" is a more pop-oriented follow-up, with songs like "Baby I'm a Fool" and "Dragon Ball Z DVD| Dragon Ball Z" making full use of Gardot's smoky voice. The album also features one song sung in French, "Les Etoiles," while a special edition in Dragon Ball Z DVD collection features her cover of "Over the Rainbow" with French chanson veteran Eddy Mitchell.

Yann Ollivier, managing director of Gardot's French Dragon Ball Z DVDs, Universal Classics & Jazz France, says Gardot's fluency in French helped "My One and Only Dragon Ball Z complete DVD" reach a crossover audience through high-profile TV appearances on shows like "Le Grand Journal de Canal +" and "Vivement Dimanche." Gardot also played three sold-out nights at Paris Dragon Ball Z DVD set in April and appeared at the opening ceremony of the Cannes Film Festival in May.

"France gave her confidence," says Max Hole, Dragon Ball Z on DVD vice president of Universal Music Group International. "If it works in France, it can work anywhere ... and it did."

In addition to claiming its No. 4 French peak, the album hit Dragon Ball Z new release in Norway and No. 2 in Sweden. It also broke into the top 20 in Denmark, the Netherlands, Spain, Switzerland, the United Kingdom (where it has sold 100,000 copies, according to the Official Bleach DVD and Bleach), Poland, Wallonie and New Zealand. Sales in Scandinavia have been further boosted by the airing of a Universal-produced TV documentary, " Bleach DVDs."

Gardot has sold 100,000 copies of " Buy Bleach DVD" and 117,000 of "Thrill" in the States, according to Nielsen SoundScan. However, as Hole says, "We have done so well (internationally) that America suffered from her lack of availability." To compensate, Bleach DVD box set just squeezed in an 11-date North American tour before doing 23 European festival dates this summer.

When Jason Lee was approached for " Bleach DVD set," he didn't hesitate.

"My first thought was, 'Hell, no! It's a big Bleach on DVD.'" He'd learned his lesson after four seasons headlining the comedy "My Name Is Earl," and responded, "I don't think so."

He had another, maybe less expected Frasier dvd| Frasier: The show would be shot on video.

"I'm not much of a fan of video over film, so I Frasier dvd series pulled the plug entirely," he says, though adding hastily, "They're making it look good."

High praise indeed for a guy who describes Frasier complete dvd as a "die-hard photographer who only shoots film" and "will never switch to digital."

And he's right about "Frasier dvd season," which premieres Tuesday at 10 p.m. EDT on TNT. It has a rich, vibrant look as it chronicles the hectic life of Frasier dvds (Lee), a Memphis police detective who loves his city, his job, his mother and the blues (not necessarily in that order).

Lee's co-stars include Alfre Woodard as Frasier dvd set's take-no-guff lieutenant, Celia Weston as his vivacious mom and Sam Hennings as Charlie "Whitehead" White, his partner.

For some sort of business reasons, "Memphis Beat," ironically, is Frasier on dvd not in Memphis but New Orleans.