In the 1960's, Arno travelled to Asia and made the ritual visit to Kathmandu. We also caught a glimpse of him singing in St. Tropez, on the Greek islands, or in Amsterdam. Undeniably turned onto music, he sang for the first time on stage during a summer music festival in Ostend in 1969. Following this he began his career in bands, among them FreckleFace between '72 and '75. He played the harmonica. After a unique album which they produced themselves, Arno left the group for another, Tjens Couter. It was in fact a duo with Paul Decouter. Like FreckleFace their repertoire was mostly rhythm 'n'blues and in any case, very Anglo-Saxon.
Around 1977, Arno and Decouter formed TC Bland with Ferre Baelen and Rudy Cloet. The group had a certain fame and toured around Europe a lot. But in '80, joined by Serge Feys on keyboards this group became TC Matic, one of the most innovative European rock groups of the period. Quickly Decouter was replaced by Jean-Marie Aerts, who would remain one of Arno's travelling buddies. Europeans, they were indeed that. Their tours took them regularly across Scandinavia, England, France, Belgium, Holland and Germany. During the summer of 1981, their first namesake album was released. Then, on EMI records, they recorded several albums, among them "L'Apache" in 1982. Some of their songs like "Elle adore le noir" or "Putain Putain" are still considered today as pillar compositions of that time.
In 1985, they were the opening act for the Simple Minds during their European tour. But '85 also marked the end of TC Matic who would forever cease to exist in '86.
Arno set out on a solo career with his first namesake album as early as '86. Recorded on a bet with the musicians from TC Matic and entirely composed by Arno, the album was primarily in English. One French song came out of the lot "Qu'est-ce que c'est?" whose only words are… "Qu'est-ce que c'est?" repeated a good forty times.
During the years spent with different groups, Arno made himself a solid name in the music scene. His talent as an artist is widely recognised. As for his wild personality full of ups and downs, it puts him among the most noticed of the rock scene. In his new solo life, Arno didn't have much difficulty asserting his talent on the music scene.
In 1988 he released a second album "Charlatan" which was still primarily in English. We found however "Le Bon Dieu" a sublime cover of the most famous Belgian singers Jacques Brel. Two years later, set up in Paris, he released "Ratata". From this record written almost entirely with Jean-Marie Aerts, we recall "Lonesome Zorro" and its heady melody maintained by its chorist Beverly Brown. On June 26, 1990, Arno went on the Parisian stage at the Cigale.
In '91, Arno works on his companion Marie-Laure Beraud's album. At the same time on his solo route he didn't look down upon the idea of doing some group work. So, in 1991, he found himself with Charles et les Lulus for an eponymous album. Surrounded by Roland Van Campenhout and Adriano Cominotto, he redid some blues classics by Willie Dixon, Sonny Boy Williamson, and Rufus Thomas. From the blues he went straight to Nashville to record a new album in 1993 "Idiots Savants". After Brel, Arno borrowed "Les Filles du bord de mer" from another famous Belgian singer Adamo. This new cover confirmed his undeniable talent to give new life to old songs. This latest remains one of his flagship songs.
On February 16th, 1994 Arno stopped off at l'Elysee Montmartre in Paris.
After Charles et les Lulus, came a new group digression with Arno et les Subrovnicks in '94. Joined by old friends Adriano Cominotto (ex-Lulu), Rudy Cloet (ex-TC Matic) and Geoffrey Burton and Francois Garny, Arno recorded the album "Water" in the South West of France.
Still in '94 Arno got started in cinema soundtracks with "Personne ne m'aime" by Frenchwoman Marion Vernoux. The cinema milieu wasn't unknown to him because in '78 in Belgium he wrote the music for the film "Le Concert d'un homme seul".
After a 20-year career primarily in English, Arno released his first album fully recorded in French in 1995. Thirteen tracks co-written with Jean-Marie Aerts or Adriano Cominotto. We find the cover of Brel's "le Bon Dieu" as well as two new songs "Elle pense à lui" by Charlélie Couture and particularly "Comme à Ostende" written by Léo Ferré and Jean-Roger Caussimon. Arno reached the top of the charts with "Les Yeux de ma mere". The album favoured the mix of genres, from tango to jazz to blues to which Arno's voice always gives a special texture.
December 13th, Arno played the Bataclan in Paris before starting off his tour around France and Switzerland and before he took off for the United States where he sang in New York and Austin, Texas.
The following year we found Arno in the cinema world but this time as an actor. He played the homosexual swimming instructor in "Camping Cosmos" by Belgian director Jan Bucquoy who also directed "La vie sexuelle des Belges" which attracted a lot of attention. Back on stage in October '96 with an evening at the Olympia on the 7th. A live album was released the following year, "Arno (en concert à la Française)" which took the best moments from his tours. An album in English was also released in '97 "Give me the gift" but it was only destined for the American market. Finally in '97, French actor Michel Piccoli gave him a role in "Alors Voilà". Arno also wrote the soundtrack.
After Charles et les Lulus, Arno went to Charles and the White Trash Blues in 1998. Within this new occasional group, where we find guitarist Geoffrey Burton he gives us an album between blues and rock and whose covers, now part of his repertoire, go from the Kinks to Nina Simone. In '99 it's again with a cover song that we find him. But this time it's as a guest on the album by American Beverly Jo Scott, who lives in Belgium. Together they did an entertaining track which is a synthesis of "la Fille du Père Noël" by Dutronc and "Jean Genie" by Bowie.
Arno returned to the music news in August '99 with a new album entitled "A Poil Commercial". Recorded in Arno's habitual blues-rock vein, "A Poil Commercial" brought the singer's husky "whisky-and-cigarettes" vocals even further to the fore.
The singer followed on with a tour spread over the year 2000 and including 170 concerts. And, after a last concert in Prague, the Parisian Cité de la Musique gave him carte blanche to put on a show of his own choice. Alone on stage with his usual band, he gave a very warm and tasteful 'bal rock', which was grandly applauded by a public of loving fans. A month later a compilation summarising his 30-year career was released.
Arno stormed back into the music news on 26 February 2002 with an album full of tender rock ballads entitled "Arno Charles Ernest" (the singer's real name). The 15 tracks on the album, recorded in a more acoustic vein than usual, included a duet with Jane Birkin ("Elisa") and a cover of the Rolling Stones classic "Mother's Little Helper". Shortly after the album release Arno kicked off a new tour with a concert at the Olympia in Paris on 8 March 2002.
Arno, the insatiable wordsmith, was back at the forefront of the music scene in May 2004 with a second album written entirely in French. The album, entitled French Bazaar, was the 26th of his career. Shot through with the lucidity and acerbic wit with which Arno has made his name, French Bazaar proves that the Flemish singer – who has just turned 55 – is still full of life and vitality.
Hey Sister
Arno Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I’m looking like a fool
Like a wing in a new suit
But I am supposed to be
To be real cool
I am going to shave my head like an egghead
Hey sister, hey brother
I’ll try to burn up my monkey suit
I’ll try to give up that funky junk food
My first revolution took place in my head
I am cool and bad ad the same time
Hey sister, hey brother, nothing is wrong
I’ll try to destroy my pop star toy
Hey sister, hey brother, nothing is wrong
I’ll try to destroy my pop star toy
There is no competition
When you fall in love with yourself
I’ll call you when I need some help
Hey sister, hey brother, nothing is wrong
I’ll try to destroy my pop star toy
Hey sister, hey brother, nothing is wrong
I’ll try to destroy my pop star toy
Hey sister, hey brother
In Arno’s song Hey Sister, the lyrics describe the artist’s desire to break free from the stereotypical expectation of a pop star and to become a rebellious, authentic version of himself. The song starts with the artist expressing his excitement over new shoes and a new suit, which makes him look like a fool. The lyrics then reveal that he is trying to break free from the image of a pop star and embrace his true self, indicated by the line “But I am supposed to be, to be real cool”. The artist plans to shave his head to further his newfound independence and to signify his break from image-driven pop culture.
In the chorus, Arno talks to his sister and brother, expressing his desire to destroy his “pop star toy”. He is no longer interested in being a part of the music industry machine, and wants to be free from the constraints it imposes on him. He wants to make a change in his life by giving up the unhealthy habits he has picked up in order to fit in with the image he was supposed to embody, such as eating “funky junk food”. He speaks of his first revolution taking place in his head, implying that the change he desires is not merely of an external nature but an internal and emotional one, as well.
Overall, the lyrics of Hey Sister are an anthem for individuality and self-expression. Arno emphasizes the need to liberate oneself from societal expectations and limitations, and to embrace one’s unique identity. The song expresses a hope for a future where people are free to be themselves and accepted for who they are, rather than pretending to be something that they are not just for the sake of fitting in.
Line by Line Meaning
I’ve got new shoes
I have acquired new shoes
I’m looking like a fool
I may appear foolish in my new shoes
Like a wing in a new suit
I feel out of place with my new attire
But I am supposed to be
However, I am expected to fit in
To be real cool
To be perceived as cool
I am going to shave my head like an egghead
I plan to shave my head to reduce concern over my appearance
Hey sister, hey brother
An address to a close friend or ally
I’ll try to destroy my pop star
I will attempt to distance myself from the image of a pop star
I’ll try to burn up my monkey suit
I aim to relinquish the image of wearing flamboyant outfits
I’ll try to give up that funky junk food
I plan to abstain from unhealthy eating habits
My first revolution took place in my head
My initial change toward self-improvement began with my mindset
I am cool and bad ad the same time
I can be perceived as both cool and rebellious
Hey sister, hey brother, nothing is wrong
An emphasis that nothing is alarming or concerning
I’ll try to destroy my pop star toy
My intention is to destroy the image of a manufactured pop star
There is no competition
There is no competition in the pursuit of self-improvement
When you fall in love with yourself
When you appreciate and value yourself
I’ll call you when I need some help
I am able to ask for help when needed
Contributed by Cameron A. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@landealain9392
J'adore cette chanson que j'écoute souvent en boucle. Merci l'ami ...
@mitsoucouture
Encore et toujours le top d'Arno .
@fredericcaron4578
La version accompagnée par Ophélie Winter est sublissime, malheureusement introuvable sur le net, et j'ai bien l'impression qu'il n'y a aucune vidéo de l'enregistrement studio ...
@luccharles6219
J'ai toutes les meilleures raisons d'être d'accord avec vous car j'ai accompagné Ophélie à Bruxelles pour l'enregistrement de ce duo. Je dirigeais alors la maison de disques française d'Arno. Le duo avec Ophélie est sorti sur une édition limitée de l'album à l'époque. Aujourd'hui Arno nous manque. Son absence sera irremplaçable 🙏🏻
@fredericcaron4578
@@luccharles6219 merci beaucoup de ce beau témoignage
@landealain9392
@@fredericcaron4578 : ce duo est maintenant disponible sur Youtube. Arno me manque personnellement aussi, hélas ...
@fredericcaron4578
@@landealain9392 lyrics, uniquement, plus une itw Paris Dernière ... Si qqun a une captation vidéo de l'enregistrement studio 🎙...
@landealain9392
@@fredericcaron4578 : on les entends chanter, c'est mieux que rien. Je vais en parler à un proche d'ARNO ...