Aznavour has sung for presidents, popes and royalty, as well as at humanitarian events. In response to the 1988 Armenian earthquake, he founded the charitable organization Aznavour for Armenia along with his long-time friend impresario Levon Sayan. In 2009, he was appointed ambassador of Armenia to Switzerland, as well as Armenia's permanent delegate to the United Nations at Geneva. On 24 August 2017, Aznavour was awarded the 2,618th star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. On 17 September 2018, his last concert took place in NHK Hall, Tokyo.
Charles Aznavour died on 1 October 2018.
Charles Aznavour was perhaps the best-known French music hall entertainer in the world -- renowned the world over for the bittersweet love songs he has written and sung, which seem to embody the essence of French popular song, and also for his appearances on screen in such wildly divergent fare as Shoot the Piano Player, Candy, and The Tin Drum. His status as the quintessential French popular culture icon is something of an irony for a man who identifies himself most closely with his Armenian heritage. His father was a singer and sometime-restaurateur, while his mother was an actress and part-time seamstress. His father's singing, done in a notably impassioned style, heavily influenced Aznavour's approach to singing as a boy. Although he had a voracious appetite for music, he also had a serious impediment growing up, in the form of a paralyzed vocal cord that gave his voice a raspy quality. He channeled some of his energy into theater, making both his stage and screen debuts at age nine, in 1933, in the theater piece Un bon petit diable and in the film La guerre des gosses. As an adolescent, he danced in nightclubs and sold newspapers, as well as touring with theatrical companies, and he wrote a nightclub act in partnership with Pierre Roche -- Aznavour wrote the lyrics to their songs and it was through that material that he began his singing career. Early on, he learned to overcome his fears about his vocal limitations, in part with help from singing legend Édith Piaf, for whom he worked as a chauffeur, among other capacities; with her help, he developed a style that suited his capabilities and played to his strengths and also continued writing songs in earnest, some of which were performed by Piaf.
His success came very slowly, however. Aznavour at first found some difficulty being accepted as a composer in France or anywhere else. His compositions, although considered tame by any modern standard, were regarded as too risqué for French radio and were banned from the airwaves for a decade or more, from the late '40s through the end of the 1950s; American publishers seemed equally reticent about them, as he discovered on a visit to New York in 1948. That trip did yield his first performing engagement in the city, however, at the Cafe Society Downtown in Greenwich Village. For the next decade, Aznavour made his living as a performer in second-tier clubs and middle- or bottom-of-the-bill berths on three continents. His mix of daringly original and frank love songs, coupled with a limited but very expressive singing style, left audiences somewhat bewildered at first.
His breakthrough came in 1956, during a vaudeville engagement in Casablanca, where the audience reaction was so positive that Aznavour was moved to headliner status. After this, it became easier for the singer to find better engagements in France; by 1958 he even had a recording contract. He made his screen debut that same year in a dramatic role, playing an epileptic in George Franju's La tête contre les murs. He also composed music for Alex Joff's Du rififi chez les femmes in 1958; From there, he moved on to bigger roles in better movies, including Jean Cocteau's Testament of Orpheus and Francois Truffaut's Shoot the Piano Player. The latter movie turned Aznavour into a screen star in France and opened the way for his breakthrough in America. He sang at Carnegie Hall in the early '60s and followed this up in 1965 with a one-man show, The World of Charles Aznavour, at the Ambassador Hotel in New York, which drew rave notices from audiences and critics alike. By that time, the once-struggling singer had secured his first American LP release with the similarly titled album The World of Charles Aznavour on Reprise Records, the label founded and run by Frank Sinatra.
Aznavour would be the last to compare himself with those whom he regards as truly gifted vocalists, such as Sinatra and Mel Tormé, preferring to think of himself as a composer who also happens to sing. His style of performing has been compared variously to Maurice Chevalier and Sinatra and has remained enduringly popular for four decades. Almost all of Aznavour's songs deal with love and its permutations, running the gamut from upbeat, joyous pieces such as Après l'amour and J'ai perdu la tête to the dark-hued J'en déduis que je t'aime and Bon anniversaire. A teetotaler and a racing car enthusiast, Aznavour has been married three times and has four children.
Ne me quitte pas
Charles Aznavour Lyrics
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Seuls et loin de la foule au Pôle ou au Tibet
Qui font main sur le front des confessions publiques
Jouant les mal-dans-leur-peau, allergiques au succès
Ils veulent oublier les chasseurs d’autographes
Échapper aux médias, sauver leur vie privée
Mais suivis comme une ombre par un photographe
Dans leur quête du moi et leur identité
On les prendrait presque au sérieux
Mais quant à moi la chose est nette
Croyez-moi je ne ferai pas mes adieux
N’ayant pas pris la vie avec le vent en poupe
La voie m’étant barrée il m’a fallu l’ouvrir
Je me garderai donc de cracher dans la soupe
J’ai eu bien trop de mal à la faire bouillir
Moi les fausses sorties me pompent l’oxygène
Les faux intellectuels doucement rigoler
On compte sur la main ceux qu’ont quitté la scène
Les autres le public leur a repris les clefs
Sincèrement mieux vaut en rire
Regardez-moi droit dans les yeux
Quoi que l’on puisse écrire ou dire
Quant à moi je ne ferai pas mes adieux
Ces petites natures ermites du dimanche
Champions du « je sais tout » qui s’écoutent parler
Quand le chiffre de leur vente de disques flanche
Sans un mea culpa foncent dans la mêlée
Avouez que des coups de pied au cul se perdent
Les, « je pars », « j’en peux plus », « les coucou c’est re-moi »
Avec un nouveau look, un nouveau son, et merde
Tu restes ou tu t’en vas, mais t’en fais pas un plat
Quand il faudra tourner la page
Pour le moment y a pas le feu
Je préviendrai mon entourage
Toutefois je ne ferai pas mes adieux
À moins que je change avec l’âge
Je ne ferai pas mes adieux
The lyrics of "Ne me quitte pas" by Charles Aznavour & Edith Piaf convey a message of resilience and determination in the face of challenges and criticism. The song criticizes those who seek solitude and retirement to escape the pressures of fame and success. The first verse talks about people who pretend to desire an "année sabbatique" or sabbatical year, isolating themselves from the crowd at the North Pole or Tibet. They claim to be uncomfortable with their success and fame, wanting to escape the attention of autograph hunters and the media. However, they are constantly followed by a photographer as they search for their true selves and identity.
The second verse discusses the singer's own experience, stating that they have not had an easy life and had to work hard to make it. They condemn those who complain or criticize the industry, as they themselves have struggled to achieve success. The singer finds the fake exits and false intellectuals tiresome and mocks those who quit the scene but quickly return with a new look and sound. They emphasize that it is better to laugh at these situations and not take them too seriously.
In the final verse, the lyrics address those individuals who are fickle and quick to jump onto new trends. The singer suggests that they deserve a kick in the rear for their behavior. They mockingly mention phrases like "je pars" (I'm leaving), "j'en peux plus" (I can't take it anymore), and "les coucou c'est re-moi" (hello, it's me again). The lyrics urge them not to make a fuss about staying or leaving, and emphasize that turning the page can happen later. The singer concludes by stating that they will not say their goodbyes unless they change with age, suggesting that they will continue on their own path, unaffected by the trends and challenges.
Overall, "Ne me quitte pas" is a reflection on the notion of retirement and escape from the pressures of fame, poking fun at those who seek these alternatives and expressing a determination to forge ahead despite challenges and criticism.
Line by Line Meaning
J’en connais qui prétendent à l’année sabbatique
I know some who claim to take a sabbatical year
Seuls et loin de la foule au Pôle ou au Tibet
Alone and far from the crowd, at the Pole or in Tibet
Qui font main sur le front des confessions publiques
Who put their hand on their forehead for public confessions
Jouant les mal-dans-leur-peau, allergiques au succès
Playing the troubled ones, allergic to success
Ils veulent oublier les chasseurs d’autographes
They want to forget the autograph hunters
Échapper aux médias, sauver leur vie privée
Escape from the media, save their private life
Mais suivis comme une ombre par un photographe
But followed like a shadow by a photographer
Dans leur quête du moi et leur identité
In their search for self and identity
Très tôt ils parlent de retraite
Very early on, they talk about retirement
On les prendrait presque au sérieux
They would almost be taken seriously
Mais quant à moi la chose est nette
But as for me, the matter is clear
Croyez-moi je ne ferai pas mes adieux
Believe me, I will not bid farewell
N’ayant pas pris la vie avec le vent en poupe
Not having taken life with the wind in their sails
La voie m’étant barrée il m’a fallu l’ouvrir
The path being blocked for me, I had to open it
Je me garderai donc de cracher dans la soupe
So I will refrain from badmouthing
J’ai eu bien trop de mal à la faire bouillir
I had too much trouble boiling it
Moi les fausses sorties me pompent l’oxygène
False exits drain my oxygen
Les faux intellectuels doucement rigoler
The fake intellectuals quietly laugh
On compte sur la main ceux qu’ont quitté la scène
We count on one hand those who have left the stage
Les autres le public leur a repris les clefs
The audience took the keys from the others
Sincèrement mieux vaut en rire
Honestly, it's better to laugh about it
Regardez-moi droit dans les yeux
Look me straight in the eyes
Quoi que l’on puisse écrire ou dire
No matter what is written or said
Quant à moi je ne ferai pas mes adieux
As for me, I will not bid farewell
Ces petites natures ermites du dimanche
These small hermit-like natures on Sundays
Champions du « je sais tout » qui s’écoutent parler
Champions of 'I know everything' who listen to themselves speak
Quand le chiffre de leur vente de disques flanche
When the number of their record sales drops
Sans un mea culpa foncent dans la mêlée
Without any mea culpa, they rush into the fray
Avouez que des coups de pied au cul se perdent
Admit that kicks in the ass go to waste
Les, « je pars », « j’en peux plus », « les coucou c’est re-moi »
The 'I'm leaving,' 'I can't take it anymore,' 'hello, it's me again'
Avec un nouveau look, un nouveau son, et merde
With a new look, a new sound, and damn it
Tu restes ou tu t’en vas, mais t’en fais pas un plat
You stay or you leave, but don't make a fuss
Quand il faudra tourner la page
When it's time to turn the page
Pour le moment y a pas le feu
For the moment, there's no rush
Je préviendrai mon entourage
I will let my entourage know
Toutefois je ne ferai pas mes adieux
However, I will not bid farewell
À moins que je change avec l’âge
Unless I change with age
Je ne ferai pas mes adieux
I will not bid farewell
Lyrics © EDITIONS MUSICALES DJANIK, Peermusic Publishing
Written by: Charles AZNAVOUR
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind