Claude François’ mother was very musical and had her son take piano and violin lessons. On his own, the boy learned to play the drums. As a result of the 1956 Suez Crisis, the family returned to live in Monaco, where they struggled financially after Claude’s father fell ill and could not work. A young Claude found a job as a bank clerk and at night earned extra money playing drums with an orchestra at the luxury hotels along the French Riviera. With a good but untested singing voice, he was offered a chance to sing at a hotel in the fashionable Mediterranean resort town of Juan-les-Pins. His show was well received and eventually he began to perform at the glamorous night-clubs along the Côte d’Azur. While working the clubs, he met Janet Woolcoot, an English dancer whom he married in 1960.
Ambitious, Claude François moved to Paris, where there were many more opportunities to pursue his career. At the time, American Rock and Roll was taking hold in France and he took a job as part of a singing group in order to make a living. With the goal of eventually making it as a solo act, he paid the cost to record a 45rpm. Trying to capitalize on the American dance craze « The Twist », Claude François recorded a song titled « Nabout Twist » that proved a resounding failure. Undaunted, in 1962 he recorded a cover version in French of an Everly Brothers song, « Made to Love » (aka Girls Girls Girls). Written by Phil Everly, it had been only a minor hit in America, but Claude François’ rendition titled « Belles Belles Belles » rocked to the top of the French charts, selling close to two million copies and making him an overnight star.
Under a new manager, Claude François’ career continued to blossom. In 1963 he followed the first success with another French adaptation of an American song. This time, doing Trini Lopez’s « If I Had a Hammer » in French as « Si j’avais un marteau ». Claude François met Michel Bourdais who was working for the well-known French magazine “Salut les Copains” in English as « Hi Buddies ». He liked the rigor and the precision of Michel’s drawings and asked him to draw his portrait. This drawing has remained very famous until now. Capitalizing on his blond good looks, he mimicked Elvis Presley’s stage style as well as the slicked-back hair. Performing in sequined suits, François gave high-energy stage performances that had hordes of adoring teenage fans racing to the music shops to purchase his latest record or lining up to buy a ticket for his shows.
In 1964 he headlined at the Paris Olympia, a sign that he had arrived. At the end of that year Claude François created original new dance steps and Michel Bourdais drew them. For the first time, they brought up the idea of setting-up a show with female dancers. In January 1965, while returning from a trip to Las Vegas, Claude Francois fascinated by the American shows decided to take them as a model and eventually the project of performing on the stage with a female dancer band became clear in his mind.
A dedicated professional, Claude François worked hard to achieve success producing a string of massively popular hit songs and touring constantly. With the onslaught of Beatlemania, he covered their hits in French, adjusted the hair style a little and kept his success moving ahead. But his talent extended beyond copying the works others had made famous, and he wrote songs for himself and displayed a melodic voice doing romantic ballads.
In 1966, François created a complete new stage act using four female dancers as backup. Named « Les Clodettes, » the sexy girls danced in the background while François did his own energetic work center stage. In a return to the Paris Olympia he added eight musicians and a full orchestra to his backup dancers, putting on a spectacular show that filled every seat in the large theater and left fans standing in the street for lack of tickets.
Divorced from his wife, in 1967 he began a relationship with France Gall, another famous French singer. Their affair was short lived and he soon met Isabelle Forêt, with whom he had two sons in two years. Flushed with enormous success and confidence, he established his own record company. In 1968, he and Jacques Revaux wrote a song in French called Comme d’habitude, which became a hit in francophone countries. The song was inspired by his recent break-up with France Gall. Canadian singing star Paul Anka reworked it for the English-speaking public into the now legendary hit most famously sung by Elvis Presley and Frank Sinatra as « My Way ». Although Claude François continued his successful formula of adapting English and American rock and roll hits for the French market, by the 1970s the market had changed and the disco craze that swept North America took root in France. For the versatile François, this was not a problem. He simply re-invented himself as the king of French disco, recording « La plus belle des choses, » a French version of a Bee Gees hit record.
He worked non-stop, touring across Europe, Africa and at major venues in Quebec in Canada. However, his workload caught up with him in 1971 when he collapsed on stage from exhaustion. After a brief period off, he returned to the recording studios, releasing several best-selling hits throughout the early 1970s. He expanded from owning his own record company to acquiring a celebrity magazine and a modeling agency. Although driven to achieve financial success, in 1974 he organized a concert to raise funds for a charity for handicapped children and the following year he participated in a Paris concert to raise funds for medical research. By the mid-1970s he was single again, dating several well-known European stars. He continued to perform while overseeing his numerous business interests. In 1975, while in London, he narrowly escaped death when an IRA bomb exploded and two years later a fan tried to shoot him. In 1977 and 1978, more than 15 years after his first hit record, he was still topping the musical charts with multi-million sales from hits such as « Alexandrie Alexandra » and performing to large audiences.
After working in Switzerland, on Saturday, March 11, 1978 he returned to his Paris apartment in order to appear the next day on « Rendez-vous du Dimanche » with TV host Michel Drucker. His demise was caused by his obsession with cleanliness and order. He was accidentally electrocuted when he tried to fix a broken light bulb while standing in a filled bathtub. At only 39 years of age, his early death brought a wave of public sympathy for a national French star.
Claude François owned a home near the village of Dannemois in the Essonne departement about 35 miles south of Paris. It was a place where he liked to escape to relax in the quiet countryside and it was there that he was interred in the local cemetery.
On March 11, 2000, on the 22nd anniversary of his death, Place Claude-François in Paris was named in his memory, right in front of the building where he died.
In 2004 the movie 'Podium' was released. It's a story about a Claude François impersonator (played by Benoît Poelvoorde).
His hits include Alexandrie, Alexandra; Cette Année-la; Je vais à Rio.
Y'A Le Printemps Qui Chante
Claude François Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Que tu n'as pas vu un peuplier
Une fleur des champs ?
Si tu as quelques chagrins
Pour les oublier il y a toujours une gare, un train
Change de ciel, viens voir la terre,
Voir le soleil et les rivières
Viens à la maison y a le printemps qui chante
Viens à la maison tous les oiseaux t'attendent
Les pommiers sont en fleurs
Ils berceront ton cœur
Toi qui es tout en pleurs
Ne reste pas dans la ville
Viens à la maison y a le printemps qui chante
Viens à la maison tous les oiseaux t'attendent
Près des grands étangs bleus
Et dans les chemins creux
On ira tous les deux oublier ce rêve facile.
Le premier vent du matin sera ton ami
Quand tu iras t'asseoir au jardin
Et puis le temps passera et tu me diras
Tout mon passé il est loin déjà
Tu ouvriras une fenêtre
Un beau matin, tu vas renaître
The lyrics of Claude François's "Y'a le printemps qui chante" invite the listener to take a break from their everyday routine and enjoy the beauty of nature in the springtime. The opening verse asks the listener how long it has been since they last saw a poplar tree or a wildflower, implying that they've been too busy or preoccupied with other things to appreciate the outdoors. The catchy chorus urges the listener to come to Claude's house, where the birds are singing and the apple trees are in bloom. The song promises that the fresh air and sunshine will soothe their troubles and make them feel better.
The second verse paints a vivid picture of the joys of spring, describing the blue ponds and winding paths that the listener and Claude can explore together. The song suggests that the simple pleasures of nature can heal a broken heart and help one forget their sorrows. The final verse imagines the listener sitting in a garden, enjoying the morning breeze and feeling renewed by the passing of time. The song ends with the optimistic message that the future holds hope and new beginnings.
Overall, "Y'a le printemps qui chante" is a cheerful ode to the rejuvenating power of spring and the restorative effects of nature. The lyrics encourage the listener to take a break from their troubles and find solace in the simple pleasures of life.
Line by Line Meaning
Dis, ça fait combien de temps
When was the last time you saw a poplar tree or a wildflower?
Que tu n'as pas vu un peuplier
When was the last time you saw a poplar tree?
Une fleur des champs ?
When was the last time you saw a wildflower?
Si tu as quelques chagrins
If you have any sorrows
Pour les oublier il y a toujours une gare, un train
To forget them, there's always a train station and a train
Change de ciel, viens voir la terre,
Change your surroundings, come see the world
Voir le soleil et les rivières
See the sun and the rivers
{Refrain:}
Viens à la maison y a le printemps qui chante
Come to my house, it's springtime and the birds are singing
Viens à la maison tous les oiseaux t'attendent
Come to my house, all the birds are waiting for you
Les pommiers sont en fleurs
The apple trees are blooming
Ils berceront ton cœur
They'll soothe your heart
Toi qui es tout en pleurs
You who are all in tears
Ne reste pas dans la ville
Don't stay in the city
Près des grands étangs bleus
Near the big blue ponds
Et dans les chemins creux
And in the hollow paths
On ira tous les deux oublier ce rêve facile.
We'll both go and forget this simple dream.
Le premier vent du matin sera ton ami
The first morning breeze will be your friend
Quand tu iras t'asseoir au jardin
When you sit in the garden
Et puis le temps passera et tu me diras
And then time will pass by, and you'll tell me
Tout mon passé il est loin déjà
That all my past is already far away
Tu ouvriras une fenêtre
You'll open a window
Un beau matin, tu vas renaître
One beautiful morning, you'll be reborn
Contributed by Muhammad B. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Andre035
Chanson qui apporte la joie de vivre, gaité et senteur des fleurs du printemps. Claude le savait et nous le partager dans cette magnifique chanson. Gràce a toi Cloclo, le printemps est plus que magnifique.
Iwona Ewa Bruzda
przyznaje sie ze wstydem ze nie znalam jego piosenek tu znalazlam i podoba mi sie 💌
Lacsika
Ça fait déjà 50 ans. C'est fou !!!
Itan Cesar
❤J adore mister chante❤
Bernadette Gustin
Premier jour du printemps aujourd’hui. Cette chanson j’y ai pensé dès ce matin. Merci Claude
Mr Voila
J'adore ❤️
Daniel étoile
Sacre Cloclo, il apporté les belles couleurs de la vie.
renee Samnick
😊 très bien Claude François
🎉😊
Maria Parente
Toujours superbe clo clo et royal tes l artiste sublime une star qui devient. Immortel à tout jamais merci pour tout ce que tu fait pour nous merci ❤❤❤
kamel kadim
jadore cette chanson