Born in Paris, France to a poor and dysfunctional family, Marguerite Boulc'h was a child left to a life on the streets in the dark side of Paris. In her teens she got a break when she met one of the female music-hall performers who heard her sing and introduced her to show business promoters. She began performing under the stage name "Pervenche" and soon met and married Robert Hollard, a performer who used the nom de guerre "Roberty." Alcohol entered her life at an early age and her drinking became a problem for her husband. Their marriage did not last long and Boulc'h's husband left her for the Parisian singer, Damia. Fréhel then began a relationship with Maurice Chevalier but that too did not last long and after he left her for the much older megastar Mistinguett, the distraught girl, still only 19 years old, attempted suicide.
Following her failed suicide attempt, in 1911 Marguerite Boulc'h tried to escape her pain and travelled to Bucharest, Romania and then to Russia where she remained for more than ten years. Lost in a world of alcohol and drugs, she returned to Paris in 1923 to a shocked public that saw the wasted shadow of the singer they had known and loved. She then signalled a new beginning by switching to the stage name "Fréhel", taking the name from Cap Fréhel in Brittany where her parents had been born. Singing as Fréhel, at the Paris Olympia in 1924 she recaptured the former magic with a powerful performance and was soon headlining at the most popular venues in the country. Part of what is now referred to as the bal musette, Fréhel often sang accompanied by pipes and/or an accordion player.
In the 1930s, she appeared in several motion pictures, almost always portraying a singer in a minor or supporting role. The most notable films in which she performed were 1931's De Coeur des Lilas, based on the Tristan Bernard play, and Pépé le Moko that starred Jean Gabin. While her alcohol abuse continued, she nevertheless was a major show business force of 1930s France. Of all her songs, her 1939 "La Java Bleue", with music by Vincent Scotto, proved her most popular.
Despite being one of Europe's most sought after performers, her destructive addictions led to her dropping out of sight for years. She never found the love she had sought for so long and died in 1951, a wretched drunk, alone in a hotel in Pigalle. She was interred in the Cimetière de Pantin, near Paris.
Her 1934 recording "Si tu n'étais pas là" was featured in the 2001 soundtrack for the film Le Fabuleux Destin d'Amélie Poulain (Amélie).
Some of Fréhel's best known songs:
* "Comme un moineau" (1925)
* "Où est-il donc? " (1926)
* "À la dérive" (1932)
* "Où sont tous mes amants" (1935)
* "Tel qu'il est" (1936)
* "La der des der" (1939)
* "La java bleue" (1939)
Films:
* De Coeur des Lilas (1931)
* La Rue sans nom (1934)
* Le roman d'un tricheur (1936)
* Pépé le Moko (1937)
* L'Innocent (1937)
* La Rue sans joie (1938)
Ohé! Les copains
Fréhel Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Venez-vous rincer la gueule
Ce soir, je suis toute seule
Il est mort ce matin!
Ça fait rudement longtemps
Qu'on était tous les deux
Moi, j'avais dix-huit ans
Il m'a tout fait quitter
Mon père et puis ma mère
C'était pour me faire gouter
A toutes les misères
Ohé! Les copains!
Venez-vous rincer la gueule
Ce soir je suis toute seule
Il est mort ce matin!
C'était un beau salaud
Qu'en foutait pas une rame
Pour un verre de Pernod
Aurait vendu son âme
Quand il était bien saoul
Il tapait comme une brute
Il connaissait de ces coups
On aurait dit de la lutte
Ohé! Les copains!
Venez-vous rincer la gueule
Ce soir je suis toute seule
Il est mort ce matin!
Des fois il me trompait
Ces choses là, ça m'écœure
Et quand il revenait
Il ronflait 24heures
Pourtant y'avait des jours
Ça c'était une merveille
Il me parlait d'amour
Quand je rapportais ma paye
Ohé! Les copains!
Venez-vous rincer la gueule
Ce soir je suis toute seule
Il est mort ce matin!
Mais je ne sais pas ce qu'il y'a
C'est pourtant pas normal
Rien que de parler de tout ça
J'ai le cœur qui me fait mal
Ça c'est vraiment marrant
Y'a quelque chose qui cloche
C'est quand j'ai eu 20 ans
Qu'il m'a donné cette broche
Allez les copains!
Ce soir je suis toute seule
Je reverrai plus sa gueule
Il est mort ce matin!
Allez les copains!
Ce soir je suis toute seule
Je reverrai plus sa gueule
Il est mort ce matin!
The lyrics to Fréhel's song "Ohé! Les copains!" tell the story of a woman who is celebrating the death of her abusive partner. She addresses her friends, inviting them to come and "drown their sorrows" with her because she is now alone. She reveals that they had been together for a long time when she was only eighteen and he was twenty-two. He made her leave her parents and subjected her to various forms of misery.
The woman describes her partner as a despicable person who never did any work and would sell his soul for a glass of Pernod (a type of liqueur). When he was drunk, he would become violent, and his acts of aggression were reminiscent of a fight. She reveals that he would cheat on her, which disgusted her, and when he returned, he would sleep for twenty-four hours straight. However, there were moments when he would treat her well and speak of love, especially when she brought home her earnings.
Interestingly, the woman mentions that something feels off. Just talking about everything makes her heart ache. She shares that when she turned twenty, he gave her a brooch, which she finds strange. In the end, she rejoices in the fact that she will never see his face again as he has died.
Overall, the lyrics of "Ohé! Les copains!" depict a complicated and abusive relationship. Though the woman experiences moments of love and tenderness, the majority of the relationship is characterized by violence, deceit, and misery.
Line by Line Meaning
Ohé! Les copains!
Hey! Friends!
Venez-vous rincer la gueule
Come and drown your sorrows
Ce soir, je suis toute seule
Tonight, I am all alone
Il est mort ce matin!
He died this morning!
Ça fait rudement longtemps
It's been a long time
Qu'on était tous les deux
That we were together
Moi, j'avais dix-huit ans
I was eighteen
Et lui dans les vingt-deux
And he was twenty-two
Il m'a tout fait quitter
He made me leave everything
Mon père et puis ma mère
My father and then my mother
C'était pour me faire gouter
It was to make me taste
A toutes les misères
All the miseries
C'était un beau salaud
He was a handsome bastard
Qu'en foutait pas une rame
Who didn't do a damn thing
Pour un verre de Pernod
For a glass of Pernod
Aurait vendu son âme
Would have sold his soul
Quand il était bien saoul
When he was very drunk
Il tapait comme une brute
He hit like a brute
Il connaissait de ces coups
He knew how to hit
On aurait dit de la lutte
It looked like a fight
Des fois il me trompait
Sometimes he cheated on me
Ces choses là, ça m'écœure
Those things disgusted me
Et quand il revenait
And when he came back
Il ronflait 24 heures
He snored for 24 hours
Pourtant y'avait des jours
Yet there were days
Ça c'était une merveille
That were wonderful
Il me parlait d'amour
He talked to me about love
Quand je rapportais ma paye
When I brought home my salary
Mais je ne sais pas ce qu'il y'a
But I don't know what's wrong
C'est pourtant pas normal
It's really not normal
Rien que de parler de tout ça
Just talking about all this
J'ai le cœur qui me fait mal
My heart hurts
Ça c'est vraiment marrant
That's really strange
Y'a quelque chose qui cloche
There's something wrong
C'est quand j'ai eu 20 ans
It's when I turned 20
Qu'il m'a donné cette broche
That he gave me this brooch
Allez les copains!
Come on, friends!
Ce soir je suis toute seule
Tonight I am all alone
Je reverrai plus sa gueule
I will never see his face again
Il est mort ce matin!
He died this morning!
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, BEUSCHER ARPEGE
Written by: MICHEL EMER
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Ombres et Lumières
Unique et incomparable Fréhel...On ne vous oublie pas.
TG
Une rappeuse avant l'heure
Les thèmes de la misère sont intrationnel
Lilimarlene1966
Très belle chanson. Merci.
countrychess
Un chef-d' oeuvre d' humour noir !
majijoy
Qu'elle voix les choses de la vie je la trouve extra ordinaire
Chabaud Mariette
Ah sa gouaille ! Ça fait du bien !
Que c'est drôle en plus !🎶💙 ~`
Juju Verpres
French realistic song from vintage, fascinating répertoire
countrychess
Mon enfance...
l ecaille noire
Un Tresor!!!
elio elio
chefs-d'œuvre§