Mostly shunned by television and radio, he has built through word of mouth and frequent touring a considerable following over the years, which allowed him to fill the 17,000-seater Palais Omnisport de Bercy for an anniversary concert in 1998. In recent years he has been increasingly name-dropped as an influence by the latest generation of performers in France, and was the subject of a tribute album of covers in 2002. He has been performing since the late 1960s and releasing records since 1978.
His parents sent him to a catholic boarding school. He spent few years there, where being singled out by his schoolmates started to be interested in great poets (such as Rimbaud) and writers. The catholic education he received will leave its mark on him. He became nonconformist; he wrote blasphemous lyrics, such as "Au nom du Pere, au nom du vice, au nom des rades et des mégots" (In the name of the Father, in the name of vice, in the name of the cafés and the (cigarette) butts), made biblical and latin references in "Femme de Loth" and many others. Musically, H-FT draws mostly from classic rock, with rare nods to the latest musical trends, and generally leaves the arranging to a collaborator. But his songs are most notable for instantly recognisable lyrics, with their trademarks streams of consciousness, surreal and often extreme or dark imagery, often tinged with comedy, cynicism, literary references, neologisms and liberal use of scientific, long or foreign words. The lyrical mayhem sometimes spreads into comically long song titles, such as Enfermé dans les cabinets (avec la fille mineure des 80 chasseurs), or Exercice de simple provocation avec 33 fois le mot « coupable ».
His avowed influences include Léo Ferré, Lou Reed, and many French, Anglo-saxon and German novelists and poets, with a preference for romantic litterature.
Discography
* 1978 - Tout corps vivant branché sur le secteur étant appelé à s'émouvoir
* 1979 - Autorisation de délirer
* 1980 - De l'amour, de l'art ou du cochon
* 1981 - Dernières balises (avant mutation)
* 1982 - Soleil cherche futur
* 1983 - En concert - live (double album)
* 1984 - Alambic/sortie-sud
* 1986 - En concert vol.2 - live
* 1986 - Météo für nada
* 1988 - Eros über alles
* 1988 - 1978-1983 - compilation
* 1988 - Routes 88 - live
* 1989 - 1984-1988 - compilation
* 1990 - Chroniques bluesymentales
* 1993 - Fragments d'hébétude
* 1995 - Paris-Zénith - live (double album)
* 1996 - La tentation du bonheur
* 1998 - Le bonheur de la tentation
* 1998 - 1978-1998 - compilation
* 1999 - En Concert A Bercy - live (double album)
* 2001 - Défloration 13
* 2002 - Au Bataclan - live
* 2005 - Scandale mélancolique
Copyright apéro mundi
Hubert-Félix Thiéfaine Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Fin d'après-midi
Joie monotone
Et mélancolie
Soleil indigo
Dans le fond d'ce bar
Où tu te scotches à l'eau
Sur Ainsley Dunbar
Été indien
Le foie dans les burnes
A peine t'en reviens
Que déjà t'y returnes
Mémoire en fusion
Sur ce tabouret
Où t'oublies ton nom
Sur du blues anglais
2721e cuite
2721e cuite
Ca s'arrose !
Lueurs d'octobre
Barmaid affranchie
Tu es presque sobre
Devant ton whisky
Tu restes en stand-by
Loin des faux-amis
Sur le copyright
Apéro mundi
2721e cuite
2721e cuite
Ca s'arrose !
The lyrics of Hubert-Félix Thiéfaine's song Copyright apéro mundi paint a picture of the bittersweet moments of solitude, self-reflection, and escapism that can be found in a dingy bar. The singer is reminiscing on a series of experiences in such an atmosphere; the autumnal light filtering through the window, the monotonous but melancholy joy that comes with drinking alone, the fading indigo light, and the feeling of being stuck in one place, like they do on the stool, listening to Ainsley Dunbar's music. The singer also recounts the joys and pains of excessive drinking and the memories it brings, although these memories are fleeting, as the euphoria of inebriation is quickly followed by the desire to repeat the process.
Throughout the song, the singer is depicted as someone who is lost in thought and disconnected from the world around them. They are surrounded by other people in the bar, but they are not truly present, preferring to indulge in their own memories and feelings. The refrain "2721e cuite, ca s'arrose!" (2721st drunk, let's celebrate!) serves as a reminder of how they use alcohol as a way to escape from reality.
Line by Line Meaning
Lumière d'automne
The fall light
Fin d'après-midi
End of the afternoon
Joie monotone
Monotonous joy
Et mélancolie
And melancholy
Soleil indigo
Indigo sun
Dans le fond d'ce bar
In the back of this bar
Où tu te scotches à l'eau
Where you stick to water
Sur Ainsley Dunbar
On Ainsley Dunbar
Été indien
Indian summer
Le foie dans les burnes
The liver in the burner
A peine t'en reviens
You barely come back from it
Que déjà t'y returnes
And you're already going back
Mémoire en fusion
Memory in fusion
Sur ce tabouret
On this stool
Où t'oublies ton nom
Where you forget your name
Sur du blues anglais
On some English blues
2721e cuite
2721st drunk
2721e cuite
2721st drunk
Ca s'arrose !
Let's drink to it!
Lueurs d'octobre
October lights
Barmaid affranchie
Liberated barmaid
Tu es presque sobre
You're almost sober
Devant ton whisky
In front of your whiskey
Tu restes en stand-by
You remain in standby
Loin des faux-amis
Far from fake friends
Sur le copyright
On the copyright
Apéro mundi
World drinks
2721e cuite
2721st drunk
2721e cuite
2721st drunk
Ca s'arrose !
Let's drink to it!
Contributed by Logan H. Suggest a correction in the comments below.