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
Psychanalyse du singe
Hubert-Félix Thiéfaine Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Avec la méthode Ogino
Émerveillé par l'art pour l'art
Comme une poule devant un mégot
J'étais déjà un petit barbare
Qui chantait pour sa libido
Et franchement c'est beaucoup plus tard
Que j'appris à être cabot
Mais pour me rendre intéressant
Pour être chanteur populaire
Faut avoir l'esprit de mission
La position du missionnaire
Ca manque pas d'imagination
Et je me jette sous les projos
Avec mon sourire engagé
En me disant vas-y coco
T'as la meilleure place pour draguer
Je ne chante pas pour passer le temps
Mais pour me rendre intéressant
Le jour de ma naissance un éléphant est mort
Et depuis ce jour-là je le porte à mon cou
Je me fais un peu prétentiard
Mais c'est la règle du boulot
Si tu joues pas les vieux ringards
On te prend pour un rigolo
Alors je me montre à la barre
Avec mes triques et mon satio
Pour pas pisser dans ma guitare
En refoulant ma parano
Je ne chante pas pour passer le temps
Mais pour me rendre intéressant
The song "Psychanalyse du Singe" by Hubert-Félix Thiéfaine is a reflection on the experience of being a pop singer. The lyrics express the feeling of being torn between art and entertainment, the desire to be unique and interesting, and the pressures of the music industry. Initially, the singer learned to play guitar through the "Ogino method" which is a reference to a birth control technique. This suggests that he learned to play guitar as a means of self-expression and not necessarily to become a commercial success. As a young man, he was already singing to satisfy his own desires, but he had to learn to play the game of entertainment to become a popular singer.
The chorus of the song, "Je ne chante pas pour passer le temps mais pour me rendre intéressant" translates to "I don't sing to pass the time but to make myself interesting." This line reflects the struggle of the singer to balance his artistic integrity with the need to appeal to a wider public. He acknowledges that to be a popular singer, he needs to have a sense of mission and showmanship. He uses the metaphor of the "position du missionnaire" or the "missionary position" to describe this need to satisfy the audience.
The last stanza introduces an interesting detail, "Le jour de ma naissance un éléphant est mort et depuis ce jour-là je le porte à mon cou" which means "On the day of my birth an elephant died, and since that day I carry it around my neck." This line is a metaphor that can be interpreted in different ways. On one hand, it can be seen as an expression of the artist's burden to create something great and memorable. On the other hand, it can be interpreted as a reference to the concept of the white elephant, meaning an expensive or burdensome possession that is hard to get rid of.
Line by Line Meaning
J'ai appris à jouer la guitare
I have learned how to play the guitar
Avec la méthode Ogino
With the Ogino method
Émerveillé par l'art pour l'art
Enchanted by art for art's sake
Comme une poule devant un mégot
Like a hen in front of a cigarette butt
J'étais déjà un petit barbare
I was already a little barbarian
Qui chantait pour sa libido
Who sang for their libido
Et franchement c'est beaucoup plus tard
And frankly, it was much later
Que j'appris à être cabot
That I learned to be a showoff
Je ne chante pas pour passer le temps
I don't sing to pass the time
Mais pour me rendre intéressant
But to make myself interesting
Pour être chanteur populaire
To be a popular singer
Faut avoir l'esprit de mission
You need to have a sense of mission
La position du missionnaire
The missionary position
Ca manque pas d'imagination
It doesn't lack imagination
Et je me jette sous les projos
And I throw myself under the spotlights
Avec mon sourire engagé
With my committed smile
En me disant vas-y coco
Telling myself, go for it, buddy
T'as la meilleure place pour draguer
You have the best place to flirt
Le jour de ma naissance un éléphant est mort
The day I was born, an elephant died
Et depuis ce jour-là je le porte à mon cou
And since that day, I carry it on my neck
Je me fais un peu prétentiard
I'm acting a bit pretentious
Mais c'est la règle du boulot
But it's the rule of the job
Si tu joues pas les vieux ringards
If you don't play the old farts
On te prend pour un rigolo
They'll take you for a clown
Alors je me montre à la barre
So I show up at the bar
Avec mes triques et mon satio
With my quirks and my satisfaction
Pour pas pisser dans ma guitare
To avoid pissing in my guitar
En refoulant ma parano
By repressing my paranoia
Je ne chante pas pour passer le temps
I don't sing to pass the time
Mais pour me rendre intéressant
But to make myself interesting
Contributed by Madelyn C. Suggest a correction in the comments below.