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
Solexine et Ganja
Hubert-Félix Thiéfaine Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Pour faire sauter les plombs de la boîte à fausse-donne.
Je cherche un hélico quelque part pour me tirer,
Mais je crois bien que les Martiens m'appellent sur l'interphone
Ganja.
Le blues m'a délatté mais c'est sans importance.
Quand la bière est tirée, il faut finir son pack.
Le blues m'a délatté et je trinque en silence.
Ganja.
Et je traîne dans la galerie en grillant mes traumas.
J'en veux à la première qui m'a laissé tomber
Et je traîne dans cette galerie où ma mère me chanta
No love today, bébé, my milk is gone away.
Ganja.
J'ai mon capteur qui sonne et mes pieds qui s'enfoncent.
J'oublie toujours le nom de ces villes où je suis né.
J'ai mon capteur qui sonne et j'ai le cÅâ ur qui bronze.
J'ai fini par fumer ma carte d'identité.
Ganja.
Ma tête a éclaté d'un retour de manigoince.
Moi je voulais bourlinguer sur cumulo-nimbus.
Ma tête a éclaté. Bonjour l'homo sapiens.
Si t'as peur de te mouiller retourne à ton foetus.
Ganja.
Je suis dans l'atelier de Hieronymus Bosch
Avec les yeux drapés de lapis-lazuli.
Je suis dans cet atelier mais il faut que je décroche.
Les anges font des cauchemars au fond du paradis.
Ganja.
Les sergents-recruteurs me demandent au parloir
Avec des mégaphones pour compter les élus.
Les sergents-recruteurs me jouent le jour de gloire
Mais moi je suis mongolien chromosomes inconnus.
Ganja.
The song Solexine et Ganja by Hubert-Felix Thiéfaine tells the story of a man who is searching for a release from the monotony of his life. He references a helicopter, which he wants to use as an escape from his surroundings. He talks about his disillusionment with his job and relationships, and how he feels that the Martians are calling him over the intercom. The singer turns to drugs to numb himself and deal with the pain - specifically, Ganja.
The lyrics paint a picture of a man who is lost and disconnected from the world around him. He talks about feeling disconnected from his past and having trouble remembering details of his own life. He references the painting style of Hieronymous Bosch, famous for his grotesque and macabre depictions of the afterlife, as a way of describing his own inner turmoil. Overall, the song suggests a sense of desperation and a desire for escape and release from the pressures of reality.
Overall, the song is a commentary on the state of modern life and its impact on the individual. It speaks to feelings of alienation and disillusionment with the world around us. Through its use of vivid and often surreal imagery, the song portrays the struggles of the singer and others like him who seek to escape their mundane lives through whatever means they have at their disposal.
Line by Line Meaning
Je cherche un hélico pour me déconnecter,
I am searching for a helicopter to disconnect from reality
Pour faire sauter les plombs de la boîte à fausse-donne.
To blow up the circuit breaker of false pretenses
Je cherche un hélico quelque part pour me tirer,
I am looking for a helicopter somewhere to escape
Mais je crois bien que les Martiens m'appellent sur l'interphone
But I think that Martians are calling me on the intercom
Le blues m'a délatté mais c'est sans importance.
The blues has defeated me, but it doesn't matter
Quand la bière est tirée, il faut finir son pack.
When the beer is poured, the entire pack must be finished
Le blues m'a délatté et je trinque en silence.
The blues has defeated me, and I drink in silence
Je fais de l'autocombustion tout seul dans mon half-track.
I am self-immolating alone in my half-track
Et je traîne dans la galerie en grillant mes traumas.
I linger in the gallery while roasting my traumas
J'en veux à la première qui m'a laissé tomber
I am angry at the first person who let me down
Et je traîne dans cette galerie où ma mère me chanta
And I linger in this gallery where my mother sang to me
No love today, bébé, my milk is gone away.
No love today, baby, my nurturing is no longer present
J'ai mon capteur qui sonne et mes pieds qui s'enfoncent.
My alarm is ringing and my feet are sinking
J'oublie toujours le nom de ces villes où je suis né.
I always forget the names of the cities where I was born
J'ai mon capteur qui sonne et j'ai le cŽur qui bronze.
My alarm is ringing, and my heart is tanned
J'ai fini par fumer ma carte d'identité.
I ended up smoking my own identity card
Ma tête a éclaté d'un retour de manigoince.
My head is exploding with a return of confusion
Moi je voulais bourlinguer sur cumulo-nimbus.
I wanted to travel on a cumulo-nimbus cloud
Ma tête a éclaté. Bonjour l'homo sapiens.
My head has exploded. Hello, Homo Sapiens.
Si t'as peur de te mouiller retourne à ton foetus.
If you're afraid of getting wet, go back to your fetus.
Je suis dans l'atelier de Hieronymus Bosch
I am in the workshop of Hieronymus Bosch
Avec les yeux drapés de lapis-lazuli.
With eyes draped in lapis lazuli
Je suis dans cet atelier mais il faut que je décroche.
I am in this workshop, but I need to disconnect
Les anges font des cauchemars au fond du paradis.
The angels have nightmares at the bottom of paradise
Les sergents-recruteurs me demandent au parloir
The recruiting sergeants ask for me at the visitor's area
Avec des mégaphones pour compter les élus.
With megaphones to count the chosen ones
Les sergents-recruteurs me jouent le jour de gloire
The recruiting sergeants play me the day of glory
Mais moi je suis mongolien chromosomes inconnus.
But I am Mongolian with unknown chromosomes
Contributed by Aubrey I. Suggest a correction in the comments below.