Brel was born on 8th April 1929 in Schaarbeek, a district of Brussels, and lived half of his life in Paris. He died of lung cancer on 9th October 1978 in Bobigny in the suburbs of Paris, and is buried in the Marquesas Islands.
Although the Brels spoke French, they were of Flemish descent, with some of the family originating from Zandvoorde, near Ieper. Brel's father was co-owner of a cardboard factory and Brel started his professional life at that firm, apparently destined to follow in his father's footsteps. However he had no interest in it, showing instead an interest in the arts, having joined the Catholic-humanist youth organisation Franche Cordée, where he did some singing and acting. At Franche Cordée he met Thérèse Michielsen ('Miche'), and they married in 1950.
In the early 1950s Brel achieved some minor success in Belgium, singing his own songs. A 78rpm record ("La foire"/"Il y a") was released as a result. From 1954 Brel seriously pursued a singing career. He quit his job and moved to Paris, writing music and singing in the city's cabarets and music-halls.. In January 1955 he supported in the Ancienne Belgique in Brussels the performances of the Belgian pop and variety pioneer Bobbejaan Schoepen. After some success his wife and daughters joined him from Belgium. By 1956 he was touring Europe and he recorded the song "Quand on n'a que l'amour", which brought him his first major recognition. He appeared in a show with Maurice Chevalier and Michel Legrand.
By the end of the 1950s Miche and Brel's three daughters moved to Brussels. He and his family led separate lives from then on. Under the influence of his friend Georges Pasquier ('Jojo') and pianists Gérard Jouannest and François Rauber, Brel's style changed. He was no longer a Catholic-humanist troubadour, but sang grimmer songs about love, death, and the struggle that is life. The music became more complex and his themes more diverse, exploring love ("Je t'aime", "Litanies pour un retour"), society ("Les singes", "Les bourgeois", "Jaurès") and spiritual concerns ("Le bon Dieu", "Dites, si c'était vrai", "Fernand"). His work is not limited to one style. He was as proficient in comic compositions ("Le lion", "Comment tuer l'amant de sa femme...") as in more emotional ones ("Voir un ami pleurer", "Fils de...", "Jojo"). He composed and recorded his songs almost exclusively in French, and is widely recognised in French-speaking countries as one of the best French-language composers of all time.
Brel himself occasionally included parts of his songs in Flemish (Dutch), one of the three official languages of Belgium, as in Marieke. He also recorded eight other Flemish versions of songs, such as Mijn vlakke land (Le plat Pays), Laat Me Niet Alleen (Ne me quitte pas), Rosa, De Burgerij (Les Bourgeois), and De Nuttelozen van de Nacht (Les paumés du petit matin). Since his own command of the language was poor, these were translated by Ernst van Altena, renowned translator of French song. Although France was Brel's "spiritual home" and he expressed contradictory statements about his native Belgium, some of his best compositions pay tribute to Belgium.
A very successful theatrical review of his songs, "Jacques Brel is Alive and Living in Paris," was launched in 1968. It featured English translations of his songs, and it was late made into a film.
To English-speaking listeners, Brel's best-known song is probably "Seasons in the Sun," a hit for Terry Jacks in 1973. Its English lyrics are a translation by Rod McKuen of Brel's "Le Moribond."
For twenty years he was a major star gaining recognition beyond French audiences. In 1973 he retreated to French Polynesia, remaining there until 1977 when he returned to Paris and recorded his well-received final album.
A heavy smoker, it was discovered in 1973 that Brel had lung cancer. He died in 1978 and was buried in Calvary Cemetery in Atuona, Hiva Oa, Marquesas Islands, French Polynesia only a few yards away from painter Paul Gauguin.
Au suivant
Jacques Brel Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
J'avais le rouge au front et le savon à la main
Au suivant, au suivant
J'avais juste vingt ans et nous étions cent vingt
A être le suivant de celui qu'on suivait
Au suivant, au suivant
J'avais juste vingt ans et je me déniaisais
Au bordel ambulant d'une armée en campagne
Moi j'aurais bien aimé un peu plus de tendresse
Ou alors un sourire ou bien avoir le temps
Mais au suivant, au suivant
Ce n'fut pas Waterloo mais ce n'fut pas Arcole
Ce fut l'heure où l'on regrette d'avoir manqué l'école
Au suivant, au suivant
Mais je jure que d'entendre cet adjudant d'mes fesses
C'est des coups à vous faire des armées d'impuissants
Au suivant, au suivant
Je jure sur la tête de ma première vérole
Que cette voix depuis je l'entends tout le temps
Au suivant, au suivant
Cette voix qui sentait l'ail et le mauvais alcool
C'est la voix des nations et c'est la voix du sang
Au suivant, au suivant
Et depuis chaque femme à l'heure de succomber
Entre mes bras trop maigres semble me murmurer
"Au suivant, au suivant"
Tous les suivants du monde devraient s'donner la main
Voilà ce que la nuit je crie dans mon délire
Au suivant, au suivant
Et quand je n'délire pas, j'en arrive à me dire
Qu'il est plus humiliant d'être suivi que suivant
Au suivant, au suivant
Un jour je m'ferai cul-de-jatte ou bonne sœur ou pendu
Enfin un d'ces machins où je n'serai jamais plus
Le suivant, le suivant
The lyrics of Jacques Brel's song "Au suivant" describe a young man's experience at a mobile brothel during a military campaign. He is next in line to have sex with a prostitute, with whom he wishes for tenderness or at least a smile. However, his experience is far from ideal and is made worse by the sounds of the sergeant he must obey. This experience leaves a lasting impact on him, and he hears the voice of the sergeant in his head continuously. He even contemplates the feeling of being followed versus following, leading him to despair and consider drastic measures to escape the cycle of being next in line.
The lyrics of "Au suivant" are reflective of Jacques Brel's personal experiences serving in the Belgian military during the 1950s. The song highlights the brutality and dehumanization that soldiers faced during this period. Beyond its historical significance, the song is a powerful commentary on the nature of power dynamics and control. The repeated use of "au suivant" lends a sense of sameness and anonymity to each encounter, stripping the individuals involved of any sense of autonomy. In this way, Brel's song stands as a testament to the potential ugliness of human nature.
Line by Line Meaning
Tout nu dans ma serviette qui me servait de pagne
I was completely naked and only covered barely with a towel
J'avais le rouge au front et le savon à la main
I had a red face and was holding a bar of soap
Au suivant, au suivant
Next, next
J'avais juste vingt ans et nous étions cent vingt
I was only twenty years old and there were 120 of us
A être le suivant de celui qu'on suivait
I was the next in line for the person who was being followed
Au suivant, au suivant
Next, next
J'avais juste vingt ans et je me déniaisais
I was only twenty years old and I was losing my virginity
Au bordel ambulant d'une armée en campagne
In a mobile brothel of an army on campaign
Moi j'aurais bien aimé un peu plus de tendresse
I would have liked a little more tenderness
Ou alors un sourire ou bien avoir le temps
Or perhaps a smile or just some time
Mais au suivant, au suivant
But next, next
Ce n'fut pas Waterloo mais ce n'fut pas Arcole
It wasn't Waterloo, but it wasn't Arcole
Ce fut l'heure où l'on regrette d'avoir manqué l'école
It was the time when you regret not having gone to school
Au suivant, au suivant
Next, next
Mais je jure que d'entendre cet adjudant d'mes fesses
But I swear, hearing that sergeant of my ass
C'est des coups à vous faire des armées d'impuissants
It's enough to make you an army of impotent men
Au suivant, au suivant
Next, next
Je jure sur la tête de ma première vérole
I swear on the head of my first sore
Que cette voix depuis je l'entends tout le temps
That I keep hearing this voice all the time
Au suivant, au suivant
Next, next
Cette voix qui sentait l'ail et le mauvais alcool
This voice that smelled of garlic and bad alcohol
C'est la voix des nations et c'est la voix du sang
It's the voice of nations and it's the voice of blood
Au suivant, au suivant
Next, next
Et depuis chaque femme à l'heure de succomber
And since then, every woman when she's about to succumb
Entre mes bras trop maigres semble me murmurer
Seems to whisper in my thin arms
"Au suivant, au suivant"
"Next, next"
Tous les suivants du monde devraient s'donner la main
All the followers in the world should join hands
Voilà ce que la nuit je crie dans mon délire
That's what I shout in my delirium at night
Au suivant, au suivant
Next, next
Et quand je n'délire pas, j'en arrive à me dire
And when I'm not delirious, I end up telling myself
Qu'il est plus humiliant d'être suivi que suivant
That it's more humiliating to be followed than to be a follower
Au suivant, au suivant
Next, next
Un jour je m'ferai cul-de-jatte ou bonne sœur ou pendu
One day I'll become a cripple or a nun or hang myself
Enfin un d'ces machins où je n'serai jamais plus
Finally one of those things where I'll never be a follower again
Le suivant, le suivant
The follower, the follower
Lyrics © WARNER CHAPPELL MUSIC FRANCE
Written by: Jacques Brel
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Людмила Малюченко
Талантливо, харизматично, трогательно! Браво!
1957PLATO
He really took French lyrics to a whole new level.
Claude Mahaux
Quel talent!
Vincent Damen
Unieke beelden van Jacques Brel ... PRACHTIG !! Mijn ouders hadden al zijn platen, ik kan ze nog steeds dromen ... Nostalgie ten top ! Een grootheid met een bijzonder karakter ... veel te jong overleden ....
TepiLizard
Alright, I admit that my exposure to various languages is somewhat lacking, but when I found that I couldn't quite figure out what the woman at the beginning was speaking, then based on what I could understand, and what I know of Brel, I began wondering - Flemish, perhaps? As best as I could tell, she was perhaps explaining who Brel was & his origins? I heard a mention, among other things, to "La valse a mille temps," so I'm hoping that comes up later in the video. Regardless, I'm relishing this new-to-me content! The things you can find on this site can truly be incredible sometimes. :)
Dimitri Roels
@TepiLizard The beauty of music is that there are no rules to follow. It has no age, religion or any other thing that separates people from eacht other. It connects everybody. I'll give your channel a follow because you made me curious. Keep up the good work!
TepiLizard
@Dimitri Roels Oh wow, THANK YOU! I'm a forty-year-old musician (vocalist) who mostly gravitates towards folk, alternative, and metal, but I was raised on Brel's music, mostly the translations done in by Mort Shuman et al. My parents realized they might have a "problem" when their little three-year-old girl was going around singing "Amsterdam" in random places. I mean, at home, they thought it was adorable that their cute firstborn was singing about whores & pissing, but then I started doing it when we'd be out and about... and, um, they got some weird looks.
Now I'm creating my own music, and Jacques Brel's music figures heavily into the stuff I want to create, as I think I've figured out my niche, as it were - a cappella renditions (not simple translations, but my own interpretations) of older music. My YouTube page has some 50-odd songs done in the last two years while I try to figure things out, but in the last few months, I haven't been releasing my experiments. I'll be going "live" in January, with "Amsterdam" being one of the pieces I'll do first, along with a cappella covers of Breaking Benjamin, Jefferson Airplane, Joni Mitchell, Metallica, Andrea Bocelli, more by Brel... kinda anyone and any song I like, I want to put my own spin on it and see what I can do with just my voice. :)
Anyway, thank you for answering my question, and also for the translation! I really appreciate it!
Dimitri Roels
It actually is in flemish, my native language. She starts by wishing everyone a warm welcome. She tells that Brel got most of his succes in France when he moved to Paris to show the world his songs but it was in Belgium, where he was from, he got discovered on a regional radio. She also mentions that it wasn't his first choice to sing but rather to write songs for others. He was a revelation for the belgian people. And then she says that he didn't want to bring a message to the people but just want to talk about normal things in life. I hope I made it a bit more clear for you! Enjoy! Brel is timeless since I am a thirty year old metalhead enjoying every word he sings.
TepiLizard
@Philippe Renaud Ahhhh... oddly, it never occurred to me to look it up. I've known that part of Marieke was in Flemish for, well, as long as I can remember, and I never stopped to look up what it "really was," as it were. Thank you for the reply!
Philippe Renaud
Dutch... Flemish is a variant...