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.
De nuttelozen van de nacht
Jacques Brel Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Ze ontbijten met een kleintje bier
Ze gaan uit omdat er thuis niets wacht
De nuttelozen van de nacht
Zij gedraagt zich arrogant omdat ze mooie borsten heeft
Hij is zeker en charmant omdat Papa hem centen geeft
Hun onmacht is hun hoogste macht
De nuttelozen van de nacht
Kom dans met mij
Vriendin, kom hier, vriendin, kom hier, kom Hier, nee, nee blijf!
Kom dans met mij, laat ons dansen lijf aan lijf
Ze braken zonder ziek te zijn
Ze braken zacht en zonder pijn
Ze nemen zich bedroefd de nacht
De nuttelozen van de nacht
Ze bespreken zonder end
De poezie die geen van hen kent
De romans die geen van hen schreef
De vrouw die bij geen van hen bleef
De grap waarom geen van hen om lacht
De nuttelozen van de nacht
Kom dans met mij
Vriendin, kom hier, vriendin, kom hier, kom hier, nee, nee blijf!
Kom dans met mij, laat ons dansen lijf aan lijf
In de liefde zijn ze zo berooid
'T Was, 't was, ze was zo zacht
Ze was, ach, dat begrijp u nooit
De nuttelozen van de nacht
Ze nemen nog een laatste glas
Vertellen nog een laatste grap
En met een allerlaatste glas
De laatste dans
De laatste stap
Het laatste verdriet
De laatste klacht
De nuttelozen van de nacht
Kom, kom, kom huil met mij
Vriendin, kom hier, vriendin, kom hier, kom hier, nee blijf
Kom, kom huil met mij
Laat ons huilen lijf aan lijf
De nuttelozen van de nacht
The lyrics of Jacques Brel's song "De Nuttelozen Van De Nacht" (The Night's Useless) describe a group of people who wake up at four in the morning, have a small beer for breakfast, and spend their nights on the town because there is nothing waiting for them at home. They are the "nuttelozen," the useless ones, who find their power in their weakness and insignificance. The singer paints a picture of a woman who behaves arrogantly because she has beautiful breasts and a man who is confident and charming because his father gives him money. However, their real strength comes from their shared emptiness, from being unimportant to the world. The nuttelozen discuss poetry and novels, which they have never written, and the woman who left them all. They are impoverished in love and life, finding solace only in their late-night gathering and meaningless conversations.
The refrain of the song is an invitation to dance and embrace, to forgo loneliness and find comfort in each other's company. The final stanza is a lament, an acknowledgment that the night and their gathering will come to an end. They will have one last drink, one last laugh, one last dance, and then they will return to their solitary lives until the next night.
Line by Line Meaning
Ze ontwaken om een uur om vier
They wake up at one o'clock in the morning
Ze ontbijten met een kleintje bier
They breakfast with a small beer
Ze gaan uit omdat er thuis niets wacht
They go out because nothing awaits them at home
De nuttelozen van de nacht
The useless ones of the night
Zij gedraagt zich arrogant omdat ze mooie borsten heeft
She behaves arrogantly because she has beautiful breasts
Hij is zeker en charmant omdat Papa hem centen geeft
He is confident and charming because Daddy gives him money
Hun onmacht is hun hoogste macht
Their powerlessness is their greatest strength
De nuttelozen van de nacht
The useless ones of the night
Kom dans met mij
Come dance with me
Vriendin, kom hier, vriendin, kom hier, kom Hier, nee, nee blijf!
Girlfriend, come here, girlfriend, come here, come here, no, no stay!
Laat ons dansen lijf aan lijf
Let's dance body to body
Ze braken zonder ziek te zijn
They threw up without being sick
Ze braken zacht en zonder pijn
They threw up softly and without pain
Ze nemen zich bedroefd de nacht
They take the night with sadness
De nuttelozen van de nacht
The useless ones of the night
Ze bespreken zonder end
They discuss endlessly
De poezie die geen van hen kent
The poetry that none of them knows
De romans die geen van hen schreef
The novels that none of them wrote
De vrouw die bij geen van hen bleef
The woman who did not stay with any of them
De grap waarom geen van hen om lacht
The joke that none of them laughs at
De nuttelozen van de nacht
The useless ones of the night
Kom dans met mij
Come dance with me
Vriendin, kom hier, vriendin, kom hier, kom hier, nee, nee blijf!
Girlfriend, come here, girlfriend, come here, come here, no, no stay!
Laat ons dansen lijf aan lijf
Let's dance body to body
In de liefde zijn ze zo berooid
In love, they are so impoverished
'T Was, 't was, ze was zo zacht
It was, it was, she was so gentle
Ze was, ach, dat begrijp u nooit
She was, ah, you will never understand
De nuttelozen van de nacht
The useless ones of the night
Ze nemen nog een laatste glas
They take one last glass
Vertellen nog een laatste grap
Tell one last joke
En met een allerlaatste glas
And with a final glass
De laatste dans
The last dance
De laatste stap
The last step
Het laatste verdriet
The last sadness
De laatste klacht
The last complaint
De nuttelozen van de nacht
The useless ones of the night
Kom, kom, kom huil met mij
Come, come, come cry with me
Vriendin, kom hier, vriendin, kom hier, kom hier, nee blijf
Girlfriend, come here, girlfriend, come here, come here, no stay
Laat ons huilen lijf aan lijf
Let's cry body to body
De nuttelozen van de nacht
The useless ones of the night
Lyrics © Peermusic Publishing, LES NOUVELLES EDITIONS MERIDIAN
Written by: Francois Rauber, Jacques Brel
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
1+1 hosted by Youri Smouter (sometimes Yuri)
this song is the story of my life growing up in belgium, holland, and spending time in europe. literally about a quarter of the people I've met in my life are captured in this song so brilliantly. genius song by brel
Lyric Rogers
This takes me back to 7th grade, when I started becoming a Breliever (Brelievers are what I call the Jacques Brel fanbase) :)
Victor1930
Did you do the video? Can it be finished? It kind of loses it at the end. When and where did JB record this? Seems to be obscure. I've been aware of Brel for decades and never heard of this song. Is there a story behind it? Regardless, thanks for posting. I love it!
ZAOUWV
Iedereen kent toch wel deze types uit de kroeg . 😂👍
Victor1930
Well, thanks for your reply and for reposting. It's just great!
Victor1930
Outrageous! Pavlovs, give us some info about this, please!!
PavlovsStepson
@Victor1930 No, I didn't make it, and it's not my translation. It was on YouTube a long time ago, and I downloaded it to my iPhone. Then it disappeared for some reason, so I posted the copy I had. The song is from the Ces Gens Là album, and is a Flemish version of Les paumés du petit matin.
товарищдодо привет
merci beaucoup
dank u
thank you
walendxweg
09 mars 2023 🧩⭕🖐
PavlovsStepson
What would you like to know?