Jacques Brel (8 April 1929 – 9 October 1978) was a Belgian singer and songw… Read Full Bio ↴Jacques Brel (8 April 1929 – 9 October 1978) was a Belgian singer and songwriter who composed and performed literate, thoughtful, and theatrical songs that generated a large, devoted following in Belgium and France initially, and later throughout the world. He was widely considered a master of the modern chanson. Although he recorded most of his songs in French, he became a major influence on English-speaking songwriters and performers such as David Bowie, Alex Harvey, Leonard Cohen, Marc Almond and Rod McKuen. English translations of his songs were recorded by many top performers in the United States, including Ray Charles, Judy Collins, John Denver, the Kingston Trio, Nina Simone, Frank Sinatra, Scott Walker, and Andy Williams. In French-speaking countries, Brel was also a successful actor, appearing in ten films. He also directed two films, one of which, Le Far West, was nominated for the Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival in 1973. Jacques Brel has sold over 25 million records worldwide, and is the third best-selling Belgian recording artist of all time.

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.

Funeral Tango
Jacques Brel Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Ils ouvrent mes armoires
Ils tâtent mes faïences
Ils fouillent mes tiroirs
Se régalant d'avance
De mes lettres d'amour
Enrubannées par deux
Qu'ils liront près du feu
En riant aux éclats
Ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah

Ah, je les vois déjà
Compassés et frileux
Suivant comme des artistes
Mon costume de bois
Ils se poussent du cœur
Pour être le plus triste
Ils se poussent du bras
Pour être le premier
Z'ont amené des vieilles
Qui ne me connaissaient plus
Z'ont amené des enfants
Qui ne me connaissaient pas
Pensent au prix des fleurs
Et trouvent indécent
De ne pas mourir au printemps
Quand on aime le lilas
Ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah

Ah, je les vois déjà
Tous mes chers faux amis
Souriant sous le poids
Du devoir accompli
Ah, je te vois déjà
Trop triste, trop à l'aise
Protégeant sous le drap
Tes larmes lyonnaises
Tu ne sais même pas
Sortant de mon cimetière
Que tu entres en ton enfer
Quand s'accroche à ton bras
Le bras de ton quelconque
Le bras de ton dernier
Qui te fera pleurer
Bien autrement que moi
Ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah

Ah, je me vois déjà
M'installant à jamais
Bien au triste, bien au froid
Dans mon champ d'osselets
Ah, je me vois déjà
Je me vois tout au bout
De ce voyage-là
D'où l'on revient de tout
Je vois déjà tout ça
Et l'on a le brave culot
D'oser me demander
De n'plus boire que de l'eau
De n'plus trousser les filles
De mettre d'l'argent d'côté
D'aimer l'filet d'maquereau

Et d'crier, "Vive le roi!"
Ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah

Overall Meaning

The lyrics to Jacques Brel's song Tango Funèbre paint a vivid picture of the funeral of the singer. They imagine their friends and acquaintances gathering around, covering them in kisses, and asking questions about death and the state of the singer's body. The friends rummage through the singer's belongings and take pleasure in reading their love letters. The scene is one of people going through the motions of a funeral, but not truly grieving or showing genuine emotion. The singer imagines their loved ones crying for someone else in the future, and feels resigned to their fate of being buried in a cold cemetery. The lyrics have a sense of bitterness and resignation to them, and suggest a sense of detachment and feeling forgotten.

One interpretation of the song is that it is a commentary on the superficiality of funerals and mourners. The singer seems to be aware of the performative nature of mourning and the hypocrisy of their friends who are only concerned with appearance and social expectations. The song can also be seen as an expression of the singer's acceptance of death and their own mortality. Despite the bitterness expressed in the lyrics, there is also a sense of inevitability and finality that suggests a peaceful acceptance of death.

Line by Line Meaning

Ah, je les vois déjà Me couvrant de baisers Et s'arrachant mes mains Et demandant tout bas "Est-ce que la mort s'en vient? Est-ce que la mort s'en va? Est-ce qu'il est encore chaud? Est-ce qu'il est déjà froid?" Ils ouvrent mes armoires Ils tâtent mes faïences Ils fouillent mes tiroirs Se régalant d'avance De mes lettres d'amour Enrubannées par deux Qu'ils liront près du feu En riant aux éclats Ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah
Jacques Brel imagines his loved ones arriving at his funeral ceremony, showering him with kisses and taking his hands, while whispering their worries of death's arrival and departure, and whether he still feels warm or cold. They begin to open his cabinets, touch his pottery, search his drawers, reveling in the anticipation of finding his love letters, which they will read and laugh about by the fire.

Ah, je les vois déjà Compassés et frileux Suivant comme des artistes Mon costume de bois Ils se poussent du cœur Pour être le plus triste Ils se poussent du bras Pour être le premier Z'ont amené des vieilles Qui ne me connaissaient plus Z'ont amené des enfants Qui ne me connaissaient pas Pensent au prix des fleurs Et trouvent indécent De ne pas mourir au printemps Quand on aime le lilas Ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah
Brel envisions his mourners, who arrive stiff and cold, mimicking artists with their wooden attire. They push themselves to appear the saddest and try to be the first to approach his grave. They bring old acquaintances who no longer know him and children who never knew him. They are mostly concerned with the cost of flowers and find it improper not to die in the spring when they love lilacs.

Ah, je les vois déjà Tous mes chers faux amis Souriant sous le poids Du devoir accompli Ah, je te vois déjà Trop triste, trop à l'aise Protégeant sous le drap Tes larmes lyonnaises Tu ne sais même pas Sortant de mon cimetière Que tu entres en ton enfer Quand s'accroche à ton bras Le bras de ton quelconque Le bras de ton dernier Qui te fera pleurer Bien autrement que moi Ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah
Brel pictures his deceiving friends smiling under the weight of fulfilling their duty, while he sees one of his closest friends, who is too sad yet too relaxed, hiding his tears of sorrow. He warns him that he doesn't realize he is entering his own personal hell, once he leaves Brel's cemetery, with the arm of an insignificant person or his last one, who will make him cry much harder than Brel ever did.

Ah, je me vois déjà M'installant à jamais Bien au triste, bien au froid Dans mon champ d'osselets Ah, je me vois déjà Je me vois tout au bout De ce voyage-là D'où l'on revient de tout Je vois déjà tout ça Et l'on a le brave culot D'oser me demander De n'plus boire que de l'eau De n'plus trousser les filles De mettre d'l'argent d'côté D'aimer l'filet d'maquereau Et d'crier, "Vive le roi!" Ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah
Brel sees himself settling forever into his bleak and cold field of bones. He envisions himself at the end of his journey back from where nobody comes back. He already knows what is going to happen, and yet people have the nerve to ask him to stop drinking, stop seducing ladies, save money, eat only mackerel, and shout, "Long live the king!"

Lyrics © Warner/Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: MORT SHUMAN, JACQUES ROMAN BREL, ERIC BLAU

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind

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