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.
L'Enfance
Jacques Brel Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Qui peut nous dire quand c'est fini
Qui peut nous dire quand ça commence
C'est rien avec de l'imprudence
C'est tout ce qui n'est pas écrit
L'enfance
Qui nous empêche de la vivre
De vivre à remonter le temps
De déchirer la fin du livre
L'enfance
Qui se dépose sur nos rides
Pour faire de nous de vieux enfants
Nous revoilà jeunes amants
Le cœur est plein, la tête est vide
L'enfance
L'enfance
L'enfance
C'est encore le droit de rêver
Et le droit de rêver encore
Mon père était un chercheur d'or
L'ennui c'est qu'il en a trouvé
L'enfance
Il est midi tous les quarts d'heure
Il est jeudi tous les matins
Les adultes sont déserteurs
Tous les bourgeois sont des Indiens
L'enfance
L'enfance
Si les parents savaient l'enfance
Si les moindres amants savaient
Si par chance ils savaient l'enfance
Il n'y aurait plus d'enfants jamais.
In Jacques Brel’s song “L’enfance,” the French singer and songwriter explores the theme of childhood and the way it shapes us. The first verse ponders the idea of when childhood ends and adulthood begins, reflecting on the fact that childhood is characterized by imprudence and things that are not written down. The second verse laments the fact that we are prevented from reliving our childhoods and from rewinding time, tearing up the end of the book, and starting over again.
The third verse, however, offers a more positive perspective on childhood, claiming that it is something that can still live on within us despite our many wrinkles and the passage of time. Brel suggests that even as adults, we can still rekindle the spirit of childhood and reconnect with the sense of wonder and joy that we experienced as children. The final verses offer a satirical commentary on adult life, pointing out how boring and tedious it can be compared to the endless opportunities for adventure and play that are available to children.
Overall, “L’enfance” is a poignant and thought-provoking song that encourages us to reflect on the role that childhood plays in shaping who we are and who we become as we navigate through the complexities of adult life.
Line by Line Meaning
L'enfance
This is childhood.
Qui peut nous dire quand c’est fini
Who can tell us when it's over?
Qui peut nous dire quand ça commence
Who can tell us when it begins?
C'est rien avec de l'imprudence
It's nothing with imprudence.
C'est tout ce qui n'est pas écrit
It's everything that's not written down.
Qui nous empêche de la vivre
What prevents us from living it?
De la revivre infiniment
To relive it endlessly.
De vivre à remonter le temps
To live by going back in time.
De déchirer la fin du livre
To tear the end of the book.
Qui se dépose sur nos rides
What settles on our wrinkles.
Pour faire de nous de vieux enfants
To turn us into old children.
Nous revoilà jeunes amants
We are young lovers again.
Le cœur est plein, la tête est vide
The heart is full, the head is empty.
L'enfance
This is childhood.
L'enfance
This is childhood.
C'est encore le droit de rêver
It's still the right to dream.
Et le droit de rêver encore
And the right to dream again.
Mon père était un chercheur d'or
My father was a gold miner.
L'ennui c'est qu'il en a trouvé
The problem is that he found it.
Il est midi tous les quarts d'heure
It's noon every quarter hour.
Il est jeudi tous les matins
It's Thursday every morning.
Les adultes sont déserteurs
The adults are deserters.
Tous les bourgeois sont des Indiens
All the middle-class are Indians.
L'enfance
This is childhood.
L'enfance
This is childhood.
Si les parents savaient l'enfance
If the parents knew childhood
Si les moindres amants savaient
If the slightest lovers knew
Si par chance ils savaient l'enfance
If by chance they knew childhood
Il n'y aurait plus d'enfants jamais.
There would be no more children ever.
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Mary M. Brandes
on La Valse à Mille Temps
I love Jacques Brel songs.