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.
c'est comme ça
Jacques Brel Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Les filles qui vont chercher l'eau
À tire larigot
Les filles font la file, gentilles
Et tout en parlant tout haut
Les filles font la file, gentilles
Et tout en parlant tout haut
Du feu et de l'eau
C'est comme ça depuis que le monde tourne
Y a rien à faire pour y changer
C'est comme ça depuis que le monde tourne
Et il vaut mieux pas y toucher
Près des filles, il y a les garçons
Les longs, les minces et les gras
Qui rigolent tout bas
Les noirs, les rouges et les blonds
Qui parlent de leur papa
Les noirs, les rouges et les blonds
Qui parlent de leur papa
Et les yeux doux Isa
Près des garçons, il y a les papas
Qui ont l'air grave et sévère
Et qui sentent la bière
Ils crient pour n'importe quoi
Et sortent le soir par derrière
Ils crient pour n'importe quoi
Et sortent le soir par derrière
Pour jouer au poker
C'est comme ça depuis que le monde tourne
Y a rien à faire pour y changer
C'est comme ça depuis que le monde tourne
Et il vaut mieux pas y toucher
Dans les cafés, il y a les copains
Et tous les verres qu'on boit, avide
Y a aussi les verres vides
Et les copains qu'on aime bien
Vous font rentrer à l'aube livide
Et les copains qu'on aime bien
Vous font rentrer à l'aube livide
Toutes les poches vides
Près des copains, il y a la ville
La ville immense et inutile
Où je m'fais de la bile
La ville avec ses plaisirs vils
Qui pue l'essence d'automobiles
La ville avec ses plaisirs vils
Qui pue l'essence d'automobiles
Ou la guerre civile
C'est comme ça depuis que le monde tourne
Y a rien à faire pour y changer
C'est comme ça depuis que le monde tourne
Et il vaut mieux pas y toucher
Près de la ville, il y a la campagne
Où les filles brunes ou blondes
Dansent à la ronde
Et par la plaine, par la montagne
Laissons-les fermer la ronde
Et par la plaine, par la montagne
Laissons-les fermer la ronde
Les braves gens du monde
C'est comme ça depuis que le monde tourne
Y a rien à faire pour y changer
C'est comme ça depuis que le monde tourne
Et il vaut mieux pas y toucher
Et il vaut mieux pas y toucher
Et il vaut mieux pas y toucher
The song "C'est Comme Ça" by Jacques Brel is a commentary on the way things are in the world, highlighting the differences between the people who live in the countryside and those in the city. The first stanza focuses on the girls in the countryside who go to get water, speak loudly and are friendly to one another. The second stanza discusses the boys in the countryside who speak of their father, and the fathers themselves who are stern and serious, often seen leaving to play poker in the evening. The third stanza takes us to the city where we see the people in the cafes, including the singer's friends who drink until dawn and leave with empty pockets. The fourth stanza returns us to the countryside where the song began, highlighting the joy of the people who live there, dancing and enjoying life.
Overall, the message of the song seems to be that things have been this way for a long time and there's nothing we can do to change it. Instead, we should accept it for what it is and enjoy the simple pleasures of life like dancing with friends in the countryside.
Line by Line Meaning
Dans les campagnes, il y a les filles
In the countryside, there are girls.
Les filles qui vont chercher l'eau
Girls who go to fetch water.
À tire larigot
In abundance.
Les filles font la file, gentilles
Girls form a line, friendly.
Et tout en parlant tout haut
And while speaking loudly.
Du feu et de l'eau
About fire and water.
C'est comme ça depuis que le monde tourne
It's been like that since the world spins.
Y a rien à faire pour y changer
There's nothing to do to change it.
Près des filles, il y a les garçons
Near the girls, there are boys.
Les longs, les minces et les gras
The tall, the thin and the fat.
Qui rigolent tout bas
Who laugh quietly.
Les noirs, les rouges et les blonds
The black, the red and the blonde.
Qui parlent de leur papa
Who talk about their dad.
Et les yeux doux Isa
And sweet-eyed Isa.
Près des garçons, il y a les papas
Near the boys, there are dads.
Qui ont l'air grave et sévère
Who look serious and severe.
Et qui sentent la bière
And smell of beer.
Ils crient pour n'importe quoi
They shout for any reason.
Et sortent le soir par derrière
And go out behind at night.
Pour jouer au poker
To play poker.
Dans les cafés, il y a les copains
In the cafes, there are friends.
Et tous les verres qu'on boit, avide
And all the glasses we drink, eagerly.
Y a aussi les verres vides
There are also empty glasses.
Et les copains qu'on aime bien
And the friends we love.
Vous font rentrer à l'aube livide
Make you come back at dawn, pale.
Toutes les poches vides
All pockets empty.
Près des copains, il y a la ville
Near friends, there's the town.
La ville immense et inutile
The immense and useless town.
Où je m'fais de la bile
Where I worry.
La ville avec ses plaisirs vils
The town with its vile pleasures.
Qui pue l'essence d'automobiles
That smells of car fuel.
Ou la guerre civile
Or the civil war.
Près de la ville, il y a la campagne
Near the town there's the countryside.
Où les filles brunes ou blondes
Where brunette or blonde girls.
Dansent à la ronde
Dance around.
Et par la plaine, par la montagne
And across the plain, across the mountain.
Laissons-les fermer la ronde
Let them close the circle.
Les braves gens du monde
The good people of the world.
Et il vaut mieux pas y toucher
And it's better not to touch it.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Jacques Brel
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Mary M. Brandes
on La Valse à Mille Temps
I love Jacques Brel songs.