Hallyday's father, Léon Smet (1908–1989), was Belgian; his mother, Huguette Clerc (1920–2007), was French. Born in Paris, Hallyday took his stage name from his aunt Desta's husband and dance partner Lee Hallyday, a pseudonym for Lee Ketcham, an expatriate Oklahoman, performer, and MC at the Café de Paris where Johnny began his singing career. Johnny was raised by Desta and Lee from a very young age, with Lee being his first manager. Johnny was always very loyal to Lee and secured him a permanent job as a producer and A&R man with his label, Philips Records until Lee's retirement and relocation back to Oklahoma.
His debut single, "Laisse les filles" was released on the Vogue label in March 1960. His first album, Hello Johnny, was released in 1960. In 1961 his cover of "Let's Twist Again" sold over one million copies, and was awarded a gold disc. It topped almost every European chart, although the track did not appear in the UK Singles Chart. He appeared on the American The Ed Sullivan Show with American singing star Connie Francis in a show that was taped at the Moulin Rouge nightclub in Paris. He also staged many appearances in the Paris Olympia under the management of the late Bruno Coquatrix. For their first concert, The Jimi Hendrix Experience opened for Johnny Hallyday in Évreux on 13 October 1966. Black-and-white footage, also from October 1966, exists of Hallyday partying with Hendrix, his manager Chas Chandler and others. There also is a widely published monochrome photograph of Hallyday walking somewhere in Paris in late May 1966 with Bob Dylan.
At the end of the 1960s, Hallyday made a string of albums with Mick Jones and Tommy Brown as musical directors, and Big Jim Sullivan, Bobby Graham and Jimmy Page as session musicians. These are Jeune Homme, Rivière... Ouvre ton Lit (a.k.a. Je suis né dans la rue) and Vie. On Je suis né dans la rue, Hallyday also hired both Peter Frampton and the Small Faces. Amongst their contributions are the songs Amen (Bang Bang), Reclamation (News Report), and Regarde Pour Moi (What You Will), which are variations of Small Faces and Humble Pie (Frampton's band) songs—tracks and they all play on the album. Often forgotten is Hallyday's non-LP single and EP track Que Je T'aime from the same sessions. By 1969 alone, his sales of records exceeded twelve million.
One of Hallyday's later concerts, 100% Johnny: Live à La Tour Eiffel in 2000, attracted an audience of 500,000 and 9.5 million television viewers (the show was broadcast live on French TV). In December 2005, Hallyday had his third number-one single in France, "Mon Plus Beau Noël" (after "Tous ensemble" and "Marie"), dedicated to his adopted daughter Jade. Shortly before announcing his retirement from touring, he released a blues-flavored album, Le Cœur d'un homme, on 12 November 2007. The album hit No. 1 in both France and French-speaking Belgium. In addition to the lead single "Always", Le Cœur d'un homme features "T'aimer si mal", a duet with bluesman Taj Mahal and "I Am the Blues", an English-language song written for Hallyday by U2's lead singer Bono. His next album, Ça ne finira jamais, released in 2008, another No. 1 on the French album chart, and its lead single, "Ça n'finira jamais", also reached No. 1. In 2008 he recorded a series of acoustic songs with French musician Drexl Jonez. Hallyday's most recent album, also a No. 1 hit in France, is Tour 66: Stade de France 2009, a live set recorded at Stade de France during his farewell tour with appearances by Drexl Jonez on the guitar.
French movie producers Michèle and Laurent Pétin introduced Johnny Hallyday to Hong Kong film director Johnnie To. Hallyday was cast as the main role of To's Vengeance after meeting with the director in early 2008. The shooting began in November 2008 and concluded in February 2009.
He was married for 15 years to popular Bulgarian-French singer Sylvie Vartan and the two were considered a "golden couple" for 20 years.
Hallyday completed 181 tours, had 18 platinum albums, and sold more than 110 million records worldwide, making him one of the world's best-selling artists of all time.
Hallyday remains largely unknown outside the Francophone world, thus earning the nickname "the biggest rock star you've never heard of" in English-speaking countries.
On December 5th, 2017 Hallyday died, at age 74, in Marnes-la-Coquette, France.
J'Oublierai Ton Nom
Johnny Hallyday Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
De secondes immobiles aux aiguilles qui penchent
J'oublierai ton nom
De quatre nouveaux murs dans un autre quartier
De pinceaux de peinture en meubles à installer
J'oublierai ton nom
De quelques nuits de feu aux matinées de cendres
De cette agitation dénuée de tout sens
Du fond de ma raison jusqu'à mon inconscience
De la main d'un ami au baiser d'une bouche
Tous ceux qui sauront lire que le mal a fait mouche
J'oublierai ton nom
J'oublierai ton nom
De mille façons
Et cette certitude, me fait plus mal encore
J'aimais cette blessure, c'était toi encore
I know it's been tough, I've hurt you enough
But you'll never see that I must be free
Forget my name
You'll find someone, somewhere, all your troubles to share
She'll wipe out the past and free you at last
Forget my name
All the good and the bad times we've ever had
Will seem so far away, and no longer sad
There's hundreds of ways to kill away the time
That's how you are made, you know you'll never be mine
De la main d'un ami au baiser d'une bouche
Tous ceux qui sauront lire que le mal a fait mouche
J'oublierai ton nom
J'oublierai ton nom
De mille façons
Et cette certitude me fait plus mal encore
J'aimais cette blessure, c'était toi encore
J'oublierai ton nom
De mille façons
Pour les mêmes raisons qui m'ont fait t'aimer
Parce qu'il fallait bien vivre avant d'oublier
J'oublierai ton nom
De mille façons
Et cette certitude m'est la pire des morts
J'aimais cette blessure, c'était toi encore
J'oublierai ton nom
The lyrics to Johnny Hallyday and Carmel's song J'oublierai ton nom express the sentiments of a heartbroken individual who is trying to move on from a past love. They describe the futile attempts to forget their ex-partner's name and the pain that comes with accepting that the memories they shared are no longer relevant. He talks about the passing of time and how he hopes it will eventually help him forget the person he once loved.
The lyrics mention the different ways the singer tries to distract himself from his pain, such as moving to a new house or immersing himself in dance, but ultimately he cannot escape the memories of his past relationship. He acknowledges that it's been tough and that he hurt his ex-partner, but ultimately he must be free from the relationship in order to heal.
Throughout the song, there is a sense of resignation and sadness that comes with letting go of someone you once loved. However, the lyrics express a desire to move forward and find a way to live life without the weight of past heartbreak holding the singer back.
Line by Line Meaning
De semaines inutiles en futiles dimanches
From useless weeks to futile Sundays
De secondes immobiles aux aiguilles qui penchent
From still seconds to leaning hands of time
J'oublierai ton nom
I'll forget your name
De quatre nouveaux murs dans un autre quartier
From four new walls in another neighborhood
De pinceaux de peinture en meubles à installer
From paint brushes to furniture to install
J'oublierai ton nom
I'll forget your name
De la piste suante à la dernière danse
From sweaty dance floors to the last dance
De quelques nuits de feu aux matinées de cendres
From a few fiery nights to ashen mornings
De cette agitation dénuée de tout sens
From this senseless commotion
Du fond de ma raison jusqu'à mon inconscience
From the depths of my reason to my unconsciousness
De la main d'un ami au baiser d'une bouche
From a friend's hand to a lover's kiss
Tous ceux qui sauront lire que le mal a fait mouche
All those who can read that the evil has struck
J'oublierai ton nom
I'll forget your name
J'oublierai ton nom
I'll forget your name
De mille façons
In a thousand ways
Et cette certitude, me fait plus mal encore
And this certainty hurts me even more
J'aimais cette blessure, c'était toi encore
I loved this wound, it was still you
I know it's been tough, I've hurt you enough
I know it's been difficult, I've hurt you too much
But you'll never see that I must be free
But you'll never understand that I have to be free
Forget my name
Forget my name
You'll find someone, somewhere, all your troubles to share
You'll find someone, somewhere, to share all your troubles with
She'll wipe out the past and free you at last
She'll erase the past and finally free you
All the good and the bad times we've ever had
All the good and bad times we've had together
Will seem so far away, and no longer sad
Will seem distant and no longer cause sadness
There's hundreds of ways to kill away the time
There are countless ways to pass the time
That's how you are made, you know you'll never be mine
That's who you are, and you'll never be mine
J'oublierai ton nom
I'll forget your name
De mille façons
In a thousand ways
Pour les mêmes raisons qui m'ont fait t'aimer
For the same reasons that made me love you
Parce qu'il fallait bien vivre avant d'oublier
Because I had to live before forgetting
J'oublierai ton nom
I'll forget your name
De mille façons
In a thousand ways
Et cette certitude m'est la pire des morts
And this certainty is the worst kind of death for me
J'aimais cette blessure, c'était toi encore
I loved this wound, it was still you
J'oublierai ton nom
I'll forget your name
Lyrics © Peermusic Publishing, JRG MUSICALES
Written by: Jean-Jacques Goldman, Michael-Bernard Jones
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@papispot
1986, à Libreville pour le tournage de ce clip (tourné à Mouanda à la Comilog en brousse), Johnny et son crew ont mis le feu à la vie nocturne de Libreville... Un sacré bon vivant... Il résidait à l'hôtel Dialogue, nous, gamins on trainer dans le hall pour le voir et se faire embarquer pour une virée... Certains des copains ont même fini des nuits dans sa suite à vider le bar avec des impros musique improbables... On en a parlé longuement de son passage au Gabon...
@gersendemouele4119
C'est vrai en plus 🥰
@sandrinerouveyrol6227
Gabon for ever
@ameliebeziers2660
Un écorché vif cette homme...un homme entier un homme vrai...
@tracnard6943
Beau recit
@lude0306
Ça a été tourné à Mounana, quand on y exploitait de l'uranium
@martinegroschtern4024
Moi à 76 ans je l’écoute encore tout les jours ♥️
@fredhominal5029
Martine.. tu as très bon goût ! . 👏
@daisoudriggs4199
Moi aussi!
@Netibous-by9ye
Magnifique clip, à l'époque c'était un film, on voyait le talent de Johnny pour tourner et son sourire ravageur. Repose en paix légende.