Jacques Brel

In January 1953, Brel performed at the cabaret La Rose Noire in Brussels. In February he signed a contract with Philips Records and recorded his first 78 rpm record, "Il Y A", which was released in March.[20][21] The talent scout and artistic director at the record company, Jacques Canetti, invited him to move to Paris. Despite his family's objections and the added pressure of raising a second daughter, France, born on 12 July,[9] he left Brussels for Paris in the autumn of 1953.[1] In Paris Brel worked hard to get his career off the ground. He stayed at the Hotel Stevens and gave guitar lessons to artist-dancer Francesco Frediani to pay his rent. He found work on the cabaret circuit at venues such as L'Écluse, L'Échelle de Jacob, and in Jacques Canetti's cabaret Les Trois Baudets.[1]

In 1954 Brel participated in the music contest Grand Prix de la Chanson in Knokke-le-Zoute, finishing a disappointing 27th out of 28 participants. One positive result of the experience was that the French star Juliette Gréco requested to sing one of Brel's songs, "Le diable (Ça va)" (The devil (It's OK)), at her up-and-coming concert at the prestigious Olympia music-hall.[1] She went on to record the song that spring.[12] In July 1954, Brel made his first appearance at the prestigious Olympia Theatre in Paris. Later that summer, he embarked on his first French tour, appearing on the bill with French singers Dario Moreno, Philippe Clay, and Catherine Sauvage.[1] By the end of the year, Philips released his debut album, a nine-song, 10-inch LP called Jacques Brel et ses Chansons ("Jacques Brel and His Songs").[2]

Jacques Brel, 1955

In February 1955, Brel met Georges "Jojo" Pasquier, who would become the singer's closest friend, manager, and personal chauffeur. He began singing with a number of Christian associations, which later led to his nickname of Abbé ("Abbot") Brel.[1] In March Brel's wife and children joined him in France and the family settled in the Paris suburb of Montreuil-sous-Bois at the rue du Moulin à vent. In June he toured France again with Canetti's show Les Filles de Papa, which included Françoise Dorin, Perrette Souplex, and Suzanne Gabriello.[12]

In March 1956, Brel performed in North Africa, Amsterdam, Lausanne, and throughout Belgium.[9] In July, while visiting Grenoble, he met François Rauber, a classical pianist who would become his accompanist on future recordings. Rauber played a major role in providing Brel with the formal musical training he was lacking and was responsible for Brel's musical arrangements.[1] In September Brel recorded "Quand on n'a que l'amour" ("When You Only Have Love"), which would prove to be his commercial breakthrough. The song was released in November on a Philips 7-inch EP Quand on n'a que l'amour. The song reached number three on the French music charts.[2]

In February 1957, Brel performed at the Alhambra Theatre with Maurice Chevalier, Michel Legrand, and ballet dancer Zizi Jeanmaire. In April he released his second studio album, Quand on n'a que l'amour, which contained the popular title song.[1][9] The album was recorded at the Théâtre de l'Apollo in Paris, with André Popp and Michel Legrand conducting.[22] In June he won the prestigious Grand Prix du Disque from the Académie Charles Cros. In September he appeared on the bill in the Discorama programme Au Palace d'Avignon with Raymond Devos, Pierre-Jean Vaillard, and Les Trois Ménestrels. In November he met Gérard Jouannest, another talented pianist, who would accompany the singer on his many concert tours. Brel and Jouannest would also collaborate on many of Brel's future classic songs, such as "Madeleine", "La Chanson des vieux amants" ("Song of the old lovers"), and "Les Vieux" ("The old folks").[9]

In February 1958, Brel's wife Miche and their two children returned to live in Belgium, while Brel rented a room near Place de Clichy in Paris—a place to stay on those rare occasions when he was not touring. In March and April, he recorded his third album, Au Printemps ("In the spring"), which would be released later that year. In May, while touring Canada for the first time, he met Félix Leclerc. On 23 August, his third daughter, Isabelle, was born back in Belgium. In November he gave a recital at the Halles d'Arlon in Belgian Luxembourg with Stéphane Steeman. In December Brel appeared at the Olympia in Paris as the supporting act to Philippe Clay. The pianist Gérard Jouannest and François Rauber joined Brel on stage for this performance.[9] Brel's incredibly emotional performance brought the house down.[1]

In January 1959, Brel signed a new recording contract with Philips Records. He continued to tour extensively throughout the year. On 22 February, he performed at the Bolivie Gala in the Solvay Casino in Couillet. In March he starred at the Trois Baudets with Serge Gainsbourg. In September he recorded his fourth album, La Valse à Mille Temps (The thousand-beat waltz), with François Rauber and his orchestra. On 14 October, he appeared at the Eden in Mouscron with Raymond Devos. On 20 November, he sang with Charles Aznavour at the Ancienne Belgique in Brussels.[12] By the end of the decade, he had gained an impressive and enthusiastic following across France. He was so popular that he was invited to headline the end-of-year concert at the renowned Bobino in Paris. The concert was an enormous success. During these appearances, he stopped accompanying himself on the guitar to concentrate entirely on his increasingly theatrical vocal performances.[1]

Jacques Brel, 1963

In January 1960, Brel's new impresario, Charles Marouani, organised a series of international concert tours for the singer that would take him from the French provinces to the then Soviet Union, the Middle East, Canada, and the United States. From 19 to 24 March, he appeared at the Ancienne Belgique in Brussels. On 19 October, he performed at Shepheard's Hotel in Cairo. The year's concert tours brought him international recognition and popularity.[1][12] His appearances initiated the first United States release of a Jacques Brel recording, American Début, released on Columbia Records. It was a compilation of previously-released Philips tracks.[2]

In January 1961, Brel made a triumphant return to the Bobino. By now, the accordionist Jean Corti had joined his touring group. Between 22 February and 12 April, he recorded his fifth album for Philips simply titled No. 5, which introduced the future Brel classics "Marieke" and "Le Moribond" (The dying man).[1] In March he toured Canada again. In Montreal he met French actress and singer Clairette Oddera at her club on the rue Saint-Jacques. They would become good friends. While in Montreal, he appeared with Raymond Devos at La Comédie Canadienne.[9] In May Brel performed at the Kurhaus of Scheveningen in The Hague in the Netherlands. From 12 to 29 October, he returned to the Olympia music hall in Paris with star billing, after Marlene Dietrich cancelled at the last minute. Many critics point to these inspired performances as the turning point in his career. The audiences responded with rapturous applause and the critics proclaimed him as the new star of French chanson.[1]

In March 1962, Brel left Philips Records and signed a five-year contract with Barclay Records. The contract was to be renewed in 1967 for another six years. His first album release for his new label was a live album, Enregistrement Public à l'Olympia 1961, recorded the previous year.[2] On 6 March, he recorded his first song for Barclay, "Le plat Pays" (The flat country). During the second week of March, he recorded the remaining tracks for his sixth studio album, Les Bourgeois (The bourgeois). In addition to the title song and "Le plat Pays", the new album contained the future Brel classics "Madeleine", "Les Biches" (The does), and "La Statue" (The statue).[23] In October, Brel set up his own music publishing company, Arlequin, which was soon renamed Éditions Musicales Pouchenel. Brel's wife Miche was appointed company director.[1] In November he recorded "Les Bigotes", "Quand Maman reviendra" (When mother returns), "Les Filles et les chiens" (Girls and dogs), and "La Parlote" (The gossip) as singles.[12]

Jacques Brel, 1963

In April 1963, Brel performed again at the Bobino in Paris. In July he headlined at the Casino in Knokke for the fifth Coupe d'Europe de Tour de Chant. During this engagement, he performed the classic "Mathilde" for the first time.[12] He also returned for another triumphant engagement at the Olympia in Paris, performing with Isabelle Aubret, who was the support act. Once again, his performance was a critical and artistic success, with the audience leaping up from their seats in a standing ovation following his emotional rendering of "Amsterdam".[12]

The year 1964 brought a mix of personal tragedies and professional triumphs. On 8 January, Brel's father, Romain, died of bronchial pneumonia. Only two months later, on 7 March, his mother Élisabeth (nicknamed Mouky) also died. At the same time, he was given the Gold Medal of Brussels from the Tourist Information Bureau and won a prize from the Société d’Auteurs Belge/Belgische Auteurs Maatschappij (SABAM). He was also awarded the French Academy's Grand Prix du Disque. He continued his ambitious touring schedule. By the end of the year, he released a new live album, Enregistrement Public à l'Olympia 1964.[1] That year, he discovered a new passion, aviation. After taking flying lessons with Paul Lepanse, he purchased a small plane.[24] In the United States, his audience was growing. American poet and singer Rod McKuen began translating Brel's songs into English, and the Kingston Trio recorded one of his English versions on their Time to Think album, "Seasons in the Sun", based on Brel's "Le Moribond" (The dying man).[2]

In 1965 Reprise Records licensed tracks from Barclay for a United States album titled Jacques Brel.[2] On 25 March, he performed at the Kurhaus of Scheveningen in the Netherlands. In October he completed a successful five-week tour of the Soviet Union, which included a week's engagement at the Estrada Theatre in Moscow. On 6 November, he was back in France, recording the songs "Fernand", "Les Désespérés" (The despaired), and "Ces gens-là" (These people) for Barclay. On 4 December, he appeared at the prestigious Carnegie Hall in New York City. His performance was received with high public and critical acclaim.[1]

Jacques Brel, 1963

By 1966 Brel had grown increasingly weary of his grueling concert schedules. In April he toured Djibouti, Madagascar, Reunion Island, and Mauritius. On 21 August, while on tour in Vittel, he revealed to his musicians his decision to retire from touring.[24] In subsequent public statements, Brel stated that he had nothing more to give to the music world and that he wanted to devote more time to other projects.[1] In October 1966, he gave a series of farewell concerts at the Olympia in Paris. Thousands of devoted fans flocked to see these final performances, which took place over the course of three weeks. On 1 November, he gave his final concert at the Olympia. After a highly emotional and stunning performance, the audience's standing ovations prompted him to return to the stage seven times for his final bows.[1] He spent the next six months fulfilling his concert commitments. On 15 November, he gave his farewell performance at the Palais des Beaux-Arts in Brussels. Later that month, he gave his final UK performance at the Royal Albert Hall in London. During these last months of his world tour, many of his close friends, including Charles Aznavour, urged him to reconsider his decision to retire from singing, but he was adamant about his decision.[1] On 4 December, he returned to Carnegie Hall in New York City and gave inspired performances before enthusiastic fans. By then, several English recordings of his songs were on the charts, including Damita Jo's "If You Go Away" (based on "Ne me quitte pas"), Judy Collins' "The Dove" (based on "La Colombe"), and Glenn Yarbrough's "The Women" (based on "Les Biches").[2]

In January 1967, Brel finished recording songs for a new studio album, Jacques Brel 67, which was released later in the year. The album included "Mon Enfance" (My childhood), "Fils de..." (Sons of...), "Les bonbons 67" (The candies 67), and "La Chanson des vieux amants" (Song of the old lovers).[23] In late January, he returned to Carnegie Hall and gave one final performance. While in New York, he went to see Man of La Mancha, a musical based on Miguel de Cervantes' novel Don Quixote, at the ANTA Washington Square Theatre in Greenwich Village. Moved by the experience, he began planning a French language production of the musical for Europe. He returned to France in the spring and, on 16 May 1967, he gave his final concert performance in Roubaix in northern France.[1][2] Toward the end of the year, with vague plans of sailing around the world, Brel purchased a yacht.[24]

Jacques Brel, 1971

Following his retirement from the concert stage, Brel's professional life focused on film. He would record only four more studio albums in the last decade of his life. In September 1968, he recorded the songs for the album, J'arrive (I'm coming), which was released later in the year. In addition to the title song, the album included "Vesoul", "Je suis un soir d'été" (I am a summer's evening), and "Un Enfant" (A child). In October 1968, his musical L'Homme de La Mancha (Man of La Mancha) premièred in Brussels, with Brel playing Don Quixote and Dario Moreno playing Sancho Panza. Moreno would die tragically only ten days before the musical's Paris première.[1] From 23 to 27 November, Brel and his fellow cast-members recorded the studio album L'Homme de la Mancha. He adapted the book, translated the lyrics, directed the production, and played the lead role. This was the only time he ever adapted songs by other writers or appeared in a stage musical. The album contains his classic performance of "La Quête" (The quest). Moreno was replaced by Robert Manuel, and the first performance at the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées in Paris went ahead as planned on 11 December 1968.[25] Brel's performance received unanimous praise. After 150 performances of L'Homme de La Mancha, he gave his final performance in the role of Don Quixote on 17 May 1969. He was never replaced.[1]

In March 1970 Brel gave a one-off performance at the Salle Pleyel in Paris. Unusually this did not involve singing but instead recitation. In the first half of the performance he recited Sergei Prokoviev's famous story, 'Peter and the Wolf'. In the second half he told the tale of Jean de Brunhoff's 'Babar the Elephant'.

In 1972 Brel signed a special 30-year contract with Barclay Records. Although there were no new songs to record, Barclay persuaded him to return to the studio to re-record 11 of the better-known songs he cut for Philips Records during the early years of his music career. The result was the album Ne me quitte pas (Don't leave me), which contained the title track, "Marieke", "Les Flamandes" (Flemish women), "Quand on n'a que l'amour" (When you only have love), "Les Biches" (The does), "Le Moribond" (The dying man), "La Valse à mille temps" (The waltz in thousand time), and "Je ne sais pas" (I don't know). His earlier youthful energy was now lovingly harnessed by his long-time colleagues, arranger François Rauber and pianist Gerard Jouannest.[1][26]

Brel himself occasionally included parts of his songs in Dutch, one of the three official languages of Belgium, as in "Marieke". He also recorded eight other Dutch 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"). Brel also recorded two obscure singles in Dutch, "De apen" ("Les Singes") and "Men vergeet niets" ("On n'oublie rien"), which were included in the 16-CD box set Boîte à Bonbons by Barclay. So far unreleased is the song "Als men niets dan liefde heeft" ("Quand on n’a que l’amour").[42] "Marieke" was translated by Brel himself.[43][44] Since his own command of Dutch was poor, most of Brel's later Dutch interpretations were translated by Ernst van Altena, with Brel's cooperation, and are generally considered to be relatively true to the original French and poetic. "De Apen" was translated by Eric Franssen. "Men vergeet niets" was translated by well known Flemish artist Will Ferdy. Popular singers from the Netherlands singing Brel's songs in Dutch have been Liesbeth List, Jan Mesdag and Jeroen Willems.

English versions of Jacques Brel songs have been recorded by a wide variety of artists. Rod McKuen was one of the first American artists to discover and translate Brel's songs. Canadian Terry Jacks' version of "Seasons in the Sun" (based on Brel's "Le Moribond") became a global pop hit in 1974, topping the charts internationally. "Seasons in the Sun" has seen its own renditions recorded by artists ranging from the Beach Boys to Nirvana.[45] McKuen and Brel formed a close friendship. McKuen later wrote, "When news of Jacques' death came, I stayed locked in my bedroom and drank for a week."[46]

During the 1960s, other English translations emerged on the folk music scene, including "The Dove" ("La colombe"), an anti-war lament recorded both by Joan Baez and Judy Collins. This was the only translation of a Brel song written by Alasdair Clayre, an Oxford-educated Englishman who had a brief career as a singer-songwriter before becoming an author, academic, and sometime producer of BBC documentaries.[43][44]

In 1968 an American experimental musical Jacques Brel Is Alive and Well and Living in Paris made its debut. Consisting of 25 songs, the revue was performed by four vocalists, two males and two females. Jacques Brel contributed most of the music and French lyrics. English translations were provided by Eric Blau and Mort Shuman, a Brill Building songwriter responsible for such hits as "This Magic Moment", "Viva Las Vegas", "Teenager in Love", and others. The production enjoyed considerable international success, and has since played throughout the world in various productions.[43][44]

In the 1970s, David Bowie began singing Brel's "Amsterdam" at a BBC session with John Peel and Evilan Tom. This version was released as the B-side to "Sorrow" in 1973, and was released as a bonus track on the 1990 reissue of Pin Ups. Dave Van Ronk also recorded this song, earlier, on Van Ronk. Bowie also sang "My Death" during his Ziggy Stardust period. This popular concert piece was never recorded in the studio. It appears on two of David Bowie's live albums: Live Santa Monica '72 and Ziggy Stardust - The Motion Picture. A similar version of this song was also recorded by Show of Hands.[43][44]

Scott Walker's first three solo albums, titled Scott, Scott 2, and Scott 3, each contains three of the Blau–Shuman translations. Several of the original songs on this album, and on the later Scott 4, can be seen as heavily influenced by Brel. The compilation Scott Walker Sings Jacques Brel contains all the Brel material that Walker covered on record. Walker also performed five Brel songs on his television series.[43][44] Alex Harvey recorded "Next" (Au suivant), giving a memorable performance on YouTube on the Old Grey Whistle Test in December 1973.

In the early 1980s, a second Brel revue, Encore Brel, was produced in Canada, a performance of which was aired on CBC Radio. In addition to Alasdair Clayre's "The Dove", the revue used mostly Brel's later songs, including "Friend, Don't Let Me See You Cry" ("Voir un Ami pleurer") and "To Grow Old" ("Vieillir").[43][44]

In 1986 Momus and more recently Barb Jungr recorded new English translations of "Ne me quitte pas" which are much nearer to the original. Jungr used a translation titled "Don't leave me now" by Des de Moor. Momus translated and recorded "Don't Leave Me" because he was dissatisfied with the dominant English translations to date. "People always sing the versions by Rod McKuen, which are highly sentimentalised, or the versions by Mort Shuman which are better but still really Americanised. To me the strength of Brel is that he doesn't come from the American tradition of songwriting, it's a strongly European thing."[47]

In 1989, Marc Almond, who had performed Brel songs on his early albums with Marc and the Mambas, released his successful Jacques, an album composed solely of Jacques Brel songs. In 1991 he released "Jacky", which became a successful hit single. During his concerts, Almond nearly always plays at least one Brel song.[43][44]

In the 1990s, Brel's widow said that Arnold Johnston, a professor at Western Michigan University, translated Brel's work more accurately than Blau and Shuman, and eventually gave Dr. Johnston exclusive rights to translate Brel's work into English. Dr. Johnston recorded the album, I'm Here!, a collection of twenty songs, using a grant from the university. In 1991, the American band Vambo Marble Eye recorded a version of "Next" for their album Two Trick Pony, 18 years after an English-language version of the song by SAHB in 1973, from their Next album.[43][44]

Belgian-German singer Dieter Kaiser has translated 30 of Brel's songs and has gathered them in a booklet with over 100 other French chansons in German. Kaiser also issued a CD in German and a CD in French with various chansons of Brel. Klaus Hoffmann is another important German interpreter of Brel's songs, as is the Austrian actor Michael Heltau, who was asked by Brel himself to record his songs, using the translation of Werner Schneyder.[43][44]

Other language versions of Jacques Brel songs have been recorded by a wide variety of artists throughout the world. The most frequently recorded song in other languages is "Ne me quitte pas" (Don't leave me), with at least 1400 different recorded versions in 52 different languages.[41][48] Most English versions use the freely translated "If You Go Away" by Rod McKuen, sung by Frank Sinatra and Barbra Streisand. Marlene Dietrich recorded the German version "Bitte geh' nicht fort" in 1963. At least 26 songs by Brel were translated to Hebrew (according to the Shironet website), and many of these translated versions were recorded by prominent singers, among them the famous Yossi Banai. Paris-based Colombian salsa singer Yuri Buenaventura performed the Spanish version, "No me dejes mas". Slovak chanteuse Hana Hegerová made the Czech version "Lásko prokletá" one of the pillars of her repertoire. Russian rock group Mumiy Troll recorded the Russian version, "Когда ты уйдёшь".[43][44] Slovenian actor and songwriter Jure Ivanušič released the CD "Srce v kovčku" with his 16 authorial translations of Brel's songs into Slovenian in 2011. Armenian poet Slavik Chiloyan, who met Brel in Yerevan in 1968, translated a number of Brel's songs into Armenian.[49] In 1968 singer Salome recorded the Catalan version "No em deixis mai".[50] In 1970 Patty Pravo published the Italian version, "Non andare via", as a single, Gino Paoli had published the same version in 1962 as the B side of his "Devi sapere" single.In 1968 mexican singer Angelica Maria record a spanish version named "No me dejes".