‘Ne Me Quitte Pas’ - Jacques Brel, 1959
While I know that Brel influenced almost everyone with his crooning voice, literate lyrics, passionate delivery and sombre tone, there’s very little I know about the man or his music - with the exception of ‘Ne Me Quitte Pas’. He has been a big influence on such diverse artists as Bowie, Beirut, Sinatra, Dresden Dolls and Nina Simone, all of whom have recorded interpretations of his compositions.
Born in Belgium (and frequently featured in the pub quiz staple “Name five famous Belgians” - I can only think of him and three footballers), Brel’s adopted home was France. Sharing the language with his adopted home (though he was of Flemish descent), Brel swiftly became an icon for his angry, passionate, mournful songs of love and regret.
‘Ne Me Quitte Pas’ (’Don’t Leave Me’), probably his most famous song, has been described by Brel as “a song about the cowardice of man”, and is almost certainly autobiographical. The song uses mournful violin, a minimal piano figure reminiscent of Satie, and Brel’s plaintive, fearful voice. He uses lyrics that, in other hands (or voices) would be cliched, but from Brel they seem totally sincere (English translation in brackets):
“Je f’rai un domaine (I will give you a kingdom)
Ou l’amour s ‘ra roi (where LOVE will be king)
Ou l’amour s’ ra loi (Where LOVE will be the law)”
The lyrics are profound and deep, especially in the last verse (a fairly good translation of which can be found here). My French is terrible, even though it’s mandatory subject for students in Ireland, but even his delivery of the verse is searing.
With his realisation that love is lost, his tone becomes despondent and, by the end of the song, he repeats “Ne me quitte pas” almost as mantra, probably to a just-closed door. In the late ’50s, when it was all ‘Tutti Frutti’ and that, this is a frighteningly raw and mature piece from a singer old beyond his years. Here is the video for ‘Ne Me Quitte Pas’. I love Brel’s delivery in this video - he doesn’t stop looking straight at the camera.
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