Jean Ferrat

See also: Ferrat

Jean Ferrat (Jean Tenenbaum) (December 26th 1930 with Vaucresson Hauts-de-Seine) is a Parolier, Musicien and Chanteur French.

Summary biography

The last of four children of a modest Jewish family which settles with Versailles in 1935, it continues her studies with the College Jules Ferry. His/her father is off-set by the Nazis and dies in Auschwitz. He must leave the college to work in order to help his family. Already, it is attracted by the music and the Théâtre.

To the beginning of the year 1950, it enters a theater company, composes some songs and plays of the guitar in an orchestra of Jazz. It passes without much success some hearings but, not being discouraged, decides to be devoted exclusively to the music. In 1956, it puts in music the eyes of Elsa , poem of Louis Aragon which it admires. It is André Claveau, then sails about it, which interprets the song and brings to Jean Ferrat a little notoriety. It then occurs with the Parisian cabaret the Dove of Michel Valette, in first part of Guy Béart.

In 1958, it leaves its first 45 turns, but hardly meets success. A young singer, Christine Sevres, takes again some of her songs. He will marry it in 1961. It is the meeting into 1959 of Gerard Meys, which will become its editor and his/her friend, who starts again his career, it signs at Decca and, the following year, leaves its second 45 turns with the song My Kid , who is its first success and passes on the radios.

Its meeting with Alain Goraguer, which will sign its first arrangements under the pseudo one of Milton Lewis, will be in addition decisive, this last will become the appointed arranger of the songs of Jean Ferrat.

Its first 33 turns leaves in 1961 and receives the price of SACEM. It starts a long career, enamelled difficulties with the Censure. He will write his texts or will put in music those of his friends poets, Henri Gougaud and Georges Coulonges. (See the section discography for the continuation.)

(Isabelle Aubret: The significant event of the year 1962 is its meeting with the singer Jean Ferrat. A true friendly love at first sight takes place between the two artists. Ferrat writes " to him; Two children with the soleil" , one of the major titles of the singer, and proposes the first part of the round to him which it starts then.)

Musical biography with accompanying notes

Jean Ferrat, as of his beginnings, will direct his inspiration in two directions: social engagement (It is close to the French Communist party) and poetry. He does not sing to spend time , declares he. Always, he will seek to give to his songs a militant significance behind the popular text.

My Kid (1960) (Words: Pierre Frachet)

My kid, it does not play the starlets,
It does not put glasses, of sun.
It does not pose for the magazines,
It works in factory, with Creteil.

He evokes, at one time when that was still disturbing, the deportation. Its song will be disadvised of passage over the radios, but the public will follow, and the album Nuit and fog (album) will obtain the price of the Académie Charles-Cross-country race.

Night and fog (1963)

They was twenty and hundreds, they were thousands,
Nus and thin, trembling, in leaded coaches,
Which tore the night of their beating nails,
They was thousands, they were twenty and hundred.

and especially these worms which made in their time to run much ink:

I twisterais the words if the twister were needed,

So that one day the children know who you were.

He sings the Ardèche, area expensive in his heart, and made this homage to country France one of his greater successes. He settles with Antraigues-sur-Volane, which he will not leave any more, there becoming even later city council man.

the Mountain (1964)

They leave the country one by one, to go itself from there to earn their living,
Far from the ground where they were born. For a long time that they dreamed some,
Of the city and its secrecies, of Formica and the movies.

There was always near to the ideas of the French Communist party but ever inserted, and remains however critical towards the the USSR.

Camarade (1970)

It is a terrible name, comrade
It is a terrible name to say
When, the time of a masquerade,
It does not make any more but quiver
Than come you to make, comrade
Whom come you to make here
It was at five hours in Prague
That August darkens

Like and with his friend Georges Coulonges, it prefers there the revolt of humble, simple people, once again, it is interdict of television.

Potemkine (1965)

Me will want of it you much if I tell you a world
Which sings at the bottom of me with the noise of the ocean
Me will want of it you much if the revolt thunders
In this name which I say to the wind of the four winds
My memory sings out of silencing device: Potemkine.
He was sailors, hard with the discipline
He was sailors, they were warriors.
And the heart of a sailor, with the high wind engraves
They were sailors on a large cuirassier

My France (1969)

That which built, of its hands, your factories
That whose Mr. Thiers said: " That it is shot! "

After a voyage to Cuba which marks it deeply and from where it its famous Moustache S will pay, it is May 68 and its events which he will live intensely.

In Spring of what did you dream? (1968)

In spring of what did you dream?
Old world closed as an orange
Faites that something changes
And one crossed unknown
Laughing with the angels, at the spring of what dreamed you?
(according to a poem of Louis Aragon)

Jean Ferrat turns over to his passion for poetry; he puts in music Louis Aragon in a masterly way, giving again with poetry a lost popularity.

What would be I without you (1965)

That I without you would be, who wines with my meeting,
Which I without you would be, which a heart with dormant wood.
That this hour stopped with the dial of the watch,
That I without you would be, which this stammering.

In the years 1970, Jean Ferrat is done rarer, each new album is a true event and its songs are commented on like true intellectual standpoint. It fustigates the colonial wars in an air of freedom and still causes the polemic.

the woman is the future of the man (1975)

the poet is right always, Which sees higher than the horizon
And the future is its kingdom. Vis-a-vis our generation
I declare with Aragon, the woman is the future of the man.

Polygram repurchases its catalog at the end of the years 1970. Eager not to depend on the major , he undertakes réengistrement all his titles and leaves a compilation 11 volumes in 1980. This new album creates sensation and reflects the increasingly large retreat which it takes with respect to the Communist party of the USSR. Nevertheless, there remains always faithful to the French Communist party, which he had joined in his youth.

Bilan' (1980)

Ah they made us swallow grass snakes
From Prague to the Stalinist Budapest from Sofia to Moscow
dedicated ones which put all works
of it to make you sign the most insane consents.

The artist engaged in general

This very popular artist, although widely diffused by the private radio stations, seldom passed on the television screens.

He shows the commercial system which makes pass the financial considerations before the chance given to the creative artists. Publishing open letters with the various actors of the cultural life, presidents of chains, ministers, he denounces programming which according to him privileges the songs " commerciales" with the creative ones.

He is member of the committee of sponsorship of the French Coordination for the Decade of the culture of peace and non-violence.

Discography

See too

List of the songs of Jean Ferrat

External bonds

  • Official site
  • Interview of Jean Ferrat the 1 {{er}} September 2004
  • Meeting with Claude Villers, during the emission " I write to you more remote of my rêves" , diffused on France inter on June 27th, 2004
  • '' Vidéo: '' Jean Ferrat, in 1967, speaks about its career, its influences and its manner of writing its songs. Document of file of the French-speaking Switzerland Television

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