As a French speaker, I can confirm : the lyrics in French are incredibly raw, emotional, and nothing can prepare you for this song when you're never heard it before.

@ikeettgaming

10 ай бұрын

The act & the voice are exelent but the lirics are really the big talent of Jaques Brel.

@tntguy7915

9 ай бұрын

I can confirm. it my favorite

@DanBlabbers

7 ай бұрын

Brel said he had to sing his songs because nobody else would

@Nico3039

6 ай бұрын

c'est vrai...

@marct8160

5 ай бұрын

Selon moi c'est une des meilleurs chansons Francaises

There is a concept called "Crescendo Brelien", which is a dramatic progression in writing and performance, because Brel used to write his songs this way. You can clearly hear it in Amsterdam: the beginning is really soft, but the more the song progresses, the louder and dramatic it becomes

Brel is by far the most expressive singer ever.

@charlieosstyn

2 ай бұрын

No he is one of them and that same period had one even more famous, her name is Edith Piaf, who sang this song first ....!

@armageddfix

Ай бұрын

edith piaf never sang this song, it's a brel song written by himself

Brel was the greatest performer, the master. After all these years, nobody can perform like him. He is unique. I have all Brel's 33 rpm vinyl records, a treasure that my son will inherit and after him my grand-daughter.

@Eduardo-Ferreira1982

9 ай бұрын

Brel was the greatest poet and interpreter this world has known. (sorry, Dylan)

@thomasmichestinson

7 ай бұрын

I've seen countless people with even better voices doing covers of Brel's songs, and yet none of them give me the chills and emotions like he does. There is something so true, so personal, so deep when he sings, even decades later you feel like he is talking directly to you. Just seeing his eyes moves me for some reason, he carried so much pain and so much humanity in his soul, we are really blessed that he decided to share it in his music. In my opinion he was the perfect artist in the sense that he was doing everything with his heart, with a meaning, and without ever trying to deceive his audience.

@Shaumbra999

6 ай бұрын

He was -pretty much- My neighbor (few streets around the corner)!

@crae_zi4543

2 ай бұрын

@@Shaumbra999you lived in Monaco?

@charlieosstyn

2 ай бұрын

Untrue = false, he was not the only one, he was competing with the likes of Editd Piaf, Je ne regrette rien , here is a rare version of her most famous song, kzread.info/dash/bejne/pK6tlNmTg8qbirA.htmlsi=uT910GMCFzoaQzBy and Jacques sang many of her songs ....

There are artists, and then there are Artists. Brel was an Artist.

These days I picked up Charles Aznavour to marathon. I didn't remember (or had never noticed before) how good he was: songs, lyrics, acting, stage presence, a complete artist

What a treat to see you react to this powerful and fascinating performer, much overlooked these days. His many magnificent songs are as masterful as the performances - 'chanson' won't quite do - he is impossible to classify into a genre - he's just Brel. Your points about his dynamics are perceptive and enlightening. We lost him to cancer way too early. You can visit his grave in the Seychelles if you're ever out that way. Go girl, one of your Betht (groan).

@sandrinecozic7214

10 ай бұрын

Méconnu de nos jours....ce sont des incultes, désolée

@daniellegrand4566

7 ай бұрын

He died in the Marquesas Islands for the rest, I'm just OK

@lifelover515

7 ай бұрын

@@daniellegrand4566 Thanks Danielle, I stand corrected.

@daniellegrand4566

7 ай бұрын

@@lifelover515 And my name is "Daniel" Thanks. 🙂

Jacque Brel. Seeing him now brings some emotions of nostalgia, and some more. I spent so many many hours hearing his songs when i was younger. He was indeed a great performer, but to me he was much more than that. He was a great poet of human condition. A poet so expressive that he could share his vision of the world like few others. His songs and his singing helped me understand a little better this human existence when i was totally lost in my illusory rationality and begin to accept that emotion (even the "bad" ones) was an essential part of intelligence when trying to understand this apparent chaos we live in.

@musashimiyamoto586

Ай бұрын

I couldn't agree more. Well said.

Dear Beth, Brel was singing in French but was actually Belgian 🙂 Rrrrolling the R's was kind of an old tradition in French chanson (songs) because the real French speaking "R" (that we actually don't roll) was less clear to hear back then when the quality of recording was lower or when singers had to fill an entire theatre without microphone or amplification. This is why you can hear for instance Edith Piaf rrrrolling the R's a lot, as most of singers did before the 50's/60's. PS: If you want to know about what he was singing, Bowie covered the song in English in a quite litteral version.

@LetsChillPage

11 ай бұрын

Hello, Nevertheless, he spent most of his life in France, his adopted homeland from 1953 to 1978, when he died in Bobigny. Peace, folks. ☮😉

@pouffsie

11 ай бұрын

@@LetsChillPage spending time in location X does not undo his nationality, origin or major focus of his work which is that his songs are heavily planted in the Belgian, Flemish and Dutch cultures and society - a focus no random Frenchman would give, have or seek unless a connection already would be in place. As the song itself being about a city in "les pays bas" bare witness to this statement, which is why he could flawlessly switch to singing in Flemish when he so wanted to. His Flemish connection can not and should not be understated, not the least as the role he has for the Belgian communities.

@synkeyssynk4627

10 ай бұрын

@@pouffsie Still sing in french

@k.v.7681

10 ай бұрын

@@synkeyssynk4627 Which is one of the languages used in Belgium

@DaiBei

10 ай бұрын

He started to make a song about the port of Antwerp, but the word Amsterdam suited better than Anvers, the translation of of Antwerpen. @@pouffsie

Hi Beth, Jacques lived what he sang. He was an actor as well as a singer, and his performances on stage showed that. Among his other hits, I'd recommend "La valse à mille temps" for its rhythmic crescendo, and "Ces gens-là" for both its filmic and stage performances.

@daniellegrand4566

7 ай бұрын

" Ces gens là " Ecellent choice kzread.info/dash/bejne/gWqBqamhaLq7k9I.html&ab_channel=InaChansons

I HAVE AN ALBUM COMING OUT! And I have just realised my first cover on Spotify. Let me know what you think! And follow me on Spotify to hear the album as soon as it comes out. open.spotify.com/track/6qfvKbg6ukHJOGykx2MARB?si=8a2fa85792b14d15

@intolerant_left

Жыл бұрын

Another case where the cover version overtakes the original! Sounds amazing!

@michaeldeeley5181

Жыл бұрын

Wow, what a hauntingly beautiful version

@andrespfalconer

10 ай бұрын

Thank you for granting my wish :-)

Leo Ferré was a great singer too. His song "Avec le temps" make me almost cry every time..

Thanks, Beth, for the very informative and instructive explanation about the the body aspect of singing. That was a very powerful performance by Jacque Brel. Took French for years but I could never ever sing as well as he does in French or anything other language in a million years!

He was such an Artist, truly remarkable!

A brilliant performance. His delivery reminded me a bit of Joe Strummer from The Clash, I wonder if Jacques Brel was an influence on him.

I know for english, american for an incredible performance you want to hear big voice, people who keep notes for a long time or a show but for french it's when you sing with your soul and your guts.

I love Jacques Brel!

im a sailor in the north Atlantic and North Sea. he perfectly captures the energy of sailing in a winter storm

I discover so beautiful perfomances through the spectrum of my interest for the vocal world. And through your selection, this beautiful perfomances reach out to me and that's really special! I am french and I love, love music. I dig a lot, especially old french music, but I never find out about this perfomance. I want to dig more in the art of Jacques Brel, I barely now him and what he did, even if I am surrounded by his influance in my country.

He is belge , (I'm french) Brel is genious,.He is one of my favorite singer....

I think a simple analysis doesn't do justice to this extradordinary musical powerhouse. And I also don't think simply concentrating on certain body movements or singing techniques is going to reveal that. To know Brel is to listen to him, read and understand the lyrics, cause they are such an integral part of his work. Only then can you fully comprehend the immense insight he had in the human condition, e.g. old or simple people (Les Vieux and Ces gens-la), certain types of societal elements (Les flamands, les bourgeois, les bigottes) or deeply personal themes (Ne me quitte pas, Le chanson de Jacky). He to me was the proverbial Don Quixote come to life. His gangly clown-like figure, the suit on which the sleeves would ride up always making it seem to short, his incredibly expressive face, they way he almost shyly transformed all things into sound and words and gestures. He always spoke truth to life and never exempted himself from it. Watching him way back then shows you what a tour de force he was and that there probably wil never ever be anyone else of his stature. I am so grateful for his words and music and I will carry them with me until the end, when the silver pendulum of life that accompanies us all will finally stop.

i liked most the line "There are sailors who sleep like banners, along the dreary banks, at the first light of dawn, In the thick heat of the oceanic languors" it's all visual and more

Brel wrote his songs himself so is not based on another song !

@claudiechassaing4000

5 ай бұрын

The music is inspired by Greenleeves. Les moulins de mon cœur are the music of Auf dem Wasser zu singen of Schubert, listen piano version, the left hand, not the lieder. Gainsbourg take themes of Chopin, Dvorak, Tchaikovski. It's not a problem. Is this a good song ? Yes it is.

I should have suscribed a long time ago, such good analysises. Done :)

Que canción tan melancólica. Con ese acento francés y un final épico bien Beth 👏👏🍀🍀

"Amsterdan" est très belle, à côté de "Ces gens là", c'est ma chanson préférée de Brel. "Amsterdan" is beautiful. Beside "Ces gens là" it's my favorite Brel's song.

@Eduardo-Ferreira1982

9 ай бұрын

Mine too!

Hello, j 'espère que tu n'es pas passé à coté de toute l’émotion que cette chanson dégage, par l’énergie, l'authenticité de Brel, par cette fatale histoire de marin .

Un immense chanteur

So do you know too "Ne me quittes pas" or "Ces gens là" ?

When you talk about biting words. He was friends with Catherine Sauvage (she sang lot's of Léo Ferré's song) who helped him get started on stage. Brel said of her that "she doesn't sing, she bites".

Brel was not an author but a poet. He played as much with the meaning of words as with their sound. He mastered this to perfection. Below ⤵️ is a translation of the lyrics.

Thanks! Belgian Brel rocked.

If it feels harsh and uncomfortable, that's on purpose. He's not singing in a clean or pretty way, but it _is_ beautiful and absolutely art. The lyrics are liek that as well: an extremely poetic description of something harsh and sometimes gross. It's fascinating to see.

Great!! Absolutely great!!

Thanks for that. I've long adored this performance, which is really a possession, as we are transported to the fetid, visceral docks. The YT version I know ends before the lights come up and cutting at this point freezes you in a moment of profound finality - beyond this point what can be said? The only comparable moment I know of is Prince launcing his guitar skyward (and seeming to never return to earth) as the culmination of his blistering performance of Harrison's While My Guitar Gently Weeps.

I would love to say your remarks are quite refreshing, from someone that do not speak French. I never think of the fact that body movement or opening up a rib cage or even toes can affect the diagram, or the way that consonnes are pronounced (those /b/, /k/, /g/ that explosent) can add to the dynamique of interpretation. What I would like to add is Brel does here is what French expression would say "habiter la chanson", or "habiter la scène" -- maybe a translation of living or incarner a song and on stage. He emits certain type of aura (émettre une aura), a way of "je-ne-sais-quoi" de fascination, that can be mysterious. When we think of charisma (le charisme), it can be "ineffable" (that is, cannot be explained by language). To return to the point of départ, your observations help to explain this form of "le charisme" that can be not linked to the langage or words. P.S. -- he is a poet, I think the text is something special. P.P.S. -- What Japanese would say this song a "kamigakari"-- that is what god express her will through someone so that a person can perform so well. Quite poetic I found.

Arguably the first known European rapper as well! Don't know if you reacted to "Vesoul" or "La Valse a Mille Temps", but I think he raps as fast, if not faster, than Eminem ☺️ Nice reaction to one of the greatest (but probably not that well known) performers in the world of music. 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻🌷

Merci Beth !!! I wish this Jacquot should be one of my close friends !! He sings love like if that was a battle !! Tremendous !!! The one and only best Francophone singer.❤❤❤❤❤❤😢😢😢😢😢😢😢

My top 10 Chansonnier: 1. Jacques Brel 2. Serge Reggiani 3 Mouloudji 4. Charles Aznavour 5. Yves Montand 6. Jean Ferrat 7. George Brassens 8. Serge Gainsbourg 9. Edith Piaf 10. Charles Trenet I’m 23 years old now and I started listening to Chansons when I was 19. The poetry and passion in the music of the genre Chansons is so beautiful! ❤

I had no idea you did French songs, and what's more, you're sampling Belgium's pool of talents :p

Le Moribond was translated and lyric revised by Rod McKuen....it became Seasons in the Sun...a very popular song performed by McKuen in the 1960's. Very moving rendition that is still on tape.

Chanson music is so emotive. I may not understand the lyrics, I don't speak French, but just closing your eyes and letting it waft over you is a great experience

@Artaxo

Жыл бұрын

Well, we can start with one word. Chanson means music! So, technically speaking, you can say to your partner that you're gonna put on some chanson and play black metal.

@mecha-sheep7674

4 ай бұрын

Chanson means "song". The french word for music is musique. @@Artaxo

Thank you 🙏

The passion!!!!

Jacques was superb. He did a song that David Bowie covered called My Death. There was a singer called Tony Mills who I believe did an even better cover than Bowie. His name is Tony Mills. It’s quite an extraordinary vocal range this guy has. Here is his version kzread.info/dash/bejne/Y2iaurqwgtG7Z9I.htmlsi=MzZ8p_QCdXLvG59U

Brel is one of a Belgian Pearl that's incredible.

ÉPIQUE! ICONIQUE! CLASSIQUE!

Good choice...le grand JACQUES ! 👍

Hello Beth! I suggest you react to Ney Matogrosso, a legendary singer from Brazil, performing "O Mundo é um Moinho". I'm sure you'll love it. Best regards from Brazil!

It was (and maybe still is) the closing song of my student bar

I love this singer. Please react to "ce gens ca" (or something like that). The lyrics are mind-blowing. Greetings from Peru

Scott Walker made remakes of some of Brel's songs. He is also a talented vocalists.

@Nick-Gye

22 күн бұрын

Including this song

@RealDiehl99

22 күн бұрын

@@Nick-Gye Cool! I haven't heard this one covered by Walker. Thanks!

Ce jeu. Cette voix.inemitable

a lot of famous singers covered it. Edith Piaf, Jacques Brel, David Bowie, John Denver, Lara Fabian and Isabelle Boulay. It takes courage to cover a song like that in France or Belgium because ... well covers and comparisons

Spine tingling.

Brel for ever ❤

We have great artists in Belgium Jacque Brel and Lara Fabian are the perfect example

Did you ever get into the yé-yé genre during your French kick? I found it recently and am constantly returning to it

If you can learn french language... I guarantee you will be addicted to the Great Artist Jacques Brel

It's exhausting watching Jacques Brel!

Intention, and intensity, you're not just singing music, you're singing words, you've got to believe what you sing, else you're just a singing liar. It's not just about technic, it's not just method, it's about what it means to you to sing this particular song. Many old times singers have lessons to be learn. See "Ces gens là" another song from Jacques BRel, available with translated lyrics.

It's humbling to think that even though he's clearly one of the great performers of all time the reason he retired was that "he no longer wanted to battle against vomit-inducing stage fright"

Ces gens là by MR Brel Amazing performance

Hi Beth, such a beautiful song! David Bowie did an awesome version in English in his early years. You should really check it out!

@alnath01

4 ай бұрын

Agreed

you are moved but you don"t speak French imagine if you spoke French... goose bumps

John Denver, of all people, performed an hilarious cover of this song in several of his concerts (in English, of course).

This song was translated in English by Mort Schumann and is one of the best of David Bowie.

Greatest performer ever.

He is in his retirement years indeed: Jacques Brel (sadly) died in 1978!

Beyond the vocal performance this is also a theatrical performance. All the voice and body language suit to the lyrics. Of course you have to understand them. The song starts with a nice painting of Amsterdam (soft voice and static body) after each verses the voice becomes more rocky and the body moves much more to finish with a full disgusted picture of Amsterdam Harbour.

Es una de las mejores canciones en la historia de la música. gracias. React to Julieta Venegas.

Hello, The rolled "R" remained used for a very long time in the French language; we still rolled the "R" in Paris at the start of the 20ᵉ century and until the 50s, but of course, in a less pronounced way than some singers did. Before, almost all of France rolled the "R." Gradually, from north to south, this habit ended up being lost, even if in the southwest; until the 70s, this tradition was perpetuated. Depending on where the "R" is placed, a guttural sound still accompanies the "R" pronunciation in contemporary French, especially when set in the first letters of a word. But, it's lost as soon as it is placed in the last letters of the word. We have the perfect example with "croire" or "retour" (believe, come-back). It is guttural as soon as it takes place after a consonant : "Apprendre," "être," "sombre," etc. (Learn, be, dark). Peace, folks. ☮😉

🤩🤩

Menina, que linda você é, parabéns.

Grand Jacques était tellement énorme ! Pas étonnant que les anglophones se penchent sur son cas !

You have the French, rolling R, but he accentuates it. And being a good poet he collected words with R in the text which make the "R"aw sound.

for me its the best version of amsterdam do you havea link ? its quite difficult to get

I only learned about him through David Bowie's cover on his Pinups album. Of course, after that I did sort of spread my interest in music all over, and I still have no idea what so many French artists make sound so good! Still, this is one of my ever favorite songs in Bowie's version! :) Do NOT listen to French accordion-based music, you may never get out unchanged! There, you are warned...

That was his last performance as a singer, his adieu in the Paris Olympia. But he can keep you busy as he wrote 80 songs. He was always fully engaged in his songs and I think he had enough, so he stopped, just like that.

There is a version in dutch.

David Bowie did an English version of this and La Mort in the early 70s!

Scott Walker and David Bowie did a english version of this song...

Are you telling me you aren’t gonna listen to the lyrics??!?! Brel said he sang his songs because nobody else would

Hey, I’ve just discovered your KZread channel, I love it ! Can we suggest you some songs to analyse ? Thanks 🙏

Did you know your fav was a born a Flemish Lion, I bet you dont, look up his song, named Marieke, a surprise awaits you when he sings in his mother tongue which is not French!!!!! You should watch these with English subs, to understand why I said this ....

❤ reminder that Brel was Flemish, the rrrrrr is in our'e dialect.

"and they piss like i cry on the unfaithfull women.."gosh!

INA has a good ,very good version from him

In the port of Amsterdam There are sailors who sing Of the dreams that haunt them Off the coast of Amsterdam In the port of Amsterdam There are sailors who sleep Like flags Along the gloomy banks In the port of Amsterdam There are sailors who die Full of beer and drama At the first light But in the port of Amsterdam There are sailors who are born In the thick heat Of the ocean languors In the port of Amsterdam There are sailors who eat On tablecloths too white Dripping fish They show you their teeth To bite into fortune To unhook the moon To devour the shrouds And it smells of cod Right to the heart of the chips That their big hands invite To come back for more, then they get up laughing In a stormy noise They zip up their flies and go out belching In the port of Amsterdam There are sailors who dance Rubbing their bellies On the bellies of the women And they turn and they dance Like spit suns In the torn sound Of a rancid accordion They twist their necks To better hear themselves laugh Until all of a sudden the accordion expires Then with a solemn gesture, then with a proud look They bring back their bastards to the full light In the port of Amsterdam There are sailors who drink And who drink and drink again And who drink again They drink to the health Of the whores of Amsterdam Of Hamburg or elsewhere Finally they drink to the ladies Who give them their pretty bodies Who give them their virtue For a piece of gold And when they have drunk well They plant their noses in the sky They blow their noses in the stars They piss like I cry On the unfaithful women In the port of Amsterdam In the port of Amsterdam

There were many singers that could sing better than Brel, but there weren't many that could tell a story like him

He is a belgian singer firsttt 🇧🇪🇧🇪🇧🇪

Fantastic ! But of course, now you have to do Avec le temps de Ferré... many more tears... 😯

U are better than every thing

I am french. Watch this video "c'est gens là"

Very good, now listen live L'Escalier - Paul Piché - Parc Roland-Beaudin - 18 juillet 2019

Les pauses piles aux meilleurs moments gâchent le plaisir

it feels illegal to put Brel's emotion on pause...

Great Belgian singer that France want to claim 😅

Jack Brel is not France he’s from Belgium and sang with a Belge accent.

I ask this in all respect. How is you're french? Cause is word play and just his raw émotion... it comes through really...