Brassens was born in Sète, a small French town on the Mediterranean Sea. He spent his adult life in Paris but he wanted to be buried by the sea, his wish was granted, he is currently buried in a small cemetery next to the beach of Sète, with a view of the sea, as he wished. And even for many French speakers he is difficult to understand because his vocabulary is very rich (in slang or high vocabulary), in figures of speech, in references (mythological, historical, literary...). There are people who say "Brassens with his big mustache and his pipe, it's always the same guitar tune", but they don't listen to the lyrics which are beautiful and wise. I love that man, thank you for sharing his songs !
And besides, his music is actually varied and high-level, real musicians know that well. His goal was for it to be discreet and not demonstrative to highlight the lyrics, but the same lyrics accompanied by less elaborate music would seem duller 😏
My favorite Brassens song. The lyrics, the music. There is everything. Sete is 2 hours from my house and every time i go there i think about him. I haven't had the chance to visit his grave yet but I'm planning on doing so.
"Full like an egg" (plein comme un oeuf) is a very common French expression because, if you remember you biology classes, it's true that an egg is ... full. The fun part is that he says that his family vault is ... full like an egg ... and that he couldn't decently ask the old corpses to move a bit to make room for the "young" (new) ones. Brassens is a monument! This song is considered as his will, where he requests to be buried in his birthplace: Sète (that must have greatly changed since then) is a village on the Mediterranean sea shore. He had been living in Paris for many years and just wished that his body be buried in his native country. A pure jewel, that song, that brings tears of emotion to my eyes every time I hear it (and, believe me, as an absolute fan of Georges Brassens, I've listened to it hundreds of times).
A l'occasion d'un enterrement cet été a Sète j'y ai vu sa tombe et c'était si humble pour un tel artiste. Seule une pierre amenée par un admirateur permettait de comprendre sa renommée. Il avait écrit dessus des paroles de Brassens bien sûr. Mais quel magnifique endroit où reposer ceci dit.
His lyrics are the absolute best. He died rather too young, of cancer, so the song is poignant. I took my kid to his grave in Sète ( beautiful and sleepy seaside town on the Mediterranean Coast with a lovely and quaint fishing harbour...) Not on the beach, alas, but the cemetary had a modest charm befitting him. Brassens understood life and death like no one else, but had the elegance to smile about it.
Brassens loved and studied poetry, that's why he's the best French song writer. He had a huge respect for poets and never agreed to be called one because he knew he was sitting on giants shoulders.
Je la connais depuis un moment mais un peu sur le tard, aussi. Je suppose simplement qu'elle était trop longue pour passer à la radio et du coup dans la mémoire collective, les plus connues étant généralement très courtes. Pour moi c'est sa longueur qui en fait tout le charme, une telle avalanche d'idées et détails poétiques qui en devient étourdissante au fil des strophes 🥹
Re-discovering the well known lyrics in english is a thing to me. I hope a lot of english-speaking people will be touched by this near perfect text, the depth of the images, the power of the subject. Enjoy!
Filled like in egg is a very common saying in french language. I don't want to make you think that Georges was not a poet. He was. And this particular song is one of my top one. Thank you so much to carry on on his tracks.
Lots off emotions for this one . i Lived in Sète for 2 years near "la plage de la corniche" . Its really a nice place for diving. I was listenig all his songs with my parents when i was a small kid , it gave me lot vocabulary .
He is a genius I can't say if a french artist is comparable to him today... "La ballade des gens qui sont nés quelque part" (with English subtitles) is as good
Are you surprised that one of his best friend was Jacques Brel ? People like this have such a poetry world as brain, you can just contemplate their talent. This song is his will to be buried in that place, and be the forever one looking at the sea (compared to famous people buried in dark places like Pantheon). Sète is a wonderful city in Mediterranean cost, and his grave is where he wanted to be, simple, poetic, loving the nature, as he was.
Anecdote in 1969, during the famous radio meeting of Jacques Brel, Léo Ferré and Georges Brassens, the latter about the song specifies: "I tell you that I don't care about being buried on the beach of Sète, it's completely equal to me. I did it for fun.
One of my favourite Brassens songs, I hope you can try Les Funérailles d’Antan and Le Temps Ne Fait Rien à l’Affaire ! Thanks for your : « Eh ben, dis donc » loved it ! 😅
Hello Monsieur D, i have a request for you, one old french artist, react to : " Jean Ferrat - La montagne " and/of " Jean Ferrat - Ma France " and/or '" Jean Ferrat - Aimer à perdre la raison " it's poète also !!!
He's got what we call " l'accent du Sud " (" south accent " ?) , and his plea was not granted by the Sète concil. He was buried in the regular cimetary wich is called : " cimetière marin ", consolation price i guess.
The Saint-Charles cemetery was named le Cimetière Marin in 1945 in reference to the famous poem by Paul Valéry. This is why Brassens mentions Paul Valéry in the song 🙂
Well, to be exact, he said later that he didn't really care to be buried in the beach, that was for the sake of the song and not his true will. As for the "cimetiere marin", he was not buried in it. His grave is in another graveyard in Sète (and actually, I believe it doesn't face the sea, as the cimetière marin does, but faces the Tau lake)
Hi D. Just a few notes to help, because even with the translation it still seems difficult to understand @5:57 mistral and tramontane are the names of (strong) winds that blow on the south of France, where the song ask to be buried, from different directions (bringing from Spain and Italy...) Villanelle and Tarantelle are musical genres and dance from respectively north and south of Italy fandango and sardane are dances and matching music genre from Spain ( sardane is THE dance of the region of catalu~na, which spreads across the border of France and Spain along the medditeranean sea, where Barcelona is. Fandango is more wide spread accros the Spanish "territories", from the islands in the medditeranean to Mexico) All of this brings me to an reaction idea in a different style, about the song "nature morte" from Spanish group "Mecano" that translated some of their songs in French (original name of the song "Naturaleza muerta"). This is another song about burial on the beach, from a group across Spain and France (if you choose to listen to their French translation, may be fun to see you react to the singer Spanish accent in a foreign language ;-) ) One of my favorite song from the end of last millenia
The "mistral" does not blow, or extremely rarely, over the Gulf of Lion. The "tramontane" (N.N.W.) and "le marin" (S-SE) are the dominant winds. From time to time, the very humid "Grec" (E) and the" trans-Pyrénéen" (W-SW) relatively hot in summer and very cold in winter appear briefly. The "mistral" is mainly located in Provence but I think that Georges Brassens wanted to adjust the rhyme😉.
For having a good understanding of this song (Probably one of the mooost complexe and difficult to understand, even for a lot a french speaking people): When he speak about "Paul Valerie" in the song, Brassens make a little jock when he said that his "grave will be more marine than his". Indeed, Paul Valerie is burried in the "Marine Cimetery" in the city of Sète. A cimetery that is located in the highest point of the city, on a hill, so far away from the seashore. So Brassens gentle mocking Paul Valerie in the song here: he said that Valerie is a better poet yes, but his grave will be more "marine" than him. Because the grave of George will be directly on the beach^^, and not in a cimetery on a hill of Sète (even if this cimetery is called irronicly "marine cimetery"). Btw: the marine cimetery in Sète is a must see in Sète. The view and the poetry of the place is amazing.
Hi Uncle D, 🌴🌞 There are still a lot of references that are not very (or not at all) understandable for an American in this song. For my part, I'd not have proposed it, some others are more relevant. But hey, there's something for everyone. Peace, folks. ☮👈😎
Brassens was born in Sète, a small French town on the Mediterranean Sea. He spent his adult life in Paris but he wanted to be buried by the sea, his wish was granted, he is currently buried in a small cemetery next to the beach of Sète, with a view of the sea, as he wished. And even for many French speakers he is difficult to understand because his vocabulary is very rich (in slang or high vocabulary), in figures of speech, in references (mythological, historical, literary...). There are people who say "Brassens with his big mustache and his pipe, it's always the same guitar tune", but they don't listen to the lyrics which are beautiful and wise. I love that man, thank you for sharing his songs !
And besides, his music is actually varied and high-level, real musicians know that well. His goal was for it to be discreet and not demonstrative to highlight the lyrics, but the same lyrics accompanied by less elaborate music would seem duller 😏
I am french and George Bassens is the kind of artist Who makes me proud of my language, philosophy and way of life.....
Georges Brassens. Une moustache, une guitare, un poète, une légende.🙏⭐
C'est un des seuls artistes à me provoquer autant d'émotions juste avec des mots et une guitare !
Magnifique each time !
My favorite Brassens song. The lyrics, the music. There is everything. Sete is 2 hours from my house and every time i go there i think about him.
I haven't had the chance to visit his grave yet but I'm planning on doing so.
"Full like an egg" (plein comme un oeuf) is a very common French expression because, if you remember you biology classes, it's true that an egg is ... full.
The fun part is that he says that his family vault is ... full like an egg ... and that he couldn't decently ask the old corpses to move a bit to make room for the "young" (new) ones.
Brassens is a monument! This song is considered as his will, where he requests to be buried in his birthplace: Sète (that must have greatly changed since then) is a village on the Mediterranean sea shore.
He had been living in Paris for many years and just wished that his body be buried in his native country.
A pure jewel, that song, that brings tears of emotion to my eyes every time I hear it (and, believe me, as an absolute fan of Georges Brassens, I've listened to it hundreds of times).
Mon chanteur préféré, et de loin !
Merci d’avoir ajouté ce morceau que je t’avais demandé sur Patreon ❤
du couyp merci a toi aussi
Et merci à toi, j'avais prévu de le proposer mais comme-ça il est arrivé plus vite 😉
La chanson Hécatombe serait la bienvenue.
A l'occasion d'un enterrement cet été a Sète j'y ai vu sa tombe et c'était si humble pour un tel artiste. Seule une pierre amenée par un admirateur permettait de comprendre sa renommée. Il avait écrit dessus des paroles de Brassens bien sûr. Mais quel magnifique endroit où reposer ceci dit.
His lyrics are the absolute best. He died rather too young, of cancer, so the song is poignant. I took my kid to his grave in Sète ( beautiful and sleepy seaside town on the Mediterranean Coast with a lovely and quaint fishing harbour...) Not on the beach, alas, but the cemetary had a modest charm befitting him. Brassens understood life and death like no one else, but had the elegance to smile about it.
Brassens loved and studied poetry, that's why he's the best French song writer. He had a huge respect for poets and never agreed to be called one because he knew he was sitting on giants shoulders.
He saw himself more as a craftsman who perfects his work.
C'est indéniable. Quand Brassens et Brel chantent la mort et le deuil, on a hâte d'y être tant ça a l'air poétique.
Quelle magnifique chanson. Je découvre un peu plus de Brassens en dehors des plus connues et c'est formidable.
pareil, je la connaissais pas
Je la connais depuis un moment mais un peu sur le tard, aussi. Je suppose simplement qu'elle était trop longue pour passer à la radio et du coup dans la mémoire collective, les plus connues étant généralement très courtes.
Pour moi c'est sa longueur qui en fait tout le charme, une telle avalanche d'idées et détails poétiques qui en devient étourdissante au fil des strophes 🥹
@@XiaoVeen j'avais presque pas envie qu'elle se termine !
@@KrokisMtl Oui, comme certains films excellents qui durent 3 heures, on est frustrés, c'est passé trop vite !
you see, that's what a genius is
Une des premières musiques de Bassens que ma fait découvrir mon grand père ❤
This song was player during my father’s funeral cause he loved this song so much. Even my nephews who are only in their preteen know this song.
It's very moving. Was it your father who decided this himself before his death, or an idea from the family?
@ He told us many years before his death. I think the first time he spoke about it was when I was still a teen so 20/25 years before he passed.
Je vis à côté de Sète et le cimetière où il repose ainsi que l'espace qui lui est dédié sont vraiment magnifiques .
8:03 hahaha, your "pff, eh b’en dis donc", so French 🤭👍🏼
Re-discovering the well known lyrics in english is a thing to me. I hope a lot of english-speaking people will be touched by this near perfect text, the depth of the images, the power of the subject.
Enjoy!
Filled like in egg is a very common saying in french language. I don't want to make you think that Georges was not a poet. He was. And this particular song is one of my top one. Thank you so much to carry on on his tracks.
I live near to Sète my sister lives there, it’s a beautiful small city near Mediterranean sea
Lots off emotions for this one . i Lived in Sète for 2 years near "la plage de la corniche" . Its really a nice place for diving. I was listenig all his songs with my parents when i was a small kid , it gave me lot vocabulary .
He is a genius I can't say if a french artist is comparable to him today...
"La ballade des gens qui sont nés quelque part" (with English subtitles) is as good
Are you surprised that one of his best friend was Jacques Brel ? People like this have such a poetry world as brain, you can just contemplate their talent. This song is his will to be buried in that place, and be the forever one looking at the sea (compared to famous people buried in dark places like Pantheon). Sète is a wonderful city in Mediterranean cost, and his grave is where he wanted to be, simple, poetic, loving the nature, as he was.
Yes he is a genius even if filled like an egg is an old well known french expression.
"filled like an egg" (plein comme un oeuf) mean there is no place at all inside!
Anecdote in 1969, during the famous radio meeting of Jacques Brel, Léo Ferré and Georges Brassens, the latter about the song specifies: "I tell you that I don't care about being buried on the beach of Sète, it's completely equal to me. I did it for fun.
I live into Frontignan the city border to Sète. It's like the song the life in this french mediteranean region...
One of my favorite with L'orage. Thank you !
Indeed. L'orage is a beautiful love song. I hope he finds a version with good subtitles. I've searched but haven't found one yet.
@@galier2 Same for me 😔
Georges brassens is a legend of french language
Oui, il est unique
Hello🎉
Une de mes préférées
He is very good, very famous in France
et la je me dirais: ENFIN PROPRIETAIRE!!
La marche nuptiale would be nice
YUP! BEN OUI!
It's true
I have been there
You can see the beach and the sea from his grave
A poet, exactly ❤
One of my favourite Brassens songs, I hope you can try Les Funérailles d’Antan and Le Temps Ne Fait Rien à l’Affaire !
Thanks for your : « Eh ben, dis donc » loved it ! 😅
Hello Monsieur D, i have a request for you, one old french artist, react to : " Jean Ferrat - La montagne " and/of " Jean Ferrat - Ma France " and/or '" Jean Ferrat - Aimer à perdre la raison " it's poète also !!!
magnifique
❤👏👏👏
He's got what we call " l'accent du Sud " (" south accent " ?) , and his plea was not granted by the Sète concil. He was buried in the regular cimetary wich is called : " cimetière marin ", consolation price i guess.
The Saint-Charles cemetery was named le Cimetière Marin in 1945 in reference to the famous poem by Paul Valéry. This is why Brassens mentions Paul Valéry in the song 🙂
Well, to be exact, he said later that he didn't really care to be buried in the beach, that was for the sake of the song and not his true will.
As for the "cimetiere marin", he was not buried in it. His grave is in another graveyard in Sète (and actually, I believe it doesn't face the sea, as the cimetière marin does, but faces the Tau lake)
You should react to "Les copains d'abord" and "Brave Margot" 😉
👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻
Yes ! I want to see react to
L'une de ses meilleures. Une autre des plus belles est "les passantes".
Hi D. Just a few notes to help, because even with the translation it still seems difficult to understand @5:57
mistral and tramontane are the names of (strong) winds that blow on the south of France, where the song ask to be buried, from different directions (bringing from Spain and Italy...)
Villanelle and Tarantelle are musical genres and dance from respectively north and south of Italy
fandango and sardane are dances and matching music genre from Spain ( sardane is THE dance of the region of catalu~na, which spreads across the border of France and Spain along the medditeranean sea, where Barcelona is. Fandango is more wide spread accros the Spanish "territories", from the islands in the medditeranean to Mexico)
All of this brings me to an reaction idea in a different style, about the song "nature morte" from Spanish group "Mecano" that translated some of their songs in French (original name of the song "Naturaleza muerta"). This is another song about burial on the beach, from a group across Spain and France (if you choose to listen to their French translation, may be fun to see you react to the singer Spanish accent in a foreign language ;-) ) One of my favorite song from the end of last millenia
The "mistral" does not blow, or extremely rarely, over the Gulf of Lion. The "tramontane" (N.N.W.) and "le marin" (S-SE) are the dominant winds. From time to time, the very humid "Grec" (E) and the" trans-Pyrénéen" (W-SW) relatively hot in summer and very cold in winter appear briefly. The "mistral" is mainly located in Provence but I think that Georges Brassens wanted to adjust the rhyme😉.
Plein comme un oeuf is a french expression. Brassens did not invent it.
The translation isn't great at times, but poetry is definitely a huge task to translate properly.
For having a good understanding of this song (Probably one of the mooost complexe and difficult to understand, even for a lot a french speaking people):
When he speak about "Paul Valerie" in the song, Brassens make a little jock when he said that his "grave will be more marine than his". Indeed, Paul Valerie is burried in the "Marine Cimetery" in the city of Sète. A cimetery that is located in the highest point of the city, on a hill, so far away from the seashore. So Brassens gentle mocking Paul Valerie in the song here: he said that Valerie is a better poet yes, but his grave will be more "marine" than him. Because the grave of George will be directly on the beach^^, and not in a cimetery on a hill of Sète (even if this cimetery is called irronicly "marine cimetery").
Btw: the marine cimetery in Sète is a must see in Sète. The view and the poetry of the place is amazing.
And we can specify that this cemetery was named "Cimetière marin" in reference, precisely, to the eponymous poem by Paul Valéry 😏
@XiaoVeen
Ho i did’t know that! Interesting!
You have to hear Didier super french humorist singer !!
Georges Brassens : Supplique pour être enterré à la plage de sète, version Photos de Séte
Hi Uncle D, 🌴🌞
There are still a lot of references that are not very (or not at all) understandable for an American in this song.
For my part, I'd not have proposed it, some others are more relevant. But hey, there's something for everyone.
Peace, folks. ☮👈😎
Listen to Jean Ferrat and George Moustaki if you get a chance!
C'est le Francis Cabrel de l'époque
la seule chose d'ennuyeuse chez brassens, c'est qu'il soit mort si jeune...
La non demain en mariage
D ask your mother to explain you the lyrics. She is French, if she want sure she can.