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Charles Aznavour was born on May 22, 1924. Deceased in 2018, he would have been a hundred years old today. In a survey conducted by CNN and Time magazine in 1998, Aznavour was designated the most popular variety singer of the 20th century, ahead of Bob Dylan (Nobel Prize in Literature in 2016), Frank Sinatra and Elvis Presley. This is Beirut delves into the lyricist side of the myth who wore many hats, including musical composition, masterful interpretation, and the writing of iconic French songs.
On the occasion of Charles Aznavour’s centenary, it is interesting to revisit the texts he wrote, especially since he always prioritized the text among the three pillars of a song. In this sense, he once declared during a television interview, “There are no better song lyrics than French lyrics. We are the best.” He was outraged by the media’s neglect of lyricists, whom they often fail to mention. “They announce a song, reducing it to the performer, saying, for example, ‘This is a song by Dalida,’ without naming the true author of the song, when it is not Dalida who wrote it.” The French giant sang in nine languages, gave hundreds, even thousands of concerts in eighty-two countries. Artists such as Ray Charles, Bing Crosby and Fred Astaire have covered his songs. This article aims to honor the memory of Aznavour, the legendary lyricist, through a bouquet of songs he wrote for himself and for other great names in music.
Songs written by Aznavour for Aznavour
Je m’voyais déjà, with lyrics and music by Aznavour, is one of the first songs that made him known to the general public after he had been struggling for a long time to win over the audience, receiving only harsh criticism about his appearance and voice. This song tells of his determination and self-confidence, which would propel him to the firmament of stars. A visionary poet, he could already see his star joining the Hollywood Walk of Fame, as was the case in 2017. Hier encore, written and composed by Aznavour, conveys nostalgia, one of the major themes of his work. It brings us back to the happy days of carefree youth, beautiful loves and the challenges that spice up life. Its English version Yesterday When I Was Young was released in the United States and Canada alongside his hits from the 50s and 60s. Emmenez-moi, with lyrics by Aznavour and music by Georges Garvarentz, his brother-in-law, is at the top of the list of his worldwide successes across all periods. The anecdote goes that Aznavour, on a trip to Monaco, seeing miserable people piled up in a makeshift boat, exclaimed, “Misery is less painful in the sun.” These words remained engraved in the memory of the “French Sinatra.” They were the trigger for writing the aforementioned song, which rivals his mythical song La bohème. According to several sources, the latter was co-written with Jacques Plante. However, Charles Aznavour mentioned in one of his interviews that he only signed the music of La bohème, making Jacques Plante the author of the iconic song. Likewise, contrary to popular belief, La mamma was written by Robert Gall and composed by Charles Aznavour. In 1972, a decade before the decriminalization of homosexuality, Comme ils disent, with lyrics and music by Aznavour, allowed him to tackle a very taboo subject in an eloquent and daring way. Aznavour had homosexual friends who suffered from societal rejection, and he himself fought against homophobia. We were still far from woke culture and its excesses. Shocked to hear this theme, which French chanson had never addressed, his friends asked him who would dare to sing it. “Me,” answered Charles Aznavour simply, before adding, “backing down is not an option.” The story behind it, told by Robert Belleret in Vie et légendes de Charles Aznavour, goes that Claude Figus, Aznavour’s jack of all trades and a great fan of Edith Piaf, introduced his friend Théo Sarapo to the Môme. Piaf would then fall for the handsome twenty-year-old, marry him, and sing duets with him. Claude Figus, feeling abandoned by the diva he worshipped and the friend he loved, committed suicide the following year. Tu te laisses aller was written by Charles Aznavour, not with a macho vision, but as a rejection of the neglect and slackness that slowly destroy a couple. Non, je n’ai rien oublié, with lyrics by Charles Aznavour, explores all the nuances of nostalgic love, leading Patrick Bruel to say that “this song is a marvel, a masterpiece,” both in its construction and its evocations, like a movie. Bruel would have liked to be the author of it. She was co-written with British lyricist Herbert Kretzmer and composed by Aznavour for the British series Seven Faces of Woman (Les sept visages d’une femme). It marked Aznavour’s triumphant entry into the Anglo-Saxon world and reached number one in the United Kingdom, Ireland, the Netherlands and Australia.
Songs written by Aznavour for other music stars
Aznavour began his career writing for others. C’est un gars and Plus bleu que tes yeux were performed by Edith Piaf, the first to give him a chance when he was still her secretary and driver. Retiens la nuit and Bonne chance were written for Johnny Hallyday. Je hais les dimanches performed by Juliette Gréco earned him the Edith Piaf Prize at the song competition in 1951. Je t’attends and Méqué mé qué, with lyrics by Aznavour, were performed by Gilbert Bécaud. La plus belle pour aller danser, written for Sylvie Vartan, shocked Johnny Hallyday, finding the text daring at times. But also, Mon mec à moi for Mireille Mathieu; Jolies mômes de mon quartier for Maurice Chevalier; Je parlerai de toi for Michel Fugain and Je reste seule for Amel Bent, whom he had taken under his wing among the new generation.
