Jacques Brel - advice on what to get please!

I have never liked Brel, except for the cowboy movie he once made in an abandoned mine. Silly movie.

Jan

Best Brel covers? Try the Marc Almond album 'Jacques' and listen to Alison Moyet's 'Ne Me Quitte Pas' (the definitive version of this song).

I actually imagine that the value of Brel would be severely diminished if you don't understand French. If you've heard the Scott Walker covers you can probably imagine what I mean. It's sort of like listening to Leonard Cohen without understanding English; you might get the general attitudinal gist and the music is occasionally very fine, but you're by and large missing the point.

That said, the album to look for is this one, a double CD of his best songs -- including my favorite, "Les Vieux":

http://images.amazon.com/images/P/B000006UMF.01.LZZZZZZZ.jpg

But Quand on n'a que l'amour is a good intro, otherwise I'd suggest Live at Olympia.

However, I believe myself to be CORRECT.

It's called a difference of opinion.

Thank you.

sticking the lyrics into Babelfish gives rough yet sufficient results

Er, um...

"Old Men" by Babelfish

The old men do not speak any more or then only sometimes of the end of the rich eyes
Même they are poor, they do not have more illusions and do not have that a heart for two
On their premises that feels the thyme, the characteristic, the lavender and the verb of antan
Which one lives in Paris one saw all in province when one saw
too a long time Is this to have too much laughed that their voice crack when they speak about yesterday
And to have cried too much that tears still bead to them with the eyelids
And if they tremble a little is this to see aging the money
clock Which hums with the show I await you

the old men do not dream more, their books ensommeillent myself, their pianos are closed
the kitten died, the muscatel of Sunday does not make them more sing
the old men do not move more their gestures have too many wrinkles their world is too small
bed with the window, then bed at the armchair and then bed with the bed
And if they still leave arm above arms very equipped below with stiff
is to follow to the sun the burial of older, the burial of more ugly
And the time of a sob, to forget a whole hour it who says yes who says not, and then which awaits them

the old men do not die, they fall asleep one day and sleep too a long time
They are held by the hand, they are afraid to lose themselves and however lose
And the other remains, the best there or the worst, the soft one or severe the
That does not import, that of both which remainder is found in hell
will perhaps see it to You, you will sometimes see it in rain and sorrow
Traverser the present while being already excused not to be not further
And to flee in front of you last once it hum with the show, which says yes who says not, who says to them: I await you
Which hums with the show, which says yes who says not and then which awaits us.

I particularly like the Babelfishified translation of Francoise Hardy's cover of Cohen's 'Suzanne'.

The Primo 2cd set has surprisingly good sound for a cheapo compi.
I've been listening to the 2nd disc for the last week.
Surprised to hear the instrumentation on Ne Me Quitte Pas cos I thought it sounded like a theremin at the begining until I found out it was an Ondes Martenot. Still seems pretty weird sound for mainstream chanson.

Really enjoying the disc so may need to pick up some more stuff by him. I think I have some mid 60s live stuff if the harddrive they were on didn't crash.

I thought it sounded like a theremin at the begining until I found out it was an Ondes Martenot. Still seems pretty weird sound for mainstream chanson.

He uses it on a few songs.

... or, more accurately, his arrangers do.