A Journey Through French Music

My journey with French music began long before I actually stepped foot in France for my semester abroad in Rennes, but living here with a family that loves music, and loves sharing their culture with me has been an excellent way to explore the vast and diverse repertoire of music that France has to offer. For that reason, for this post, I’d like to take a brief journey through French music- highlighting all my favorites and many classics that you are sure to find being played on the radio, in films, and stores and cafes all across the nation. 

I'll start with one of the oldest artists that I’m familiar with: Jacques Dutronc. His music is quintessentially sixties, with Beatles-like rhythms and fun, absurd lyrics. One of his most well-known (and loved) songs is Les Cactus, released in 1966. The song begins with lines that I have heard over and over at the dinner table of my host family, joyfully sung with the unmistakable rhythm of the sixties: Le monde entier et un cactus, il est impossible de s’asseoirrrrrrr! 

Dutronc’s music is well known among the older generations of France, but one artist that transcends the generations and is Claude Francois. Francois, sometimes affectionately nicknamed Cloclo, can in some ways be considered the “Elvis” of French music. Throughout the sixties and seventies, he created some of the most well-known French songs of all time, many of which I still hear on the radio and in restaurants and business in France today! Interestingly, Francois also composed the original melody for Frank Sinatra’s My Way in his song Comme d’habitude. Though he might not be extremely known outside of France, his impact on music globally during the sixties and seventies is undeniable. Many of his songs also adapt popular American songs into French including  J’attendrai, Fleur Sauvage, Toi et le Soleil, et Cette annee-la. 

Moving past the sixties and seventies, the 80s all the way into today’s age offer tons of well-known songs- many of which my music-loving host family have showed me. Two notable artists of the time are Jean-Jacques Goldman and Michel Berger. Berger’s famous La Groupie du Pianiste tells the story of a woman helplessly in love with an egotistical musician, and his scathing lyrics which sing “elle fout toute sa vie en l’air …et toute sa vie, c’est pas grand chose..” still ring in the minds of the French today! As for Goldman, I was introduced to his music one dinner by my host family. Lovers of culture, we were discussing our favorite songs and artists, and Goldman naturally came up. My host dad brought up his phone and began playing “La vie par procuration”  which speaks of a lonely woman living life through others. Much like the others songs I’ve mentioned, “La vie par procuration” boasts many quotable lines which I’ve heard sung around the dinner table, including the ominous “elle met du vieux pain sur son balcon … pour attirer les moineaux, les pigeons.” 

Today, French music is uniquely diverse, with inspiration taken from all over the world. Some of my favorite contemporary artists include Vendredi Sur Mer, an artist whose song “Ecoute Cherie” was catchy enough to find its way to American tiktok a few years back, and L’imperatrice whose song “Paris” is a favorite of mine. Of course, I’d be remiss not to mention Aya Nakamura, too, one of the most popular French female artists right now. Her talent and fame got her to stage of the Olympic opening ceremonies in Paris this year, where she sung many of her most popular songs including my favorite, Pookie. 

Catherine TUXWORTH 

Furman University 

CIEE-Rennes LA FALL 2024