In 1975, for the album “Irradié” by Jacques Higelin, you compose the music of “one eye in the fight” or “the courage to live”. Is that the start of the adventure?
Yes, we can say it. I landed from my parents’ house and I fall into a crazy environment with artists, actors, writers, musicians. It has revolutionized my life a bit. I composed all the time. I had themes in my head that I played on the guitar. Higelin said to me, “If you have pieces, don’t hesitate to present them to me”. I had nothing special, I was doing images. One morning, he said to me, “So what do you have as a piece? “I improvised something, he said to me:” Well, that’s it, great, I’m going to write lyrics, I’m coming back “. He wrote “One eye in the fight” and I had just composed my first music. He said to me, “You don’t have any others like that? He wanted a piece like Lou Reed and I composed something like I made him listen to. He said to me: “It’s perfect” and wrote “The courage to live”.
I wanted to make a song where the cartoons of cartoons have an almost tragic destiny. What amused me was to imagine Mickey who ended up in the smash, Goldorak who was ripped off … And then I bet everything on Cinderella. I thought of several people, including Romy Schneider. It was Sissi – the princess – who had just died. All the children my age were a bit in love, because she was cute, Romy. When you write a song, it’s good to make it travel, with several characters, in several countries. She had just released single. With phone, we went on tour. As often, to laugh, we fought with Richard (Kolinka) but, this time, I fell back and broke my collarbone. It happened on the evening of the first concert. At L’Hosto, I am told that “Cinderella” was retained on Air France. While I was stuck in a hospital room, “Cinderella” traveled around the world and it made me happy.
In 1987, when the phone hung up, you come out with “these ideas”. Another ride and another classic.
Jacques Doillon had asked me to play a first role in a film, I who was never an actor. I’m going to try. I had to be violent with a woman, which is not in my nature. I give him a little slap and Doillon said to me: “But no, look at how we do it”. He pushes her downright, she falls and hurts. I said to myself, cinema is not for me. When I got home, I did not respond to my girlfriend. She came out, and I imagined that she had left me. I quickly wrote a song in which I tell him that you shouldn’t abandon myself, not let me hang out there … She came back half an hour later. She was just out to take the air. I made her listen to the song and she said to me: “It’s really good. »»
In 1993, released “Go a guitar” on your first solo album. You declare your love for your “six -blow guitar”. Is the guitar all your life?
This is a good part of my life, from 15 to 71 years old. There, I have it right next to it, I will change the strings for the next concert. She is never very far away. It is my little SG Junior guitar bought in New Jersey and paid 20 dollars. The elected representative is this.
On “Long” (2005), you interpret “Les Frôleuses” with Carla Bruni which you had produced, three years earlier, the first album. Carla, is it rock?
No, it’s folk. I like folk but I prefer American country-rock. But hey, it was folk. In reality I liked his songs. She asked me if I didn’t want to produce her album but I had to make the lyrics of my own record. She said to me: “Listen, I take care of it while you work on my album”. I said ok, it was a deal. And we did that like that.
With phone, there had not been a farewell tour. We had left like that, in the middle of nothing.
Ten years ago, the INSUs are for you a way of closing the story and thank you phone fans?
Yeah, that’s it. Originally, we wanted to make a little concert for our manager of the time which had just cured of cancer. We made a concert at home for him and he said to us: “Damn, it makes me cry so much I wanted to hear this sound. »We organized a little concert to make him happy … it was a little leaked. Afterwards, there were three small dates, a small tour, a big tour and we made 80 concerts with two stadiums from France to finish. With phone, there had not been a farewell tour. We had left like that, in the middle of nothing, in the middle of the work of the next album that we did not want to do. There, we did a last tour.
In “The film of my life”, title song of your latest album (2023), you finally say you have liked your life. Really no regrets?
No, I can’t regret like this. I was really lucky. I did exactly what I liked to do and it went very well. And it continues today. I play the same music that I have always liked to play. Happiness.
Practical
