"La Complainte de la Butte"
Song by Cora Vaucaire
Released1955 (1955)
RecordedDecember 27, 1954 (1954-12-27)
GenreChanson française, music-hall
Length3:22
LabelPathé

"La Complainte de la Butte" (English: "The Lament of the Mound") is a French love song, written by Jean Renoir, set to music by Georges van Parys,[1][2] originally performed by Cora Vaucaire as a single and for the music of the film French Cancan of 1955, of Jean Renoir.

History

The stairs of the butte (the 'hill' or 'mound'), at the top of Saint-Vincent Street, at the hill of Montmartre inParis.

The steps of the 'butte' (a small hill), from the tops of the street of Saint-Vincent, and the 'wings of the mill' that are said to protect lovers in the song, are references to the 'butte' (hill) of Montmartre in Paris. As the song sings 'From the top of Saint-Vincent street, a poet and a stranger, loved each other in the space of a moment, but he [the poet] never saw her again... Princess of the streets, be welcome in my broken heart, my little beggar, I feel your cuffs [hands] looking for my hand, I feel you chest and your thin waist, I forget my sorrow, I feel on your lips the scent of a fever of an underfed kid, and under your caress, I feel a drunkenness that destroys me...' . In French: « En haut de la rue Saint-Vincent, un poète et une inconnue, s'aimèrent l'espace d'un instant, mais il ne l'a jamais revue... Princesse de la rue soit la bienvenue dans mon cœur brisé, ma petite mendigote, je sens ta menotte qui cherche ma main, je sens ta poitrine et ta taille fine, j'oublie mon chagrin, je sens sur tes lèvres une odeur de fièvre de gosse mal nourrie, et sous ta caresse, je sens une ivresse qui m'anéantit... ».[3][4]

In the film French Cancan, Henri Danglard (Jean Gabin) plays the fictitious and romanticised role of the founder and director of the Moulin-Rouge (at the foot of the hill of Montmartre). He presents a new singer coming out of his cabaret and music-hall, Esther Georges, who sings for the first time the Complainte de la Butte. The character of Esther Georges is played by actress Anna Amendola, with her singing voice provided by Cora Vaucaire.[5]

Covers and adaptations

After Cora Vaucaire, this 'complainte' (or lament) was covered by a number of performers, including André Claveau, Patachou (1955), Marcel Mouloudji (1956), the duo of Barbara and Frank Alamo (1964), Renzo Gallo (1974), Francis Lemarque (1988), Lambert Wilson (1997), the duo Patrick Bruel and Francis Cabrel (in the album Entre deux, which came out in 2002), Hélène Ségara (2008), Daniel Darc (this was released posthumously, in 2013), Rufus Wainwright, Zaz (in her album Paris, released in 2014), and Sirius Plan (in his album Dog River Sessions of 2015).

Cinema and film music

See also

References

  1. ↑ "La complainte de la butte by Cora Vaucaire". SecondHandSongs (in French). Retrieved 11 December 2022..
  2. ↑ "Cora Vaucaire – Complainte De La Butte". Discogs. Retrieved 11 December 2022..
  3. ↑ "La complainte de la Butte". www.montmartre-site.com (in French). Retrieved 11 December 2022..
  4. ↑ "La complainte de la Butte". data.bnf.fr (in French). Retrieved 11 December 2022..
  5. ↑ "La chanteuse Cora Vaucaire est morte". Le Monde (in French). 2011.
  6. ↑ La Complainte de la Butte dans French Cancan on YouTube
  7. ↑ Complainte De La Butte - From "Moulin Rouge" Soundtrack on YouTube
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