Jacques Brel

Jacques Romain Georges Brel, born on 8 April 1929 in Schaerbeek, Brussels, was a Belgian singer, actor, and composer whose theatrical songs earned him a devoted following across Belgium, France, and eventually the world. He died on 9 October 1978. His Broadway credits include Jacques Brel Is Alive and Well and Living in Paris, a revue built around his compositions. Over the course of his career he sold more than 25 million records worldwide, making him the third-best-selling Belgian recording artist of all time.

Brel was raised in Brussels by his parents, Élisabeth Lambertine Van Adorp and Romain Brel, in a family of Flemish descent that had adopted the French language. Part of the family traced its origins to Zandvoorde, near Ypres. His father worked at an import-export firm called Conimex before becoming co-director of a cardboard manufacturing company. Brel and his elder brother Pierre attended the Catholic primary school École Saint-Viateur and were members of a local Boy Scout troop. The family lived at several addresses in Brussels, moving through Schaerbeek, Molenbeek-Saint-Jean, and finally Anderlecht. In September 1941, Brel enrolled at the Institut Saint-Louis, where he performed poorly in most subjects but excelled in History and French, helped establish the school's drama club, and began writing short stories, poems, and plays. At fifteen he took up the guitar, and by 1945 he had formed his own theatre group with friends.

After failing his exams and forgoing an academic path, Brel went to work at his father's cardboard factory in August 1947 at the age of eighteen. Outside of work he joined a Catholic youth organization called La Franche Cordée, which was dedicated to philanthropic activities including religious retreats, fundraising, and deliveries of food and clothing to orphanages and homes for the elderly. In June 1948 he completed military service, training in Limbourg and serving as a corporal in the Belgian air force at Groenveld barracks in Zellik. It was through La Franche Cordée that he met Thérèse Michielsen, known as Miche, whom he married on 1 June 1950 in Laeken. The couple had three children; their first daughter, Chantal, was born on 6 December 1951, and a second daughter, France, was born on 12 July 1953.

Brel began writing songs and performing them at family gatherings and on Brussels' cabaret circuit in 1952, the same year he made his first appearance on local radio. In January 1953 he performed at the cabaret La Rose Noire in Brussels, and the following month he signed a contract with Philips Records, recording his first 78 rpm single, "Il Y A," released in March. The label's talent scout and artistic director, Jacques Canetti, invited Brel to relocate to Paris, which he did in the autumn of 1953 despite family objections. In Paris he gave guitar lessons to pay his rent and worked the cabaret circuit at venues including L'Écluse, L'Échelle de Jacob, and Canetti's own Les Trois Baudets. In July 1954 he made his first appearance at the Olympia Theatre in Paris, and by the end of that year Philips had released his debut album, a nine-song, ten-inch LP titled Jacques Brel et ses chansons. That summer he also embarked on his first French tour, sharing the bill with Dario Moreno, Philippe Clay, and Catherine Sauvage.

In February 1955, Brel met Georges Pasquier, who became his closest friend, manager, and personal chauffeur. His wife and children joined him in France that March, and the family settled in the Paris suburb of Montreuil-sous-Bois. In July 1956, while in Grenoble, he met classical pianist François Rauber, who became his accompanist and took on responsibility for his musical arrangements, providing Brel with formal musical training he had previously lacked. That September, Brel recorded "Quand on n'a que l'amour," which became his commercial breakthrough upon its November release.

Although the majority of his recordings were in French, with some in Dutch, Brel became a significant influence on English-speaking songwriters and performers including Scott Walker, David Bowie, Brett Anderson, Alex Harvey, Marc Almond, Neil Hannon, and Rod McKuen. English-language translations of his songs were recorded by a wide range of artists, among them Bowie, Walker, Ray Charles, Judy Collins, John Denver, The Kingston Trio, Nina Simone, Shirley Bassey, James Dean Bradfield, Frank Sinatra, and Andy Williams. He is regarded as a master of the modern chanson.

Beyond music, Brel pursued a substantial acting career, appearing in ten films. He also directed two films, one of which, Le Far West, received a nomination for the Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival in 1973. From 1972 until his death in 1978, he maintained a romantic relationship with actress and dancer Maddly Bamy. Brel died on 9 October 1978.