"La Complainte de la Butte" (English: "The Lament of the Mound") is a French love song, written by

Jean Renoir Jean Renoir (; 15 September 1894 – 12 February 1979) was a French film director, screenwriter, actor, producer and author. His '' La Grande Illusion'' (1937) and '' The Rules of the Game'' (1939) are often cited by critics as among the greate ...

, set to music by

Georges van Parys Georges Van Parys (7 June 1902 in Paris – 28 January 1971 in Paris) was a French composer of film music and operettas. Among his musical influences were the group Les Six, Maurice Ravel, and Claude Debussy. Later in his career he served as vic ...

, and originally performed by Cora Vaucaire as a single and as part of the soundtrack for the 1955 film '' French Cancan'' written and directed by

History

P1260920_Paris_XVIII_place_Constantin-Pecqueur_bw_rwk

The steps of the '

butte In geomorphology, a butte ( ) is an isolated hill with steep, often vertical sides and a small, relatively flat top; buttes are smaller landforms than mesas, plateaus, and table (landform), tablelands. The word ''butte'' comes from the French l ...

' (a small hill), seen from the top of the street of Saint-Vincent, and the 'wings of the mill' that are said to protect lovers in the song, are both references to the 'hill' of

Montmartre Montmartre ( , , ) is a large hill in Paris's northern 18th arrondissement of Paris, 18th arrondissement. It is high and gives its name to the surrounding district, part of the Rive Droite, Right Bank. Montmartre is primarily known for its a ...

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

. As the song's lyrics read, 'From the top of street of Saint-Vincent, a poet and a stranger loved each other in the space of an instant, but he he poetnever saw her again... Princess of the street, be welcome to my broken heart, my little beggar, I feel your cuffs seeking my hands, I feel your chest and your slender waist, I forget my sorrow, I feel on your lips the scent of the fever of a malnourished child, and under your caress, I feel an intoxication that annihilates me...' (in the original 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...'. In the film '' French Cancan'', Henri Danglard (

Jean Gabin Jean Gabin Alexis Moncorgé (born Jean-Alexis Moncorgé), known as Jean Gabin (; 17 May 190415 November 1976), was a French actor and singer. Considered a key figure in French cinema, he starred in several classic films, including '' Pépé le ...

), the romanticised fictional founder and director of the

Moulin Rouge Moulin Rouge (, ; ) is a cabaret in Paris, on Boulevard de Clichy, at Place Blanche, the intersection of, and terminus of Rue Blanche. In 1889, the Moulin Rouge was co-founded by Charles Zidler and Joseph Oller, who also owned the Olympia (Par ...

(located at the foot of the hill of Montmartre), introduces a new singer, Esther Georges ( Anna Amendola; sung by Cora Vaucaire), into his cabaret and

music hall Music hall is a type of British theatrical entertainment that was most popular from the early Victorian era, beginning around 1850, through the World War I, Great War. It faded away after 1918 as the halls rebranded their entertainment as Varie ...

, where she sings the ''Complainte de la Butte'' for the first time.

Covers and adaptations

Following Cora Vaucaire, this ' complainte' (or lament) was covered by a number of performers, including

André Claveau André Claveau (, 29 December 1911 – 4 July 2003) was a popular singer in France from the 1940s to the 1960s. He won the Eurovision Song Contest in 1958 singing " Dors, mon amour" (Sleep, My Love), with music composed by Pierre Delanoë a ...

Patachou Henriette Ragon (10 June 1918 – 30 April 2015), better known as Patachou, was a French singer and actress, best-known for popularizing Georges Brassens songs by singing them before he became famous. She was an Officier of the Légion d'honneu ...

(1955),

Marcel Mouloudji Marcel André Mouloudji (16 September 1922 – 14 June 1994) was a French singer and actor who was born in Paris and died in Neuilly-sur-Seine. He sang songs written by Boris Vian and Jacques Prévert. Personal life Mouloudji was born to Algeria ...

(1956), the duo of Barbara and Frank Alamo (1964), (1974), Francis Lemarque (1988),

Lambert Wilson Lambert Nicolas Wilson (; né Willson, 3 August 1958) is a French actor and theatre director. He is a seven-time Cesar Award nominee, four for César Award for Best Actor, Best Actor and three for César Award for Best Supporting Actor, Best Sup ...

(1997), the duo of

Patrick Bruel Patrick Benguigui (; born 14 May 1959), better known by his stage name Patrick Bruel (), is a French singer-songwriter, actor and professional poker player. Biography Early life Patrick is the son of Pierre Benguigui and Augusta Kammoun, d ...

and

Francis Cabrel Francis Christian Cabrel (; born 23 November 1953) is a French singer-songwriter, composer and guitarist. Considered one of the most influential French musical artists of all time, he has released a number of albums falling mostly within the real ...

(on the album ''Entre deux,'' released in 2002),

Hélène Ségara Hélène Ségara (, born ''Hélène Aurore Alice Rizzo''; 26 February 1971), is a French singer of Armenian and Italian descent, who came to prominence playing the role of Esmeralda in the French musical ''Notre Dame de Paris''. She has sold o ...

(2008),

Daniel Darc Daniel Rozoum (20 May 1959 – 28 February 2013), known as Daniel Darc, was a French singer, who achieved success with his band Taxi Girl (together with Mirwais Ahmadzaï) between 1978 and 1986, and also as a solo artist. After Taxi Girl was di ...

(released posthumously, in 2013),

Rufus Wainwright Rufus McGarrigle Wainwright (born July 22, 1973) is a Canadian and American singer, songwriter, and composer. He has recorded eleven studio albums and numerous tracks on compilations and film soundtracks. He has also written two classical opera ...

Zaz ZAZ or Zaporizhzhia Automobile Building Plant (, ''Zaporiz'kyi avtomobilebudivnyi zavod'' or ''Zaporiz'kyi avtozavod'') is the main automobile manufacturer of Ukraine, based in the south-eastern city of Zaporizhzhia. It also produces buses and t ...

(on the album ''

,'' released in 2014), and Sirius Plan (on the album ''Dog River Sessions'', released in 2015).

Cinema and film music

* 1955: '' French Cancan'', by

, sung by Cora Vaucaire. * 2001: ''

'', by

Baz Luhrmann Mark Anthony "Baz" Luhrmann (born 17 September 1962) is an Australian film director, producer, writer, and actor whose various projects extend from film and television into opera, theatre, music, and the recording industries. He is regarded by ...

, sung by

References

External links

Notice on data.bnf.fr
* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Complainte de la Butte 1954 songs Hélène Ségara songs Patrick Bruel songs Montmartre Songs about Paris Songs written for films

History

Covers and adaptations

Cinema and film music

See also

References

External links