Documentary on television about anarchist singer Léo Ferré

Soirée spéciale en hommage à Léo Ferré avec de nombreux documents inédits, des archives familiales Ferré et des interviews de différents artistes de la chanson française: Bernard Lavilliers, Hubert-Félix Thiefaine, Alain Souchon, etc

(Nouvelle diffusion: dimanche 13.07.2003 sur la deux)

Léo Ferré was born on August 24, 1916 in the principality of Monaco. After his studies in Italy, he left for Paris to go to law school in 1935. Back in Monaco, he began composing poems and singing in cabarets. He also discovered Charles Trenet and even met Edith Piaf who advised him to go to Paris. After the liberation of France, Léo showed up at the Boeuf sur le toit, a Parisian cabaret where he would share the billboard with the Frères Jacques and the Roche-Aznavour duo.

After having kept a distance from politics, Léo Ferré started spending more time in anarchist circles before joining the French Communist Party. The Communist Party would be the ideal political party for him for the rest of his life. In 1953, Léo Ferré opened for Joséphine Baker at the Olympia. In March 1955, he headlined at the Olympia and sang "l'Homme," "Monsieur Williams," and "raine d'Ananar." In April 1957, Les Fleurs du Mal sung by Léo Ferré came out in homage to Charles Baudelaire, the great French poet of the nineteenth century. In 1964, he recorded Ferré 64, the inspiration of a rebel. With poetry, he expressed the pent-up frustrations and the violent outbursts of an anarchist. The record that came out in summer of '67 was a taste of what was to come from the hippy generation. It was then that Ferré wrote "Salut Beatnik."

The events of May 1968 in France left a mark on Leo Ferré. In early 1969, he released a new album inspired by the agitation of May '68 with such songs as "Comme une fille," "L'été 68," "Les Anarchistes." Later that year, Léo Ferré released "C'est extra," which became a major hit. On January 6, 1969, a summit meeting took place between Léo Ferré, Jacques Brel and Georges Brassens, all three considered to be the pillars of French song. This meeting happened on the initiative of a journalist from a French music magazine called Rock & Folk. The three artists addressed their favorite topics and shared their opinions.

In 1973, they recorded "Il n'y a plus rien," a nihilistic speech much like a monologue that showed the talent of the poet Ferré once again. Then, he embarked on a tour with the Québécois singer, Robert Charlebois.

arch/ive/ief (2000 - 2005)