Charles Aznavour: The Singer with the Voice from the Bedroom – A Chapter from the Book “Things I Never Told”

The coronavirus pandemic is certainly not a pleasant and even depressing thing, but, as always, there is no bad without good. Take for example my dear friend Yoel Tamanlis, who used the free time during the lockdown to write the book Sa La WeiAnd here I was, just finishing enjoying Yoel's book, and suddenly it dawned on me that another friend of mine, Gil Kesari, had just finished writing the book "Things I Never Told," which recounts his fascinating life.

I received the book during Gil's 90th birthday celebrations, and only from conversations with other guests, most of whom were people who had known him for decades or more, did I realize how interesting the book was going to be.

The reason for this is that Gil did not live a normal life of work, a family home. He was part of the 1958 generation and fought in the War of Independence, served for many years as a Maariv correspondent in Paris, returned to Israel to fight in the Yom Kippur War (where he lost his eye) and if all this were not enough, he also served in the Mossad and participated in quite a few secret operations.

When I heard about his exploits, I was immediately reminded of this old song, which Kobi Recht sang many years ago:

Fortunately for us, Gil's fate was much better than the one that is not the subject of the song, and although he told us about his exploits in the institution, he is in excellent health. 🙂

However, with all due respect (and there is much respect) for what Gill did on behalf of the state, we as Francophiles are more interested in his connection to French culture. Fortunately, lovers of French culture will find quite a bit of interesting reading material here, since Gill not only lived in Paris, but, as a result of his work as a journalist, was privileged to meet quite a few of the most important artists of the 20th century, including singer Jacques Brel, actor Jean-Louis Trintignant, writer Romain Gary, and more.

In order to give you a little taste of Gil's book, I decided to bring you here the chapter that deals with the singer. Charles Aznavour, the last of the fallen from the heyday of French chanson, who died in 2018. If you liked the book, you are welcome to order it using the link at the end of the article.

The chapter on Aznavour from the book Things I Never Told

The death of Charles Aznavour and his legacy

He was found dead in his bathtub and they wanted to find out if he had drowned (it is remembered in France that another singer, Claude François, died years ago from electrocution in his bathtub). An autopsy showed that Aznavour died of natural causes as a result of a pulmonary embolism that caused cardiac arrest.

בParis A state ceremony was held yesterday at the Place des Invalides, with the participation of President Macron, who delivered a eulogy. Aznavour's family initially objected but relented. They also plan to name a street or square in Paris after him, because the French consider him a national asset, the last of their chansonniers. And they once again mention the nickname he was given at the beginning of his career: "A voice from the bedroom."

Curious people are digging into what he left behind, in addition to the 1400 songs he created and the 180 million recordings in many languages. I mean his property. It is estimated to amount to 150 million euros or even more, some of which is registered in Switzerland and Luxembourg for tax reasons. In any case, there is no fear that inheritance battles will break out because the singer has long ensured that his wife and children have a clear will. And he explained this in his unique style: “I don’t want them to start fighting over forks and spoons.”

Aznavour was not afraid to deal with controversial issues.

There is no point in repeating familiar things, but it is worth noting that some of his poems were dedicated to subjects that were considered unusual in the conservative society of the time. For example, a teacher who committed suicide because she became a victim of public outrage due to an affair with her student. Aznavour composed a famous poem in her memory: “To Die for Love” (I wonder what President France Macron, who is married to his former teacher).

A famous song about a gay man's confession at a time when it was illegal (the song "That's What They Call Me"). Or about the issue of immigrants and, of course, the history of Armenia from which he was born. And above all, love, which occupies a central place in his songs. But he emphasized: "This is not love itself - that's what the songs like "I Love You," "Why Did You Leave Me," "I'm Dying for You," etc., etc. talk about. I mean what is involved in love and in any case not in young age, but in middle age."

The story behind “What Do You Look Like”

Now I want to address something personal. I interviewed Aznavour twice when he visited Israel. The first time he was still unknown to us and that is probably why he appeared in some dubious nightclub on Hayarkon Street in Tel Aviv. The second time he was already at the height of his fame in France but in Israel they were still not interested in him. It happened a long time ago, so the interview was the first in our communication.

The interview took place on the lawn next to the swimming pool at the Acadia Hotel in Herzliya. He was reclining in a comfortable chair and I was sitting on the grass. I wanted to talk to him about one of his lesser-known songs, called Tu te laisse aller, loosely translated: “You neglect yourself.” A song completely different from the sentimentality and humanity, from the love in most of his songs. It is a hard, sad, cruel song. A kind of ballad for frustrated husbands, in which he speaks to his wife. I quote a few sentences from memory, again loosely translated:

The amounts of alcohol I drank allow me to tell you... I'm tired of you... How could I love you and dedicate 5 years of my life to you?... You look like your mother... Socks hanging over my shoes, a ragged and open robe, curlers stuck in your unruly hair... You annoy me and make me blush, I'm tired of your bites... And yet, I remember that you are my wife... Make an effort, lose weight, put on makeup, try to look beautiful in front of the mirror, go back to being the little girl I loved so much, so that everything will go back to the way it was before and you will cuddle in my arms again.

And here is the Hebrew version sung by Yossi Banai

When I brought up the subject, he dismissed me with a light laugh: “This all belongs to the past, when I was married to my two previous wives. With the first I was too young, with the second I was too stupid. Now it’s the present, look here,” and pointed to a nearby easy chair, where sat a tall, thin young woman, in a swimsuit, blonde as befits a Swede. “This is Ole. She taught me tenderness and tolerance from them.”

I noticed that she was deliberately detached, not to involve herself in her husband's affairs. And it turns out that's how Ole Torsal behaved during their fifty years of marriage: she wasn't seen with him in public, wasn't the subject of gossip, hated being photographed, didn't try to stand out as the wife of... She was 17 years younger than him and bore him three children.

The connection to Armenia and Israel

In his hundreds of performances, he did not hesitate to include other artists and did not always seek exclusivity. He also encouraged and helped young singers. But he gave them advice: “Sing, but keep your mouth shut on political issues.”

Aznavour was an international star who sang in several languages: French, English, Spanish, Italian -_ and only one song in Armenian. But in his soul he remained connected to his parents' country of origin and dedicated much to it and was even an honorary ambassador. “I am French, but Armenia is my roots.” He always emphasized. When Armenia was hit by a severe earthquake, he felt empathy, and one of the reasons for his sympathy for Israel was the aid it sent to the victims of the disaster. In general, he loves Israel and the Jews, ever since his parents hid some of them in their restaurant in Paris during the German occupation. But there is one thing he has not forgiven us for: that we stubbornly refused to this day to declare the massacre of the Armenians at the beginning of the last century a “Holocaust,” a disaster that burned in his bones all his life.

An international career and the secret to a long life

His star rose as an international artist following his success in the US in 1963. He was a complete unknown and rented the famous Carnegie Hall in New York at his own expense to perform. It was a gamble that paid off. Now Time magazine and CNN have declared him the star of the century, ahead of Elvis Presley and Frank Sinatra. His international career included performances in 94 countries – an interesting coincidence: that’s how many years he has.

Aznavour was also a good voice actor, similar to other singers such as Yves Montand and Frank Sinatra. His first of about 40 films in which he participated was “Don’t Shoot the Pianist,” directed by the renowned François Truffaut. But Aznavour preferred television films to voice films, explaining: “When I participated in the film, I stopped creating. So television films that only took a few weeks to produce were suitable for me, unlike voice films.”

His associates say that the secret to his longevity was his diligence. He never stopped creating, every day from early in the morning. A few days before his death, he performed in Japan, even though a few weeks earlier he had tripped and broken his arm. And he was not planning to stop, but on the contrary, he planned to perform at the age of 100. Where? He was asked. “In Central Park in New York, but on the condition that the Victory Gate would be behind me.”

This was Charles Aznavour: identification with his roots and loyalty to his nationality.

Order the book “Things I Didn’t Tell You”

If you liked the chapter on Aznavour and are interested in reading more from the book, you are welcome to order it viaLink thisYou can also order the book directly from Gil himself using this email.