Jean Perret – Between Sympathy and Warfare

As a lover of French music, I had not heard of Jean Ferrat until recently. But I was filled with joy when I listened to his heroic songs. Yes, he is brave, in his songs he names political figures and you can hear his opinion reflected in a restrained but clear way. His voice tonight takes me back to those days, the days of innocence. I believe that the French, originally, were modest. His nightingale voice and his intention bring the spirit of that era.

Once upon a time, there was no craze, there weren't too many cars, progress was in its infancy. Pera, in my opinion, didn't sing to relieve boredom. He created songs and performed them to contribute to society, to express himself, to enjoy and bring pleasure to us, his listeners. I get the impression that fame didn't necessarily charm him, but rather it was important to him to express his values ​​(communism, feminism, helping others, humility, brotherhood), on which he based his songs.

The establishment's opponent

Jean Perre, a singer-songwriter, was born in 1930 near Paris to a Jewish father, who had emigrated from Russia in 1905, and a French mother. He was the youngest of four siblings. As a child, his parents instilled in him a love of music and poetry. He would listen to songs by Charles Ternay. As a teenager, he was nourished by the poets Nazim Hikmet, Garcia Lorca, Louis Aragon, Baudelaire, and others.

For about a decade he would strum his guitar until people started listening to him. With the consent of the poet Aragon, in 1956 he composed and performed the song "Elsa's Eyes" (Les yeux d'Elsa).

I've been singing for twenty years, and this is the first time I can sing on television for an hour about whatever I want.

In France during the years of de Gaulle's presidency, television and radio were under control. His songs, judged politically or morally wrong, were banned from broadcasting. Thus, Jean Pré was among the banned artists (Leo Pré, Georges Bressan, Jacques Brel, etc.).

His personal background and political mobilization shaped his militant pursuit. When Jean Perret was 10 years old, his father was deported to Auschwitz. Before his eyes, his father was taken away by the Gestapo while they were walking down the street. At that moment, his world was shattered. Scarred by that event, he wrote the poem 'No One Recovers from Childhood' (Nul ne guérit de son enfance). It is most likely a song of consolation.

Jean Perret was sheltered by communist fighters. This dark period inspired him in 63 to write the poem "Night and Fog" (Nuit et brouillard). The IBA refused to broadcast the poem because it mentioned victims of Nazi camps at a time when France and Germany were reconciled.

My father was arrested during the war. He was Jewish, wore a yellow star. He was separated from us, and was held in the Pithiviers and Drancy concentration camps. From there, he continued on to a destination that was not yet known at the time. None of us heard from him, but we hoped he would return. Of course, he never did. He was deported to Auschwitz, and a few days later, he died. In 1945, after the war, we received confirmation from the government.

Upon his release, he gave up his studies and worked to support his family without a diploma or experience. At the same time, he took acting lessons and even experimented with music. At the age of 24, he decided to become a singer and sang in various cabarets in Paris. He sang love songs, poems, protest songs. He was afraid of being perceived as a ballad singer. It took him a decade to become famous. As a political singer, Jean Perret was loyal to communist ideals without being a member of the French Communist Party.

Are you a communist?
I sympathize with and support the communists, but I do not fight.
Why don't you go all the way?
Does having a membership card scare you?
I think the struggle can be sustained while singing as well as at the provincial level where I already have a role.

He maintained a mystery. He did not define himself as a communist, etc. In doing so, he let others discover who he was.

Following the poem "Potemkine" he released in 1965, about the sailors' mutiny on the Russian warship in 1905, Jean Perret was accused of justifying Sovietism.

The struggle continues

At the age of 37, Jean Perret visited Cuba. He appeared there several times, growing a mustache. In May 68, he supported the working class. In that spring of rebellion, he was inspired to write the song "Ma France." Since the song disrespected the government, it was banned from broadcast. Jean Perret refused to appear on television without singing it.

Only after two years did he return to the stage. In the poem, one can discern his mixed feelings towards his homeland. On the one hand, the charming natural sights of France, and on the other, the rigid policies of its leaders. Indeed, France is an example for other nations, but sometimes it deprives its inhabitants, whether they are children working in the mines, laborers, or even the exiled Victor Hugo.

Do you believe in power?
I don't believe in force. We live in a world that uses force and violence. We are in the midst of violence. We accept it, but sometimes, in order to justify it, it is covered with 'magnificence'.

These things did not please the management of the Broadcasting Authority. As a result, his appearances on certain programs were canceled. Since then, he has been prevented from appearing on television for about three years. In the 70s, he moved to Ardèche (a province in southeastern France), where he has a house. His life away from the hustle and bustle of the capital did not prevent him from criticizing others from the brass. In 1975, Jean Dormesson's editorial - on the Vietnam War and the victory of the Vietnamese communists - put Jean Pere out of his mind.

In response, he wrote the song Un Air de Liberté, a kind of angry manifesto that tries to suppress the occupying France and presents Pere as a peacemaker, striving for freedom. In Dormason's opinion, this song is defamatory, and he filed a complaint. The song was removed from the Jean Pere program 1976.

You will not see all the poems, one is missing. Mr. Dormesson, the editor of the newspaper Le Figaro, found this poem defamatory, and therefore, the management decided to remove it.

This song was also banned from broadcast. In mockery of the ban, Jean Perret wrote the song about it: Quand On N'interdira Plus Mes Chansons (When My Songs Will No Longer Be Banned).

Pera was modest. And when he was handed a platinum disc, he returned it. He naively thought that the long line, which stretched to purchase tickets for his performance, was for the boxing match in the nearby arena.

He would follow current events, for example when Le Pen's party (Front National) rose by a number of votes, he became angry. He was not disconnected after leaving Paris. The move to Ardas illustrates how much he needed peace. He did not attach much importance to money, show biz. Nevertheless, he did not withdraw completely, he continued to write at the table of the cafe in the center of the village.

Emotional songs

His poems exude sensitivity. After his friend passed away, he wrote the poem "You Could Have Lived" (Tu aurais pu vivre) in his honor.

He also composed the optimistic song "Life is Beautiful" (C'est beau la vie) for Isabelle Aubrey after she had a car accident.

He composed works for the poet Louis Aragon. The best known is 'What would I be without you?' (?Que serais-je sans toi).

To some extent, he was a feminist. Although women were portrayed as weak, he valued their work and contributions to society, through the songs "My Child" (Ma môme).

https://youtu.be/l30dY-93_GI

And 'Woman is the future of man' (La femme est l'avenir de l'homme).

Jean Perre, the man, died in 2010 at the age of 79 from lung cancer, but his memory lives on with us through his songs and the festival in his name that has taken place every year since 2011 and brings us his beautiful songs sung in a warm voice and a perfect Parisian accent.

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