Hubert-Félix Thiéfaine
Encyclopedia
Hubert-Félix Thiéfaine (ybɛʁ feliks tjefɛn) is a French pop-rock singer and songwriter, born 21 July 1948 in the town of Dole
in the Jura département.
Mostly shunned by television and radio, he has built over the years – through word of mouth and frequent touring – a considerable following which allowed him to fill the 17,000-seater Palais omnisports de Paris-Bercy
for an anniversary concert in 1998. In recent years he has been increasingly name-dropped as an influence by the latest generation of performers in France, and was the subject of a tribute album of covers in 2002. He has been performing since the late 1960s and releasing records since 1978.
Musically, H-FT draws mostly from classic rock, with rare nods to the latest musical trends, and generally leaves the arranging to a collaborator. But his songs are most notable for instantly recognisable lyrics, with their trademarks streams of consciousness, surreal and often extreme or dark imagery, often tinged with comedy, cynicism, literary references, neologisms and liberal use of scientific, long or foreign words. The lyrical mayhem sometimes spreads into comically long song titles, such as Enfermé dans les cabinets (avec la fille mineure des 80 chasseurs), or Exercice de simple provocation avec 33 fois le mot « coupable ». His education in a Catholic boarding school has also left deep traces which surface in his lyrics in the form of biblical quotations and cheerfully blasphemous lyrics.
His avowed influences include Léo Ferré
, Lou Reed
, and many French, Anglo-Saxon and German novelists and poets, with a preference for romantic literature.
Dole, Jura
Dole is a commune in the Jura department in the Franche-Comté region in eastern France, of which it is a subprefecture ....
in the Jura département.
Mostly shunned by television and radio, he has built over the years – through word of mouth and frequent touring – a considerable following which allowed him to fill the 17,000-seater Palais omnisports de Paris-Bercy
Palais Omnisports de Paris-Bercy
Opened in 1984, Palais Omnisports de Paris-Bercy, often abbreviated as POPB or Bercy, is an indoor sports arena on boulevard de Bercy located in the 12th arrondissement of Paris...
for an anniversary concert in 1998. In recent years he has been increasingly name-dropped as an influence by the latest generation of performers in France, and was the subject of a tribute album of covers in 2002. He has been performing since the late 1960s and releasing records since 1978.
Musically, H-FT draws mostly from classic rock, with rare nods to the latest musical trends, and generally leaves the arranging to a collaborator. But his songs are most notable for instantly recognisable lyrics, with their trademarks streams of consciousness, surreal and often extreme or dark imagery, often tinged with comedy, cynicism, literary references, neologisms and liberal use of scientific, long or foreign words. The lyrical mayhem sometimes spreads into comically long song titles, such as Enfermé dans les cabinets (avec la fille mineure des 80 chasseurs), or Exercice de simple provocation avec 33 fois le mot « coupable ». His education in a Catholic boarding school has also left deep traces which surface in his lyrics in the form of biblical quotations and cheerfully blasphemous lyrics.
His avowed influences include Léo Ferré
Léo Ferré
Léo Ferré was a Franco-Monegasque poet, composer, singer and musician.Born in Monaco, Ferré mixed love and melancholy with moral anarchy, lyricism with slang, rhyming verse with prose monologues...
, Lou Reed
Lou Reed
Lewis Allan "Lou" Reed is an American rock musician, songwriter, and photographer. He is best known as guitarist, vocalist, and principal songwriter of The Velvet Underground, and for his successful solo career, which has spanned several decades...
, and many French, Anglo-Saxon and German novelists and poets, with a preference for romantic literature.
Discography
- 1978 – Tout corps vivant branché sur le secteur étant appelé à s'émouvoir
- 1979 – Autorisation de délirer
- 1980 – De l'amour, de l'art ou du cochon
- 1981 – Dernières balises (avant mutation)
- 1982 – Soleil cherche futur
- 1983 – En concert – live (double album)
- 1984 – Alambic/sortie-sud
- 1986 – En concert vol.2 – live
- 1986 – Météo für nada
- 1988 – Eros über alles
- 1988 – 1978–1983 – compilation
- 1988 – Routes 88 – live
- 1989 – 1984–1988 – compilation
- 1990 – Chroniques bluesymentales
- 1993 – Fragments d'hébétude
- 1995 – Paris-Zénith – live (double album)
- 1996 – La tentation du bonheur
- 1998 – Le bonheur de la tentation
- 1998 – 1978–1998 – compilation
- 1999 – En concert à Bercy – live (double album)
- 2001 – Défloration 13
- 2002 – Au Bataclan – live at Le BataclanBataclan (theatre)The Bataclan is a "salle de spectacle" at 50 boulevard Voltaire in the 11th arrondissement of Paris. It was built in 1864 by the architect Charles Duval. Its name refers to Ba-Ta-Clan, an operetta by Offenbach...
- 2005 – Scandale mélancolique
- 2006 – Les Indispensables – compilation
- 2007 – Scandale mélancolique Tour – live (double album)
- 2007 – Amicalement Blues (with Paul PersonnePaul PersonnePaul Personne is a French blues singer and guitarist.-Studio albums:* Paul Personne * Exclusif * Barjoland * 24/24...
) - 2009 – Séquelles – compilation
- 2011 – Supplément de Mensonges
Videos
- 1992 : Bluesymental tour (VHS)
- 1995 : Paris-Zénith (VHS)
- 1999 : En concert à Bercy (DVD)
- 2007 : Scandale mélancolique tour (DVD)