Regrets (song)
Encyclopedia
"Regrets" is a 1991
song recorded by French
singer-songwriter
Mylène Farmer
as duet with musician Jean-Louis Murat
. The song was released on 29 July 1989 and was the second single
from her third studio album L'Autre...
. The music video was shot in a cemetery in Budapest
, as the song deals with a love relationship between two people separated by the death of one of them. This ballad became a top three hit in France and was also successful in Belgium.
since the release of "Désenchantée
". According to Farmer, the song was "very long to write". The idea of the duet started from an "irregular but faithful" correspondence through letters between both singers for a year. Murat explained: "One day, in the box of letters, I have a letter of Mylène. She is asking me if I want to sing with her. This letter is not a legend, I received by the post, simply. I do not believe my eyes, she gives me her phone number." Finally Murat called her and they met in Paris.
Already in 1989, Farmer confessed that she liked Murat's songs and his album Cheyenne Automne, and his way of writing. Thus, according to Murat, Farmer had the idea to record a duet with him, and he accepted after listening to an audiotape of "Regrets" in which Farmer sang the two voices — her own and that of Murat trying to make it deeper — which French author Julien Rigal deemed a "legend". At that time, Farmer said in several interviews that she considered Murat as her "brother", her "double", her "twin" and a "poet"; she called her encounter with Murat "fantastic". In the media, Murat said almost the same thing on this matter and on other ones, so much so that the OK magazine established a comparison of the previous interviews given in the press by both singers. However, as noted by author Erwan Chuberre, it remains impossible to really know if the duet was actually motivated by a genuine friendship or by a business strategy, given that the singers wanted to expand their fans base then. In 2004, Murat said in the French newspaper L'Express
that "Regrets" helped him to launch his career.
The single was released on 29 July 1991 under various formats, including a CD maxi with a pin's in a limited edition.
In 2000, the recording company scheduled to release the live version of "Regrets" as second single from the album Mylenium Tour
, and thus sent a promotional VHS
to the radio stations. However, given the differences with Farmer who preferred "Pas le temps de vivre" as single and the disappointing sales of the previous live singles "Ainsi soit je...
" and "Dessine-moi un mouton
", the song was finally not released.
who also co-authored the screenplay with Farmer, the video was filmed for two days in February 1991 in a Jewish cemetery abandoned in Budapest
, with a budget of about 35,000 euros. The train, which leads to the cemetery was turned on only for the video which features, in addition to the two singers, a deer
. It was broadcast on television for the first time on 9 September 1991 in Stars 90 on TF1
. In an interview, Murat explained that he had been very surprised by the extreme severity and great professionalism shown by Boutonnat during the video's shooting.
At the beginning of the video, a tram stops in front of the entrance of a snow-covered cemetery
. Murat gets off from the tram and pushes the front gate. He walks in the cemetery, passes a deer
and meditates at a grave. When he sits, Farmer comes behind him and puts her hands on his eyes. Murat takes Farmer by the hand, then they run, laugh and huddled one against the other in the cemetery. They doze off on a tombstone, and after a last embrace, they say goodbye to each other and split off. The man then gets on the tram and goes away.
According to the analysis made by magazine Instant-Mag, the video is the "metaphor of a past and regretted love". It "shows the indispensable link between two people, as well as the inevitability of this link : we can be attached to the other person, but also lose her". With this video, Farmer "reached the quintessance of elegant sadness which lives in her work". According to this analysis, the character played by Murat would be alive and would try to meet that played by Farmer who would be dead. To this end, the train would represent the transition from these two worlds. The deer
who flees would be "the symbol of the woman's essence", and the bunch of thistle
s would evoke "the desire to provoke unconditional love with the other person". As for the immaculate snow
, it would participate in the gloomy atmosphere of the video and would symbolize "a mild but deadly mask which isolates" the two opposing parties. Biographer Bernard Violet said that Boutonnat simply transposed the song in the video by adding his personal aesthetic, in this case, a stylized, little contrasted and overexposed black and white. Anything that expresses reality was filmed at normal speed, while all which describes dream, hope or regret, was filmed at slower speed.
on 7 October 1991. It showed Farmer, dressed in white, and lying down a staircase, while Murat, dressed in black, was on the top of the stairs. The performance was actually recorded a few days earlier and the recording lasted approximately six hours as Murat, who was not used to sing on television shows at the time, had some difficulties with his lip sync
. As compensation, Farmer sent crates of champagne to technicians the next day. Regarding tours, "Regrets" was sung only during the 1990 Mylenium Tour
; on this occasion, Farmer performed the song alone, while a red fire was lighted in the hand of the blue statue of the stage.
In December 2003, SitolC participated in the national competition "Télé Poche", then in two castings : "Génération Métis" and "Graine de star". On these occasions, he recorded a cover of "Regrets" which was deemed unsuccessful.
Although "Regrets" was released in the summer, its sales were rather satisfactory. In France, the single started at number 20 on 24 August 1991, reached the top ten the next week and stayed there for ten consecutive weeks, including a peak at number three on 21 September. It totaled 16 weeks in the top 50. "Regrets" was even certified Silver disc
by the Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique
on 19 December 1991 for over 250,000 units. In Belgium
, the song debuted at number 22, entered the top ten and reached number two for two consecutive weeks. It totaled nine weeks in the top five and 18 weeks in the top 30.
1991 in music
See also:* 1991 in music Record labels established in 1991-Summary:The year 1991 is the year that grunge music made its popular breakthrough. Nirvana's Nevermind, led by the surprise hit single "Smells Like Teen Spirit", becomes the most popular U.S. album of the year...
song recorded by French
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
singer-songwriter
Singer-songwriter
Singer-songwriters are musicians who write, compose and sing their own musical material including lyrics and melodies. As opposed to contemporary popular music singers who write their own songs, the term singer-songwriter describes a distinct form of artistry, closely associated with the...
Mylène Farmer
Mylène Farmer
Mylène Farmer, , born Marie-Hélène Jeanne Gautier, , , is a French singer, songwriter, occasional actress and author....
as duet with musician Jean-Louis Murat
Jean-Louis Murat
Not to be confused with Jean-Paul MaratJean-Louis Murat is the pseudonym of the French singer / songwriter Jean-Louis Bergheaud. He spent much of his childhood with his grandparents in Murat-le-Quaire.- Albums :...
. The song was released on 29 July 1989 and was the second single
Single (music)
In music, a single or record single is a type of release, typically a recording of fewer tracks than an LP or a CD. This can be released for sale to the public in a variety of different formats. In most cases, the single is a song that is released separately from an album, but it can still appear...
from her third studio album L'Autre...
L'Autre...
L'Autre... is the third studio album by Mylène Farmer, released on April 9, 1991. It contains the singer's biggest hit, "Désenchantée", which was number-one in France for nine weeks, and other three top ten hits...
. The music video was shot in a cemetery in Budapest
Budapest
Budapest is the capital of Hungary. As the largest city of Hungary, it is the country's principal political, cultural, commercial, industrial, and transportation centre. In 2011, Budapest had 1,733,685 inhabitants, down from its 1989 peak of 2,113,645 due to suburbanization. The Budapest Commuter...
, as the song deals with a love relationship between two people separated by the death of one of them. This ballad became a top three hit in France and was also successful in Belgium.
Background and writing
"Regrets" was Farmer's first duet and was scheduled as the second single from the album L'Autre...L'Autre...
L'Autre... is the third studio album by Mylène Farmer, released on April 9, 1991. It contains the singer's biggest hit, "Désenchantée", which was number-one in France for nine weeks, and other three top ten hits...
since the release of "Désenchantée
Désenchantée
"Désenchantée" is a 1991 song recorded by the French singer-songwriter Mylène Farmer. First single from her third studio album L'Autre..., it was released on 18 March 1991 and achieved a great success in France, topping the chart for more than two months...
". According to Farmer, the song was "very long to write". The idea of the duet started from an "irregular but faithful" correspondence through letters between both singers for a year. Murat explained: "One day, in the box of letters, I have a letter of Mylène. She is asking me if I want to sing with her. This letter is not a legend, I received by the post, simply. I do not believe my eyes, she gives me her phone number." Finally Murat called her and they met in Paris.
Already in 1989, Farmer confessed that she liked Murat's songs and his album Cheyenne Automne, and his way of writing. Thus, according to Murat, Farmer had the idea to record a duet with him, and he accepted after listening to an audiotape of "Regrets" in which Farmer sang the two voices — her own and that of Murat trying to make it deeper — which French author Julien Rigal deemed a "legend". At that time, Farmer said in several interviews that she considered Murat as her "brother", her "double", her "twin" and a "poet"; she called her encounter with Murat "fantastic". In the media, Murat said almost the same thing on this matter and on other ones, so much so that the OK magazine established a comparison of the previous interviews given in the press by both singers. However, as noted by author Erwan Chuberre, it remains impossible to really know if the duet was actually motivated by a genuine friendship or by a business strategy, given that the singers wanted to expand their fans base then. In 2004, Murat said in the French newspaper L'Express
L'Express (France)
L'Express is a French weekly news magazine. When founded in 1953 during the First Indochina War, it was modelled on the US magazine TIME.-History:...
that "Regrets" helped him to launch his career.
The single was released on 29 July 1991 under various formats, including a CD maxi with a pin's in a limited edition.
In 2000, the recording company scheduled to release the live version of "Regrets" as second single from the album Mylenium Tour
Mylenium Tour
Mylènium Tour is the third live album by Mylène Farmer, released on December 5, 2000.-Background:After having ending her third successful tour whose last shows were held in Russia on March 7, 2000, Farmer rested, and then decided to release an album and a DVD retracing her concert...
, and thus sent a promotional VHS
VHS
The Video Home System is a consumer-level analog recording videocassette standard developed by Victor Company of Japan ....
to the radio stations. However, given the differences with Farmer who preferred "Pas le temps de vivre" as single and the disappointing sales of the previous live singles "Ainsi soit je...
Ainsi soit je... (song)
"Ainsi soit je..." is a 1988 song recorded by the French artist Mylène Farmer. The song was released as a single twice: as the second single from her second studio album Ainsi soit je... on 4 April 1988, and as the second single in a live version from her second live album Live à Bercy on 20...
" and "Dessine-moi un mouton
Dessine-moi un mouton
"Dessine-moi un mouton" is a 1999 song recorded by French singer-songwriter Mylène Farmer, first in a studio version, then in a live version during her 1999 concert Mylenium Tour. The song was the only single from her third live album Mylenium Tour and was released on 5 December 2000...
", the song was finally not released.
Lyrics and music
"Regrets" is a love song in which a couple of lovers are answering tenderly and with melancholy, while they are separated by the death of one of them (Farmer). Indeed, Instant-Mag said that the song deals with the "very romantic theme of the loss of [the lover]. This loss leaves an unfathomable lack in the one who remains, which invests the world of dreams to regain the lost happiness. Only memories then allow to savour the well-being of the past relationship". In his analysis of the song, the psychologist Hugues Royer stated: "Death is a subterfuge to make the impossible love. (...) Is not it easier to romanticize a dead person than a living one who, sooner or later, will show the faces of his faults? It is indeed the fear of everyday life that terrifies the advocates of absolute love." About the lyrics, Farmer explained that she "do[es] not unit the regret with the notions of disappointment and failure, rather these things that we could do, but that we decide not to do".Music video
The video is a Requiem Publishing and Heathcliff SA production whose length is 6:17. Directed by Laurent BoutonnatLaurent Boutonnat
Laurent Pierre Marie Boutonnat is a French composer and film and music video director, best known as the songwriting partner of Mylène Farmer and the director of moody, provocative and literature-inspired music videos.- Career :...
who also co-authored the screenplay with Farmer, the video was filmed for two days in February 1991 in a Jewish cemetery abandoned in Budapest
Budapest
Budapest is the capital of Hungary. As the largest city of Hungary, it is the country's principal political, cultural, commercial, industrial, and transportation centre. In 2011, Budapest had 1,733,685 inhabitants, down from its 1989 peak of 2,113,645 due to suburbanization. The Budapest Commuter...
, with a budget of about 35,000 euros. The train, which leads to the cemetery was turned on only for the video which features, in addition to the two singers, a deer
Deer
Deer are the ruminant mammals forming the family Cervidae. Species in the Cervidae family include white-tailed deer, elk, moose, red deer, reindeer, fallow deer, roe deer and chital. Male deer of all species and female reindeer grow and shed new antlers each year...
. It was broadcast on television for the first time on 9 September 1991 in Stars 90 on TF1
TF1
TF1 is a national French TV channel, controlled by TF1 Group, whose major share-holder is Bouygues. TF1's average market share of 24% makes it the most popular domestic network...
. In an interview, Murat explained that he had been very surprised by the extreme severity and great professionalism shown by Boutonnat during the video's shooting.
At the beginning of the video, a tram stops in front of the entrance of a snow-covered cemetery
Cemetery
A cemetery is a place in which dead bodies and cremated remains are buried. The term "cemetery" implies that the land is specifically designated as a burying ground. Cemeteries in the Western world are where the final ceremonies of death are observed...
. Murat gets off from the tram and pushes the front gate. He walks in the cemetery, passes a deer
Deer
Deer are the ruminant mammals forming the family Cervidae. Species in the Cervidae family include white-tailed deer, elk, moose, red deer, reindeer, fallow deer, roe deer and chital. Male deer of all species and female reindeer grow and shed new antlers each year...
and meditates at a grave. When he sits, Farmer comes behind him and puts her hands on his eyes. Murat takes Farmer by the hand, then they run, laugh and huddled one against the other in the cemetery. They doze off on a tombstone, and after a last embrace, they say goodbye to each other and split off. The man then gets on the tram and goes away.
According to the analysis made by magazine Instant-Mag, the video is the "metaphor of a past and regretted love". It "shows the indispensable link between two people, as well as the inevitability of this link : we can be attached to the other person, but also lose her". With this video, Farmer "reached the quintessance of elegant sadness which lives in her work". According to this analysis, the character played by Murat would be alive and would try to meet that played by Farmer who would be dead. To this end, the train would represent the transition from these two worlds. The deer
Deer
Deer are the ruminant mammals forming the family Cervidae. Species in the Cervidae family include white-tailed deer, elk, moose, red deer, reindeer, fallow deer, roe deer and chital. Male deer of all species and female reindeer grow and shed new antlers each year...
who flees would be "the symbol of the woman's essence", and the bunch of thistle
Thistle
Thistle is the common name of a group of flowering plants characterised by leaves with sharp prickles on the margins, mostly in the family Asteraceae. Prickles often occur all over the plant – on surfaces such as those of the stem and flat parts of leaves. These are an adaptation that protects the...
s would evoke "the desire to provoke unconditional love with the other person". As for the immaculate snow
Snow
Snow is a form of precipitation within the Earth's atmosphere in the form of crystalline water ice, consisting of a multitude of snowflakes that fall from clouds. Since snow is composed of small ice particles, it is a granular material. It has an open and therefore soft structure, unless packed by...
, it would participate in the gloomy atmosphere of the video and would symbolize "a mild but deadly mask which isolates" the two opposing parties. Biographer Bernard Violet said that Boutonnat simply transposed the song in the video by adding his personal aesthetic, in this case, a stylized, little contrasted and overexposed black and white. Anything that expresses reality was filmed at normal speed, while all which describes dream, hope or regret, was filmed at slower speed.
Live performances and cover versions
Concerning the promotion of the single, a sole performance was recorded, on the television show Stars 90, broadcast on TF1TF1
TF1 is a national French TV channel, controlled by TF1 Group, whose major share-holder is Bouygues. TF1's average market share of 24% makes it the most popular domestic network...
on 7 October 1991. It showed Farmer, dressed in white, and lying down a staircase, while Murat, dressed in black, was on the top of the stairs. The performance was actually recorded a few days earlier and the recording lasted approximately six hours as Murat, who was not used to sing on television shows at the time, had some difficulties with his lip sync
Lip sync
Lip sync, lip-sync, lip-synch is a technical term for matching lip movements with sung or spoken vocals...
. As compensation, Farmer sent crates of champagne to technicians the next day. Regarding tours, "Regrets" was sung only during the 1990 Mylenium Tour
Mylenium Tour (tour)
Mylenium Tour is Mylène Farmer's 1999-2000 concert tour in support of her fifth studio album, Innamoramento.-Critical reception and commercial success:...
; on this occasion, Farmer performed the song alone, while a red fire was lighted in the hand of the blue statue of the stage.
In December 2003, SitolC participated in the national competition "Télé Poche", then in two castings : "Génération Métis" and "Graine de star". On these occasions, he recorded a cover of "Regrets" which was deemed unsuccessful.
Cricital reception
The song received positive reviews at the time. French magazine Smash Hits said : "We fall in love. (...) "Regrets" is one of the best tracks on the album. (...) This song, with its elegance, deserves to be number 1 on the Top". Jeune et Jolie deemed the song a "magical and moving duet". OK ironically stated the song is "desperately distressed of beauty". According to Elia Habib, an expert of French charts, "Regrets" is "a slow [song], which successfully blends the singer's voice [that of Farmer], which merges into the melody to that of Murat, which stands out and thus puts her partner off the scent". In contrast, French television host Marc Toesca, who presented the singles chart, said in the Best magazine that he did not particularly appreciate the song.Although "Regrets" was released in the summer, its sales were rather satisfactory. In France, the single started at number 20 on 24 August 1991, reached the top ten the next week and stayed there for ten consecutive weeks, including a peak at number three on 21 September. It totaled 16 weeks in the top 50. "Regrets" was even certified Silver disc
Music recording sales certification
Music recording sales certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped or sold a certain number of copies, where the threshold quantity varies by type and by nation or territory .Almost all countries follow variations of the RIAA certification categories,...
by the Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique
Syndicat National de l'Edition Phonographique
The Syndicat national de l'édition phonographique is the inter-professional organization which protects the interests of the French record industry...
on 19 December 1991 for over 250,000 units. In Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
, the song debuted at number 22, entered the top ten and reached number two for two consecutive weeks. It totaled nine weeks in the top five and 18 weeks in the top 30.
Formats and track listings
These are the formats and track listings of single releases of "Regrets":- 7" single
- 7" maxi
- CD maxi / CD maxi - Limited edition with a pin's
- Cassette (double length)
- 7" single - Promo (double length)
Official versions
| Version | Length | Album | Remixed by | Year | Comment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Album version | 5:10 | L'Autre... L'Autre... L'Autre... is the third studio album by Mylène Farmer, released on April 9, 1991. It contains the singer's biggest hit, "Désenchantée", which was number-one in France for nine weeks, and other three top ten hits... |
— | 1991 | See the previous sections |
| Single version | 4:45 | — | — | 1991 | The introduction and musical bridge are shortcuts. |
| Classic bonus mix (single version) | 4:50 | — | Laurent Boutonnat Laurent Boutonnat Laurent Pierre Marie Boutonnat is a French composer and film and music video director, best known as the songwriting partner of Mylène Farmer and the director of moody, provocative and literature-inspired music videos.- Career :... |
1991 | The two voices are particularly underlined and the piano replaces the drum kit Drum kit A drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person .... . |
| Classic bonus mix (maxi version) | 5:09 | — | Laurent Boutonnat | 1991 | The two voices are particularly underlined and the piano replaces the drum kit. |
| Music video | 6:17 | L'Autre L'Autre (VHS) L'Autre is a VHS recorded by the French singer Mylène Farmer, containing all the singer's videoclips from 1991 to 1992. It was released in September 1992 in France.... , Music Videos I Music Videos I Music Videos I is a VHS / DVD recorded by the French singer Mylène Farmer, containing all the singer's videoclips from 1985 to 1992. It was released in April 1997 in France.... |
— | 1991 | |
| Extended club remix | 7:13 | Dance Remixes Dance Remixes Dance Remixes is the first remix album by Mylène Farmer, released on November 23, 1992.- Background, writing and release :This album was made to make the fans wait until the following album, postponed because of the Giorgino 's shooting.... |
Laurent Boutonnat | 1991 | This version contains a long introduction in which the two singers are answering each other with words not sung. Words are actually sampled in a phonetic reversal Phonetic reversal Phonetic reversal is the process of reversing the phonemes of a word or phrase. When the reversal is identical to the original, the word or phrase is called a phonetic palindrome. Phonetic reversal is not entirely identical to backmasking, which is specifically the reversal of recorded sound... . All the lyrics from the original version are sung. |
| Sterger dub mix | 5:56 | — | Laurent Boutonnat | 1991 | All the words are sampled in a phonetic reversal, accompanied by dance Dance music Dance music is music composed specifically to facilitate or accompany dancing. It can be either a whole musical piece or part of a larger musical arrangement... sonorities. The name of the remix, 'Sterger', is the reverse of 'Regrets'. |
| Live version (recorded in 2000) |
5:12 | Mylenium Tour Mylenium Tour Mylènium Tour is the third live album by Mylène Farmer, released on December 5, 2000.-Background:After having ending her third successful tour whose last shows were held in Russia on March 7, 2000, Farmer rested, and then decided to release an album and a DVD retracing her concert... |
— | 2000 | Farmer performed the song alone, including the lyrics sung by Murat in the original version. (see Mylenium Tour (tour) Mylenium Tour (tour) Mylenium Tour is Mylène Farmer's 1999-2000 concert tour in support of her fifth studio album, Innamoramento.-Critical reception and commercial success:... ) |
Credits and personnel
These are the credits and the personnel as they appear on the back of the single:- Mylène Farmer – lyrics
- Laurent Boutonnat – music
- Requiem Publishing – editions
- Polydor – recording company
- Marianne Rosensthiel (Sygma) – photo
- Henry Neu / Com'N.B – design
Charts and sales
| Chart (1991) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Belgian (Wallonia) Singles Chart | 2 |
| French SNEP Singles Chart | 3 |
| Country | Certification | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| France Syndicat National de l'Edition Phonographique The Syndicat national de l'édition phonographique is the inter-professional organization which protects the interests of the French record industry... |
Silver | 250,000 - 300,000 |
Release history
| Region | Date | Format |
|---|---|---|
| France, Belgium | Early July 1991 | Promo 7" maxi |
| 29 July 1991 | 7" single, 7" maxi, CD maxi, Cassette | |