Ange (English: Angel) is a French

progressive rock Progressive rock (shortened as prog rock or simply prog; sometimes conflated with art rock) is a broad genre of rock music that developed in the United Kingdom and United States through the mid- to late 1960s, peaking in the early 1970s. Init ...

band formed in September 1969 by the Décamps brothers, Francis (keyboards) and Christian (vocals, accordion, acoustic guitar and keyboards). Since its inception the band's music has been inspired by

medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the Post-classical, post-classical period of World history (field), global history. It began with t ...

texts and

fantasy Fantasy is a genre of speculative fiction involving Magic (supernatural), magical elements, typically set in a fictional universe and sometimes inspired by mythology and folklore. Its roots are in oral traditions, which then became fantasy ...

History

Ange was initially influenced by

Procol Harum Procol Harum () were an English rock music, rock band formed in Southend-on-Sea, Essex in 1967. Their best-known recording is the 1967 hit single "A Whiter Shade of Pale", one of the few singles to have List of best-selling singles, sold over ...

and

King Crimson King Crimson are a progressive rock band formed in 1968 in London, England. The band draws inspiration from a wide variety of music, incorporating elements of classical, jazz, folk, heavy metal, gamelan, industrial, electronic, experime ...

, and their music was quite theatrical and poetic. Their first success in France was the cover of a

Jacques Brel Jacques Romain Georges Brel (, ; 8 April 1929 – 9 October 1978) was a Belgian singer and actor who composed and performed literate, thoughtful, and theatrical songs that generated a large, devoted following—initially in Belgium and France, l ...

song, ''

Ces gens-là ''Ces gens-là'' ( en, Those people) is the ninth studio album by Jacques Brel. Also known as ''Jef'', it was released in 1966 by Barclay (80323). The album was reissued on 23 September 2003 under the title ''Ces Gens-Là'' as part of the 16-CD ...

'', on their second album ''Le Cimetière des Arlequins''. The band provided its first concert on January 30, 1970, at the cultural center "La Pépinière", in

Belfort Belfort (; archaic german: Beffert/Beffort) is a city in the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region in Northeastern France, situated between Lyon and Strasbourg, approximately from the France–Switzerland border. It is the prefecture of the Territo ...

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

. They performed 110 concerts in England from 1973 to 1976, opening for

Genesis Genesis may refer to: Bible * Book of Genesis, the first book of the biblical scriptures of both Judaism and Christianity, describing the creation of the Earth and of mankind * Genesis creation narrative, the first several chapters of the Book of ...

at the

Reading Festival The Reading and Leeds Festivals are a pair of annual music festivals that take place in Reading and Leeds in England. The events take place simultaneously on the Friday, Saturday and Sunday of the August bank holiday weekend. The Reading Festiv ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

, on August 26, 1973, fronting some 30.000 listeners. One of the reasons for which the band was unable to break through into the British market was because they sang in French. Ange eventually released an English-speaking version of its fifth album ''

Par les fils de Mandrin ''Par les fils de Mandrin'' is the fifth album by the French progressive rock band Ange, released in 1976. Track listing #"Par les fils de Mandrin" (C. Décamps/J.M. Brézovar) – 4:48 #"Au café du Colibri" (C. Décamps/J.P. Guichard) – 4:02 ...

'' (''By the sons of Mandrin''), which was hard to find and sold poorly, although this version has since been made available on CD. Unfortunately, after three albums, the quality of creation had started to decrease, and ''Par les fils de Mandrin'' was probably not a good choice to try to break into the British market. Following ''Par les fils de Mandrin'' and the live double album ''

Tome VI ''Tome VI'' is an album by composer and bandleader Gil Mellé and the Jazz Electronauts recorded in 1968 and released on the Verve label.

'', the band issued a

mellotron The Mellotron is an electro-mechanical musical instrument developed in Birmingham, England, in 1963. It is played by pressing its keys, each of which pushes a length of magnetic tape against a capstan, which pulls it across a playback head. A ...

–centered album, ''

Guet-apens ''Guet-Apens'' is the sixth studio album by the French progressive rock band Ange and the first without Jean Michel Brezovar and Daniel Haas. It was released in 1978. Track listing Side One: #"A Colin-Maillard" – 08:06 #"Dans Les Poches Du Be ...

'', and then had a more rock-oriented change of direction, although various progressive reformations occurred over the years, e.g. for the 1992 album '' Les larmes du Dalaï-Lama''. Sponsored by the French radio RTL, Ange relentlessly toured until the end of 1977, welcoming an average of 5,000 to 6,000 listeners per show. During their first years (generally regarded as the best ones), the other three members of the band were Jean-Michel Brézovar on guitar and flute, Gérard Jelsch on drums, and Daniel Haas on bass (and acoustic guitar). In 1995, Ange played their farewell tour. Christian Décamps released a few albums as "Christian Décamps et Fils" ("Christian Décamps and Son"), before taking over the name "Ange" in 1999, and is backed by his band for his solo albums. The new lineup has issued several albums from ''La voiture à eau'' in 1999, performed on 2006 edition of

NEARfest The North East Art Rock Festival, or NEARfest for short, was a multi-day event celebrating the resurgence of progressive and eclectic music in the United States and around the world. The event was held annually in early summer in Bethlehem, Pennsy ...

and was still on the road in 2013. Francis Décamps and Jean-Michel Brézovar have also released solo albums.

Keyboards

The keyboard sounds of the '70s-era band, while reminiscent of a

, were in fact generated from a Viscount

organ Organ may refer to: Biology * Organ (biology), a part of an organism Musical instruments * Organ (music), a family of keyboard musical instruments characterized by sustained tone ** Electronic organ, an electronic keyboard instrument ** Hammond ...

through a modded Hammond reverb. However, an actual

was played on the album ''Par Les Fils De Mandrin'' in 1976.

Studio discography

* (1972) ''

Caricatures A caricature is a rendered image showing the features of its subject in a simplified or exaggerated way through sketching, pencil strokes, or other artistic drawings (compare to: cartoon). Caricatures can be either insulting or complimentary, a ...

'' * (1973) ''

Le Cimetière des arlequins ''Le Cimetière des arlequins'' is the second album by the French progressive rock band Ange, released in 1973. Track listing # "Ces gens-là" (Jacques Brel) – 4:45 # "Aujourd'hui c'est la fête chez l'apprenti-sorcier" (J.M. Brézovar/C. D� ...

'' * (1974) ''

Au-delà du délire ''Au-delà du délire'' is the third album by the French progressive rock band Ange, released in 1974. The French edition of ''Rolling Stone'' magazine named this album the 73rd greatest French rock album (out of 100).Magazine ''Rolling Stone'', ...

'' * (1975) ''

Émile Jacotey ''Emile Jacotey'' is the fourth album by the French progressive rock band Ange, released in 1975. Track listing #"Bêle, bêle petite chèvre" – 3:50 #"Sur la trace des fées" – 4:48 #"Le Nain de Stanislas" – 5:45 #"Jour après jour" � ...

'' * (1976) ''

'' * (1978) ''

Guet-Apens ''Guet-Apens'' is the sixth studio album by the French progressive rock band Ange and the first without Jean Michel Brezovar and Daniel Haas. It was released in 1978. Track listing Side One: #"A Colin-Maillard" – 08:06 #"Dans Les Poches Du Be ...

'' * (1980) '' Vu d'un Chien'' * (1981) ''

Moteur! ''Moteur!'' is a studio album by the French progressive rock band Ange Ange (English: Angel) is a French progressive rock band formed in September 1969 by the Décamps brothers, Francis (keyboards) and Christian (vocals, accordion, acoustic g ...

'' * (1982) ''À propos de...'' * (1983) '' La Gare de Troyes'' * (1984) ''

Fou Fou may refer to: People * Fou Fonoti (born 1991), American football player * Fou Ts'ong (born 1934), Chinese pianist * Pama Fou (born 1990), Australian rugby union player Other uses * Fou (instrument) (缻), an ancient Chinese percussion ins ...

'' * (1986) ''

Egna Neumarkt (literally "new market"; ; it, Egna ) is a ''comune'' (municipality) in South Tyrol in northern Italy, located about south of the city of Bolzano. Geography As of 30 November 2010, it had a population of 5,001 and an area of .All de ...

'' * (1987) '' Tout Feu Tout Flamme... C'est Pour De Rire'' * (1989) '' Sève Qui Peut'' * (1992) ''

Les Larmes Du Dalaï Lama Ange (English: Angel) is a French progressive rock band formed in September 1969 by the Décamps brothers, Francis (keyboards) and Christian (vocals, accordion, acoustic guitar and keyboards). Since its inception the band's music has been inspi ...

'' * (1999) ''

La Voiture À Eau ''La Voiture À Eau'' is a Studio album by the French progressive rock band Ange Ange (English: Angel) is a French progressive rock band formed in September 1969 by the Décamps brothers, Francis (keyboards) and Christian (vocals, accordion, ...

'' * (2001) '' Culinaire Lingus'' * (2005) '' ?'' * (2007) ''

Souffleurs De Vers ''Souffleurs De Vers'' is a Studio album by the French progressive rock band Ange Ange (English: Angel) is a French progressive rock band formed in September 1969 by the Décamps brothers, Francis (keyboards) and Christian (vocals, accordion, ...

'' * (2010) ''

Le Bois Travaille Même Le Dimanche ''Le Bois Travaille Même Le Dimanche'' is a Studio album by the French progressive rock band Ange Ange (English: Angel) is a French progressive rock band formed in September 1969 by the Décamps brothers, Francis (keyboards) and Christian (vo ...

'' * (2012) '' Moyen-Âge'' * (2014) ''Émile Jacotey Résurrection'' * (2018) ''Heureux''

Complete discography

Christian and Francis Décamps era

* ''

'' (1972) * ''

'' (1973) * ''

'' (1974) * ''

'' (1975) * ''

'' (1976) * '' Tome VI : Live 1977'' (1977, 2LP, 1CD) * '' En concert : Live 1970-1971'' (1977, 2LP, 1CD) * ''

'' (1978) * '' Vu D'un Chien'' (1980) * ''

'' (1981) * ''À propos de...'' (1982) * '' La Gare de Troyes'' (1983) * ''

'' (1984) * ''

'' (1986) * '' Tout Feu Tout Flamme... C'est Pour De Rire'' (1987) * '' Sève Qui Peut'' (1989) * ''Vagabondages'' (Compilation) (1989) * ''Les Larmes Du Dalaï Lama'' (1992) * ''Mémo'' (Compilation) (1994) * ''Un P'tit Tour Et Puis S'en Vont : Live 1995'' (2CD, 1995) * ''Ad Libitum'' (3CD Compilation, 1999) * ''Tome 87 (Live)'' (2002) * ''Ange En Concert : Par Les Fils De Mandrin (Millésimé 77)'' (2003)

Christian and Tristan Décamps era

* ''

'' (1999) * ''Rêves Parties'' (2000, live, 2CD) * ''Culinaire Lingus'' (2001) * ''?'' (2005) * ''

Le Tour De La Question ''Le Tour De La Question'' is a Live album by the French progressive rock band Ange Ange (English: Angel) is a French progressive rock band formed in September 1969 by the Décamps brothers, Francis (keyboards) and Christian (vocals, accordion, ...

'' (2007) * '' Zénith An II'' (2007, live, 2CD) * ''

'' (2007) * ''

Souffleurs De Vers Tour ''Souffleurs De Vers Tour'' is a live album by the French progressive rock band Ange Ange (English: Angel) is a French progressive rock band formed in September 1969 by the Décamps brothers, Francis (keyboards) and Christian (vocals, accordio ...

'' (Live CD+DVD, 2009) * ''

'' (2010) * '' Escale À Ch'tiland'' (2CD+DVD, 2011, live) * ''Moyen-Âge'' (2012) * ''Emile Jacotey Résurrection'' (2014) * ''Emile Jacotey Résurrection Live'' (CD+DVD, 2015) * ''La Bataille du sucre'' (2015, ltd ed w/ 4 songs) * ''Heureux'' (2018)

Christian Décamps & Fils

* ''Le Mal D'Adam'' (1979) * ''Juste Une Ligne Bleue'' (1990) * ''Nu'' (1994) * ''V'soul Vesoul V'soul'' (1995) * ''3ème Étoile À Gauche'' (1997) * ''Poèmes De La Noiseraie'' (1998) * ''Murmures'' (2003) * ''Psychédélice'' (2008) * From 1999 on, Ange Fanclub ''Un pied dans la marge'' has produced at least 20 CD or DVD containing mostly live material.

Personnel

Current members

* Christian Décamps -

Lead vocals The lead vocalist in popular music is typically the member of a group or band whose voice is the most prominent melody in a performance where multiple voices may be heard. The lead singer sets their voice against the accompaniment parts of t ...

Keyboards Keyboard may refer to: Text input * Keyboard, part of a typewriter * Computer keyboard ** Keyboard layout, the software control of computer keyboards and their mapping ** Keyboard technology, computer keyboard hardware and firmware Music * Musi ...

(after 1970) * Tristan Décamps - Keyboards, Backing Vocals (after 1997) * Hassan Hajdi -

Guitar The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected stri ...

s (after 1997) * Thierry Sidhoum -

Bass Bass or Basses may refer to: Fish * Bass (fish), various saltwater and freshwater species Music * Bass (sound), describing low-frequency sound or one of several instruments in the bass range: ** Bass (instrument), including: ** Acoustic bass gui ...

(after 1997) * Benoît Cazzulini -

Drums A drum kit (also called a drum set, trap set, or simply drums) is a collection of drums, cymbals, and other Percussion instrument, auxiliary percussion instruments set up to be played by one person. The player (drummer) typically holds a pair o ...

(after 2003)

Former Members

* Francis Décamps - Keyboards, Vocals (1970–1995) * Jean-Michel Brézovar - Guitars (1970–1977, 1988–1989, 1991–1995) * Jean-Claude Rio - Rhythmic Guitar (1970) * Patrick Kachanian - Bass, Flute (1970) * Daniel Haas - Bass (1971–1977, 1988–1995) * Gérard Jelsch - Drums, Percussions (1970–1974, 1994–1995) * Guénolé Biger - Drums, Percussions (1975) * Jean-Pierre Guichard - Drums (1976–1981, 1988–1992) * Claude Demet - Guitars (1978, 1990) * Gérald Renard - Bass (1978–1979) * Mauro Serri - Guitars (1979) * Jean-Marie Schreiner - Drums (1979, 1990) * J. Frieden - Keyboards (1979) * J. Migaud - Keyboards (1979) * Robert Defer - Guitars (1980–1981, 1990) * Didier Viseux - Bass (1980–1981) * Frederick Chojnacki - Bass (1980–1981) * Serge Cuénot - Guitars (1982–1987, 1990) * Laurent Sigrist - Bass (1982–1987) * Gabriel Troyan - Bass in ''Tout feu tout flamme'' (1987) * Jean-Claude Potin - Drums (1982–1986) * Francis Meyer - Drums (1987) * Martine Kesselburg - Choir in ''Tout feu tout flamme'' (1987) - Vocals (1990) * Eva Santi - Choir in ''Tout feu tout flamme'' (1987) * Bruno Nion - Vocals in ''Sève qui peut'' (1989) * Fabrice Bony - Drums (1993) * Jean-Pascal Boffo - Guitars (1995) * Hervé Rouyer - Drums, Percussions (1995, 1997–2002) * Caroline Crozat - Vocals, Choir (2001–2010)

Timeline

ImageSize = width:1300 height:800 PlotArea = left:100 bottom:120 top:0 right:08 Alignbars = justify DateFormat = dd/mm/yyyy Period = from:01/01/1970 till:07/01/2018 TimeAxis = orientation:horizontal format:yyyy Legend = orientation:vertical position:bottom columns:4 ScaleMajor = increment:2 start:1972 ScaleMinor = increment:1 start:1970 Colors = id:Chant value:red legend:Vocals id:Claviers value:purple legend:Keyboards id:Guitare value:green legend:Guitars id:Basse value:blue legend:Bass id:Batterie value:orange legend:Drums id:Flute value:gray(0.5) legend:Flute id:Rythmique value:brightgreen legend:Rhythmic_Guitar id:chœur value:pink legend:Choir id:Albums value:black legend:Studio_Albums LineData = at:07/06/1972 color:black layer:back at:15/03/1973 color:black layer:back at:15/04/1974 color:black layer:back at:03/12/1975 color:black layer:back at:23/03/1976 color:black layer:back at:29/03/1977 color:black layer:back at:05/10/1978 color:black layer:back at:22/09/1980 color:black layer:back at:18/06/1981 color:black layer:back at:27/03/1982 color:black layer:back at:25/04/1983 color:black layer:back at:25/04/1984 color:black layer:back at:25/04/1986 color:black layer:back at:25/04/1987 color:black layer:back at:25/04/1989 color:black layer:back at:25/04/1992 color:black layer:back at:25/04/1999 color:black layer:back at:23/05/2001 color:black layer:back at:16/05/2005 color:black layer:back at:04/03/2007 color:black layer:back at:01/01/2010 color:black layer:back at:21/05/2012 color:black layer:back BarData = bar:cd text:"C. Décamps" bar:fd text:"F. Décamps" bar:td text:"T. Décamps" bar:frieden text:"J. Frieden" bar:migaud text:"J. Migaud" bar:brezovar text:"J.-M. Brézovar" bar:demet text:"Claude Demet" bar:serri text:"Mauro Serri" bar:defer text:"Robert Defer" bar:cuenot text:"Serge Cuénot" bar:boffo text:"J.-P. Boffo" bar:hajdi text:"Hassan Hajdi" bar:kachanian text:"P. Kachanian" bar:haas text:"Daniel Haas" bar:renard text:"Gérald Renard" bar:viseux text:"Didier Viseux" bar:chojnacki text:"F. Chojnacki" bar:sigrist text:"Laurent Sigrist" bar:sidhoum text:"Thierry Sidhoum" bar:rio text:"Jean-Claude Rio" bar:jelsch text:"Gérard Jelsch" bar:biger text:"Guénolé Biger" bar:guichard text:"J.-P. Guichard" bar:schreiner text:"J.-M. Schreiner" bar:potin text:"J.-C. Potin" bar:meyer text:"Francis Meyer" bar:bony text:"Fabrice Bony" bar:rouyer text:"Hervé Rouyer" bar:cazzulini text:"Benoît Cazzulini" bar:crozat text:"Caroline Crozat" PlotData= width:11 textcolor:black align:left anchor:from shift:(10,-4) bar:cd from:01/01/1970 till:01/01/1996 color:Chant bar:cd from:01/01/1997 till:end color:Chant bar:fd from:01/01/1970 till:01/01/1996 color:Claviers bar:td from:01/01/1997 till:end color:Claviers bar:frieden from:01/01/1979 till:01/01/1980 color:Claviers bar:migaud from:01/01/1979 till:01/01/1980 color:Claviers bar:brezovar from:01/01/1970 till:01/01/1978 color:Guitare bar:brezovar from:01/01/1988 till:01/01/1990 color:Guitare bar:brezovar from:01/01/1991 till:01/01/1996 color:Guitare bar:demet from:01/01/1978 till:01/01/1979 color:Guitare bar:demet from:01/01/1990 till:01/01/1991 color:Guitare bar:serri from:01/01/1979 till:01/01/1980 color:Guitare bar:defer from:01/01/1980 till:01/01/1982 color:Guitare bar:defer from:01/01/1990 till:01/01/1991 color:Guitare bar:cuenot from:01/01/1972 till:01/01/1974 color:Guitare bar:cuenot from:01/01/1982 till:01/01/1988 color:Guitare bar:boffo from:01/01/1995 till:01/01/1996 color:Guitare bar:hajdi from:01/01/1997 till:end color:Guitare bar:kachanian from:01/01/1970 till:01/01/1971 color:Basse bar:haas from:01/01/1971 till:01/01/1978 color:Basse bar:haas from:01/01/1988 till:01/01/1996 color:Basse bar:renard from:01/01/1978 till:01/01/1980 color:Basse bar:viseux from:01/01/1980 till:01/01/1982 color:Basse bar:chojnacki from:01/01/1980 till:01/01/1982 color:Basse bar:sigrist from:01/01/1982 till:01/01/1988 color:Basse bar:sidhoum from:01/01/1997 till:end color:Basse bar:rio from:01/01/1970 till:01/01/1971 color:Rythmique bar:jelsch from:01/01/1970 till:01/01/1975 color:Batterie bar:jelsch from:01/01/1994 till:01/01/1995 color:Batterie bar:biger from:01/01/1975 till:01/01/1976 color:Batterie bar:guichard from:01/01/1976 till:01/01/1982 color:Batterie bar:guichard from:01/01/1988 till:01/01/1993 color:Batterie bar:schreiner from:01/01/1979 till:01/01/1980 color:Batterie bar:schreiner from:01/01/1990 till:01/01/1991 color:Batterie bar:potin from:01/01/1982 till:01/01/1987 color:Batterie bar:meyer from:01/01/1987 till:01/01/1988 color:Batterie bar:bony from:01/01/1993 till:01/01/1994 color:Batterie bar:rouyer from:01/01/1995 till:01/01/1996 color:Batterie bar:rouyer from:01/01/1997 till:01/01/2003 color:Batterie bar:cazzulini from:01/01/2003 till:end color:Batterie bar:crozat from:01/01/2001 till:01/06/2010 color:Chant width:3 textcolor:black align:left anchor:from shift:(10,-4) bar:cd from:01/01/1970 till:01/01/1996 color:Claviers bar:cd from:01/01/1997 till:end color:Claviers bar:fd from:01/01/1970 till:01/01/1996 color:Chant bar:td from:01/01/1997 till:end color:Chant bar:kachanian from:01/01/1970 till:01/01/1971 color:Flute bar:crozat from:01/01/2001 till:01/06/2010 color:chœur

Bibliography

*''Ange, le livre des légendes'' subtitled ''L'anthologie définitive sur le groupe mythique du rock français'' by Thierry Busson, Xavier Chatagnon and Bruno Versmisse, 292 pages, Éclipse éditions, 1995.

References

External links

Un pied dans la marge, the official fanclub of the band (in French)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ange French progressive rock groups Musical groups established in 1970 Musical groups disestablished in 1995 Musical groups reestablished in 1999 Musical groups from Bourgogne-Franche-Comté