Étienne Roda-Gil (1 August 1941 in
Septfonds,
Tarn-et-Garonne
Tarn-et-Garonne (; ) is a Departments of France, department in the Occitania (administrative region), Occitania Regions of France, region in Southern France. It is traversed by the rivers Tarn (river), Tarn and Garonne, from which it takes its n ...
, France – 31 May 2004 in
Paris
Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...
) was a songwriter and screenwriter. He was an
anarchist
Anarchism is a political philosophy and Political movement, movement that seeks to abolish all institutions that perpetuate authority, coercion, or Social hierarchy, hierarchy, primarily targeting the state (polity), state and capitalism. A ...
and an
anarcho-syndicalist
Anarcho-syndicalism is an anarchist organisational model that centres trade unions as a vehicle for class conflict. Drawing from the theory of libertarian socialism and the practice of syndicalism, anarcho-syndicalism sees trade unions as both ...
.
Biography
Roda-Gil was born in the Septfonds internment camp to refugees who had fled
Francoism at the end of the
Spanish Civil War
The Spanish Civil War () was a military conflict fought from 1936 to 1939 between the Republican faction (Spanish Civil War), Republicans and the Nationalist faction (Spanish Civil War), Nationalists. Republicans were loyal to the Left-wing p ...
. His father, Antonio Roda Vallès, had been a militant with the
CNT and a member of the
Durruti column. In the early 1950s the family moved to
Antony, a suburb of Paris, where he studied at the
Lycée Henri IV. In 1959, when he was called to military service in Algeria, Roda-Gil instead fled to
London
London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
, where he became active in anarchist and rock-and-roll circles. He returned to France after receiving a reprieve.
Roda-Gil participated in the
Iberian Federation of Libertarian Youth and the
Situationist International
The Situationist International (SI) was an international organization of social revolutionaries made up of avant-garde artists, intellectuals, and political theorists. It was prominent in Europe from its formation in 1957 to its dissolution ...
, and was an active participant in the events of
May 1968.
He met singer
Julien Clerc in a café in Paris's
Latin Quarter in 1968, and became his songwriter.
He also wrote for
Mort Shuman,
Angelo Branduardi
Angelo Branduardi (born 12 February 1950) is an Italian folk music, folk/folk rock singer-songwriter and composer who scored relative success in Italy and European countries such as France, Germany, Belgium, Netherlands and Greece.
Early and ...
,
Barbara,
Vanessa Paradis,
Johnny Hallyday
Jean-Philippe Léo Smet (; 15 June 1943 – 5 December 2017), better known by his stage name Johnny Hallyday, was a French rock and roll and Pop music, pop singer and actor, credited with having brought rock and roll to France.
During a career ...
,
Claude François,
Juliette Gréco, and
Malicorne, among others.
In 1989, he received the ''grand prix'' of songwriting from
SACEM (La Société des auteurs, compositeurs et éditeurs de musique). He also won SACEM's in 1993.
Roda-Gil died in Paris on 31 May 2004
of a
stroke
Stroke is a medical condition in which poor cerebral circulation, blood flow to a part of the brain causes cell death. There are two main types of stroke: brain ischemia, ischemic, due to lack of blood flow, and intracranial hemorrhage, hemor ...
.
Family
Roda-Gil was married to painter Nadine Delahaye from 1965 until her death in 1990.
Works
*
*
*''Mala Pata'' (Seuil, 1992)
*
*
Over 700 songs, as well as ''Juin 36'' (a rock opera), ''Café, sang, sucre'' (a musical), ''Che Guevara'' (an oratorio), and ''ça ira'' (an opera).
References
Further reading
*
External links
Official site
Illustrated biography and discography
{{DEFAULTSORT:Roda-Gil, Etienne
1941 births
2004 deaths
20th-century anarchists
20th-century French male writers
20th-century French screenwriters
Anarcho-syndicalists
Burials at Montparnasse Cemetery
French anarchists
French Anti-Francoists
French lyricists
French male songwriters
French male screenwriters
French people of Spanish descent
French syndicalists
People from Montauban