Hubert-Félix Thiéfaine () is a French
pop-rock
Pop rock (also typeset as pop/rock) is a fusion genre and form of rock music characterized by a strong commercial appeal, with more emphasis on professional songwriting and recording craft, and less emphasis on attitude than standard rock musi ...
singer and songwriter. He was born on 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
Accor Arena (originally known as the Palais Omnisports de Paris-Bercy), also known as Bercy Arena, is an indoor sports arena and List of concert halls, concert hall in the neighbourhood of Bercy, on the Boulevard de Bercy, in the 12th arrondisse ...
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, Thiéfaine draws mostly from classic rock, with rare nods to the latest musical trends, and generally leaves the arranging to a collaborator. His songs are most notable for instantly recognisable lyrics, with their trademark 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 (; 24 August 1916 – 14 July 1993) was a Monégasque poet and composer, and a dynamic and controversial live performer. He released some forty albums over this period, composing the music and the majority of the lyrics. He released ...
,
Lou Reed
Lewis Allan Reed (March 2, 1942October 27, 2013) was an American musician and songwriter. He was the guitarist, singer, and principal songwriter for the rock band the Velvet Underground and had a solo career that spanned five decades. Althoug ...
,
Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan (legally Robert Dylan; born Robert Allen Zimmerman, May 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. Described as one of the greatest songwriters of all time, Dylan has been a major figure in popular culture over his nearly 70-year ...
,
Jim Morrison
James Douglas Morrison (December 8, 1943 – July 3, 1971) was an American singer, songwriter, and poet who was the lead vocalist and primary lyricist of the rock band the Doors. Due to his charismatic persona, poetic lyrics, distinctive vo ...
and many French, Anglophone and German novelists and poets, with a preference for romantic literature.
Discography
Albums
Studio albums
*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''
*1984 – ''Alambic/sortie-sud''
*1986 – ''Météo für nada''
*1988 – ''Eros über alles''
*1990 – ''Chroniques bluesymentales''
*1993 – ''Fragments d'hébétude''
Live albums
*1983: ''En concert'' (double album vinyl or double CD)
*1986: ''En concert vol. 2'' (double album vinyl or double CD)
*1988: ''Routes 88'' (double album vinyl or simple CD)
*1995: ''Paris-Zénith'' (double CD)
Compilations
*1988: ''1978–1983''
*1989: ''1984–1988''
*1998: ''1978–1998''
*2002: ''Les fils du coupeur de joints'' (homage & compilation)
*2006: ''Les Indispensables'' – compilation
*2009: ''Séquelles''
(Peaked in SNEP France #58 and BEL (Wallonia) #56)
Singles
Videos
* 1992 : ''Bluesymental tour'' (VHS)
* 1995 : ''Paris-Zénith'' (VHS)
* 1999 : ''En concert à Bercy'' (DVD)
* 2007 : ''Scandale mélancolique tour'' (DVD)
References
*
External links
Official site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Thiefaine, Hubert-Felix
1948 births
Living people
People from Dole, Jura
French male singers
French-language singers
Commandeurs of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres
French male singer-songwriters
French singer-songwriters