Les Champs-Élysées (song)

"Les Champs-Élysées" is a 1969 song by American-French singer Joe Dassin. It is a French adaptation of "Waterloo Road", written the previous year in English by the British songwriting team of composer Mike Wilsh and lyricist Mike Deighan. While the English version refers to Waterloo Road, London, Dassin's version references the Avenue des Champs-Élysées in Paris.

"Waterloo Road"
Digital reissue cover
Single by Jason Crest
B-side"Education"
Released28 February 1968
LabelPhillips
Songwriter(s)Michael Anthony Deighan, Michael Wilshaw
Jason Crest singles chronology
"Here We Go Round (The Lemon Tree)"
(1967)		 "Waterloo Road"
(1968)		 "Place in the Sun"
(1969)
"Les Champs-Elysées"
Single by Joe Dassin
from the album Joe Dassin (Les Champs-Élysées)
LanguageFrench
B-side"Le Chemin de papa"
Released11 May 1969
Length2:40
LabelCBS Disques
Songwriter(s)Pierre Delanoë, Michael Wilshaw, Michael Deighan
Producer(s)Jacques Plait
Joe Dassin singles chronology
"Me que me que"
(1969)		 "Les Champs-Elysées"
(1969)		 "C'est la vie, Lily"
(1970)

Composition

The song was original written as "“Si tu vois ma mère”" 1953 by Sidney Bechet who moved 1950 to Paris. In 1968 its melody was used for the song "Waterloo Road" (lyrics by Michael Anthony Deighan, music by Michael Wilshaw) and released by the British rock band Jason Crest. French lyricist Pierre Delanoë then adapted the lyrics into French.[1][2]

French release

The song's French counterpart of "Les Champs-Élysées" was released by Joe Dassin as a single in 1969, with "Le Chemin de papa" on the B-side.

While "Waterloo Road" enjoyed modest success, "Les Champs-Élysées" entered charts in multiple European countries, with its best performance in Wallonia (Francophone Belgium), rising to No. 4.[3]

Track listing

7" single (CBS 4281)

  1. "Les Champs-Élysées" (2:40)
  2. "Le Chemin de papa" (2:22)

Charts
Chart (1969) Peak
position
Netherlands (Single Top 100)[4] 16
Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)[5] 5
West Germany (Official German Charts)[6] 31
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Wallonia)[7] 4

Adaptations

In the same year (1969) the song was covered by Slovene (then Yugoslav) singer Majda Sepe under the title Šuštarski most (Shoemakers bridge in Ljubljana). This cover was itself later covered by a Slovenian punk cover band Odprava zelenega zmaja.

The melody of Les Champs-Élysées was later used for the television commercial of CJ CheilJedang's dessert brand Petitzel Eclair in 2016, with lyrics sung by I.O.I.

The refrain of the song, accompanied by a yellow bouncing ball over the lyrics, was played during breaks in NBCSN's coverage of the 2018 Tour de France.

The entire song plays under the closing credits of Wes Anderson's film The Darjeeling Limited (2007).

Covered by American punk icons NOFX on their 1997 album So Long and Thanks for All the Shoes

In 2018, the song was remade by Paul Pogba and Benjamin Mendy to honor Chelsea Football Club and France National Football Team star N'Golo Kante.[8] This adaptation achieved great popularity in France during the French team's title run in the 2018 FIFA World Cup, and also among Kante's teammates.[9]

References
  1. "Veteran French Lyricist Pierre Delanoe Dies". Billboard. 29 December 2006. Retrieved 5 February 2016.
  2. Éric Neuhoff (11 July 2011). "Les Champs-Élysées de Joe Dassin". Le Figaro. Retrieved 5 February 2016.
  3. "ultratop.be - Joe Dassin - Les Champs-Élysées". Ultratop. ULTRATOP & Hung Medien / hitparade.ch. Retrieved 25 January 2017.
  4. "Joe Dassin – Les Champs-Élysées" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved 2017-11-28.
  5. "Joe Dassin – Les Champs-Élysées". Swiss Singles Chart. Retrieved 2017-11-28.
  6. "Offiziellecharts.de – Joe Dassin – Les Champs-Élysées" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. Retrieved 2020-02-28. To see peak chart position, click "TITEL VON Joe Dassin"
  7. "Joe Dassin – Les Champs-Élysées" (in French). Ultratop 50. Retrieved 2017-11-28.
  8. Rachmanda, Kenchal. "N'golo Kante song". YouTube. Retrieved 17 May 2020.
  9. "The Whole Nation of France Singing N'Golo Kante Song!". YouTube. Retrieved 17 May 2020.
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