For the last chronicle of the season of “These songs that make the news”, let’s listen to the circumstances in which artists place themselves alongside information professionals.
We don’t kill journalists in France – well, not too recently – but we are inevitably moved by hearing this song that the Ivorian Alpha Blondy wrote, after the assassination of the Burkinabé journalist, Norbert Zongo, in 1998.
The song is like this: it remembers journalists and journalism when they are going badly. The Sunday newspaper does not appear today, for the second time, the editorial staff opposing the appointment by its owner of a far-right editorial director. And we think back to a song evoking with complicity a certain strike of journalists.
In the second episode of These songs that make the news, airing this weekend, you hear excerpts from:
Alpha Blondy, Journalists in danger, 2000
Leo Ferre, The revolution, 1969
Leo Ferre, The Revolution (alternate version), 1969
Charles Aznavour, Living dead (crime of opinion), 2003
Jean-Pax Mefret, The journalist, 1980
JB Bullet, I am Charlie, 2015
Louis Chedid, Scoop, 2013
Johnny Hallyday and Sylvie Vartan, I have a problem, 1973
Carla Bruni, Someone told me, 2002
Georges Brassens, I have an appointment with you, 1953
Jane Birkin and Serge Gainsbourg, I don’t love you either 1969
tryo, You and me, 2008
Jacques Brel, Litanies for a return, 1958
Carlos, Rosalie, 1978
Vincent Delarm, There is a time for everything, 2008
Stone and Charden, Adventure, 1971
Michael Berger, The Pianist’s Groupie, 1980
The Minstrels, Sweetheart let see if the Rose, 1969
Leo Ferre, It’s great, 1969
McSolaar, carolina, 1991
David Martial, Celimene, 1975
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And you can also find on this link the podcast Behind our voices, with the writing and composition secrets of eight major artists of the French scene, Laurent Voulzy, Julien Clerc, Bénabar, Dominique A, Carla Bruni, Emily Loizeau, Juliette and Gaëtan Roussel.