Frère Jacques (Anne-Marie Besse song)
"Frère Jacques" ("Brother John") was the Luxembourgish entry in the Eurovision Song Contest 1977, performed in French by French singer Anne-Marie Besse.
 | |
|---|---|
| Eurovision Song Contest 1977 entry | |
| Country | |
| Artist(s) | Anne-Marie Besse |
| As | Anne-Marie B. |
| Language | |
| Composer(s) | Pierre Cour, Guy Béart |
| Lyricist(s) | Pierre Cour, Guy Béart |
| Conductor | Johnny Arthey |
| Finals performance | |
| Final result | 16th |
| Final points | 17 |
| Entry chronology | |
| ◄ "Chansons pour ceux qui s'aiment" (1976) | |
| "Parlez-vous français?" (1978) ► | |
As the title suggests, the disco-influenced song contains several references to the nursery rhyme of the same name; "Frère Jacques, dormez-vous?" ("Brother John, are you sleeping?") "J'entends les cloches qui sonnent" ("I can hear the bells ringing") and "Tu aurais bien mieux à faire que de jouer au grand frère..." ("There are so much better things for you to do than pretending to be my big brother...."). The singer compares the childish rhyme to her current adulthood, singing about how she longs to have a relationship with some of Jacques/John's friends; "I'm not a child anymore, you know". The song ends with the line "Frère Jacques, réveille-toi et viens dormir avec moi..." ("Brother John, wake up and come sleep with me...").
The song was performed seventh on the night, following Germany's Silver Convention with "Telegram" and preceding Portugal's Os Amigos with "Portugal no coração". At the close of voting, it had received 17 points, placing 16th in a field of 18.
It was succeeded as Luxembourgish representative at the 1978 Contest by Baccara with "Parlez-vous français?".
Sources and external links
- Official Eurovision Song Contest site, history by year, 1977
- Detailed info & lyrics, The Diggiloo Thrush, "Frère Jacques"