Ne me quitte pas: A Song by Jacques Brel and Interpreted by Nina Simone and Others (Singles) - Softcover

Smith, Maya Angela

 
9781478031468: Ne me quitte pas: A Song by Jacques Brel and Interpreted by Nina Simone and Others (Singles)
Softcover
ISBN 10: 1478031468 ISBN 13: 9781478031468
Publisher: Duke University Press Books, 2025

Synopsis

In 1959, Belgian singer-songwriter Jacques Brel wrote and performed “Ne me quitte pas” (Don’t leave me), a visceral and haunting plea for his lover to come back. As a teenager, Maya Angela Smith was so captivated by Nina Simone’s powerful 1965 cover of the song that it inspired her to be a French professor. In Ne me quitte pas, Smith follows the classic song’s long and varied journey, from Brel’s iconic 1966 performance on French television to Simone’s cover to Shirley Bassey’s English-language version (“If You Go Away”) to its contemporary manifestations in popular culture. Throughout, Smith shows that as the song travels across languages, geographies, genres, and generations, it accumulates shifting artistic and cultural significance as each listener creates their own meaning.

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About the Author

Maya Angela Smith is Professor of French in the French and Italian Studies Department at the University of Washington.

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Publisher
Duke University Press Books
Publication date
2025
Language
English
ISBN 10 
1478031468
ISBN 13 
9781478031468
Binding
Paperback
Number of pages
152

Other Popular Editions of the Same Title

9781478028253: Ne me quitte pas: A Song by Jacques Brel and Interpreted by Nina Simone and Others (Singles)

Featured Edition

ISBN 10:  1478028254 ISBN 13:  9781478028253
Publisher: Duke University Press Books, 2025
Hardcover