Maxwell Souders

Maxwell Souders
ENG 1201
Professor Riley
February 14, 2021
Jean vs. Brel
Two versions of a song are bound to vary, especially when dealing with two versions of
an obscure classic that are over fifty years apart. Originally written by Jacques Brel and covered
by Wyclef Jean, “Ne me Quitte Pas” couldn’t be a better example of this. A beautiful and sad
song, the song tells the story of a man who doesn’t want his lover to leave and will say exactly
what is on his mind to get her to. While there are marked similarities in the two versions, one
clearly takes the upper hand. Wyclef Jeans' rendition of Ne me Quitte Pas speaks to the body
and heart with his energetic dancing and guitar playing, it does not appeal to raw human
sorrow and vulnerability exhibited by Jacque Brel's acting.
Written in the mid-50's by Brel, Ne me Quitte Pas is about his old lover who threw him
out of her life after an argument. She was pivotal in his rise to fame, but her role in the creation
of this song was also what sent him to the top. The song is a plea for her to not leave him, as he
thinks that they could have it all together. Both videos feature Brel and Jean in black suits with
a black and white film over their respective videos. Jean, a Haitian pop artist, breathes a
modern, new life into the song with his addition of a nice beat and more poppy vocals, which
contrast the orchestral arrangement surrounding Brel’s expressive voice. With this, the two still
differ greatly.
The mid 20th century was a time of showmanship, especially for musicians. Some artists
had entire bits or personas that they would slip into for a performance. This comes across quite
strongly in Jacque Brel’s performance of Ne Me Quitte Pas from the mid-sixties. The video starts
out with a handful of suspenseful notes from the piano, and Brel seems to be in some sort of
introspective trance for a moment. He comes back to these pauses here and there, sometimes
fixating on what seems to be a vision of happiness or light through the clouds for himself and
his estranged lover. Once he starts singing, he is already visibly sweaty and tired, so the
performance seems as though he is giving every ounce of what life or energy that he has left in
order to convey his message. He may not be the best singer, but that is easily overlooked with
his expression. The true tell of a great artist is when they’re able to convey what they’re saying
in a way that you don’t have to even hear the words to understand it. Brel also seems to fight
off tears, especially before starting a new verse after saying “ne me quitte pas,” or, “don’t leave
me.” This taps deeply into the pathos of the piece, which creates sympathy and sadness for
him.
As for Jean’s version, he still has a strong impact on the audience. The video starts in a
similar way to Brel’s, with the same black suit on, and and camera angle is the same. However,
Jean isn’t as distraught. His cool demeanor and contagious dancing set a lighter mood, while
still emphasizing the sadness in the song. He continues dancing throughout the video before
going into a freestyle, which seems to loosen the song up entirely from its sorrowful chains.
This, in addition to the whole song being more hip-hop, greatly contrasts Brel’s fifties standard
feel. You can tell that Jean is in his element and, Like Brel, also in his own sort of character.
However, the character he that he is playing is, in fact, Brel and it seems to be for the purpose
of the video and not for the plea of the song. Jean is caught up in the mood of the music and his
attitude rather than conveying the message at hand, which still appeals to pathos. This still
makes for a great video; it just shifts the focus away from the rawness of the song.
Although both versions of the songs have great and apparent strengths, they end up not
being entirely comparable. While Jean’s depiction of the song may be easier to watch, or listen
to, much of the urgency, emotion, and purpose gets lost in his light-hearted rendition. The
distinct differences in both make for a much deeper and captivating watching experience for
Brel’s video when compared side by side. A great performance is easy to spot, but it is true
passion and emotion that leave the audience feeling exactly what the artist was. Therefore,
Brel’s version takes the audience to a deeper place and speaks to human sorrow, thus
effectively conveying the message to his audience.

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February 14, 2021

Jean vs. Brel

sorrow and vulnerability exhibited by Jacque Brel's acting.

effectively conveying the message to his audience.

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