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Je ne suis pas un héros

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"Je ne suis pas un héros"
Song by Johnny Hallyday
from the album À partir de maintenant
LanguageFrench
English titleI am not a hero
Released25 June 1980 (1980-06-25)
RecordedFebruary 1980
GenrePop rock
Length4:10
LabelPhilips
Songwriter(s)Daniel Balavoine
Producer(s)Eddie Vartan
Audio
"Je ne suis pas un héros" on YouTube
"Je ne suis pas un héros"
Single by Daniel Balavoine
from the album Un autre monde
A-side"Lipstick polychrome"
ReleasedMay 1981 (1981-05)
RecordedAugust 1980
StudioStudio Damiens, Boulogne-Billancourt
GenrePop rock
Length5:10
Label
Songwriter(s)Daniel Balavoine
Producer(s)Andy Scott
Daniel Balavoine singles chronology
"Mon fils ma bataille"
(1980) 		"Je ne suis pas un héros"
(1981) 		"La vie ne m'apprend rien"
(1981)
Alternative cover
Side A of the Canadian single
Music video
"Je ne suis pas un héros" (French TV, 1981) on YouTube

"Je ne suis pas un héros" ("I am not a hero") is a song by French singer Johnny Hallyday, released on his 1980 album À partir de maintenant. It was written by fellow singer Daniel Balavoine who went on to also record and release his own version.

Background and release

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By 1980, Balavoine had become a recognised singer thanks to the success of the rock opera Starmania as well as his 1978 album Le chanteur. However, he became further known in March 1980, when he clashed with François Mitterrand, the First Secretary of the Socialist Party, and who a year later would become the President of France, live on the national television news programme Antenne 2 Midi. At the time there was rising unemployment, totalling 1.5 million, and a feeling that the political leaders had more interest in party politics than the concerns of the French public, in particular that of the youth. So, faced opposite Mitterrand, Balavoine confronted him, accusing him of ignoring the problems facing the French youth.[1][2][3]

Johnny Hallyday met Balavoine in 1980. The two got on well, and after several encounters, Balavoine had the idea to write a song for Hallyday.[4][5] Inspired by Hallyday's life, "Je ne suis pas un héros" depicts the life of a once famous idol, damaged by a life of torment and fame.[4] Hallyday recorded the song in February 1980 during the sessions for his twenty-sixth album À partir de maintenant, which was released in June that year.[6] "Je ne suis pas un héros" was not considered as a single, to the disappointment of Balavoine who believed that it had the potential to be Hallyday's number-one song that year.[7]

Balavoine decided to record his own version of the song in August 1980 for his album Un autre monde, released in November, and dedicated his version to Hallyday.[8][9] It was also released as the B-side to his single "Lipstick polychrome" in France, and as an A-side single in Canada.[10]

1990 version

[edit]
"Je ne suis pas un héros"
Single by Johnny Hallyday
from the album Dans la chaleur de Bercy
B-side"Mystery Train"
Released26 November 1990 (1990-11-26)
Recorded1990
VenuePalais Omnisports de Paris-Bercy, Paris
GenrePop rock
Length4:14
LabelPhilips
Songwriter(s)Daniel Balavoine
Producer(s)Jean-Pierre Janiaud
Johnny Hallyday singles chronology
"Cadillac"
(1990) 		"Je ne suis pas un héros"
(1990) 		"Diego libre dans sa tête"
(1991)
Music video
"Je ne suis pas un héros" (Live at Bercy, 1991) on YouTube

Balavoine and Hallyday remained close; however, in 1986, Balavoine died in a helicopter accident during the Paris–Dakar Rally.[7] In tribute, Hallyday sang the song for the first time on stage in 1990 at the Paris-Bercy. This live version was then released as a single in November 1990 from Hallyday's album Dans la chaleur de Bercy.[11] However, the single was released during the middle of the Gulf War, and some saw it as an allusion and a provocation, with several radio stations forbidding it from being played.[12]

The single still reached the top 20, peaking at number 18 on the French singles chart in March 1991. It sold over 40 thousand copies.[13]

Track listing

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7": Philips / 8787067

  1. "Je ne suis pas un héros" – 4:14
  2. "Mystery Train" – 3:02

CD: Philips / 8787067-2

  1. "Je ne suis pas un héros" – 4:14
  2. "Mystery Train" – 3:02
  3. "Honky Tonk Women" – 4:24

Charts

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Chart (1991) Peak
position
France (SNEP)[14] 18

Other notable versions

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  • In 2005, in the fifth series of the French reality television singing competition Star Academy, the contestants performed a version of "Je ne suis pas un héros". It was released as a single and peaked at number two in France, number twenty in Switzerland and topped the Belgian Walloon chart.[15]

References

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  1. ^ ""Je ne suis pas un héros" : le tube de Daniel Balavoine était destiné à Johnny Hallyday". www.chartsinfrance.net (in French). Retrieved 14 April 2024.
  2. ^ "1980 : la colère de Daniel Balavoine face à François Mitterrand | INA". ina.fr (in French). Retrieved 14 April 2024.
  3. ^ "mitterrand - Daniel Balavoine interpelle François Mitterrand - Ina.fr". François Mitterrand - Le verbe en images. Retrieved 14 April 2024.
  4. ^ a b Chantepie, Catherine (23 August 2019). L'histoire cachée des tubes de la chanson française: Culture musicale (in Arabic). La Boîte à Pandore. ISBN 978-2-39009-345-9.
  5. ^ Arnould, Jean-Jacques (17 September 2009). Johnny, le dico: La bible des fans (in French). edi8. pp. 21–22. ISBN 978-2-258-08208-3.
  6. ^ "Johnny Hallyday Le Web - Site sur Johnny Hallyday - Le site d'information sur Johnny Hallyday - Sessionographie". hallyday.com. Retrieved 15 April 2024.
  7. ^ a b ""Je ne suis pas un héros" : les secrets du tube qui lia Daniel Balavoine et Johnny Hallyday". Chérie FM. 29 September 2019. Retrieved 15 April 2024.
  8. ^ Pelnard, Sophie (6 January 2016). Daniel Balavoine, authentique. City Edition. ISBN 978-2-8246-4371-7.
  9. ^ "Encyclopédisque - Disque : Un autre monde". www.encyclopedisque.fr. Retrieved 15 April 2024.
  10. ^ "45 tours - Discographie - Daniel Balavoine, Le chanteur - dbalavoine.com". www.dbalavoine.com. Retrieved 15 April 2024.
  11. ^ "Discographie 1990". hallyday.com. Retrieved 15 April 2024.
  12. ^ Lesueur, Daniel (2003). L'argus Johnny Hallyday: discographie mondiale et cotations (in French). Editions Alternatives. p. 130. ISBN 978-2-86227-375-4.
  13. ^ "TOP 45 Tours - 1991". www.top-france.fr. Retrieved 17 April 2024.
  14. ^ "Johnny Hallyday – Je ne suis pas un héros [Bercy 90]" (in French). Les classement single.
  15. ^ "Star Academy 5 - Je ne suis pas un héros (chanson)". Lescharts.com. Retrieved 17 April 2024.
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