It's hard to be a hero...
- Nostra Dam
- Sep 26, 2020
- 6 min read
Updated: Aug 14
Jean-Patrick Capdevielle, is a French singer-songwriter who begins his professional career, not as a singer, but as a journalist for SuperHebdo magazine, then Salut les Copains, then Mademoiselle Age Tendre and finally Actuel.
It was from the 1970s, when he moved to Ibiza, that he would compose his first songs. But it wasn't until the end of the decade that things started to pick up in earnest when the track "Solitude" was released, one of his first compositions. Title to be produced by a production company owned by William Sheller. First title and already, first success. We are then in 1978.
The consecration came already a year later when the album "Les enfants des ténèbres et les anges de la rue" was released. Album which will notably produce the title "Tout au bout de la ville". But this is not the title that will explode the notoriety of the artist, it is the B side entitled "Quand t'es dans le désert". The title is a hit in France and will become one of the biggest hits of the end of the decade. The album will ultimately sell over 450,000 copies !
The album "2" which was released later in 1980 was to meet almost the same success. Notably thanks to the titles "C'est dur d'être un héros" but also, and above all, with "Oh, Chiquitta" which will sell even better than "Quand t'es dans le désert. The singer is then at the top of the success.
The release of the album "Le long de la jetée" in 1981 was to be much less well received by critics, ushering in an era of cooling of relations between the singer and the trade press.
He puts a layer of it against the critics with the album "L'ennemi public" which came out in 1982. Only the title "Qu'est-ce qui va rester (Quand le rock'n'rolla ura cessé d'exister)" will do well.
The sequel will turn out to be much darker with a succession of albums that baffles early fans. Whether it's "Mauvaises fréquentations" in 1984, "Planet X" in 1985 and "Noiuvel âge" in 1987. Public reception is more than mixed and sales are in no way comparable to previous years.
A slow decline that the artist could never halt again despite the release of other titles later.
He would experience some later successes not for himself, but for other artists, notably with the opera album "Carmine Meo" which he produced in 1997 for singer Emma Shapplin. An album that will sell 2 million copies !
To discover or rediscover...
Discography (among others ...) :
70s Decade :
Solitude 1978
Des gens ordinaires 1978
Quand t’es dans le désert 1979
Salomé 1979
Tout au bout de la ville 1979
80s Decade :
C’est dur d’être un héros 1980
Oh Chiquita 1980
Les sables mouvants 1980
Señorita 1981
En d'ssous du pont 1981
Personne t'arrêtera 1981
L’homme de paille 1982
Qu'est-ce qui va rester (Quand le rock'N'roll aura cessé d'exister) 1982
Quand j'arriv'rai chez toi 1982
Halloween 1983
Sous trop d'étoiles 1983
Tourne tourne 1983
Caricature 1984
40 à l’ombre 1985
Le limbo 1985
D'où viennent les danseuses 1986
Celle qui t’aimait 1988
Les heures noires 1988
Double aller simple pour Pékin 1988
Le fantôme de l'Opéra 1988
90s Decade :
Vue sur cour 1990
Note Dame des Motels 1990
Black Bone 1992
L'enfant de la lune 1992
Peur 1992
Politiquement correct 1995
Guérissez nous de nous 1995
2000s Decade :
La diosa freda 2001
Altri che 'L sol 2001
U sono or le ricchezze ? 2001
Miss Démocratie 2007
Oncle Sam 2007
Homo Sapiens 2007
Tracks :
1978 ... from the first title, the Capdevielle style is already in place. All that remains is to find the title that will make all the difference ...
1978...it is certain that at this stage there is still a little work to be done to hope to compete with the best...
1979... a work that will very quickly bear fruit and in what a way ! He simply signs here what will surely remain as one of the most famous B-sides in the musical history of the 80s on the French side. The artist has just signed his 'Mona Lisa', no less ! MAS-TER-FUL !
1979 ... a style typical of the end of the decade on the French side but it is its level of inspiration that makes all the difference compared to the competition !
1979...it took him little time to reach the highest level and he intends to make the most of it as much as possible...
1980 ... the artist has become in a few years one of the biggest phenomena of the moment. Despite - or thanks to - these false bad boy tunes, he continues hit after hit. Impressive !
1980 ... a dynamic which does not weaken and which allows him to remain in the leading pack. Talent, of course, helps and he has plenty to spare !
1980...certainly not all of his titles will end up at the top of the charts but overall they are of quality, that's the least we can say...
1981 ... after 3 totally euphoric years, the singer begins to mark time. And the specialized press now has him in their sights, which does not help ...
1981...the hardest thing for him now will be to resist the pressure of the star system and especially the media. Not a given...
1981...especially since the competition was seriously starting to get ahead of him, which didn't help matters, quite the contrary...
1982 ... the songs are still inspired but that is not enough to make the difference with the competition increasingly supplied and more and more aggressive...
1982...especially since in the era of drum machines and synthesizers his rock style was struggling to exist, especially among young audiences...
1982...for the moment it doesn't seem to bother him too much, but he still has to ask himself the right questions about what to do next in his career...
1983...continue in the same vein or evolve his style and sound in the direction desired by the general public ? Only him has the answer at this stage...
1983...it is clear that there will be no significant change during this year 1983. We will therefore have to be patient...
1983...if there is a change, because it's not certain that it will ever happen. But if he doesn't make it, the rest could be very complicated...
1984 ... the sound evolution is obvious, the singer tries to adapt to his time but it is already too late. Impossible now to go up the slope ...
1985 ... and yet, he will have tried everything and not much would have been enough for the mayonnaise to resume. Because talent, he still has some to spare ! Frankly shame !
1985... he will have at least tried and for that alone we can only salute the desire to make things move in the right direction...
1986...a second half of his career that will therefore be carried out in a somewhat more confidential manner. A hard law of the trade, as they say...
1988 ... one last title - once again of high quality - to end the adventure in style. Anyway, a great adventure for one of the most talented artists of this decade 70/80...
1988...one last title at the highest level, but certainly not the last title at all. For him, the adventure is far from over...
1988...the main thing for him now is to have fun and it doesn't matter if he succeeds or not. If he succeeds, so much the better, if not, so much the worse...
1988...and as in music, nothing is ever over, a comeback is never out of the question. You just have to believe in it a little...
1990...so here he is, calmly attacking this new 90s decade with the firm intention of not giving up as usual...
1990...a will to believe until the end that undeniably commands respect. And it's not the core fans who will complain, that's for sure...
1992...especially since the quality is still there so there is no reason not to continue to be interested in what he does...
1992...some titles are really too out of step with their time and that's not going to help put him back in the spotlight one bit...
1992...the beginning of the 90s saw him stick to his guns. Not sure this was the best way to continue the adventure peacefully...
1995...especially since returning to rock fundamentals isn't going to help in that regard, that's for sure. Strange strategy...
1995...an adventure that will therefore continue in a rather solitary way and on the fringes of the system, of course. There is always a price to pay in these cases...
2001...we lost sight of him for almost 6 years, but here he is again anyway. And in a rather astonishing form...
2001...it's really hard to imagine that he's behind all this and yet. We were expecting him to be questioned, but to this extent...
2001...he never did anything like everyone else, that's for sure. An artist who decided to follow a very personal path...
2001...afterwards, as long as he enjoyed what he did, who could blame him for anything ? Not us anyway...
2007...and here he is again, this time in his own name. With him, nothing is ever over, you have to know that...
2007...decades and years may pass, but its rock fundamentals remain predominant and it will be like that until the end...
2007...so last title or not ? Only him and fate can answer that question. To be continued, as they say, or not...
Wiki :
Official Website :
http://jpcapdevielle.com/ Greatest Hits :
Discography :
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