"For me, travelling is a vital need. I need expansion, to go elsewhere, to see. When I was twenty-eight, I lived in India. I saw revolting things there, as well as the sublime. Horror, and total grace. The ghâts of Benares, where all the holy madnes of the Indians is concentrated, will remain engraved upon my soul. My dream is to be away, always, on the road.". Valérie Lagrange repeats this credo again, after a long recording silence, in her new single, "Au Coeur de l'amour". With a techno, Berber, Indian atmosphere, to the sound of tablas, kabyle songs, electrical sitar/guitar played by Pierre Cérèze. And, of course, that Voice...

Reggae

Produced by Georges Baux, the composer of Lavilliers' beautiful "Minha selva" , and her companion Ian Jelfs en 1988. "I came across it listening to old recordings, says Valérie, and the oriental side of the melody attracted me again. So I wrote new words.". Valérie Lagrange and Ian Jelfs first appeared in the French rock landscape in 1980 : Valérie was the first French singer to sign a contract with the brand new English label Virgin. Her big hit of the eighties, "Faut plus me la faire", swept everyone off their feet with its waves of voice and guitar in the refrain, and pure Ganja Reggae for the remainder.Valérie had used Jamaican rhythms as early as 1977 in one of her songs, "Si ma chanson pouvait" : "I have been playing reggae since 1971 because some Australian friends brought me a Marley record. Ian and I listened to it all the time, so it was not surprising that we should have echoes in our first album."

Cinema

With"Faut plus me la faire", Valérie Lagrange, entered into her third life in 1980. There had been a time, after the Second World War, when she was still called Danièle Charaudeau and lived with her parents, ironmongers in the 18th arrondissement of Paris. Her mother wanted her to learn the piano, but she dreamed of being a dancer. So she did piano for eight years. In 1959, Claude Autant Lara, a worthy film director of the old school, noticed her in an audition. She was only seventeen, but she already had the most beautiful eyes in the world. Autant Lara hired her immediately for "La jument verte" : Valérie Lagrange was born. But the birth was painful. "Autant-Lara was a tyrant, and had terrible manners. I used to have stomach cramps from fright, every morning before shooting." Thus began Valérie's first life, that of the young film star, under directors like Jacques Deray, Philippe De Broca, Claude Lelouch and Jean-Luc Godard - if you please - until 1966.

Song

But song was there, a desire not yet satisfied. Valérie today talks of"variétés" when describing this period. Her years between 64 and 68 nevertheless brought her songs by Pierre Barouh, Francis Lai and - always around when a pretty young girl was learning to sing - Serge Gainsbourg. And inded it was he who wrote her first hit, "La guérilla", in 1964. Already, the title referred to music from elsewhere : "I was performing with Los Incas. Then I went on tour for three years with them. I have always loved all the music in the world, because it is very old and very pure."

Love, purity, revolt, these were the key words for Valérie Lagrange, taken from various sources: May 68 ("the desire to obliterate everything and start from scratch"), Buddhism, travelling etc. Between 1968 and 1971, Valérie lived abroad, in Rome, then New Guinea, with the Papous, where she played in the film "La Vallée", by Barbet Shroeder. Finally, on the way home, India and, of course, Nepal.

Rock

It was in Paris, in 1972, that Valérie met Ian Jelfs, the brilliant English guitarist. Together, they went on tour with Graeme Allwright before suddenly going for rock and, quite simply, busking, singing Dylan and the Stones in front of bistro terraces: a miraculous combination of the 68 spirit, peace and love... their friends at the time were Jacques Higelin, Louis Bertignac and Jean-Louis Aubert, all before they met with success in 75 and afterwards. Valérie's accumulated experience was gently leading her towards her third life: the album "Faut plus me la faire", in 1980. A huge success. In 1981, a new album came out under the Virgin label, full of electrical fury, the fundamental "Chez moi", illustrated with a stylised African mask .

Troubles

In September 1984, moved to tears by a BBC report on Korem camp, Valérie Lagrange decided to go to war against famine in Ethiopia. With the help of the singer Renaud, she launched Chanteurs sans frontières in February 85. The success of the group title "Ethiopie", brought in 10 million Francs for Médecins sans frontières within two months of its appearance. In July 1985, Valérie went over to oversee the utilisation of the money : "I spent a week there. Death, everywhere. I couldn't do a thing. I tried to become inured to it. But when I got back, nothing had any meaning any more, not even my fourth album to record, due to start a fortnight afterwards."

This was the last of the rock years for Valérie Lagrange and Ian Jelfs. The merchandising world had caught up with the freedom freaks. In 1989, Valérie nevertheless returned to the cinema for Zulawski's "Mes nuits sont plus belles que vos jours". But a few weeks later, a terrible overdose followed by a coma left Ian a virtual cripple. For five years Valérie returned to private life to help him, day by day, back to health. To get him walking again. Now he is a lot better and Valérie still has much to say..

Jean-Claude Demari

Double album "Au coeur de l'amour" (compilation 32 titles/Virgin, 724384663124).