French composer Charles Dumont, creator of “Non, je ne regrette rien,” dies at 95
The musician Charles Dumont, composer of the iconic song “Non, je ne regrette rien” and collaborator of “La Môme” (Édith Piaf), passed away last night at the age of 95.
The singer, lyricist, and composer, who also worked with Dalida and Barbra Streisand, died after a long illness at his home in Paris, according to his partner Florence, who spoke to the French news agency.
On X (formerly Twitter), France’s Minister of Culture Rachida Dati paid tribute to “a giant of French music.”
Giant figure of French music, Charles Dumont has passed away. He composed “Non, je ne regrette rien” and “Mon Dieu” for Édith Piaf, along with hundreds of other songs, while also being a performer of immense talent himself.
I extend my heartfelt condolences to his family and loved ones.
Dumont’s career as a trumpeter soared in the early 1960s when he persuaded Édith Piaf to perform one of his compositions.
“Non, je ne regrette rien” (“No, I Regret Nothing”) became a signature hit for “La Môme,” renowned worldwide.
“My mother brought me into the world, but Édith Piaf introduced me to life,” said Dumont, who was born in Cahors, southwestern France, on 26 March 1929. “Without her, I would never have achieved all I have.”
It was in 1956 that the notes of what would become one of the most famous French songs in the world emerged from Dumont’s piano, then a 27-year-old unknown musician.
However, Piaf was initially hesitant. “Piaf had already rejected me three times; I didn’t want to see her again,” Dumont recalled to the French news agency in 2018. “But Michel Vaucaire, who wrote the lyrics, convinced me to try again in 1960. When she learned I was there, she shouted, demanding the meeting be cancelled.”
“Despite that, we went to her home. I played the piece on the piano. And… we never parted,” he said. “At that time, she was in a terrible state, and this song was a resurrection.”
This marked the beginning of a long collaboration that lasted until Piaf’s death in 1963, producing more than 30 songs, including “Mon Dieu,” “Les flonflons du bal,” and “Les Amants.”
“If I became an international musician, I owe it to Édith,” said Dumont, who later collaborated with American star Barbra Streisand.
Dumont’s “Le Mur,” sung in French on side A, and its English version, “I’ve Been Here,” on side B, were included in Streisand’s eighth album, “Je m’appelle Barbra,” released in 1966.
As a singer, Dumont accompanied Piaf on stage.
“One evening, as we left the stage, I told her the audience wasn’t good. She looked me straight in the eyes and said, ‘It wasn’t them. You weren’t good.’ That’s when I understood that the audience doesn’t make the performance; it’s what you give that works.”
After Piaf’s death, Dumont resumed his singing career before moving away from protest songs. “Let’s leave those to the Americans—they do them so much better!” he remarked.
He went on to release albums where love took centre stage. Until 2019, he continued performing on stage. “When you appear again before an audience that sees you as they did 20, 30, or 40 years ago and greets you the same way, it makes you feel 20 again,” he said.
Source: ANA-MPA
