Ne Me Quitte Pas

Maya Angela Smith

ISBN 10: 1478028254 / ISBN 13: 9781478028253

Published by Duke University Press, US, 2025

About this Item

In 1959, Belgian singer-songwriter Jacques Brel wrote and performed "Ne me quitte pas" (Don't leave me), a visceral and haunting plea for his lover to come back. As a teenager, Maya Angela Smith was so captivated by Nina Simone's powerful 1965 cover of the song that it inspired her to be a French professor. In Ne me quitte pas, Smith follows the classic song's long and varied journey, from Brel's iconic 1966 performance on French television to Simone's cover to Shirley Bassey's English-language version ("If You Go Away") to its contemporary manifestations in popular culture. Throughout, Smith shows that as the song travels across languages, geographies, genres, and generations, it accumulates shifting artistic and cultural significance as each listener creates their own meaning.

Seller Inventory # LU-9781478028253

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Ne Me Quitte Pas
• Publisher: Duke University Press, US
• Publication Date: 2025
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1478028254
• ISBN 13: 9781478028253
• Binding: Hardback
• Condition: New
• Weight: 363 grams

About this title

Synopsis

In 1959, Belgian singer-songwriter Jacques Brel wrote and performed “Ne me quitte pas” (Don’t leave me), a visceral and haunting plea for his lover to come back. As a teenager, Maya Angela Smith was so captivated by Nina Simone’s powerful 1965 cover of the song that it inspired her to be a French professor. In Ne me quitte pas, Smith follows the classic song’s long and varied journey, from Brel’s iconic 1966 performance on French television to Simone’s cover to Shirley Bassey’s English-language version (“If You Go Away”) to its contemporary manifestations in popular culture. Throughout, Smith shows that as the song travels across languages, geographies, genres, and generations, it accumulates shifting artistic and cultural significance as each listener creates their own meaning.

About the Author

Maya Angela Smith is Professor of French in the French and Italian Studies Department at the University of Washington.