Petula Clark & Funky Monologues - Songs About England

Housesitting chez les Rosbifs, chasing rain, and collecting weird tunes along the way

We’re in the UK this month—chez les Rosbifs— hoping for rain (it’s been weirdly dry), navigating new towns, and adjusting to a rhythm that somehow feels slower and louder at the same time. But definitely different than France in many ways. Between pub lunches, long walks under big skies, and conversations we only half understand (despite it being English), our usual routine is a bit off.

We’re housesitting for the month, so expect more posts soon about that—plus some practical notes on border-crossing, culture-shifting, and figuring out how to live in a place that’s not quite home but not entirely foreign either.

all of these people are on the verge of bursting into song. all photos by the author

In the meantime, here’s a short playlist of French songs about England, sort of. (I’d personally start with the Nino Ferrer track.)

Allez donc en Angleterre Robert Darthez (this version released in the 1950s)

A breezy chanson from the golden age of French radio (la T.S.F.¹), this song encourages listeners to head off to England. Darthez is another all-around performer who I need to write more about: singer, dancer, actor and doing them all well. Allez donc en Angleterre was originally released on the album Au bon vieux temps de la T.S.F., a warm, nostalgic track, idealizing a postwar Europe in which travel, music, and discovery were becoming more accessible through radio and song.

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London is London Petula Clark (1969)

From the film Goodbye, Mr. Chips (1969)

A sweeping musical number written for the Goodbye, Mr. Chips (with Peter O’Toole as well), “London is London” paints the city as a place of both grandeur and comfort - timeless, busy, familiar. The whole number is built around Petula Clark’s vocals like something meant to be belted out with arms wide open on a misty London bridge.

If you’ve ever wondered what the big deal about her is - this is Peak Petula: spotlight on, center stage, and belting like the rent’s due tonight.

[We were met with a bit less fanfare, but the sentiment is there. We like London.]

What places—or odd songs—come to mind when you think of England? Drop a note in the comments…

Or just tell me where to go - next.

L’Angleterre Nino Ferrer(1973)

More arthouse monologue than song, this seven-minute prog rock jam loops through Nino Ferrer’s sparse lyrics. A kind of psych-surreal meditation on England that seems like he had never even been there. While the words don’t say much, the track stands out for lush keyboard arrangements and the band behind them.

Bernard Estardy handled the mix — a legendary composer and producer known for his rich psychedelic and funk textures. His studio, CBE², was a hub for French pop from the '60s on and has been sampled by Jay-Z, Danger Mouse and many others. The track included a string quartet, Giorgio Giombolini on organ (I have looked for him and sadly, not found him on more than a few tracks), Micky Finn on guitar (later, of T. Rex), and drummer Keith Boyce (later of Heavy Metal Kids), adding some serious weight to the track.

Lyrics

L' ANGLETERRE - Nino Ferrer

L'Angleterre
Ou l'automne
L'avenir
Qu'est-ce que ça peut faire ?

J'ai la mer
Et le désert
Et bien d'autres choses encore
À l'intérieur.

Mon amour
Mon angoisse
Ma victoire
Qu'est-ce que ça peut faire ?

Si la mer
Et le désert
Ne sont que des créatures
De l'intérieur

[ed note: Um, Quoi?]

ENGLAND

England
Or autumn
The future
What can it do?

I have the sea
And the desert
And many other things
Inside.

My love
My anxiety
My victory
What can it do?

If the sea
And the desert
Are just creatures
From the inside

[ed note: yeah. that’s the whole thing. ]

1. T.S.F. = Télégraphie Sans Fil, or “wireless telegraphy”—the old French term for radio.

2. CBE Studios, run by Bernard Estardy, was a legendary hub of French pop production. More on that another time.