Le temps des cerises

Known as "la chanson de la Commune" (la Commune de Paris, in 1871), sung by many generations of revolutionnaries, this great love song is usually related to these events, tough it was written before. Clément, who fought on the barricades in 1871, was more than poor; he traded the rights of the song for a fur coat to his friend Renard (the composer)... Clément published in 1885 a collection of his songs, "Premier recueil de chansons"; and added a dedication to the song: "A la vaillante citoyenne Louise, l'ambulancière de la rue Fontaine-au-Roi, le dimanche 28 mai 1871". This dedication helped the romantic idea that the song was writtten on the lasts barricades to go his way. (I think that Louise is Louise-Michel, known as "la vierge rouge" (the Red Virgin), another famous "communarde".)

All files available for download are backing tracks, it's not the original music. More info...