Les derniers seront les premiers

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"Les derniers seront les premiers"
Promotional single by Celine Dion
from the album Live à Paris
ReleasedOctober 1996 (1996-10)
RecordedOctober–November 1995
VenueZénith Paris
GenrePop
Length3:48
LabelColumbia
Songwriter(s)Jean-Jacques Goldman
Audio video
"Les derniers seront les premiers" on YouTube

"Les derniers seront les premiers" (meaning "the last will be first") is a song by Canadian singer Celine Dion from her thirteenth studio album, D'eux (1995). It was written by Jean-Jacques Goldman and produced by Goldman and Erick Benzi. The live version of the song from Live à Paris was released as a promotional single in October 1996. It entered the airplay charts in Francophone countries, reaching numbers three in Quebec, 19 in France and 47 in Belgium Wallonia.

Background and release[edit]

Dion recorded D'eux in November and December 1994 in the Méga Studio in Paris, France.[1] Most songs were written by Jean-Jacques Goldman, while the production was handled by Goldman and Erick Benzi.[2] The live version of "Les derniers seront les premiers" from Live à Paris was released as a promotional single in October 1996.[3][4] In 2005, the song was included on Dion's greatest hits album, On ne change pas.[5]

Accolades[edit]

At the 1997 Félix Awards in Quebec, "Les derniers seront les premiers" was nominated for Most Popular Song of the Year and Video of the Year.[6]

Commercial performance[edit]

"Les derniers seront les premiers" entered the airplay charts in Francophone countries in November 1996. In Quebec, the song debuted on 16 November 1996 and peaked at number three.[7] It stayed 35 weeks on the chart in total.[8] In France, "Les derniers seront les premiers" peaked at number 19 in December 1996, in its fourth week on the chart.[9] In Belgium Wallonia, it reached number 47 on 29 November 1996.[10]

Music video[edit]

The official live music video was filmed at the Zénith Paris in France, during the D'eux Tour in October and November 1995.[11] It was directed by Gérard Pullicino and released in October 1996 to promote the Live à Paris CD and DVD of the same name.[12] Jean-Jacques Goldman joined Dion on stage at the end of the song. The video was nominated for Video of the Year at the 1997 Félix Awards in Quebec.[6] In 2005, it was included on Dion's greatest hits DVD collection, On ne change pas, and in 2009 on the 15th anniversary edition of D'eux.[13]

Charts[edit]

Chart performance for "Les derniers seront les premiers"
Chart (1996) Peak
position
Belgium Airplay (Ultratop Flanders)[10] 141
Belgium Airplay (Ultratop Wallonia)[10] 47
France Airplay (SNEP)[9] 19
Quebec Airplay (ADISQ)[14] 3

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Histoire de culte: comment l'album D'eux de Céline Dion est devenu le disque francophone le plus vendu de tous les temps". Elle (in French). 30 March 2023. Retrieved 20 April 2023.
  2. ^ "D'eux by Céline Dion". Apple Music. Retrieved 20 April 2023.
  3. ^ "M & M Airplay Station Reports" (PDF). Music & Media. 23 November 1996. p. 22. Retrieved 20 April 2023.
  4. ^ "Celine Dion – Les derniers seront les premiers". Discogs. Retrieved 20 April 2023.
  5. ^ "On ne change pas by Céline Dion". Apple Music. Retrieved 20 April 2023.
  6. ^ a b "Gala de l'ADISQ - 1997". ADISQ. Archived from the original on 3 March 2016. Retrieved 21 April 2023.
  7. ^ "Compilation des succès par ordre alphabétique d'interprètes" (PDF) (in French). Bibliothèque et Archives nationales du Québec. Retrieved 15 March 2019.
  8. ^ "Palmarès reconstitués de la chanson au Québec" (in French). Bibliothèque et Archives nationales du Québec. Archived from the original on 27 January 2023. Retrieved 15 March 2019.
  9. ^ a b "Major Market Airplay: France" (PDF). Music & Media. 14 December 1996. p. 23. Retrieved 4 May 2019.
  10. ^ a b c Sam Jaspers (2006). Ultratop 1995-2005. Book & Media Publishing. ISBN 90-5720-232-8.
  11. ^ "Live à Paris by Céline Dion". Apple Music. Retrieved 20 April 2023.
  12. ^ "Céline Dion & Jean-Jacques Goldman: Les derniers seront les premiers". imvdb.com. Retrieved 20 April 2023.
  13. ^ "D'Eux Édition 15ème anniversaire". celinedion.com. Retrieved 21 April 2023.
  14. ^ "Québec Info Musique: Céline Dion". Québec Info Musique. Retrieved 28 September 2014.

External links[edit]