"Avant que l'ombre..." is a song recorded by the French artist Mylène Farmer in a studio version in 2005 and in a live version at the time of her 2006 concerts at Bercy (Paris). It was the first single from her fourth live album, Avant que l'ombre... à Bercy, and was released on November 26, 2006. It achieved a moderate success in terms of sales, although it reached the top ten in France.

Background and writing

Some rumors had announced "Déshabillez-moi (live)" as the first single from the live album, but finally it was "Avant que l'ombre... (live)" which was chosen. On October 20, Jeune Reims was the first French radio to broadcast the single. Then, on November 14, the videoclip was seen for the first time on television.

Among the promotional media sent to radio stations, the MP3 had the particularity that contain an unreleased remix of the song "L'Amour n'est rien...", the fourth single from the album Avant que l'ombre....

The song is the tenth track of the second CD on the live album Avant que l'ombre... à Bercy, and the first track on the studio album Avant que l'ombre....

Lyrics and music

"Avant que l'ombre..." is the most mystical song of the album of the same name, but also one in which the text is easier to understand. Speaking to Jesus Christ, the singer evokes her fear of death while affirming that the life has nevertheless allowed her to know love. This slow ends with a long musical bridge "that looks like a final judgement". The music is sweet and the vocals symbolize screams of pain.

Music video

The video was shot at one of her concerts in January 2006 and directed by François Hanss. "Avant que l'ombre... (live)" was sung as last at each performance. In it, Farmer wears a kimono that she removes at the end of the video while she climbs a staircase and left the scene.

Chart performances

In French SNEP Singles Chart, the single debuted to #10 on December 2, with 7,575 sales. As most previous Farmer's singles, it fell quickly and stayed a total of 8 weeks in the Top 50 and 21 weeks in the Top 100. It was the 32th top ten for Farmer in France. Among her other singles recorded in live, only "La Poupée qui fait non" (performed in duet with Khaled) and "Dessine-moi un mouton" had achieved a better debut.

The single running was extremely short in the Swiss Singles Chart : went to #54 on December 10, it dropped to #70 the following week and then already disappeared.

In Belgium (Wallonia), the single started on December 16, at number 25, its peak position, before dropping the following weeks. The song remained on the chart for five weeks.

Formats and track listings

CD single

1. "Avant que l'ombre... (live)" (live version) — 3:56
2. "Avant que l'ombre..." (album version) — 3:53 Digital download
3. "Avant que l'ombre... (live)" (radio edit) — 3:56
4. "Avant que l'ombre..." (album version) — 5:55
5. "Avant que l'ombre... (live)" (album version) — 7:26 MP3 - Promo
6. "Avant que l'ombre... (live)" (live version) — 3:56
7. "Avant que l'ombre..." (radio version) — 3:53
8. "L'Amour n'est rien..." (Patrice Strike & Teo Moss remix) CD single - Promo
9. "Avant que l'ombre... (live)" (live version) — 3:57
10. "Avant que l'ombre..." (radio edit) — 3:53

Versions

Official versions

Version	Length	Album	Remixed by	Year	Comment
Album version	5:55	Avant que l'ombre...		2005	See the previous sections
Live album version	7:26	Avant que l'ombre... à Bercy		2006	See Avant que l'ombre... à Bercy (tour)
Live single version	3:56			2006	The final musical bridge is deleted.
Radio edit	3:53		Laurent Boutonnat	2006	The final musical bridge is deleted.

Unofficial mentionable fan remixes

• Instrumental by Kick-i — 3:53
• Absolute jubilation by NFS — 7:43
• In the shadow club remix by About Claudia — 7:01

Credits and personnel

• Text : Mylène Farmer
• Music : Laurent Boutonnat
• Recording company : Polydor
• Photography : Claude Gassian
• Design : Henry Neu

Certifications and sales

Country	Certification	Date	Sales certified	Physical sales
France	—	—	—	24,740+

Charts

Chart (2006)	Peak position
Belgian (Wallonia) Singles Chart	25
Belgian Singles Chart (global)	34
Euro 200	71
French SNEP Singles Chart	10
Swiss Singles Chart	54

References