Pierre Vassiliu En Voyages

“Voyage”, to Pierre Vassiliu, was not only the title of an album of his, but also a philosophy of life. Travels were not for vacation or rest. They were synonyms of meetings, new music and sometimes, simply, life. These experiences around the world nourished his work, and his career allowed him to set foot on every continent. But his most beautiful travels took place in recording studios.
“My parents showed up on a beach, with a camper. They landed there and we stayed for years.” Sitting by a lake in Sète, Lena Vassiliu recounts how her parents Pierre and Laura chose an empty spot in the Casamance region to enjoy a few years loving each other under the sun. The legitimate child of this trip, she was conceived in Senegal. At the time, her mother said: “I want to give birth standing on my feet, holding a tree, in the sacred wood where only women can enter!” Today her mother adds: “Pierre was reluctant, so we ended up in a private hospital in Dakar.” Laura Vassiliu still lives in the same apartment in Sète. Folon’s original drawing for the artwork of the ‘Voyage’ LP is framed in the living room, making Pierre’s ghost more present. Laura remembers well the beautiful moments, and travels were a part of them. “Not only the moments were beautiful. On trips, he was more beautiful as well.” Pierre felt good turning his back on France – which was probably already ugly –, turning his back on the fickle, mercantile record industry, as well as on an entourage that recognized his mustache but not his talent. A traveler out of obligation in his youth (Algeria and its war), he became a traveler by taste and acquired an interest in people, an essential for anyone willing to travel the Globe. He also traveled out of necessity. When smiles faded, a boat, a plane, and bye bye idiots. And he brought all those trips back into his songs.
“Anytime we traveled anywhere, music attracted us. Pierre sensed the rhythm of the country we were in and he found a song.” Laura Vassiliu