Henri Gougaud left us at the age of 88, on May 6. Born in Villemoustaussou, during his life he was a poet, radio man, lyricist for Juliette Gréco Serge Regianni and Jean Ferrat but also author of several books.
A final poem shared on his Facebook page to perpetuate his memory, a few days after his death. Henri Gougaud died at the age of 88 on May 6. A native of Aude, of Villemoustaussou, this artisan of literature, poetry and stories leaves behind an indelible mark. His countless texts were sung, when he was a lyricist, by Juliette Gréco, Serge Reggiani and Jean Ferrat. He also released albums of songs in his name. The first dates from 1964: My five senses. And it is in this area that he offered a final disc, including a box set of 5 complete CDs of the 111 recordings, in 2023: I haven’t finished my dream. Without forgetting his very beautiful opus in Occitan “lo pastre de paraulas” (the shepherd of words).
He also put his words to use on the radio in 1973 as a storyteller for France Inter in the broadcast of Walk or dream hosted by Claude Villers. He then became producer of his own broadcasts, always on the same frequency: The Big Talk, Here the shadow, Everything ends up being true. He returned to the radio studio during the summers of 2016 and 2017 alongside Jacques Pradel on RTL in a show dedicated to supernatural phenomena.
About twenty novels
It is also in the writing of novels that Henri Gougaud uses his mastery of words. His first work, entitled Departments and Territories beyond death, is published in 1977 and he won the Goncourt prize for short stories. A first distinction. A second follows suit with a second novel The Great Departure receiving the black humor prize. His latest book, The Brotherhood of the Innocents, comes out in 2021.
In our columns, at the beginning of February, the author returned to his parentheses with Aude. Where his story began: “I only passed through Villemoustaussou, just long enough to be born there. My mother, a beginner teacher in some corner of Corbières, had chosen to give birth within the family, at her father’s house, a postman at the village post office. So I left ”Villemoustache” very early on while remaining very attached to it. My grandparents lived there, and so my brother and I often came there outside of school.”
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