The Englishman Who Sang Like a Parisian

When Engelbert Humperdinck released “Les Bicyclettes de Belsize” in 1968, listeners could almost see the cobblestone streets of Paris, smell the morning cafés, and hear the laughter of lovers drifting through Montmartre.

Yet, there was a quiet secret behind that romantic illusion — the song was not French at all.

A British Love Letter to a French Dream

The melody came from two British songwriters — Les Reed and Barry Mason — the same duo behind “The Last Waltz.” They wrote “Les Bicyclettes de Belsize” as the theme for a short British film of the same name, shot entirely in Belsize Park, London, not Paris.

The film told a simple story about a young man riding through London on his bicycle, daydreaming about love. But the music transformed it into something magical.

When Engelbert sang the opening line “Turning and turning the world goes on,” he gave it a Parisian soul — warm, romantic, wistful — something even French chanson singers admired.

Engelbert’s Voice and the Art of Illusion

Humperdinck’s baritone carried an old-world tenderness. He didn’t imitate the French; he embodied what listeners imagined France to be — dreamy, poetic, slightly melancholic.

At the height of the Swinging Sixties, when pop was loud and rebellious, Engelbert dared to whisper instead of shout. His version of love was cinematic, nostalgic, and impossibly elegant.

The result was a song that fooled everyone — an Englishman making the world believe he was singing from a Paris balcony at twilight.

The Hidden Power of Simplicity

What made “Les Bicyclettes de Belsize” unforgettable wasn’t its grand arrangement but its simplicity. The gentle orchestration, the bicycle metaphor, and the soft rhythm created a picture of innocence in an era losing its purity.

It was the sound of 1968, yet somehow timeless.

Even today, when Engelbert performs it on stage, you can see older fans closing their eyes — not to remember Paris, but to remember youth.

Legacy of a Dreamer

Decades later, “Les Bicyclettes de Belsize” remains one of Engelbert’s signature songs, a reminder that music can create worlds that never existed.

He once said in an interview, “I think that song carried something beyond words — a picture of what love feels like when you’re young and fearless.”

Indeed, for many, that’s exactly what it was – A song about the Paris we all carry inside our hearts, sung by an Englishman who never needed to leave London to make us believe.

🎵 Suggested listening: Engelbert Humperdinck – Les Bicyclettes de Belsize (1968)

Lyrics:

Turning and turning
The world goes on
We can’t change it, my friend
Let us go riding now through the days
Together to the end
To the end

Les bicyclettes de Belsize
Carry us side by side
And hand in hand we will ride
Over Belsize
Turn your magical eyes
Round and around
Looking at all we’ve found
Carry us through the skies
Les bicyclettes de Belsize

Spinning and spinning
The dreams I know
Rolling on through my head
Let us enjoy them before they go
Come the dawn, they all are dead
Yes, they’re dead

Les bicyclettes de Belsize
Carry us side by side
And hand in hand we will ride
Over Belsize
Turn your magical eyes
Round and around
Lookin’ at all we’ve found
Carry us through the skies
Les bicyclettes de Belsize