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Research dossier · Arts & Letters

Les Mômes de la cloche

song performed by Édith Piaf

Manuscripts, fine bindings, an engraving plate and preserved performance ephemera
Arts and lettersInterpretive dossier study · Crown Archives visual atlas
Record originEnglish Wikipedia
Text licenseCC BY-SA 4.0
Source revisionMay 31, 2026
Entity authorityQ3234132 ↗
Source-derived summary

"Les Mômes de la cloche" is a song which became the first studio recording made by Édith Piaf. It was written by Vincent Scotto (music) and André Decaye (lyrics).

History

Édith Piaf recorded the song "Les Mômes de la cloche" on 18 December 1935 at Polydor's Studio 2. The song was released as her first commercial record (a 78 RPM single) in 1936. The other side of the record was "L'étranger". (Actually, Piaf re-recorded both songs later, "L'étranger" on 13 January 1936 and "Les Mômes de la cloche" on 24 March 1936, and some pressings of the single used the new versions.)

The 78 RPM record with the song became a big success.

Editorial summary

The public source identifies “Les Mômes de la cloche” as song performed by Édith Piaf. This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around Mômes, cloche and song.

Editorial reviewA useful identification and reception guide that helps separate the work itself from editions, performances, ownership and later interpretation. The current lead gives the account dated anchors—1935, 1936—that can be checked directly. The linked authority record independently contributes the date 1936. Its value is orientation rather than verdict, with Mômes, cloche and song providing the first useful test.
Editorial analysis

Why this record matters

A short description can identify a subject without explaining its stakes. For “Les Mômes de la cloche”, the useful work is to connect “song performed by Édith Piaf” to the records capable of establishing context and consequence.

Evidence profile

Reception evidence should be dated and situated: later canonical status may differ sharply from the work’s initial circulation. The source revision retrieved here is dated May 31, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q3234132. 1 of 1 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1935 and 1936.

Critical limits

Titles can refer to several editions, objects or performances, making precise identification essential before interpretation. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.

How to read it

Separate the work, its editions or performances, and its later reception. Catalogue records, publication histories and object files often preserve different parts of that story.

Best used for
  • Identifying works and editions
  • Tracing reception history
  • Finding collection records
Verify next

The original object or edition, catalogue raisonné, performance record, rights file and holding institution.

Three-step research path

  1. Establish the record: confirm the title “Les Mômes de la cloche”, its source revision and the description used here.
  2. Expand the search: follow Les Mômes de la cloche primary sources, Les Mômes de la cloche archive and Mômes research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
  3. Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.

Questions for further research

  1. Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Les Mômes de la cloche”?
  2. Where is authorship, date or provenance documented?
  3. How did later circulation or interpretation alter the work’s reception?
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Source & attribution

This entry incorporates text from “Les Mômes de la cloche” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.