On est là

On Est Là draws on formative elements of the composer’s high-school years, including rock, sex, fast cars, and the misguided Vietnam war (referencing Walter Cronkite’s famous “stalemate” editorial which was a major factor in ending the war). The many protests of this period are reflected in the final passage with France students and workers chanting the eponymous French protest song. (Recognizing the war’s futility and unpopularity, the United States withdrew all troops by 1973.)