Among Clerc's most known songs are "Ce n'est rien" (1971), "Si on chantait" (1972), "Ma préférence" (1978), "Femmes... Je vous aime" (1982), "Mélissa" (1984),[1] "Hélène" (1987), "Fais-moi une place" (1990).

[2] During his secondary school and university days, he met Maurice Vallet and Etienne Roda-Gil, two of his main songwriters, and began to compose his first songs.

Over the years, Clerc's repertoire has ranged from his own compositions to classic French songs like "Comme Hier" by Brassens and "L'hymne à l'amour" by Edith Piaf.

[3] In January 1999, Clerc went on stage at the Théâtre des Champs-Elysées and delivered an unplugged acoustic set that was a long way from the rock/pop-based shows that he had been giving his audience for some years.

On another front, Clerc was named UNHCR Goodwill Ambassador[4] at a ceremony in Paris in November 2003 after working for nearly two years with the agency on various benevolent projects for refugees.