This French song narrates the life of someone named Jean-François Nicot who lived in a small village at the bottom of a valley, starting with his birth, then his marriage and ending with his death, events all accompanied by ringing of the bells.
Two different English versions of "Les trois cloches" were written in 1948 – "While the Angelus Was Ringing" (with unrelated lyrics and recorded by Frank Sinatra among others),[9] and "The Three Bells".
The English lyrics of "The Three Bells" were written by Bert Reisfeld, based broadly on the French original, and the named individual in the song was changed from Jean-François Nicot to Jimmy Brown.
[8] Les Compagnons de la chanson themselves also recorded an English version of "The Three Bells".
The Browns at that time were considering quitting the music business, and for what they intended to be their last recording, they chose "The Three Bells".
Atkins was convinced the song would be "the biggest hit ever", and told the Browns: "I've just recorded you a million-seller.
Four decades later, Porter recalled his quick fix: " This was a need-to-know situation and I figured nobody needed to know.
[19] The song received a Grammy nomination in 1959 for Best Record of the Year but lost to "Mack the Knife".