- Joe le cab is a French song written by Etienne Roda-Gil, composed by Franck Langolff and performed by Vanessa Paradis.
- The 45 rpm record of this song was a worldwide success. It sold 1.3 million copies in France (platinum record) and 3.2 million copies worldwide.
- It tells the story of a cab driver who travels through Paris (the Seine, its bridges that shine) to the tune of the mambo of Xavier Cugat and Yma Sumac. If the legend says that a New York cab inspired him, in reality, the song comes from a woman, Maria-José Leao Dos Santos, working at night in Paris, crossed by the lyricist.
- Roda-Gil was inspired by Maria-José, born in 1955 in Lardosa in Portugal and died on March 3, 2019, "a figure of the lesbian nightlife in Paris", rue Sainte-Anne and rue Saint-Denis, to write the title.
- In the 1980s, she was hired at Le Privé, a mixed lesbian club on rue de Ponthieu, as a night cab driver, attached to the place; the place was frequented by various French artists, as well as by Étienne Roda-Gil, who drew inspiration from his discussions with Maria-José to write most of the song's lyrics, while some verses were inspired by another female cab driver during the day.
- Unlike the video, the original cab, a white Opel Ascona, is not yellow. Legend has it that the song was inspired by a New York cab driver.
- It is the first hit of Vanessa Paradis, she is only fourteen years old when it was released on April 27, 1987.
- The 45 rpm record contains two versions, one French and one English, as well as a cover of Tous les garçons et les filles by Françoise Hardy.
- The song was a worldwide success, reaching number one on the singles chart in the UK, Ireland, New Zealand and Australia. In France, it reached number two on the singles chart, behind Alizée's La Isla Bonita.
- The single sold 1.3 million copies in France, earning Paradis a platinum record, and 3.2 million copies worldwide.
- The video was directed by Jean-Baptiste Mondino and shows Vanessa Paradis in the streets of Paris, driving a yellow cab.
