Oncle Archibald Video and Text

Oncle Archibald

Uncle Archibald was a self-effacing, trusting man, too easily used by others. After he had dropped dead chasing a thief who stole his watch – and the rest of his time on earth- Brassens consoles himself with this fantasy about his death – swift, painless, humorous even, becoming a marriage which protects him eternally from the rogues and cheats who had exploited him throughout his life.

Ô vous, les arracheurs de dents,(1) Tous les cafards, les charlatans, Les prophètes, Comptez plus sur Oncle Archibald Pour payer les violons du bal (2) À vos fêtes... (bis) En courant sus à un voleur Qui venait de lui chiper l'heure À sa montre, Oncle Archibald, - coquin de sort !(3) Fit, de Sa Majesté La Mort, La rencontre... (bis) Telle un' femm' de petit' vertu, Elle arpentait le trottoir du Cimetière, Aguichant(4) les homm's en troussant Un peu plus haut qu'il n'est décent Son suaire... (bis) Oncle Archibald, d'un ton gouailleur(5), Lui dit : "va-t'en fair' pendre ailleurs Ton squelette... Fi des femelles décharnées ! Vive les bell's un tantinet(6) Rondelettes !" (bis) Lors, montant sur ses grands chevaux,(7) La mort brandit la longue faux D'agronome(8) Qu'elle serrait dans son linceul, Et faucha d'un seul coup, d'un seul, Le bonhomme... (bis) Comme il n'avait pas l'air content, Elle lui dit : "Ça fait longtemps Que je t'aime... Et notre hymen à tous les deux Était prévu depuis l' jour de Ton baptême... (bis) Si tu te couches dans mes bras, Alors la vie te semblera Plus facile... Tu y seras hors de portée Des chiens, des loups, des homm's et des Imbéciles... (bis) Nul n'y contestera tes droits, Tu pourras crier : viv' le roi ! (9) Sans intrigue... Si l'envie te prend de changer, Tu pourras crier sans danger Viv' la Ligue(10) ! (bis) Ton temps de dupe est révolu,(11) Personne ne se payera plus Sur ta bête(12). Les "Plaît-il, maître?" auront plus cours(13), Plus jamais tu n'auras à cour- -ber la tête..." (bis) Et mon oncle emboîta le pas De la bell', qui ne semblait pas, Si féroce... Et les voilà, bras d'ssus, bras d'ssous, Les voilà partis je n' sais où Fair' leurs noces... (bis) Ô vous, les arracheurs de dents Tous les cafards, les charlatans, Les prophètes, Comptez plus sur Oncle Archibald Pour payer les violons du bal À vos fêtes... (bis)

Oh you, you bare-faced liars All the sneaks, all  the charlatans The psychics, Don’t count now on Archibald’s money To grab  for yourselves’n fritter away At y’r parties. (Repeat) While running after a thief Who’d just stolen his time of day On his watch Uncle Archibald- Goodness gracious! Met with Her Majesty Death Face to face. Like a woman of loose morals She was walking  the Cemetery Pavements Attracting the men by tucking A little higher than is decent The shroud she wore. Uncle Archibald, derisively Said to her “Go and hang it up elsewhere Y’er skeleton To hell with skinny females! Long live the beauties a bit On’t chubby side! Then, getting on her high horses Death brandished the long-bladed scythe Used by farmers. Which she held tightly in her shroud And cut down with a single stoke,  The good fellow….. As he was looking none so pleased She said to him : « It’s been a  time That I’ve loved you And the nuptials for us both Were planned right back on the day that You were baptised. If you can lie down in my arms Then life will begin to seem to you Much easier Safe in there you’ll be out of reach Of dogs, of wolves, of men and of Imbeciles No-one will contest your rights there You can shout out: “Long live the King” : Quite openly……. If you feel like making a change You can shout out without danger Long live the League !(4) Your time as a dupe is over People won’t treat themselves anymore From your account. “May I,  master?” will end its usage Never again will you have to Bow your head. And my uncle followed on the heels Of the beauty, who did not seem So fierce And there the two linked, arm in arm There they were, gone, I know not where(6) To their wedding. Oh you, you bare-faced liars All the sneaks, all  the charlatans The psychics, Don’t count now on Archibald’s money To grab  for yourselves’n fritter away At y’r parties. (Repeat)

TRANSLATION NOTES

1.      Mentir comme un arracheur de dents means to be a barefaced liar

.

2.      payer les violons du bal means to pay for something for which you get nothing.

3.      coquin de sort – this is an oath that expresses shock or anger

4.      Aguichant –Aguicher means (a) to seduce or to try to seduce (b) To excite, arouse , tickle

.

5.      D’un ton gouailleur means mockingly/derisively/ sardonically

6.      Un tantinet is a familiar word to say a little or slightly

7.      montant sur ses grands chevaux- because death is often drawn as a skeleton on a horse.

8.      Agronome means gardener/ farmer/ agriculturalist

9.      The King and the League represent conflicting political loyalties. It is a reference to lines of La Fontaine: Le sage dit, selon les gens: Vive le Roi ! Vive la Ligue !

This refers to the civil conflict in France in the 1580s, when the Duke de Guise led a league of extremist Catholics to replace Henri III by the Cardinal de Bourbon.

10.   révolu   means completely over/ past/ disappeared

11.   If people were broke and could not pay their bill, the person owed money would say “Laissez-moi votre cheval. Je me paierai sur votre bête.

12.   N’auront plus cours – One meaning of “le cours” is “currency” and so “avoir cours” means “to be legal tender”  and figuratively it means: “To be in use”

13.   As he is a sceptic, Brassens may not be too certain about his belief in  the idea of heaven.

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