Les Copains d'Abord

Les Copains d'Abord is dedicated to the close friends who joined Brassens on boating trips off the South coast of France in a boat called “Les copains d'abord”. The song was written for a film, Les copains (1964), directed by Yves Robert. One of the striking features of Brassens’ life was the enduring friendships that he forged, evident also in his other songs.

The original video of les Copains that I posted, since deleted on U-Tube, continued with "Ballade des dames du temps jadis".  this I have now put on a separate post.  If you are looking for Brassens' song based on Villon's poem please click the new link: Ballade des dames du temps jadis2

LES COPAINS D'ABORD

LES COPAINS D'ABORD Non ce n'était pas le Radeau De la Méduse(1) ce bateau, Qu'on se le dise au fond des ports Dise au fond des ports, Il naviguait en pèr' peinard(2) Sur la grand-mare des canards(3) Et s'app'lait Les Copains d'Abord Les Copains d'Abord. (4) Ses fluctuat nec mergitur (5) C'était pas d'la littérature,(6) N'en déplaise aux jeteurs de sort,(7) Aux jeteurs de sort, Son capitaine et ses mat'lots N'étaient pas des enfants d'salauds, Mais des amis franco de port, (8) Des copains d'abord. C'étaient pas des amis de luxe, Des petits Castor et Pollux(9), Des gens de Sodome et Gomorrhe(10), Sodome et Gomorrhe, C'étaient pas des amis choisis Par Montaigne et La Boétie(11), Sur le ventre ils se tapaient fort, (12) Les copains d'abord. C'étaient pas des anges non plus, L'Évangile, ils l'avaient pas lu, Mais ils s'aimaient tout's voil's dehors,(13) Toutes voil's dehors, Jean, Pierre, Paul(14) et compagnie, C'était leur seule litanie Leur credo, leur confiteor, Aux copains d'abord. Au moindre coup de Trafalgar(15), C'est l'amitié qui prenait l'quart, C'est ell' qui leur montrait le nord, Leur montrait le nord, Et quand ils étaient en détresse, Qu'leurs bras lancaient des s.o.s., On aurait dit des sémaphores,(16) Les copains d'abord. Au rendez-vous des bons copains, Y'avait pas souvent de lapins(17), Quand l'un d'entre eux manquait à bord, C'est qu'il était mort, Oui, mais jamais, au grand jamais, Son trou dans l'eau n'se refermait(18), Cent ans après, coquin de sort! (19) Il manquait encor. Des bateaux j'en ai pris beaucoup, Mais le seul qui ait tenu le coup, Qui n'ait jamais viré de bord,(20) -mais viré de bord, Naviguait en père peinard Sur la grand-mare des canards Et s'app'lait Les Copains d'Abord Les Copains d'Abord.

No, it was’nt the least like the raft From the wrecked Medusa, this boat As they might claim down in the ports Might claim down in the ports It sailed like a placid old man On th’ duckpond of the open sea And was called: “Les Copains d'Abord” The pals first on board. Its “Fluctuat nec mergitur” Is no mere literary phrase No matter what doom-mongers say What doom-mongers say, Its ship captain and its sailors Were in no way sons of bitches But they were friends welcomed by all, The pals first on board. They were not friends, kind of de luxe, Little Castors and Polluxes Men from Sodom and Gomorr’ Sodom and Gomorr’ They were not such friends as chosen By Montaigne and La Boétie They enjoyed much knockabout fun The pals first on board. They were not angels either The Holy Word they had not read But love was all around, sails set Love with sails all set John, Peter, Paul and company It was their only litany Their creed, their confession To pals first on board. At th’ faintest Trafalgar shot heard It was friendship that took the helm Friendship gave to them their bearings Gave them their bearings And whenever in such distress That their arms launched their S.O.S You would have thought them semaphores The pals first on board. When the good pals met together Not often had some-one dropped out. When one of them was not on board ‘Twas that he was dead Yes, but never, never ever Did death close its seas over him Hundred years after, what the deuce! He was just as missed still. Boats, I’ve been on a lot of them But the only one quite up to scratch Which never lost its direction Lost its direction Sailed like a placid old man On the duck pond of open sea And was called: “Les Copains d'Abord” The pals first on board.

TRANSLATION NOTES

1)      Some malicious observers in the harbours they passed must have suggested that the unprepossessing boat of Brassens with its motley company resembled the survivors of the wreck of the Medusa on their raft as painted by Géricault.

2)      Un père Peinard.  There are several different and sometimes conflicting notions of Père Peinard.  One that would fit here would be of an older man, relaxed about the world, who takes life as it comes.

3)      La grand-mare des canards. There are different interpetations given to this. “La mare aux canards” means duck pond, but in popular slang it is an understatement for the sea.  As I have lived in the Montpellier region, my picture is of L’étang de Thau, a big coastal salt lake.

4)      When spoken or sung this phrase sounds like “copains de bord” which means shipmates and would convey the theme of the song.  The literal meaning of “les copains d’abord” i.e. “pals come first” would also apply and there would seem to be this dual meaning to the name that Brassens chose for his boat and to the song’s title.  In the song: ”A l’ombre des maris”  Brassens shows that he relates the phrase “Les femmes d’abord” to the cry on a sinking ship: “Women go first!”

5)      Fluctuat nec mergitur means "She is tossed by the waves, but is not sunk". This phrase is the motto under of the city coat of arms of Paris, whose emblem is a ship floating on a rough sea

6)      C'était pas d'la littérature -  Robert tells us that « Tout cela, c’est de la littérature » means  « That is of trifling importance ».

7)      Un jeteur de sort = a wizard says Collins Robert, but the important idea here is of some-one who can predict the future - most usually forecasting doom.

8)      franco de port, is an expression which means that the cost of transport is prepaid by the sender.  Brassens is making a play on words with “port” going with boat  and perhaps “franco” referring to the adjective “franc”- straightforward and open.  Perhaps impossible to translate!

9)      Castor and Pollux in classical mythology, were twin brothers, or rather half-brothers.  Castor was the son of Leda and Tyndareus, Pollux the son of Leda and Zeus. Castor excelled as a horseman and Pollux as a boxer. They were great warriors and were noted for their devotion to each other.

10)   Sodome et Gomorrhe. Perhaps the previous reference to a famous friendship in ancient literature, where such friendships were sometimes sexually ambivalent makes it necessary for Brassens to make clear that homosexuality was not the basis of their friendship.

11)   Étienne de La Boétie (1530–1563), Wikipedia tells us he was a French judge, writer, and "a founder of modern political philosophy in France." He "has been best remembered as the great and close friend of the eminent essayist Michel de Montaigne (1533 – 1592),  , in one of history's most notable friendships. Montaigne described their friendship as a true marriage of souls and he was shattered by La Boétie’s early death.

12)   Sur le ventre ils se tapaient fort-  A French dictionary explains « se taper » as follows : taper (se) taper -  faire (se), consommer ;  se farcir, faire (avec difficulté) ; faire (une corvée), supporter ; faire (corvée) ; consommer (sexuel) ; subir qqchose, vivre qqchose ; boire.  It warns that the usage can be vulgar and gives as an example :
Hier soir au Novotel il s'est tapé une fille – Last night at the Novotel he shagged a girl

“Taper” means to beat/ to hit and Reverso dictionary concentrates on this saying: that “se taper dessus” means to knock each other about, and “se taper sur le ventre” while meaning “to thump someone in the stomach” also has an idiomatic use of “being very close”.  In the comments below, we see different ideas from French speakers.  It seems to be an expression which changes with the context and each person has a different idea of the context!

13)   tout's voil's dehors,.  This is another veiled confirmation that this group of men were not involved in homosexuality.  There is an expression ”marcher à voile et à vapeur” which means to be bi-sexual.   According to Brassens, the pals “marchent toutes voiles dehors”.

14)   Jean, Pierre, Paul. These names sound like references to the bible but refer to his close friends. Pierre, for example Pierre Onténiente was his almost lifelong friend -see “Auprès de mon arbre”

15)   Un coup de Trafalgar means a treacherously unforeseen disaster, (reflecting the French view of Nelson’s destruction of the French fleet in 1805)

16)   sémaphores – The comic image of the panicking friends as semaphores is perhaps particularly vivid to the French. France built the first comprehensive semaphore system during the 1790s for military and government communications. The network included 555 stations and stretched over 4,800 kilometres. Its stations used apparatus such as towers with pivoting blades, shutters, or paddles, or hand-held flags.  Apparently this refers to an actual event.  On one outing the boat got into difficulty and it finished up with all the company on deck, waving frantically for help. Brassens is teasing them about this indignity, which he, of course, shared.

17)   “Poser un lapin” means to fail to keep an appointment

18)   Faire un trou dans l’eau” 'Jamais son trou dans l'eau ne se refermait' means that the dead was never forgotten. It refers to a burial at sea. (Thanks to an anonymous French blogger who corrected me.)

19)   coquin de sort! – Collins-Robert tells me that this exclamation translates into English by “the devil / the deuce” – not oaths in common use.

20)   Virer de bord means to tack/ to change tack, which is necessary in the art of sailing.  As tacking involves changing direction to pick up the wind, Brassens is probably extending the term to mean going off course.  This he and his pals would never do, being constant and steadfast.

The continuing international appeal of Brassens' songs

Les Bandits, a young American jazz group, on the New York cabaret circuit, include the songs of Brassens in their repertoire. I admire the vivacity of their performance.

Please click here toreturn to the alphabetical list of my Brassens selection

Ballade des dames du temps jadis

I have now made a translation of Villon's  complete poem and have put it on a separate post. To read it please click the following link: Ballade des dames du temps jadis2

In the original video that I posted of "Les Copains" Brassens went on to sing the first verse only of the song

On this new post, you will find a recording of the full song by Brassens with good visuals.

Also I have made a translation into English with my translation notes.

Also I have posted the historical background notes that I found I needed for my translation