tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36758078326048680872024-03-12T23:51:09.167+00:00The songs of Georges Brassens (1) with English translationNinety of the best-known songs of Georges Brassens with videos of Brassens performing the songs and English translations - also textual and biographical commentsDavid Yendleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09171810352548143316noreply@blogger.comBlogger40125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3675807832604868087.post-66043559601632956472011-03-15T23:29:00.029+00:002020-09-18T22:18:50.951+01:00Index of my choice of Brassens’ songs<br />
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<span face=""trebuchet ms", sans-serif" style="font-size: 16.5pt;">Indexes of songs in my Brassens Selection<o:p></o:p></span>
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<span face="verdana, sans-serif" style="color: #666666; font-size: 12pt;">If you are looking for one particular song, you are recommended to use
the following alphabetical index <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span face="verdana, sans-serif" style="color: #666666; font-size: 12pt;">Please click on the following line for the link: <o:p></o:p></span>
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<span face="verdana, sans-serif" style="color: #666666; font-size: 12pt;"><b><span style="color: #888888; text-decoration: none;"><a href="https://dbarf.blogspot.com/2012/05/alphabetical-list-of-my-brassens-songs.html" target="_blank">Index of my Brassens selection in ALPHABETICAL ORD</a></span></b></span><a href="https://dbarf.blogspot.com/2012/05/alphabetical-list-of-my-brassens-songs.html" style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;" target="_blank"><b><span style="color: #888888; text-decoration-line: none;">ER</span></b><span style="color: #888888; text-decoration-line: none;">.</span></a></div><div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="border: none; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 12pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-padding-alt: 1.0pt 4.0pt 1.0pt 4.0pt; padding: 0cm; text-align: center;"><span face="verdana, sans-serif" style="color: #666666; font-size: 12pt;">
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<span face="verdana, sans-serif" style="color: #666666; font-size: 12pt;">Because of the large number of songs that I have translated, I have had to
use three separate blog pages.<o:p></o:p></span>
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<span face="verdana, sans-serif" style="color: #666666; font-size: 12pt;"> The name that I gave to my earliest Brassens posting list was:
(Click the link)<o:p></o:p></span>
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<span face="verdana, sans-serif" style="color: #666666;"><span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;">
(1)</span><span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><i><span face="verdana, sans-serif" style="color: #666666; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="color: #888888;"><a href="https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=3675807832604868087#allposts" target="_blank">The songs of Georges Brassens withEnglish translation</a></span></span></i></div><div align="center" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: center; text-indent: -18pt;"><br /></div>
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<span face="verdana, sans-serif" style="font-size: 12pt;">My <b>Second Page</b> contains 47 songs. The name that I gave this
subsequent Brassens posting list was:<o:p></o:p></span>
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<span face="verdana, sans-serif" style="font-size: 12pt;"><i><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">(Click the link) </span></i>2) <a href="https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=4068332053655053423#allposts/src=sidebar" target="_blank">David Yendley(Second Brassens song list)</a><o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<span face="verdana, sans-serif" style="color: #666666; font-size: 12pt;">Please click on the link above to <span face="verdana, sans-serif">browse</span> the index of titles on my second Brassens blog page<o:p></o:p></span>
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<span face="verdana, sans-serif" style="font-size: 12pt;">My <b>third page</b> I have only just begun. It contains only a few
songs so far. The name that I gave to my final Brassens page was:<o:p></o:p></span>
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<span face="verdana, sans-serif" style="font-size: 12pt;"><i><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">(Click the link) </span></i>3) <a href="https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=255163588513925599#allposts/src=sidebar" target="_blank">More Brassenssongs with translation</a><o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<span face="verdana, sans-serif" style="font-size: 12pt;">I hesitate to complicate things even further, but for those who would
like to see the songs in chronological order, I have made the following
alternative index: <o:p></o:p></span>
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<span face="verdana, sans-serif" style="color: #666666; font-size: 12pt;"><br /><b> </b></span><b><span face="verdana, sans-serif" style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="color: #888888; text-decoration: none;"><a href="http://dbarf.blogspot.co.uk/2010/12/chronological-list-of-brassens-songs-on.html" target="_blank">Chronological list of my Brassens selection in ALBUM ORDER</a></span></span></b>
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<span face="verdana, sans-serif" style="color: #666666; font-size: 12pt;"><i style="font-size: medium; text-indent: -24px;">- As this present page is the <b>homepage</b> of my Brassens
translation blog, you can scroll down below to see the titles of the
complete list of my Brassens translations, on the three Internet pages
explained above. </i></span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif" style="color: #666666; font-size: 12pt;"><i style="font-size: medium; text-indent: -24px;"><br /></i></span>
<span face="verdana, sans-serif" style="color: #666666; font-size: 12pt;"><i style="font-size: medium; text-indent: -24px;">The songs are listed in the order in which I posted them. This means that
m</i></span><span face="verdana, sans-serif" style="color: #666666; font-size: 12pt;">y latest posting is at the top of the list and my very first is at the
bottom.</span>
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<h2>
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><strong><u>FULL LIST OF MY BRASSENS SONGS IN ORIGINAL ORDER OF POSTING:</u></strong></span>
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<i><b><span face="verdana, sans-serif">To access the song, click on the song title - which links directly
to the song on my blogsite.</span></b></i><br />
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<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><a href="http://morebrassenssongs.blogspot.co.uk/2017/09/la-traitresse-adultery-with-unexpected.html" target="_blank">La traîtresse</a>
- Album: " <o:p></o:p></span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">(1960 – Le mécréant,) A complacent lover with an established
mistress suffers a shattering disillusionment.</span></span>
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<i><b><span face="verdana, sans-serif"><a href="http://morebrassenssongs.blogspot.co.uk/2017/06/la-complainte-des-filles-de-joie-whose.html" target="_blank"><br /></a></span></b></i>
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><span style="color: #666666; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><a href="http://morebrassenssongs.blogspot.co.uk/2017/06/la-complainte-des-filles-de-joie-whose.html" target="_blank">La complainte des filles de joie</a>
- (</span><span style="color: #666666; font-size: 12pt;">album « Les trompettes de la renommée " 1961 - Brassens enjoys
the irony that the work of the street girls secretly merges the widely
different social classes.</span></span><br />
<i><b><span face="verdana, sans-serif"><br /></span></b></i>
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><a href="http://morebrassenssongs.blogspot.co.uk/2017/06/le-bistro-unflattering-description-of.html" target="_blank">Le bistro</a>
(Album Le </span><span face="verdana, sans-serif">Mécréant 1960) The bistro which he used to frequent in the years when he
lived at Jeanne's was a dump says Brassens but the owner, who had been
formerly a world class boxer, had a wife who was extremely desirable.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span>
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<i><b><span face="verdana, sans-serif"><br /></span></b></i><span face="verdana, sans-serif"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span face="verdana, sans-serif"><span face="verdana, sans-serif"><a href="http://morebrassenssongs.blogspot.co.uk/2017/05/le-temps-ne-fait-rien-laffaire-is-there.html" target="_blank">Le temps ne fait rien à l'affaire</a></span> </span><span face="verdana, sans-serif"> (Les trompettes de la renomm</span></span></span><span face="verdana, sans-serif" style="font-size: 12pt;">ée 1961) Brassens humorously rejects the myth that greater human wisdom is an
attribute of age.</span><br />
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<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><a href="http://morebrassenssongs.blogspot.co.uk/2017/05/la-religieuse-perturbation-caused-by.html" target="_blank">La religieuse</a>
(Album - La religieuse 1969) The attendance of a beautiful nun at mass
causes perturbation among male members of the congregation</span><br />
<i><b><span face="verdana, sans-serif"><br /></span></b></i>
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><a href="http://morebrassenssongs.blogspot.co.uk/2017/02/maman-papa-touching-tribute-to-his.html" target="_blank">Maman Papa</a><b style="font-style: italic;"> </b>(Not in Album 1954) Brassens' first
ever song recorded with the great Patachou, who launched his career.</span><br />
<i><b><br /></b></i>
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<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><span face="verdana, sans-serif"><span lang="FR" style="background: white; color: #222222; line-height: 115%;"><a href="http://morebrassenssongs.blogspot.co.uk/2016/08/brassens-sings-part-francis-jammess.html" target="_blank">La Prière</a>
« Chanson pour l’auvergnat » (1955). </span><span style="background: white; color: #222222; line-height: 115%;">Brassens shares the view of poet Francis Jammes of the trials and
tribulations of all creatures of the world</span></span><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><span face="verdana, sans-serif"><span style="background: white; color: #222222; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></span></span>
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<span face="verdana, sans-serif" style="font-size: small; font-weight: normal;"><a href="http://morebrassenssongs.blogspot.co.uk/2016/08/cupidon-sen-fout-promising-romantic.html" target="_blank">Cupidon s'en fout</a>
-(Don Juan- 1976) - </span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif">A very promising date with a young lady in the forest proves very
unsatisfactory</span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif" style="font-size: xx-small;"><br /></span>
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><span style="font-size: 12pt; text-transform: uppercase;"><a href="http://dbarf.blogspot.co.uk/2015/11/grand-pere-brassens-at-his-rudest-and.html" target="_blank">G<span face="verdana, sans-serif">RAND-PÈRE</span></a><span face="verdana, sans-serif"> (</span></span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Je me suis fait tout petit -1957) - Events after his grandad’s sudden death
arouse in him bitter feelings of social injustice.</span></span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><i><br /></i><a href="http://dbarf.blogspot.co.uk/2015/01/brave-margot-touching-tale-of.html" target="_blank">Brave Margot</a>
- <span style="line-height: 16.8667px;">(Les amoureux des bancs publics) (1954)- A popular song about naughty
going-ons in French country life of the past</span></span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><i><br /></i>
<span lang="FR" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><a href="http://dbarf.blogspot.co.uk/2014/11/le-petit-joueur-de-flutiau-musician-who.html" target="_blank">Le petit joueur de flûtiau</a> - </span><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">(1964 - Les copains d'abord ) The story of a royal musician explains a
choice of social status that Brassens himself might have made</span></span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><span face="verdana, sans-serif"><br /></span>
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><a href="http://dbarf.blogspot.co.uk/2014/10/le-fantome-brassens-personal-encounter.html" target="_blank">Le Fantôme</a>
- <b></b></span><span style="line-height: 16.8667px;">(1966 -</span><span lang="FR" style="background: white; color: #666666; line-height: 15.3333px;">Supplique pour être enterré à la plage de Sète</span><span lang="FR" style="background: white; color: #666666; font-weight: bold; line-height: 15.3333px;">)</span><span lang="FR" style="background: white; color: #666666; font-size: 10pt; font-weight: bold; line-height: 15.3333px;">
-</span><span lang="FR" style="background: white; color: #666666; line-height: 15.3333px;">A meeting with a ghost provides him with a hot foretaste of the
afterlife.</span></span></span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><span face="verdana, sans-serif"><br /></span>
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><a href="http://dbarf.blogspot.co.uk/2014/09/le-vent-lively-song-that-celebrates-le.html" target="_blank">Le Vent</a>
<span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;"> - (Les amoureux des bancs publics) (1953) </span>A jolly song about the mischievous breeze on the Pont Des Arts</span></span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><span face="verdana, sans-serif"><br /></span>
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><span lang="FR" style="border: 1pt none; color: #363636; font-size: 12pt; letter-spacing: 0.75pt; line-height: 115%; padding: 0cm;"><a href="http://dbarf.blogspot.co.uk/2014/07/lassassinat-tale-of-great-pathos-of.html" target="_blank">L'assassinat</a>
- </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Les Trompettes de la Renommé (1961) A tale with great pathos of crime and
punishment</span></span></span><br />
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<span face="verdana, sans-serif" lang="FR" style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span>
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<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><span face="verdana, sans-serif"><br /></span> </span><br />
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<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><span face="verdana, sans-serif"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;"><a href="http://dbarf.blogspot.co.uk/2014/06/lepave-human-wreck.html" target="_blank">L'épave</a>
- </span><span style="line-height: 115%;">(1966 -</span><span lang="FR" style="background: white; color: #666666; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-weight: bold;">Supplique pour être enterré à la plage de Sète</span><span style="font-weight: bold;">)</span><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-weight: bold;"> </span>A man wrecked
by ill-health reassesses his list of true friends</span></span></span>
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<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><br /></span>
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;"><a href="http://dbarf.blogspot.co.uk/2016/03/le-mecreant-non-believer-georges.html" target="_blank">Le mécréant</a> - (</span><span style="background-color: white;">Le mécréant</span> 1960) The
non-believer, Brassens, tries to follow Blaise Pascal's religious code.</span><br />
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<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><o:p></o:p></span>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;"><span face="verdana, sans-serif"><a href="http://dbarf.blogspot.co.uk/2013/12/penelope.html" target="_blank">Penelope</a>
- (
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">1960 – Le Mécréant) How lonely, loveless lives can be made less
so.</span><o:p></o:p></span></span>
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<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><br /></span>
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><br /></span>
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><a href="http://dbarf.blogspot.co.uk/2013/09/blog-post.html" target="_blank">Au bois de mon coeur</a>
- (<span lang="FR" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">1957 - Je me suis fait tout petit) In praise of his loyal circle of close
mates - the song he wrote for the film "La porte des lilas."</span></span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><span lang="FR" style="color: blue; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;"></span><br /></span>
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><a href="http://dbarf.blogspot.co.uk/2013/09/le-cocu.html" target="_blank">Le Cocu</a> (1958 - Le Pornographe) A husband whose wife gives herself freely to
others asks them for some consideration</span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><br /></span>
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><a href="http://dbarf.blogspot.co.uk/2013/08/les-sabots-dhelene.html" target="_blank">Les sabots d'Helene</a>
-
<span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">(1955 - Chanson pour l'auvergnat) Brassens wrapped his admiration for the
wife of the local bistro owner in traditional folksong</span></span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><br /></span>
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><a href="http://dbarf.blogspot.co.uk/2013/08/je-suis-un-voyou.html" target="_blank">Je suis un voyou</a>
- (1954- Les amoureux des bancs publics) The frank account of his youthful
love for a stunning girl called Margo</span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><br /></span>
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><a href="http://dbarf.blogspot.co.uk/2013/07/a-lombre-du-coeur-de-ma-mie.html" target="_blank">A l'Ombre du Coeur de Ma Mie</a>
- (1958 - Le Pornographe) The traumatic experience of a man who called on
another man's wife</span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><br /></span>
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><a href="http://dbarf.blogspot.co.uk/2013/07/la-femme-dhector.html" target="_blank">La Femme d'Hector</a>
- (1958 - Le Pornographe) Dedicated to one lovely and lovable wife in his
group of friends in his early life in Paris.</span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><br /></span>
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><a href="http://dbarf.blogspot.co.uk/2013/06/la-ronde-des-jurons.html" target="_blank">La ronde des jurons</a>
- (1958 - Le Pornographe) Celebrating the richness of French swearing in the
past and deploring its present aridity</span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><br /></span>
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><a href="http://dbarf.blogspot.co.uk/2013/05/le-mauvais-sujet-repenti.html" target="_blank">Le mauvais sujet repenti</a>
- (1953 - Les amoureux des bancs publics) The pimp whose repentance was
not so glorious.</span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><br /></span>
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><a href="http://dbarf.blogspot.co.uk/2013/04/la-marche-nuptiale-wedding-march.html" style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif;" target="_blank">La marche Nuptiale</a><span face="verdana, sans-serif"> - </span><span lang="FR" style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: FR; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;"><span face="verdana, sans-serif">(1957 - Je me suis fait tout petit</span><span style="font-family: calibri;">)<span class="MsoHyperlink"><span style="color: blue;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span></span><span face="verdana, sans-serif">
The wedding march-- a touching song about the poor wedding of Brassens'
parents</span></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"></div>
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><a href="http://dbarf.blogspot.co.uk/2013/04/celui-qui-mal-tourne.html" target="_blank">Celui qui a mal tourne</a><span lang=""><span style="font-family: calibri;"> - </span></span>(1957- Je
me suis fait tout petit) About a man who went wrong. An insight into
Brassens' biography?</span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><br /></span>
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><span lang=""> </span><a href="http://dbarf.blogspot.co.uk/2013/02/la-marine-poem-of-love-by-paul-fort.html" target="_blank">La Marine</a>
(1953 -La mauvaise reputation) Brassens sings Paul Fort's sailor's song of
love</span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><br /></span>
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><br /></span>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><span face="verdana, sans-serif" lang="FR" style="font-size: 12pt;"><a href="http://dbarf.blogspot.co.uk/2013/01/la-fessee-by-georges-brassens.html" target="_blank">La fessée</a>
- </span><span lang="FR" style="mso-ansi-language: FR;"><span style="font-family: calibri;"><span face="verdana, sans-serif"> </span><span face="verdana, sans-serif">(1966 - Supplique pour être enterré à la plage de Sète) Brassens
consoles the beautiful widow of an old school friend -
inappropriately!</span><span face="verdana, sans-serif"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span></span>
</div>
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><br /></span>
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><br /></span>
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><a href="http://dbarf.blogspot.co.uk/2013/01/la-guerre-de-14-18.html" target="_blank">La Guerre de 14- 18</a>
(Les Trompettes de la Renomme 1961). His wry comment on the so-called
glory of war</span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><br /></span>
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><a href="http://dbarf.blogspot.co.uk/2012/10/la-princesse-et-le-croque-notes.html">La Princesse et le croque-notes</a>
(Fernande 1972) Anguish following temptation from a 13 year old.</span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><br /></span>
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><a href="http://dbarf.blogspot.co.uk/2012/09/la-fille-cent-sous.html">La fille a cent sous</a> ( 1960 Le Mecreant) -The girl sold by her husband for 100 sous finds
true love</span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><br /></span>
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><a href="http://dbarf.blogspot.co.uk/2012/08/the-rose-bottle-and-handshake.html">La Rose la Bouteille et la Poignee de main</a>
(La religieuse 1969) deplores the loss of the warmth and helpfulness, which
people were previously safe to show each other in public.</span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><br /></span>
<span face="verdana, sans-serif" lang="FR" style="color: black; mso-ansi-language: FR; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><a href="http://dbarf.blogspot.co.uk/2012/06/lenombril-des-femmes-dagent-light-and.html">Lenombril des femmes d'agent</a> <span lang="FR" style="font-size: 12pt;">(</span><span lang="FR" style="font-size: 12pt;">1955 Chanson pour l’auvergnat) A humorous song about an old gentleman with
a very individual fetish</span><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><br /></span>
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><br /></span>
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><a href="http://dbarf.blogspot.co.uk/2012/04/quatre-vingt-quinze-pour-cent.html">Quatre-vingt quinze pour cent</a>
1972 (Fernande) Inequalities of passion during lovemaking</span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><br /></span>
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><a href="http://dbarf.blogspot.co.uk/2012/03/marquise-love-song-writtem-by-corneille.html">Marquise</a>
Les trompettes de la renommee (1961) A love song written by Pierre Corneille -
partly!</span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><br /></span>
<br />
<h4>
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><a href="http://dbarf.blogspot.com/2012/01/jeanne-by-georges-brassens.html">Jeanne</a>
(<span style="font-weight: normal;">
1961 - Les trompettes de la renommée) In praise of Jeanne's infinite
kindness</span></span>
</h4>
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><br /></span>
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><a href="http://dbarf.blogspot.com/2012/01/lombre-des-maris-brassens.html">A l'ombre des maris (1972 - Fernande)</a>An entertaining song about the complications of extra-marital love.</span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><br /></span>
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><a href="http://dbarf.blogspot.com/2011/05/don-juan.html">Don Juan (Album- Don Juan - 1976</a>)The story of a modern Don Juan who has loved many women. Brassens would like
us to look at him in a charitable and tolerant spirit.</span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><br /></span>
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><a href="http://dbarf.blogspot.com/2011/05/ballade-des-dames-du-temps-jadis.html">Ballade des dames du temps jadis</a>
(La mauvaise réputation -1953)Brassens sings Villon's famous poem </span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><br /></span>
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><a href="http://brassenswithenglish.blogspot.com/2011/03/les-croquants-filthy-rich.html">Les Croquants</a>
(Chanson pour l'Auvergnat - 1955) Brassens sings of love and marriage
believing them to be quite separate.</span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><br /></span>
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><a href="http://dbarf.blogspot.com/2011/02/le-testament.html">Le testament</a>
(1955 - Chanson pour l'Auvergnat). </span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif">While still a young man, Brassens thinks of the death he is very reluctant to
accept.</span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><br /></span>
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><a href="http://dbarf.blogspot.com/2011/01/rien-jeter-georges-brassens-love-song.html">Rien à jeter</a>
(1969 - La religieuse) A playful love song extolling the beauty of the woman
whom he loved so deeply.</span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><br /></span>
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><a href="http://dbarf.blogspot.com/2011/01/marinette-javais-lair-dun-c-by-georges.html">Marinette -J'avais l'air d'un c... </a>- Chanson pour l'Auvergnat 1955 .- A light-hearted song about a hopeless
lover.</span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><br /></span>
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><a href="http://dbarf.blogspot.com/2011/01/les-philistins.html">Les Philistins </a>(1957 - Je me suis fait tout petit)-Brassens song of the poem by Jean
Richepin about a son who disappointed his parents' aspirations</span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><br /></span>
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><a href="http://dbarf.blogspot.com/2011/01/le-pornographe.html">Le Pornographe</a>
(1958 - Le pornographe)Brassens ponders his public reputation</span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><br /></span>
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><a href="http://dbarf.blogspot.com/2010/12/heureux-qui-comme-ulysse-song-brassens.html">Heureux qui comme Ulysse</a>
(Not recorded in an album)- The theme song for the last film of the great
French comic actor Fernandel.</span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><br /></span>
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><a href="http://dbarf.blogspot.com/2010/12/gastibelza-lhomme-la-carabine-victor.html">Gastibelza, l'homme à la carabine</a>
- His song of Victor Hugo's famous poem based on a Spanish folk ballad of love
and wealth</span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><br /></span>
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><a href="http://dbarf.blogspot.co.uk/2010/12/bonhomme-peasant-woman-redresses-scales.html" target="_blank">BONHOMME</a>
- HER GOOD MAN (1958 - Le pornographe)A poem of great pathos as a peasant
woman faces the death of her husband and the memories stirred. </span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><br /></span>
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><a href="http://dbarf.blogspot.com/2010/12/si-le-bon-dieu-avait-voulu-paul-forts.html">Si le bon Dieu avait voulu</a>
(1961 Les trompettes de la renommée)Paul Fort's simple and sincere love poem
to the woman of his life</span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><br /></span>
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><a href="http://dbarf.blogspot.com/2010/12/pauvre-martin-touching-song-from.html">Pauvre Martin</a>
(1954 - Les amoureux des bancs publics) A sad song about a simple farm
labourer, who had asked nothing of life or his neighbours. He earns Brassens'
admiration.</span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><br /></span>
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><a href="http://dbarf.blogspot.com/2010/12/le-petit-cheval-georges-brassens.html">Le Petit Cheval</a>
(1953 La mauvaise réputation) Brassens sings this sad poem by Paul Fort with
memorable lines - now a well-known children's song in France.</span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><br /></span>
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><a href="http://brassenswithenglish.blogspot.com/2010/11/lenterrement-de-verlaine-funeral-of.html">L’enterrement de Verlaine</a>
– The Funeral of Verlaine - 1960 – Le mécréant - Song of the poem by Paul Fort
which depicts the popular tribute on the death of the eminent poet at the
height of the Belle Epoque</span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><br /></span>
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><a href="http://brassenswithenglish.blogspot.com/2010/11/colombine-brassens-put-music-to-this.html">Colombine</a>
- 1955 - Chanson pour l'auvergnat. -Verlaine's melodic poem gives a glimpse of
the traditional Italian theatre of the Commedia del Arte </span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><br /></span>
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><a href="http://brassenswithenglish.blogspot.com/2010/11/misogynie-part-setting-misogyny-aside.html">Mysogynie à part</a>
- 1969 - La religieuse -This rumbustious and sometimes explicit song raises
issues about the nature of human love </span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><br /></span>
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><a href="http://brassenswithenglish.blogspot.com/2010/10/les-chateaux-de-sable-brassens-mistral.html">Les châteaux de sable (Brassens) Mistral Gagnant (Renaud)</a>The two songs tell of the transitory joys of childhood. The beautiful Vanessa
Paradis sings the 2nd song with Le Forestier.</span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><br /></span>
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><a href="http://brassenswithenglish.blogspot.com/2010/04/la-premiere-fille.html">La Première Fille</a>
- ( Les amoureux des bancs publics.) 1954 The excitement and enduring memory
of a first love.</span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><br /></span>
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><a href="http://brassenswithenglish.blogspot.com/2010/04/la-marguerite.html">La Marguerite</a>
- (Les trompettes de la renommé) 1961 – A simple poem about a parish priest
who is suspected by malicious narrow-minded parishoners of a secret love
affair.</span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><br /></span>
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><a href="http://brassenswithenglish.blogspot.com/2010/04/jai-rendez-vous-avec-vous.html">J’ai rendez-vous avec vous</a>
- (Les amoureux des bancs publics.) 1954 An early love song of the
exhileration of his youthful passion for Joha Heiman.</span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><br /></span>
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><a href="http://brassenswithenglish.blogspot.com/2010/04/pensees-des-morts.html">Pensees des morts</a>
(La Religieuse)Verses from the poem by Lamartine tell of the sadness when deep
love can only be experienced in the emptiness left by some-one's absence</span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><br /></span>
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><a href="http://brassenswithenglish.blogspot.com/2010/04/venus-callipyge-this-song-was-inspired.html">Venus Callipyge</a>
(Les copains d'abord) Brassens' song that is pure fun - but not so pure to
celebrate anatomy admired all the way back to the days of Ancient
Greece.</span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><br /></span>
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><a href="http://brassenswithenglish.blogspot.com/2010/03/supplique-pour-etre-enterre-la-plage-de.html">Supplique pour être enterré à la plage de Sète</a>
-from the album of the same name. Brassens' thoughts of his final resting
place revive nostalgia for the seaside town of his childhood.</span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><br /></span>
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><a href="http://brassenswithenglish.blogspot.com/2010/01/putain-de-toi.html">Putain de Toi</a>
- The tramp that you are! (Les Amoureux des bancs publics 1953) A beautiful
girl who let him down badly.</span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><br /></span>
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><a href="http://brassenswithenglish.blogspot.com/2010/01/trompe-la-mort.html">Trompe la mort</a>
- Cheating death (Don Juan 1976) Brassens maintains that his death is not as
imminent as the newspapers suggest.</span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><br /></span>
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><a href="http://brassenswithenglish.blogspot.com/2010/01/la-legende-de-la-nonne.html">La legende de la Nonne</a>
-Based on Hugo's poem: "The legend of the nun", where the nun tells her
innocent schoolchildren about her God's horrific terrors for those sin, which
bcomes a Hugo classic of poetic exuberation. (Chanson pour l'Auvergnat
1955)</span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><br /></span>
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><a href="http://brassenswithenglish.blogspot.com/2009/04/la-mauvaise-herbe.html">La mauvaise herbe</a>
– Useless weed that I am -Brassens sees himself as the outsider. (Les amoureux
des bancs publics) 1954</span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><br /></span>
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><a href="http://brassenswithenglish.blogspot.com/2009/03/mourir-pour-des-idees-brassens-song-eng.html">Mourir pour des idees</a>
-Dying for your ideas. Brassens has little sympthy for murderous ideology.
(Fernande) 1972</span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><br /></span>
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><a href="http://brassenswithenglish.blogspot.com/2009/03/la-tondue.html">La tondue</a>
- The girl with the shaven head- Ugly reprisals after the Liberation of 1945
against those who had been friendly with the German occupiers. (Les copains
d'abord) 1964/65</span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><br /></span>
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><a href="http://brassenswithenglish.blogspot.com/2009/01/three-songs-of-love-and-romance.html">La chasse aux papillons</a>
(La mauvaise reputation)</span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif">A cheerful - if somewhat bawdy- tale of first love.</span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><br /></span>
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><a href="http://brassenswithenglish.blogspot.com/2008/11/la-non-demande-en-mariage.html">La non-demande en mariage</a>
Reasons for not proposing marriage to to his Puppchen in spite of the great
love he feels for her. (Supplique pour etre enterre a la plage de Sete)</span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><br /></span>
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><a href="http://brassenswithenglish.blogspot.com/2008/11/les-trompettes-de-la-renomme.html">Les Trompettes de la Renommee</a>
from album of the same name - To those who are persuading him to seek popular
attention he details the malignant effects of publicity</span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><br /></span>
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><a href="http://brassenswithenglish.blogspot.com/2008/07/saturne.html">Saturne</a>
- In praise of the love felt by a middle aged couple- a touching tribute to
his "Puppchen" as she reaches middle age (Les copains d'abord)</span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><br /></span>
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><a href="http://brassenswithenglish.blogspot.com/2008/04/la-cane-de-jeanne-brassens-translation.html">La Cane de Jeanne</a>
(Les Amoureux des Bancs Publics) Jeanne's pet duck has died. Brassens writes a
solemn dirge - with gentle teasing. </span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><br /></span>
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><a href="http://brassenswithenglish.blogspot.com/2008/04/il-ny-pas-damour-heureux-brassens.html">Il n'y a pas d'amour heureux</a>
(Les amoureux des bancs publics) The melancholic poem by Aragon about the
nature of love.</span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><br /></span>
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><a href="http://brassenswithenglish.blogspot.com/2008/04/dans-leau-de-la-claire-fontaine.html">Dans l'eau de la claire fontaine</a>
(Les trompettes de la renommee) A lyrical song of a chance encounter with a
nymph-like girl.</span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><br /></span>
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><a href="http://brassenswithenglish.blogspot.com/2008/04/lorage-brassens-song-with-translation.html">L'Orage</a>
(Le Mecreant) A tempestuous love affair on the night of a thunder storm.
Another poem of love lost.</span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><br /></span><a href="http://brassenswithenglish.blogspot.com/2008/04/les-copains-dabord-ballade-des-dames-du.html"><span face="verdana, sans-serif">Les copains d'abord (Les copains d'abord) In praise of long-lasting
friendships with men who sailed with him on the inland seas near Sete.<br />
<br />
Ballade des dames du temps jadis -one verse</span></a><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif">Link to the full text and translation of Villon's poem. </span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><br /></span>
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><a href="http://brassenswithenglish.blogspot.com/2008/04/les-amours-dantan-brassens-translation.html">Les amours d’antan</a>
(Les trompettes de la renommé) Having sung of the legendary beauties of
antiquity in the words of Villon, he now sings of the beautiful girls who
taught him love- they are from a very different background.</span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><br /></span>
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><a href="http://brassenswithenglish.blogspot.com/2008/03/fernande-brassens-lyrics-translation.html">Fernande</a>
(Fernande) Carla Bruni's version is included as the second video clip. She
tells us that she had been strongly advised not to sing this song, which had
been banned for immorality, but she is doing so all the same.</span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><br /></span>
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><a href="http://brassenswithenglish.blogspot.com/2008/03/les-amoureux-des-bancs-publics-brassens.html">Les amoureux des bancs publics</a>
(Les amoureux des bancs publics) The intolerance of respectable people</span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><br /></span>
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><a href="http://brassenswithenglish.blogspot.com/2008/02/aupres-de-mon-arbre.html">Auprès de mon arbre</a>
(Chanson pour l’Auvergnat) The nostalgia that Brassens feels for the days when
he was young and free - and very poor, unlike today when he is rich,bored and
lonely. </span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><br /></span>
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><a href="http://brassenswithenglish.blogspot.com/2008/02/oncle-archibald.html">Oncle Archibald</a>
(Je me suis fait tout petit)</span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif">One of the eccentrics who fascinated Brassens and earned his affection.</span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><br /></span>
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><a href="http://brassenswithenglish.blogspot.com/2008/02/le-gorille_16.html">Le Gorille </a>(La mauvaise réputation)</span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif">A provocative song about capital punishment</span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><br /></span>
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><a href="http://brassenswithenglish.blogspot.com/2008/02/le-parapluie_12.html">Le parapluie</a>
(La mauvaise réputation)</span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif">His first approach to a beautiful, petite young lady who had caught his
eye.</span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><br /></span>
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><a href="http://brassenswithenglish.blogspot.com/2008/02/la-mauvaise-rputation.html">La mauvaise réputation</a>
(La mauvaise réputation)</span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif">Brassens sees himself as the total outsider.</span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><br /></span>
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><a href="http://brassenswithenglish.blogspot.com/2008/02/je-me-suis-fait-tout-petit_08.html">Je me suis fait tout petit</a>
(Je me suis fait tout petit) A somewhat lurid account of the submissive role
that he plays in his relationship with his lifelong partner.</span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><br /></span>
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><a href="http://brassenswithenglish.blogspot.com/2008/02/chanson-pour-lauvergnat_08.html">Chanson pour l’Auvergnat</a>
(Chanson pour l’Auvergnat)</span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif">Gratitude to those who showed him true charity when he was in desperate need.
(Jeanne and her husband)</span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><br /></span>
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><a href="http://brassenswithenglish.blogspot.com/2008/02/song-il-suffit-de-passer-le-pont.html">Il suffit de passer le pont</a>
(La mauvaise réputation) The intoxication of the first youthful moment of
sexual love, but also the worries involved.</span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><br /></span>
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><a href="http://brassenswithenglish.blogspot.com/2008/02/blog-post.html">Les Passantes</a>
(Fernande)Antoine Pol's wistful poem about the memorable women who flitted for
a moment into his life and then were gone</span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><br /></span>
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><a href="http://brassenswithenglish.blogspot.com/2008/02/une-jolie-fleur-by-georges-brassens.html">Une jolie fleur </a>(Chanson pour l’Auvergnat)</span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif">Trying to get over the loss of a very beautiful woman.</span><br />
..........................................................................................................................................................<br />
<br />
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_5gF5voOaOUM/ScZBCoMLP8I/AAAAAAAAAJU/KFNJkOYlFkY/s1600-h/Brassens+3.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5316007923561480130" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/_5gF5voOaOUM/ScZBCoMLP8I/AAAAAAAAAJU/KFNJkOYlFkY/s200/Brassens+3.jpg" style="float: left; height: 200px; margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px; width: 200px;" /></a>Georges Brassens was born at Sète on the 22nd October 1921 and died on the 29th
October 1981 at Saint-Gély-du-Fesc, Hérault, the region of his birth<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
On this blogsite I have posted more than eighty of the famous songs by Georges
Brassens, with videos, French lyrics and my translation.<br />
<br />
My hope is to share my enthusiasm for his songs.<br />
<br />
In my translation, I seek to make the meaning as clear as possible.
Unfortunately a translator cannot convey the poetry, which resides solely in the
words written by Georges Brassens. Increasingly I have tried to reflect the
rhythm of the songs even though this has moved me away from a precise literal
translation.<br />
The quality of Brassens verse has been honoured by the most august literary
authorities in France.<br />
<br />
He is a true lyric poet because he expresses thoughts and feelings from the
heart. He crafts his words and rhythms with infinite care and skill and he
tantalises and entertains with different levels of meaning.<br />
<br />
And with all this, he does not take himself too seriously and is a great guy!<br />
<br />
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<b><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">Links to David Yendley’s French Culture Websites<o:p></o:p></span></b><br />
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<b><span face="verdana, sans-serif" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Links to My French Literature Sites<o:p></o:p></span></b>
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<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><a href="http://david-barfield-lesdieuxontsoif.blogspot.com/"><span lang="FR" style="color: blue; font-size: 12pt;">Anatole France – Les Dieux ont Soif</span></a><span lang="FR" style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: FR; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"> – </span></span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><span lang="FR" style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: FR; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;">Summary and Historical Background - A vivid picture of life
during « The Terror » of the French Revolution.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><span lang="FR" style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: FR; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><br /></span></span>
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<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><a href="http://balzacperegoriotstudynotes.blogspot.com/"><span style="color: blue; font-size: 12pt;">Balzac – Le Père Goriot</span></a><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"> – </span></span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;">Summary – Biography of Balzac and Complete Student Notes for this
Coming of age novel: A young student forces his way into Paris
High Society and learns its extravagance, its corruption and its
cruelty.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><br /></span></span>
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<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;">Bazin (Hervé) Vipère au Poing - </span></span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;">Summary – Author’s Biography and Essay Topics – This
autobiographical novel shows the crippling effects of an
oppressive upbringing in an extremist Catholic family.</span><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><br /></span></span>
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<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><a href="http://camus-letranger-lachute-studentnotes.blogspot.com/"><span style="color: blue; font-size: 12pt;">Camus – L’étranger</span></a><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"> - </span></span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;">Summary and Author’s Biography – Essay Topics- This famous novel
shows how society treats the individual who is not able to conform
to conventional values.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><br /></span></span>
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<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><a href="http://camus-letranger-lachute-studentnotes.blogspot.com/"><span style="color: blue; font-size: 12pt;">Camus – La Chute</span></a><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"> - </span></span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;">Summary - Author’s Biography and Essay Topics<o:p></o:p></span></span>
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<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;">In this enigmatic novel, Camus is once again exploring the
situation of a social dropout.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><br /></span></span>
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<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><a href="http://duhamel-lenotaireduhavre-studentnotes.blogspot.com/"><span lang="FR" style="color: blue; font-size: 12pt;">Duhamel- Le Notaire du Havre</span></a><span lang="FR" style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: FR; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"> – </span></span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;">Summary - Biography of Georges Duhamel - Essay Topics for
students- A dramatic and very human autobiographical story of the
wild hopes of an impecunious middle class family, living in Paris
at the end of the 19<sup>th</sup> Century.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><br /></span></span>
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<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><a href="http://princessedeclevesstudentnotes.blogspot.com/"><span lang="FR" style="color: blue; font-size: 12pt;">Mme de Lafayette – La Princesse de Clèves</span></a><span lang="FR" style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: FR; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"> - </span></span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><span lang="FR" style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: FR; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;">Summary and Full Essay Topics. This classic historical
novel tells of life in France of the 16th Century, but reflects
the life of Mme de Lafayette’s own time – the court life under
Louis XIV a century later.</span><span lang="FR" style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><span lang="FR" style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: FR; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><br /></span></span>
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<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><a href="http://candidestudynotes.blogspot.com/"><span style="color: blue; font-size: 12pt;">Voltaire – Candide</span></a><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"> – </span></span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;">Summary - Biography of Voltaire and Complete Student Notes
- In an action packed story of many different episodes,
Voltaire takes his innocent hero on journey across the world, to
review the situations and events of his century. Voltaire is
asking throughout whether this is indeed the “best of all possible
worlds”, which the contemporary school of Optimist philosophy are
so obstinate to claim</span></span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;">.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span>
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<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><a href="http://marcel-pagnol-d-barfield.blogspot.co.uk/"><span lang="FR" style="color: blue; font-size: 12pt;">Pagnol -Le Château de ma mère</span></a><span lang="FR" style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: FR; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;"> <o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><span lang="FR" style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: FR; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;"><br /></span></span>
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<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><span lang="FR" style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: FR; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;">Marcel Pagnol's Biography. - Summary of the novel - Background to
the story, which tells of Pagnol’s idyllic family holidays at
their remote cottage in Provence during the decade before the
First World War. However, drama also intervenes and this is
a very moving story.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><span lang="FR" style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: FR; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;"><br /></span></span>
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<b><span face="verdana, sans-serif" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Links to the Sites of Two favourite French Singers<o:p></o:p></span></b>
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<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><a href="http://brassenswithenglish.blogspot.com/"><span style="color: blue; font-size: 12pt;">Brassens – 80+ songs</span></a><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"> with English translations and commentary<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><br /></span></span>
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<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;">With videos from YouTube</span><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><br /></span></span>
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<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><a href="https://sites.google.com/site/carlabrunissongsintranslation/" target="_blank">Carla Bruni – Most of her songs
</a></span><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><a href="https://sites.google.com/site/carlabrunissongsintranslation/" target="_blank">with English translations</a>
and commentary - </span></span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;">With videos from YouTube</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><br /></span></span>
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="background: white; font-size: 10.5pt; line-height: 16.1px;"><a href="https://sites.google.com/site/carlabrunissongsintranslation/" style="font-size: medium;">https://sites.google.com/site/carlabrunissongsintranslation/</a> </span></span></span><br />
<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><br /></span></span>
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<span face="verdana, sans-serif"><a href="https://sites.google.com/site/carlabrunissongsintranslation/"><span style="background: white; font-size: 10.5pt; line-height: 115%;">https://sites.google.com/site/carlabrunissongsintranslation/</span></a><o:p></o:p></span>
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David Yendleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09171810352548143316noreply@blogger.com29tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3675807832604868087.post-22717004169670323862011-03-15T23:14:00.002+00:002019-01-26T19:59:45.928+00:00Les Croquants - Admiration for a girl who is a free spiritThis is a neat and musical song on Brassens’ familiar themes. He tells how respectable parents hand over their daughters in marriage to men of superior status because of their narrow obsession with their future wealth and social status. The result is marriages that are routine, loveless and set until death. In contrast is the girl who loves a man for what he is and not for what has. She is a free spirit, whose life is full of new experiences as she gives her love when and only when she pleases.<br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span lang="FR"><b>Les Croquants</b><br />
Les croquants(1) vont en ville, à cheval sur leurs sous,<br />
Acheter des pucelle' aux saintes bonnes gens,<br />
Les croquants leur mett'nt à prix d'argent(2)<br />La main dessus,(3) la main dessous..(4.).</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span lang="FR"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span lang="FR"><br />
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</span>Mais la chair de Lisa, la chair fraîch' de Lison</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">(que les culs cousus d'or(5) se fass'nt une raison !)(6)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">C'est pour la bouch' du premier venu</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Qui a les yeux tendre' et les mains nues…</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Les croquants, ça les attriste, ça</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Les étonne, les étonne,</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Qu'une fille, une fill' bell' comm' ça,</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">S'abandonne, s'abandonne</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Au premier ostrogoth(7) venu...</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Les croquants, ça tombe des nues(8)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Les fill's de bonnes moeurs, les fill's de bonne vie,</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Qui' ont vendu leur fleurette(9) à la foire à l'encan,(10)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Vont s' vautrer dans la couch' des croquants,</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Quand les croquants en ont envie...</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Mais la chair de Lisa, la chair fraîch' de Lison</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">(que les culs cousus d'or se fass'nt une raison !)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">N'a jamais accordé ses
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">
À contre-sous, à contrecoeur...<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span lang="FR"><br />
</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Les croquants, ça les attriste, ça</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Les étonne, les étonne,</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Qu'une fille, une fill' bell' comm' ça,</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">S'abandonne, s'abandonne</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Au premier ostrogoth venu...</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span lang="FR">Les croquants, ça tombe des nues.</span></span><br />
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Les fill's de bonne vie ont le coeur consistant<br />Et la fleur(11) qu'on y trouve est garantie longtemps,<br />
Comm' les fleurs en papier des chapeaux,<br />
Les fleurs en pierre des tombeaux...</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span lang="FR"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span lang="FR"><br />
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</span>Mais le coeur de Lisa, le grand coeur de Lison</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Aime faire peau neuve(12) avec chaque saison</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Jamais deux fois la même couleur,</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Jamais deux fois la même fleur...</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Les croquants, ça les attriste, ça</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Les étonne, les étonne,</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Qu'une fille, une fill' bell' comm' ça,</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">S'abandonne, s'abandonne</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Au premier ostrogoth(7) venu...</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Les croquants, ça tombe des nues</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">1955 - Chanson pour l'auvergnat</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The big shots , ride in town astride their moneybags</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">To buy up virgins from righteous goodly folk</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> The big shots, by making down-payments in cash, get</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Their hands on them, their hands under...</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">But the flesh of Lisa, the cool flesh of Lizie, </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">(Let the arseholes stuffed with money face up to it)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Is for the mouth of the first man she meets </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Who comes empty-handed, eyes filled with love.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The rich sods, it depresses them, it</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Astounds them, astounds them</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">That a girl, a pretty girl like that</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Should yield herself, should yield herself </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">To the first odd man out that comes along.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The rich sods just can't believe it.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The girls with right manners, the girls who live nice lives,</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Who sold their flowerlets at public auction</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Spreadeagle themselves in the rich sods’ beds</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">When the rich sods fancy a bit…</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">But the flesh of Lisa, the cool flesh of Lizie,</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">(Let the arseholes stuffed with money face up to it)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Has never given of her favours</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">‘ gainst money –gainst her wishes</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The rich sods, it depresses them, it</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Astounds them, astounds them</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">That a girl, a pretty girl like that</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Should yield herself, should yield herself </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">To the first troglodyte that comes along.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The rich sods just can't believe it.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The good-living girls have a heart that’s consistent</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">And the flower within has a long guarantee,</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Like the paper flowers found upon hats</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">And like the stone flowers found upon tombs…</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">But the heart of Lisa, the great heart of Lizie</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Likes to make a new
start with every season</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Never, twice over, the same colour</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Never, twice over, the same flower</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The rich sods, it depresses them, it</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Astounds them, astounds them</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">That a girl, a pretty girl like that</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Should yield herself, should yield herself </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">To the first odd man out that comes along.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The rich sods just can't believe it.</span></div>
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TRANSLATION COMMENTS<br />
1) Les croquants – The French dictionary, Le Petit Robert, tells us that the word « croquants » was given to peasants who rose in revolt in the reigns of Henri IV and Louis XIII. Robert goes on to tell us that afterwards the word was used simply to mean a peasant, although it is is often used as a pejorative to mean “thief” or “Skinflint”. Brassens’ croquants have too much money for these descriptions to apply. In this poem, when he uses this pejorative, he is thinking of ignorant men enjoying the power of their wealth.<br />
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2) A prix d'argent - acheter qch à prix d’or means to pay a (small) fortune for something.(Collins-Robert)<br />
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3) La main dessus - "mettre la main sur" means to take possession of to seize hold of.(Robert)<br />
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4) La main "dessous" – In the second part of the antithesis is Brassens being rude, suggesting that these objectionable men of money would also put their hands up the girls’ skirts.<br />
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5) cousus d'or – cousu is the past participle of coudre to sew. “être (tout) cousu d’or means to be rolling in money.<br />
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6) se fass'nt une raison = se faire une raison de qch.means to accept sth./ to put up with sth. (Collins-Robert)<br />
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7) ostrogoth(7) = In history the Ostrogoths were the Goths who came from the East. The word has cometo be used to describe a person who is ill-educated,, ignorant, boorish, eccentric. None of these words fit the man that brassens intends to describe. Instead, in this poem, the term represents the person that the anarchistic Brassens admired- a spontaneous person standing apart from the false values of conventional society and indifferent to wealth and personal possessions.<br />
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8) tombe des nues – Idioms using these words refer to a state of surprise and incredulity. “Je suis tombé des nues” means you could have knocked me down with a feather<br />
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9) La fleurette – Little flower. Brassens uses it as a symbol for virginity<br />
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10) à l'encan, ==vendre à l’encan-to sell at auction. (Larousse). (Of course the most common translation for “the auction” is « La vente aux enchères »)<br />
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11) la fleur – The flowerlet of the young girl, mentioned earlier, has now matured into a full flower.<br />
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12) faire peau neuve = to find a new image - make a new start <br />
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<b><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Please click <a href="http://dbarf.blogspot.co.uk/2012/05/alphabetical-list-of-my-brassens-songs.html" target="_blank">here toreturn to the alphabetical list</a> of my Brassens selection</span></b><b><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<br />David Yendleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09171810352548143316noreply@blogger.com18tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3675807832604868087.post-47629678112220720652010-11-12T01:39:00.002+00:002016-06-01T23:41:50.131+01:00L’enterrement de Verlaine – The Funeral of Verlaine<div style="border: currentColor; clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;">
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Brassens sings Paul Fort’s poem, in which he recalls, in his view, the finest day of the Belle Époque- the day he attended the mass tribute at the funeral of one of the most prominent Bohemian geniuses of the age – Paul Verlaine. <br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_5gF5voOaOUM/TNyVz26sK4I/AAAAAAAAAvA/qB9ZyE65XKs/s1600/Boul+Mich+in+Winter.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" px="true" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/_5gF5voOaOUM/TNyVz26sK4I/AAAAAAAAAvA/qB9ZyE65XKs/s1600/Boul+Mich+in+Winter.png" /></a>The date is early January 1896 and the scene is the Boulevard Saint Michel (referred to colloquially as the Boul’ Mich) in the Latin Quarter. The backdrop is beauty and elegance in an era when the good things in life were enjoyed.</div>
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It was a time when talent was respected and a time of tolerance. The people of Paris, supported their eccentric poet, Paul Verlaine, at the end of his scandalous, dissolute life and they turned out in force for his funeral. Thousands of them thronged the elegant boulevard on that cold winter’s morning. However, as far as Paul Fort was concerned, not one of the people present came close to equalling the stature of the dead man.<br />
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L'ENTERREMENT DE VERLAINE(1)<br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Le revois-tu mon âme, ce Boul' Mich' d'autrefois</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Et dont le plus beau jour fut un jour de beau froid:</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Dieu ! S'ouvrit-il jamais une voie aussi pure</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Au convoi d'un grand mort suivi de miniatures ?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Tous les grognards - petits - de Verlaine étaient là,</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Toussotant, frissonnant, glissant sur le verglas,</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Mais qui suivaient ce mort et la désespérance,</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Morte enfin, du premier rossignol de la France.</span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">(2)</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Ou plutôt du second (François de Montcorbier,(3</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Voici belle lurette (4) en fut le vrai premier)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">N'importe ! Lélian,(5) je vous suivrai toujours!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Premier ? Second ? Vous seul. En ce plus froid des jours.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">N'importe ! Je suivrai toujours, l'âme enivrée</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Ah ! folle d'une espérance désespérée (6)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Montesquiou-Fezensac(7) et Bibi-la-purée(8)</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Vos deux gardes du corps, - entre tous moi dernier.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">From the poem of Paul Fort </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">My heart, can you see that Boulevard Mich of yore</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">And whose finest day was a day of cold beauty</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">God ! Was ever city highway so pure opened up</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">For hearse of a great man with lesser folk behind?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">All of Verlaine’s old crowd – little rated -</span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"> were there</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Coughing and shivering, slipping on the sheet ice</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">But who followed this corpse and the sense of despair,</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Dead at last, of the first nightingale of the French.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Or rather, the second. (François de Montcorbier…</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Here we have, by a long chalk, the firstcomer</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">No matter ! Lélian, I’ll follow you always.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">The first ? Second ? Just you</span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">. On this coldest of days</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">No matter! I'll follow always, soul enraptured-</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Ah ! driven mad by a hope despaired of</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Montesquiou-Fezensac and Bibi-la-purée</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Your two pall-bearers- among them</span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">, me, at the back.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Brassens 1960 – Le mécréant</span></div>
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TRANSLATION NOTES</h3>
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(1) L’enterrement de Verlaine. -Verlaine was only 51 when he died. During his last years in Paris, he had descended into alcoholism and drug addiction. He lived in poverty in slum lodgings and passed periods in public hospitals. He spent his days drinking absinthe in Paris cafés and this is a photo of the poet around 1895. Throughout this time, he continued to be acclaimed the leading poet of France.</div>
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(2) Le premier rossignol de la France – Fort appears to be making the very controversial claim that there had been no previous French poet to equal Verlaine. Many people would propose different candidates for this first position – Musset, Vigny, Hugo etc. If he is merely saying that Verlaine had been given the honorific role of “Prince des poètes”, this is factually true as he held this title from 1894 until his death. If he is saying that Verlaine brought a unique musicality to French poetry many would agree enthusiastically.</div>
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(3) François de Montcorbier is the correct family name for the great French poet, François Villon (1431- some time after 1463) – His most famous poem “Où sont les neiges d’autan”. Fort appears to confirm that his intention was to designate the leading French poet ever in French literature, when he concedes that the distinction he had first claimed for Verlaine rightly belonged to Villon. <br />
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(4) Voici/ il y a belle lurette – This idiom means a very long time ago. (From “heurette” little hour)<br />
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(5) Lélian, : Pauvre Lelian is an anagram which his close friend and fellow poet Rimbaud, had formed from the name “Paul Verlaine”. In the nickname there is perhaps implied some mockery of Verlaine’s over-feminine sensitivity. <br />
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Verlaine had married a young girl, Mathilde in 1870, but, a year later, he fell in love with the poet Arthur Rimbaud, who was a seventeen year old student. By 1872, he had deserted his wife and child to be with his young lover. Their relationship was tempestuous and in 1873 Verlaine shot him in the arm during a drunken quarrel. He served an 18 month prison sentence as a result.<br />
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(6) folle d'une espérance désespérée – We can only speculate why the poet, Paul Fort, felt so emotional about the dashing of his personal hopes. Perhaps he is thinking bitterly of the high hopes he had had for the Théâtre d' Art which he had founded in 1890, while he was a student at the Lycée Louis-le-Grand in Paris. His aim had been to promote the work of people in the arts, including his friend, Paul Verlaine, and Paul Gauguin. The venture survived no more than a couple of years.<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_5gF5voOaOUM/TNyXr3Z69uI/AAAAAAAAAvI/ErjI1OuhO7c/s1600/Swann.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" px="true" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/_5gF5voOaOUM/TNyXr3Z69uI/AAAAAAAAAvI/ErjI1OuhO7c/s200/Swann.jpg" width="166" /></a>(7)Montesquiou-Fezensac. To modern readers, the two proper names on the penultimate line must be meaningless, but these were big, well known personalities in France at the turn of the 20th century. The Comte Robert de Montesquiou-Fezensac was a descendant of d'Artagnan, whose tale is told in Dumas’ « The Three musketeers.” Montesquiou-Fezensac attempted Symbolist poetry and was an art collector and homosexual dandy. It is believed that he was the model for the Proustian character, the Baron de Charlus in Proust’s “À la recherche du temps perdu”. </div>
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(8) Bibi-la-purée – This was the name by which André Joseph Salis de Saglia was known. He dressed like a tramp but was one of the leading personalities of the Latin Quarter at the time and was given the title of le roi de la Bohème. He appears in the poetry of Verlaine, in James Joyce’s Ulysses and is seen in a Picasso painting.<br />
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On the morning of the funeral, he took up position by the coffin on the strength of his claim that he had been the dead man’s secretary and lover. This could have been true although he was an inveterate liar. Montesquiou, who was a pall-bearer, then intervened to protest that his ragged, eccentric dress was not in keeping with the dignity of the occasion. Bibi-la-purée was moved to a less conspicuous position, where, it is said, he took advantage to pilfer a number of unattended mourners’ umbrellas.<br />
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By the end of the day, the snobbish aristocrat and the professional bohemian were reconciled and were chatting intimately, using the “tu” form.<br />
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(9) Paul Fort - He was born in 1872 and in 1912 he was given the title of “Prince de Poètes” which he held until his death in 1960. He was a lover of the French ballad and the folk tradition. His verse, clear and rhythmic, converts fairly readily into song lyrics. Other poems by Fort on which Brassens based songs were: Le Petit Cheval – La Marine – Comme Hier – Si le bon dieu avait voulu – He recorded (spoken only) Fort’s poems – Germaine Tourangelle -Petit Verglas. Brassens also wrote a poem to commemorate Paul Fort’s funeral: L’enterrement de Paul Fort.<br />
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<strong>Two Personal Comments</strong></h3>
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<strong>1 Verlaine as the leading French poet</strong></div>
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Paul Fort was taking a liberty in designating the leading French poets as this kind of judgement is very subjective. However, I found sympathy with him because the most active legacy that I clung to after studying a selection of French poets at “A” level fifty years ago was the verse of Verlaine. In particular, we analysed and learned by heart his Chanson d'Automne from his collection , Poèmes saturniens (1866). For years afterwards, I quoted the rich assonance of the first verse: </div>
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Les sanglots longs</div>
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Des violons</div>
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De l'automne</div>
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Blessent mon cœur</div>
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D'une langueur</div>
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Monotone.</div>
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Similarly I used to enjoy indulging in the melancholy of « Il pleure dans mon cœur » where Verlaine is at his most Lélian </div>
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Il pleure dans mon cœur</div>
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Comme il pleut sur la ville;</div>
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Quelle est cette langueur</div>
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Qui pénètre mon cœur?</div>
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Ô bruit doux de la pluie</div>
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Par terre et sur les toits!</div>
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Pour un cœur qui s'ennuie</div>
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Ô le chant de la pluie!</div>
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etc</div>
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From Romances sans paroles (1874)</div>
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These are lines, of course, familiar with most students of French - and that says a lot about Verlaine’s pre-eminence in French literature.!</div>
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<strong>2 Memories of France of the Belle Époque</strong></div>
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Paul Fort is describing here a precious memory of an outstanding event in his life. My French professor used to tell an anecdote about the previous holder of his post. Although this, by then, old man was a lover of France, he had never visited Paris for fifty years. Born in the 1870s, he had lived in Paris at the turn of the century. He knew a Paris where elegant people drove around in horse drawn carriages and the streets were lit by gaslight. He had not the heart to return to Paris and erase this splendid image by superimposing that of modern Paris. </div>
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<b><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Please click <a href="http://dbarf.blogspot.co.uk/2012/05/alphabetical-list-of-my-brassens-songs.html" target="_blank">here to return to the alphabetical list</a> of my Brassens selection</span></b><b><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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The poem is recited:<br />
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<b><a href="http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x4sinn_brassens-l-enterrement-de-verlaine_music">Brassens-L'enterrement de Verlaine</a></b><br />
<i>Uploaded by <a href="http://www.dailymotion.com/irisfromparis">irisfromparis</a>. - <a href="http://www.dailymotion.com/gb/channel/music">Explore more music videos.</a></i>David Yendleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09171810352548143316noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3675807832604868087.post-53775200524133236182010-11-12T00:52:00.001+00:002017-04-18T20:52:52.951+01:00Colombine - This poem by Verlaine tells of the female star character of the Italian mime theatre.<h2>
Colombine</h2>
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<a href="http://t1.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQkFiwB-V7drkEb3cgxjU0linaNYaqGf-8YPGKRuPMq67BRnog&t=1&usg=__Db4YuDBEz-nQ81XmXJB1Oskm0_g=" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="265" px="true" src="https://t1.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQkFiwB-V7drkEb3cgxjU0linaNYaqGf-8YPGKRuPMq67BRnog&t=1&usg=__Db4YuDBEz-nQ81XmXJB1Oskm0_g%3D" width="400" /></a><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Brassens put music to this lilting, melodic poem of Paul Verlaine. The poet tells how someone who ruthlessly exploits his or her sexual charm is able to reduce to a state of abject subjugation those who fall victim - and Verlaine’s life story suggests that perhaps he should know! To illustrate this farcical, human situation, he enacts a typical scene, performed by the Italian mime theatre the Commedia dell'arte.(1)</span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Verlaine's Colombine</span></b>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Léandre le sot,</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Pierrot qui d'un saut</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">De puce</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Cassandre sous son</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Capuce,</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Arlequin aussi,</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Cet aigrefin si</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Fantasque,</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Do, mi, sol, mi, fa, </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Tout ce monde va,</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Rit, chante </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Et danse devant</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Une frêle enfant </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Méchante </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Dont les yeux pervers</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Comme les yeux verts</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Des chattes </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Gardent ses appas (2)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Et disent :</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">"A bas les pattes ! "</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>A verse with no words is played next and then Brassens sings the
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">L'implacable enfant,</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Preste et relevant</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Ses jupes,</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">La rose au chapeau,</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Conduit son troupeau</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">De dupes !</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">From the poem of Paul Verlaine</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Song by Georges Brassens -1955 - Chanson pour l'auvergnat</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Silly Leander, </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Pierrot who with one</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Flea-like jump </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Springs over the bush </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Cassander neath his</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Deep monk’s cowl,</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Harlequin also, </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">That cheating rogue so</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Full of guile</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">In crazy costume,</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">His keen eyes glinting </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Neath his mask</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Do, mi, so, mi, fa,</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">All these go along </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Laugh and sing</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">They dance in front of </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">A skinny girl who</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Means trouble</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Whose eyes of menace </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Like the bright green eyes </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Of felines</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Guard her body’s charms</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">As they say </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Wand’ring hands, keep off! </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The child, hard to please </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Spry and with her skirts </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Lifted high </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The rose in her hat </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Leads on her flock of </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Those she fools!</span></div>
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<b>NOTES</b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">1)<b>The Commedia dell'arte</b> - The poem gives a glimpse of the “Commedia dell'arte”, the Italian theatre which was popular to French audiences during three centuries. Molière knew it well and its influence is seen in his comedies. Two hundred years later, Balzac, in “Le Père Goriot” shows the members of Parisian high society making a weekly visit to the Italian theatre. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The noble and distinguished people who attended this theatre were enjoying boisterous knockabout comedy, which could be very racy. There was comic portrayal of sex and the plot was often based on sexual infidelity and promiscuity. Situations which enacted shipwrecks and fires allowed the actresses to cast off their clothes.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The admirable skill of these players was to go onstage to perform an unwritten drama which, to a great extent, they improvised on the spot.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>The theatre had stock characters</b> and we meet some of them in this poem:</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">• The young lovers- often naïve. In this poem Leander is the young hero, foolishly besotted (with Colombine).</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">• The easily deceived old man. In this poem it is Cassander, who is wearing a hood to hide his lustful pursuit of the young girl temptress, Colombine.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">• The cheeky young serving girl was very often called Colombine as here. She was usually completely amoral and although she had a lover, she shared her favours as she liked.</span><br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-nW4vPo_MjLE/VO5PuNQmJoI/AAAAAAAABHM/poA-xY1qZnw/s1600/cass%2B3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><img border="0" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-nW4vPo_MjLE/VO5PuNQmJoI/AAAAAAAABHM/poA-xY1qZnw/s1600/cass%2B3.jpg" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">• The rascally servants. There were usually several of these. They were usually lazy scoundrels and sometimes cruel and cunning. Although they deceived others, they were often so stupid that they were themselves open to deception. Verlaine gives us here the two most well-known:</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">a. Pierrot was the white faced clown – hence the acrobatics.</span><br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-YWLDkncK4qk/VO5P781DBaI/AAAAAAAABHU/rNUfPvSR4UA/s1600/Pierrot.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><img border="0" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-YWLDkncK4qk/VO5P781DBaI/AAAAAAAABHU/rNUfPvSR4UA/s1600/Pierrot.jpg" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">b. Harlequin was one of the characters who traditionally wore a mask. He was deeply in love with Colombine, who caused him great jealousy.</span><br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-zkRJTieaSBY/VO5QIEVxDbI/AAAAAAAABHc/ACYRLcFdfeE/s1600/Harlequin.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><img border="0" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-zkRJTieaSBY/VO5QIEVxDbI/AAAAAAAABHc/ACYRLcFdfeE/s1600/Harlequin.jpg" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">(2) Gardent ses appas – « Les appas » mean charms or charming features. A plural noun with the same sound would be « Les appâts » - the bait used to catch your prey. Both could apply to the armoury of the predatory female.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Please
click <a href="http://dbarf.blogspot.co.uk/2012/05/alphabetical-list-of-my-brassens-songs.html" target="_blank">here to return to the alphabetical list of my Brassens selection</a></span></b><b><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></div>
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<br />David Yendleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09171810352548143316noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3675807832604868087.post-29967337244961477642010-11-11T23:47:00.005+00:002017-12-10T13:54:30.150+00:00Misogynie à part - For him to mention his partner's quirks in their sex life is not misogyny<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Explicit lines in this poem make it suitable only for adult readers. After long hesitation, I include it because I see in the song true Brassens qualities and genuine Brassens fun –as can be seen from the audience reaction in the video.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">This poem describes a dysfunctional relationship where the girl while enjoying passionate and adventurous lovemaking, spoils her lover’s experience by insisting on elements of middle class gentility and by merging her sexual ecstasy with the religious ecstasy it aroused in her.</span><br />
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<b>Misogynie à part</b> </div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Misogynie à part, le sage avait raison :<br />Il y a les emmerdantes,(1) on en trouve à foison,<br />En foule elles se pressent,<br />Il y a les emmerdeuses(1), un peu plus raffinées,<br />Et puis, très nettement au-dessus du panier, <br />Y a les emmerderesses(1). <br /><br /><br />La mienne, à elle seule, sur tout's surenchérit,<br />Ell' relève à la fois des trois catégories,<br />Véritable prodige,<br />Emmerdante, emmerdeuse, emmerderesse itou,<br />Elle passe, ell' dépasse, elle surpasse tout,<br />Ell' m'emmerde, vous dis-je.<br /><br /><br /><br />Mon dieu, pardonnez-moi ces propos bien amers,<br />Ell' m'emmerde, ell' m'emmerde, ell' m'emmerde, ell' m'emmer-<br />De, elle abuse, elle attige.<br />Ell' m'emmerde et j' regrett' mes bell's amours avec<br />La p'tite Enfant d' Marie (3) que m'a soufflée l'évêque,<br />Ell' m'emmerde, vous dis-je.<br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Ell' m'emmerde, ell' m'emmerde, et m'oblige à me cu-<br />Rer les ongles avant de confirmer son cul,<br />Or, c'est pas Callipyge(4).<br />Et la charité seul' pouss' ma main résignée<br />Vers ce cul rabat-joie, conique, renfrogné,<br />Ell' m'emmerde, vous dis-je.<br /><br /><br /><br />Ell' m'emmerde, ell' m'emmerde, je le répète et quand<br />Ell' me tape sur le ventre, elle garde ses gants,<br />Et ça me désoblige.<br />Outre que ça dénote un grand manque de tact,<br />Ça n' favorise pas tellement le contact,<br />Ell' m'emmerde, vous dis-je.<br /><br /><br /><br />Ell' m'emmerde, ell' m'emmerd' , quand je tombe à genoux<br />Pour certain's dévotions qui sont bien de chez nous<br />Et qui donn'nt le vertige,<br />Croyant l'heure venue de chanter le Credo,<br />Elle m'ouvre tout grand son missel sur le dos,<br />Ell' m'emmerde, vous dis-je.<br /><br /><br /><br />Ell' m'emmerde, ell' m'emmerde, à la fornication<br />Ell' s'emmerde, ell' s'emmerde avec ostentation, (5)<br />Ell' s'emmerde, vous dis-je<br />Au lieu de s'écrier : "Encore ! hardi ! hardi !"<br />Ell' déclam' du Claudel (6) ! du Claudel, j'ai bien dit,<br />Alors ça, ça me fige.<br /><br /><br /><br />Ell' m'emmerde, ell' m'emmerd', j'admets que ce Claudel<br />Soit un homm' de génie, un poète immortel,<br />J' reconnais son prestige,<br />Mais qu'on aille chercher dedans son œuvre pie,<br />Un aphrodisiaque, non, ça, c'est d' l'utopie!(8)<br />Ell' m'emmerde, vous dis-je.<br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Georges Brassens<br /><br />In the album: 1969 - La religieuse</span></td>
<td style="border-left: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; width: 231.05pt;" valign="top" width="385"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /><br />Misogyny apart, the wise man was quite right <br />There are enmerdant girls, you find them in plenty<br />In great hordes, they come at you, <br />There are enmerdous girls, a little more refined<br /><br />And then very clearly, at the top of the heap<br />There are the enmerderesses.<br /><br /><br />Mine stands out alone, outclasses the whole lot<br />She ticks at the same time all three boxes<br />Veritable prodigy<br />Enmerdant, enmerdous, enmerderesse the lot.<br />She goes further, outstrips, she surpasses them all,<br />She enmerds me, I tell you.<br /><br /><br />Oh god, pray pardon me these very bitter words<br />She enmerds me, she enmerds me, she enmerds me<br />Takes advantage, goes too far.<br /><br />She enmerds me and I regret my fine amours spent with<br />The Sunday School girl whom, the bishop pinched from me.<br />She enmerds me, I tell you. <br /><br /><br /><br />She enmerds, she enmerds, and forces me to clean <br />Up my nails before I confirm her bum. <br />Now she is no Callipyge<br />And charity alone drives my resign-ed hand <br />To this joyless bottom, cone-shaped, sad looking<br />She enmerds me I tell you.<br /><br /><br /><br />She enmerds me, she enmerds me, I repeat it and when<br />She’s pumping on my stomach, she keeps on her gloves<br />And this causes me offence.<br />Besides this displaying a great lack of tact,</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">It doesn't much help the physical contact</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">She enmerds me I tell you.<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />She enmerds, she enmerds, when I fall to my knees<br />For certain devotions that are OK with the French<br />And which bring on dizzy spells<br />Believing the time's come for chanting the creed<br />She flings open out wide her missel on my back<br />She enmerds me, I tell you.<br /><br /><br /><br />She enmerds me, she enmerds me during fornication<br />She enmerds me, enmerds me with her ostentation.<br />She enmerds me, I tell you.<br />Instead of crying out : « Once more ! Go on! Go on!<br />She declaims from Claudel ! From Claudel you heard right.<br />Well that turns me right off..<br /><br /><br /><br />She enmerds me, she enmerds me, I admit that this Claudel<br />Is a man of genius, a poet immortal<br />I acknowledge his prestige<br />But that one goes seeking within his wordy tomes(7)<br />An aphrodisiac, no that’s just fantasy!<br />She enmerds me, I tell you. <br /><br /><br /><br /></span></td>
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<h3 style="text-align: center;">
<span lang="FR">TRANSLATION
NOTES </span></h3>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">(1) emmerdantes, emmerdeuses, emmerderesses - These words
and the idea behind them come from Paul Valéry (1871-1945) the famous poet,
critic and essayist. Like Brassens, Valéry was born in Sètes and like Brassens
is buried there – but not in the same cemetery. Brassens talks about him in
another poem on this website – see Supplique pour être enterré à la plage de
Sète - . <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Valéry is quoted
as saying: « Il y a trois sortes de femmes: les emmerdeuses, les emmerdantes...
et les emmerderesses ». <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Emmerder.</span></b> -My Collins dictionary lists the verb «
emmerder » to badly annoy/ to bug someone.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> <b><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">emmerdant</span></b>
Collins lists “emmerdant”, the participle used as an adjective, to translate
the word “annoying” with pejorative force suggesting various English oaths. Thus says Collins, emmerdant could describe
someone who is: damned annoying / a damned nuisance/ a pain in the neck. Other dictionaries say a pain in the
ass/ a real drag/ a lousy bore.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">L’emmerdant
– </span>The noun form<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> </span>would use the above expressions e.g.<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> </span> “quel emmerdant!” = what a bloody nuisance. C’est
une emmerdante could translate- She is real trouble<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> <span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><b>Un
emmerdeur”/ une emmerdeuse</b></span> Collins
translates as the same as “Emmerdant”, thus :a damned nuisance/ a pain in the
neck. You could also say He/ She is real trouble/ He/ she is a right pain in
the ass and variations on all the expressions above.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><b>Emmerderesse</b>
- </span>Collins and the French dictionaries do not give the word “emmerderesse
», which Valéry seems to have invented himself by analogy with other words made
feminine with the suffix “esse” e.g. “pécheur”/ “pécheresse” = sinner. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">A lot of looking up in dictionaries has merely shown me that
all Valery’s three words mean the same and if there is a gradation, it is only
in Valéry’s mind.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">All these words are based on the word “merde” which means
“s**t”. Although this word is used more freely in French and lacks the shock of the English translation, its basic meaning still applies.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">On translating this poem, I tried to use the words “annoy”
“irritate” “exasperate”, but found them very deficient in meaning. In
desperation, I have imitated my colleagues in sociology and invented my own
code word:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i><b>To enmerd = to drive people to desperation by imposing on
them a load of pointless, demeaning rubbish (merde)</b></i><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">2) Misogynie à part – Who is the misogynist? Paul Valéry
seems to be saying that all women are guilty of emmerdement, which is a very
sweeping condemnation of the female sex. This is obviously a misogynistic
remark. I feel that Brassens shows by his choice of title that he recognised
the misogyny of Valéry’s sentiments, but, all the same, he was glad to use
Valéry’s terminology as a springboard for this provocative song.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">3) La p'tite Enfant d' Marie – The 1930s saw the growth of
political youth movements. In the Soviet Union, there were the pioneers. In
Germany, there was the Hitler Youth. The Catholic Church formed a youth
movement for boys, called « Les Croisés » and for girls called “Les Enfants de
Marie” aimed particularly against Communist atheism which had growing support
among the left-wing in France. This membership gives an expectation of strict
sexual morals.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">4) Vénus callipyge - The statue of the Venus Kallipygos is
now in the Royal Museum in Naples. The worship of this Venus had been
widespread in Ancient Greece and then had spread to Italy. The word Kallipygos
is formed by an adjective, Κάλλος, which means beautiful and a noun πυγὴ, which
means bum.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">5) Ell' m'emmerde, ell' m'emmerde - This word, emphatic in
itself, is made even more emphatic by its repetition, six times in three lines.
However, some of the humour comes from the sense that this is a pretend
indignation, while describing their mutual pleasure. Also the style of their
lovemaking seems to be an established routine to which each returned willingly.
No doubt, Brassens was fascinated and amused by his quirky young partner. The
vehemence of his overstatement is comic as we see from the reaction of singer
and audience.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">6) Ell' déclam' du Claudel - Paul Claudel (1868 -1955) was a
very prominent man of letters, who produced an incredible output of poems,
plays, travel books, literary criticism and more. His plays were extremely
long- one lasting eleven hours. In his writings, he expressed his very strong
faith in Roman Catholicism. Like many influential French Catholics, he had been
a strong supporter of the ideals of the collaborationist Vichy government of
General Pétain, to whom he addressed a eulogical poem. This background served
to limit Claudel’s appeal to those on the political left, such as Brassens.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The article about Claudel in Wikipedia, has a sentence which
seems relevant to this poem. We read there that Claudel used “scenes of
passionate, obsessive human love to convey with great power God's infinite love
for humanity”. Above the physical detail of lovemaking, which Brassens has
described in his poem, most people are probably aware of a spiritual dimension-
although not necessarily with religious connotations. In the play Les
Miserables, Jean Valjean says "to love another person is to see the face
of God.". There is another quotation- also from Victor Hugo I think- that
when two people make love, God is always present at that altar. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Perhaps the unconventional, strong-minded young girl gets
the better in this poem! At the start we had expectations that she would have
conformist, life-denying inhibitions but instead she emerges as an
individualist, seeking her own answers. Despite his over-loud protestations
against his partner, Brassens has given us another example of one of life’s
eccentrics, so dear to him.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Please click <a href="http://dbarf.blogspot.co.uk/2012/05/alphabetical-list-of-my-brassens-songs.html" target="_blank">here toreturn to the alphabetical list</a> of my Brassens selection</span></b><b><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></div>
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<br />David Yendleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09171810352548143316noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3675807832604868087.post-18294294078360880582010-10-10T14:38:00.010+01:002018-05-25T00:21:19.552+01:00LES CHÂTEAUX DE SABLE (Brassens) - MISTRAL GAGNANT (Renaud)<div align="center" style="line-height: 18pt; margin: 4.8pt 0cm 6pt 36pt; text-align: center;">
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</span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Here are two songs sung by the famous French musician and singer, Maxime le Forestier, on the sad realisation of the transitory nature of all human achievement. This precious experience disappears in a flash and its passing is imperceptible. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">With Brassens' song , it is probably a mistake to try to relate the battles he describes to the historical wars of the 20th century Instead we should probably see it as his general view of the human condition. In <span style="background-color: #f5d1c7; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Les
châteaux de sable</span> Brassens tells of an unseen epic dimension in the background human life; this is the wheel of history and it is inevitably destructive.-- The theme of death and the fleeting passage of time recur quite often in Brassen's songs</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Although he was happy with this poem, Brassens himself never set it to music. Here, it is Le Forestier singing the melody written for the song by Jean Bertola.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">In the second song from 1998, “Mistral Gagnant”, Le Forestier, sings a duet with the beautiful Vanessa Paradis. The lyrics of this song are by the French singer- song writer, Renaud. As well as individual memories, Renaud lists the specific objects which formed part of the magic world of his 1950 -1960 childhood, which time, the assassin, stole away.</span><br />
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LES CHÂTEAUX DE SABLE (BRASSENS – 1978)</h2>
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<h3>
sung by Maxime Le Forestier, music by Jean Bertola</h3>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: FR;">Je chante
la petite guerre (1)<br />
Des braves enfants de naguère<br />
Qui sur la plage ont bataillé (2)<br />
Pour sauver un château de sable<br />
Et ses remparts infranchissables<br />
Qu'une vague allait balayer.<br />
<br />
<br />
J'en étais : l'arme à la bretelle,<br />
Retranchés dans la citadelle,<br />
De pied ferme nous attendions<br />
Une cohorte sarrazine<br />
Partie de la côte voisine<br />
À l'assaut de notre bastion.<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
À cent pas de là sur la dune,<br />
En attendant que la fortune<br />
Des armes sourie aux vainqueurs,<br />
Languissant d'être courtisées<br />
Nos promises, nos fiancées<br />
Préparaient doucement leur coeur. (3)<br />
<br />
<br />
Tout à coup l'Armada sauvage (1)<br />
Déferla sur notre rivage<br />
Avec ses lances, ses pavois, (4)<br />
Pour commettre force rapines,<br />
Et même enlever nos Sabines (5)<br />
Plus belles que les leurs, ma foi.<br />
<br />La mêlée fut digne d'Homère, (1)<br />
Et la défaite bien amère<br />
À l'ennemi pourtant nombreux,<br />
Qu'on battit à plate couture,<br />
Qui partit en déconfiture<br />
En déroute, en sauve-qui-peut.<br />
<br />
<br />Oui, cette horde de barbares<br />
Que notre fureur désempare<br />
Fit retraite avec ses vaisseaux,<br />
En n'emportant pour tous trophées,<br />
Moins que rien, deux balles crevées,<br />
Trois raquettes, quatre cerceaux. (6)<br />
<br />
<br />Après la victoire fameuse<br />
En chantant l'air de "Sambre et Meuse"(7)<br />
Et de "La Marseillaise", ô gué, (8)<br />
On courut vers la récompense<br />
Que le joli sexe dispense<br />
Aux petits héros fatigués.<br />
<br />
Tandis que tout bas à l'oreille<br />
De nos Fanny, de nos Mireille<br />
On racontait notre saga,<br />
Qu'au doigt on leur passait la bague,<br />
Surgit une espèce de vague (9)<br />
Que personne ne remarqua.<br />
<br />
Au demeurant ce n'était qu'une<br />
Vague sans amplitude aucune, (10)<br />
Une vaguelette égarée,<br />
Mais en atteignant au rivage<br />
Elle causa plus de ravages,<br />
De dégâts, qu'un raz-de-marée.<br />
<br />
<br />
Expéditive, la traîtresse<br />
Investit notre forteresse,<br />
La renversant, la détruisant.<br />
Adieu donjon, tours et courtines,<br />
Que quatre gouttes anodines<br />
Avaient effacés en passant.<br />
<br />
À quelque temps de là nous sommes (11)<br />
Allés mener parmi les hommes<br />
D'autres barouds plus décevants,<br />
Allés mener d'autres campagnes,<br />
Où les châteaux sont plus d'Espagne,(12)<br />
Et de sable qu'auparavant.<br />
<br />
Quand je vois lutter sur la plage<br />
Des soldats à la fleur de l'âge,<br />
Je ne les décourage pas,<br />
Quoique je sache, ayant naguère<br />
Livré moi-même cette guerre,<br />
L'issue fatale du combat.<br />
<br />
Je sais que malgré leur défense,<br />
Leur histoire est perdue d'avance,<br />
Mais je les laisse batailler,<br />
Pour sauver un château de sable<br />
Et ses remparts infranchissables<br />
Qu'une vague allait balayer.<br />
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">I sing of the little war waged<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">By the bold kids of not long past<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Who on the beach put up a fight<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">In order to save a sandcastle<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">And its unbreachable ramparts <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Which one wave would come sweep away.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">I was with them : gun slung ready<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Firmly entrenched in the citadel<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Resolute, we were awaiting<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">A horde of Saracens (1)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Set sail from the nearby coast<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">For the assault on our bastion<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Hundred yards from there on the dune<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Waiting the time when the fortune <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Of war should smile upon the victors<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Languishing for courtships in store<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Our own betrothèd, our spoken for, <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">On the quiet, got ready their hearts.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">All at once the fierce Armada<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Launched its might onto our shores<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Pitting its lances, its bucklers<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">To inflict its widespread
plunder <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">And even steal our Sabine girls<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">More beautiful than theirs, in truth.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">The fight was worthy of Homer<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">And the defeat very bitter <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">On a foe though strong in number<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Whom we beat with withering force <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Who left in complete disarray<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Routed and running for their
lives <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Yes, that horde of barbarians<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Whom our fury tears to pieces<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Retreated along with its boats,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Carrying off as sole trophies<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Next to nothing, just two punctured
balls<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Three rackets and four bowling hoops.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">After the famous victory <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">To the strains of the « Sambre et
Meuse »<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">And of « the Marseillaise » dum dy dum,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">We ran for the sweet recompense<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Which the fair sex dispenses<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">To li(tt)le heroes out on their feet.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Whilst we were softly, in the ears<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Of our Muriels, our Francises<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Relating our stirring saga<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">On their fingers slipping the ring<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">There rose up some kind of wave<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Which not one of us had noticed.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Besides, it was no more than a<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Wave without any great amplitude <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">A little wave gone the wrong way<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">But on reaching the sea shore<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">It caused greater devastation<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">More damage, than a tsunami. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">In no time, the treacherous wave<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Overwhelmed our little fortress <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Knocking it down, destroying it.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Farewell dungeon, towers, battlements<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Which just four harmless seeming drops<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Had obliterated in passing.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">T'was some time on from this we went<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">To engage in, among grown men,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Other fights less satisfactory.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">To engage in other campaigns<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Where castles are more fanciful<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">And built more on sand, than
before <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">When I see fighting on the beaches<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Soldiers in the prime of life,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">I don’t try to discourage them<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Although I know, myself not long since<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Having engaged in such a war,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">The inevitable end to the fight<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">I know that in spite of their defence<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Their history is doomed in
advance <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">But I leave them to fight it out<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">To save a castle made of sand<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">And its walls no-one can breach,
which<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">One wave was goin’ to sweep away.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
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<br />
<br />
<h3 style="text-align: center;">
TRANSLATION NOTES</h3>
<br />
1) Je chante la petite guerre This first line is a deliberate echo of the opening words of Virgil’s Aeniad : "Arma virumque cano" (Of arms and the man I sing). The Roman poet was writing of the epic wars that led to the foundation of Rome. Brassens is talking of a war little in comparison, but the mock epic tone of his first line suggests that the small war has deep significance for humanity. We will see that the ordinary events of the poem are described in terms which refer to epic events in history: La mêlée fut digne d'Homère -- cohorte sarrazine -- l'Armada – the rape of the Sabine women – military victories -Sambre et Meuse<br />
<br />
2) ..... braves enfants......... sur la plage. The theme of the poem is the carefree pleasures of childhood and youth. Brassens represents this with the games of children on the beach, boisterous and probably not too popular with some adults. Brassens’ song « Supplique pour être enterré à la plage de Sète », expresses his lifelong love for the beaches of the town where he passed his childhood.<br />
<br />
3) nos fiancées .....préparaient doucement leur cœur. Events of childhood and puberty merge in this poem. The assailants would seem to be youths from the surrounding area come to make advances to their women. Although the newcomers are described as alien Saracens, the girls of Sète are excitedly preparing to accept the boys who emerge best from the encounters. Romantic love has as little place with Brassens as it had with George Bernard Shaw, whose play “Arms and the Man” also put a different cast on Virgil’s epic view. One of Shaw’s themes was the folly of basing your affections on idealistic notions of love.<br />
<br />
4) Pavois (bucklers) were small shields gripped in the fist by the fighter.<br />
<br />
5) Sabines. In Roman legend, the Romans attacked the region of the Sabines to forcibly capture and take away their women, when Rome had not enough women to provide brides for the native men folk.<br />
<br />
6) deux balles crevées, trois raquettes, quatre cerceaux .... After the epic battle, it comes as a surprise that the defeated “Saracens” made off only with these childhood toys. The first amorous episodes of youth mark the end of childhood and we are too involved in the new excitement to realise that the no longer used toys that we pass on contain precious years of our life, with familiar places and vivid experiences now receding into the past.<br />
<br />
7) Sambre et Meuse ……. La Marseillaise. These are of course great French patriotic songs to mark their victory. The army of Sambre-et-Meuse was the famous French revolutionary army, which, in 1794, turned the tide of war by defeating the Austrians and the Dutch in Flanders.<br />
<br />
8) gué is a standard interjection found in songs and poems to express a mood of rejoicing. Larousse tells me that the word is a corruption of “gai”<br />
<br />
9) Surgit une espèce de vague --- The responsibilities of adult life end the exhilarating freedom of youth and a most significant step is when a couple engage in what Brassens sees as the imprisonment of marriage. (See also <a href="http://brassenswithenglish.blogspot.com/2008/11/la-non-demande-en-mariage.html">La non-demande en mariage</a> – <a href="http://brassenswithenglish.blogspot.com/2008/02/je-me-suis-fait-tout-petit_08.html">Je me suis fait tout petit</a> – <a href="http://brassenswithenglish.blogspot.com/2008/03/les-amoureux-des-bancs-publics-brassens.html">Les amoureux des bancs publics</a> etc) <br />
<br />
10) Amplitude means “large scale”.<br />
<br />
11) À quelque temps de là ---This verse expresses the disillusionment that life brings after the relative innocence of childhood and youth.<br />
<br />
12) châteaux d'Espagne - Castles in Spain mean fanciful ideas. In English we also say "castles in the air".<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The views expressed by Brassens on this poem and this recording in a correspondence after Brassens' retirement</span></div>
<br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Brassens' friend Emmanuel put to him this question:</span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="apple-style-span"><span lang="FR" style="color: #0000aa; font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 115%;">".... à propos
de la chanson «Les châteaux de sable» que tu n'as je crois pas pu enregistrer
toi-même.</span></span><span class="apple-converted-space"><span lang="FR" style="color: #0000aa; font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 115%;"> </span></span><span lang="FR" style="color: #0000aa; font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 115%;"><br />
</span></div>
<span lang="FR" style="color: #0000aa; font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span><span lang="FR" style="color: #0000aa; font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 115%;"><span class="apple-style-span">Je la connais par deux interprètes: Maxime
Leforestier, et Valérie Ambroise, mais avec deux mélodies différentes.
J'imagine qu'aucune des deux n'est de toi car aucun d'eux ne se serait amusé à
refaire une de tes musiques! Laquelle des deux préfères-tu?</span><span class="apple-converted-space"> "</span></span><span lang="FR" style="color: #0000aa; font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span><span lang="FR"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span><br />
<span lang="FR"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The following was the answer of Brassens:</span></span><span class="apple-style-span"><span lang="FR" style="color: #770000; font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 115%;">«Les châteaux de
sable» est un texte dont je suis assez heureux. J'ai longuement peaufiné ce poème de 78 vers, sans refrains, mais
surtout, dans un rare texte où j'évoque l'enfance, la jeunesse, je pense avoir
réussi à brosser une esquisse
de la vie qui défile, en
temps qui passe, de l'essentiel qu'une simple vague peut balayer. </span></span><br />
<span class="apple-style-span"><span lang="FR" style="color: #770000; font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></span>
<span class="apple-style-span"><span lang="FR" style="color: #770000; font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 115%;">Cette chanson, sans musique,
était restée dans mes cahiers au moment de ma retraite. C'est mon ami Jean
Bertola qui l'a habillée d'une mélodie et l'a enregistrée le premier en 1985,
avec onze autres titres inédits, sur un 30 cm intitulé «Le patrimoine de
Brassens par Jean Bertola». </span></span><span lang="FR" style="color: #770000; font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 115%;"><span class="apple-style-span">C'est cette version qu'a reprise Maxime Le
Forestier. </span></span><br />
<span lang="FR" style="color: #770000; font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 115%;"><span class="apple-style-span"><br /></span></span>
<span lang="FR" style="color: #770000; font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 115%;"><span class="apple-style-span">S'il y a confusion sur l'attribution de la musique et que Bertola
n'en reçoit pas le crédit sur les enregistrements de Le Forestier et lors de
diverses citations, c'est qu'une erreur s'est produite (l'oubli d'un
astérisque!) dans la réédition du disque de Bertola en C.D.</span></span><br />
<span lang="FR" style="color: #770000; font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span><span lang="FR" style="color: #770000; font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 115%;"><span class="apple-style-span">Valérie Ambroise a enregistré trois de mes
inédits: «La guerre», «L'arc-en-ciel d'un quart d'heurex et «Les châteaux de
sable». Pour ces trois titres, elle a retenu des musiques de G. Bourgeois. Pour
«La guerre», Valérie ignorait sans doute que j'avais moi-même composé une
musique, qu'à la même époque Jacques Yvart a retenue pour son interprétation
sur l'album «Bonjour la paix».</span></span><br />
<span lang="FR" style="color: #770000; font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span><span lang="FR" style="color: #770000; font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 115%;"><span class="apple-style-span">C'est un phénomène unique, je crois, et que je
trouve plutôt cocasse, que près d'une dizaine de mes textes ont été habillés de
deux musiques différentes et parfois même trois. («La guerre» a reçu une
troisième mélodie, par Éric Zimmermann). Je ne connais pas un texte de Brel, de
Ferré, de Béart ou autre qui voguent sur deux airs différents. </span></span><br />
<span lang="FR" style="color: #770000; font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 115%;"><span class="apple-style-span"><br /></span></span>
<span lang="FR" style="color: #770000; font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 115%;"><span class="apple-style-span">Quant à ma
préférence, je dois avouer que je trouve les deux musiques agréables et tout à
fait appropriées et que Valérie et Maxime sont deux artistes que j'apprécie
grandement, autant pour les interprétations de mes chansonnettes que pour les
autres volets de leur travail. Je suis très sensible à la constance et à
l'enthousiasme que tous deux ont maintenus pour diffuser mes chansons avec un
très haut niveau de qualité. J'ai trouvé particulièrement attachant
l'interprétation de ma chanson «Dans l'eau de la claire fontaine» en arménien
par Valérie Ambroise.</span></span><br />
<br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="FR" style="color: #770000; font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 115%;">
<!--[if !supportLineBreakNewLine]--><br />
<!--[endif]--></span><span lang="FR"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<h2>
<strong>Mistral gagnant – (Renaud 1998)</strong></h2>
</div>
<iframe frameborder="0" width="480" height="270" src="//www.dailymotion.com/embed/video/x54dpx" allowfullscreen allow="autoplay"></iframe>
This song recalls the mischievous, irresponsible pleasures of childhood in France during the 1950s and 1960s –ruining your shoes by splashing in puddles to get your mum going etc. The title “Winning Mistral” was a sherbet style sweet that children bought or pinched from the shop and if it said “Winner” in the packet,you got another packet free. These were happy days filled with love, but time carries off the laughter of children.<br />
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Ah... m'asseoir sur un banc<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">cinq minutes avec toi<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">et regarder les gens<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">tant qu'y en a<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Te parler du bon temps<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">qu'est mort ou qui r'viendra<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">en serrant dans ma main<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">tes p'tits doigts<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Pi donner à bouffer<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">à des pigeons idiots<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">leur filer des coups d'pied<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">pour de faux.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p><br /></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Et entendre ton rire<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">qui lézarde les murs<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">qui sait surtout guérir<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">mes blessures.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Te raconter un peu<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">comment j'étais, mino<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">les bombecs fabuleux<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">qu'on piquait chez l'marchand.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">« Car en sac » et
« Mintho<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Caramels » à un franc<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">et les Mistral gagnants<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Ah... marcher sous la pluie<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">cinq minutes avec toi<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">et regarder la vie<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">tant qu'y en a<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Te raconter la Terre<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">en te bouffant des yeux<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Te parler de ta mère<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">un p'tit peu<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Et sauter dans les flaques<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">pour la faire râler <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Bousiller nos godasses <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">et s'marrer<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Et entendre ton rire<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">comme on entend la mer<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">s'arrêter, repartir<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">en arrière<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Te raconter surtout<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">les Carambars d'antan<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">et les coco-boërs<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">et les vrais Roudoudous<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">qui nous coupaient les lèvres<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">et nous niquaient les dents<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">et les Mistral gagnants<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Ah... m'asseoir sur un banc<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">cinq minutes avec toi<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">regarder le soleil<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">qui s'en va<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Te parler du bon temps<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">qu'est mort et je m'en fous<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Te dire que les méchants<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">c'est pas nous.</span><br />
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Que si moi je suis barge<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">ce n'est que de tes yeux<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">car ils ont l'avantage<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">d'être deux<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Et entendre ton rire<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">s'envoler aussi haut<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">que s'envolent les cris<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">des oiseaux<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Te raconter enfin<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">qu'il faut aimer la vie<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">et l'aimer même si<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">le temps est assassin<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">et emporte avec lui<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">les rires des enfants<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">et les Mistral gagnants<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">et les Mistral gagnants<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
</div>
</div>
</td>
<td style="border-left: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext 1.0pt; padding: 0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; width: 210.05pt;" valign="top" width="350"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Ah to sit down on a bench<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">For five minutes with you<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">And watch all the people<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">If there are any.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Talk to you of the good time<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Which is dead or which'll come back<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Squeezing within my hand<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Your little fingers<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Then give something to eat<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">To idiotic pigeons<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Aim a few kicks at them<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">In pretend.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p><br /></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">To hear your laughter<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Which splits cracks in the walls<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Which can cure above all<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Wounds that I've had.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">To tell you for a while<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">How I once was: “Mino<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">The </span><span style="font-size: 16px;">Fabulous </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Bombecs” ,</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Which we used to pinch from the shop.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">“Car en Sac” and “Minto<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Caramels” for one franc<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">And the “Mistrals” that win a prize.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br />
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Ah… to walk in the rain<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">For five minutes with you<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">And watch life go past<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">If there is any.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">To tell you tales of the earth<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Feasting my eyes on you<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Speak to you of your mum<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">A little while<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">And jumping in puddles<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">To make her grumble-<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Ruining our shoes<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">And having fun.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">And to hear your laughter<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">As one hears the sea<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Stopping then starting off<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">On the way back.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">To tell of above all<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">The “Carambars” of times past<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">And the “Coco- boërs »<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">And the real “Roudoudous”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Which used to cut our lips<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">And chipped our teeth's enamel<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">And the “Mistrals” that win a prize.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Ah to sit on a bench<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">For five minutes with you<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Watching the sun<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Going down<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Talk to you of a good time<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Which is dead and I don’t care<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">To say to you the wicked<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">That isn’t us.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p><br /></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">That if I am crazy<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">It’s only for your eyes<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">For they have the advantage<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Of coming in twos<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">And hearing your laughter<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Flying up as high<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">As fly up the cries<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Of the birds<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">To tell you in the end<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">That you need to love life<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">And love it even if<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Time is a great killer<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">And takes off with him<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">The laughter of children<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">And the “Mistrals” that win a prize.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">And the “Mistrals” that win a prize</span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;">.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</td>
</tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-tKNTUUTyCns/VlzrVM1r1uI/AAAAAAAABSc/cx25fj-FFEw/s1600/Carambar.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="178" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-tKNTUUTyCns/VlzrVM1r1uI/AAAAAAAABSc/cx25fj-FFEw/s200/Carambar.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Carambars mentioned in this song</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
To see Le Forestier in his youth, look at this duet with Georges Brassens.<br />
Click the following link:<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="http://brassenswithenglish.blogspot.com/2008/02/blog-post.html">Les Passantes</a><br />
<br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 36.0pt;">
<b><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Please
<a href="http://dbarf.blogspot.co.uk/2012/05/alphabetical-list-of-my-brassens-songs.html" target="_blank">click here to return to the alphabetical list of my Brassens selection</a>.</span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 36.0pt;">
<b><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></b></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
</div>
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<b><br /></b>
<b><br /></b>
<b>THE THEME OF LOST CHILDHOOD IN ENGLISH LITERATURE</b></div>
<br />
A poem in English that deals with the same theme is “I remember, I remember,” written by Thomas Hood, who was born in 1799. In Hood’s case, the contrast between the magic of childhood and the disillusionment of the later years was all the more grim, because he suffered from a painful illness from his early thirties. He died shortly before his 46th birthday. Within this sad framework, however, his picture of the joys of his childhood are very vivid’<br />
I remember, I remember,<br />
The house where I was born,<br />
The little window where the sun<br />
Came peeping in at morn;<br />
He never came a wink too soon,<br />
Nor brought too long a day,<br />
But now, I often wish the night<br />
Had borne my breath away!<br />
<br />
I remember, I remember,<br />
The roses, red and white,<br />
The vi'lets, and the lily-cups,<br />
Those flowers made of light!<br />
The lilacs where the robin built,<br />
And where my brother set<br />
The laburnum on his birthday,--<br />
The tree is living yet!<br />
<br />
I remember, I remember,<br />
Where I was used to swing,<br />
And thought the air must rush as fresh<br />
To swallows on the wing;<br />
My spirit flew in feathers then,<br />
That is so heavy now,<br />
And summer pools could hardly cool<br />
The fever on my brow!<br />
<br />
I remember, I remember,<br />
The fir trees dark and high;<br />
I used to think their slender tops<br />
Were close against the sky:<br />
It was a childish ignorance,<br />
But now 'tis little joy<br />
To know I'm farther off from heav'n<br />
Than when I was a boyDavid Yendleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09171810352548143316noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3675807832604868087.post-29244224083344324062010-04-24T07:54:00.002+01:002016-07-02T00:26:26.751+01:00La première fille- The first girl that you loved is the last girl that you will forget<strong><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">La première fille</span></strong><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Once again Brassens sings about the excitement of first love and its eternal charm. When older people reminisce about their youth, so many of them, sometimes unconsciously, reveal that the first boy/ girl with whom one falls in love somehow gets into a compartment of memory that is indestructible.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The videos of this song that I have posted in the past have constantly failed. I hope the select language subtitles on this one will protect me this time!</span><br />
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<td style="border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; width: 231.05pt;" valign="top" width="385"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">J'ai tout
oublié des campagnes<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">D'Austerlitz
et de Waterloo<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">D'Italie,
de Prusse et d'Espagne,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">De
Pontoise et de Landerneau<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Jamais de
la vie<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">On ne
l'oubliera,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">La
première fill'<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Qu'on a
pris' dans ses bras,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">La
première étrangère<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">À qui
l'on a dit "tu" (2)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Mon
coeur, t'en souviens-tu ?)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Comme
ell' nous était chère...<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Qu'ell'
soit fille honnête(3)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Ou fille
de rien,(4)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Qu'elle
soit pucelle (5)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Ou
qu'elle soit putain, (5)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">On se
souvient d'elle,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">On s'en
souviendra,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">D'la
première fill'<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Qu'on a
pris' dans ses bras<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Ils sont
partis à tire-d'aile<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Mes
souvenirs de la Suzon,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Et ma
mémoire est infidèle<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">À Julie,
Rosette ou Lison<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Jamais de
la vie<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">On ne
l'oubliera,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">La
première fill'<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Qu'on a
pris' dans ses bras,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">C'était
un' bonne affaire<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"> (Mon coeur, t'en souviens-tu ?)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">J'ai
changé ma vertu<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Contre
une primevère...<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Qu' ce
soit en grand' pompe<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Comme les
gens "bien",<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Ou bien
dans la ru',<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Comm' les
pauvre' et les chiens,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">On se
souvient d'elle,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">On s'en souviendra,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">D'la
première fill'<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Qu'on a
pris' dans ses bras<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Toi, qui
m'as donné le baptême<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">D'amour
et de septième ciel,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Moi, je
te garde et, moi, je t'aime,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Dernier
cadeau du Pèr' Noël !<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Jamais de
la vie<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">On ne
l'oubliera,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">La
première fill'<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Qu'on a
pris' dans ses bras<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">On a beau
fair' le brave,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Quand
ell' s'est mise nue<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"> (Mon coeur, t'en souviens-tu ?)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">On n'en
menait pas large(8)...<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Bien
d'autres, sans doute,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Depuis,
sont venues,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Oui,
mais, entre toutes<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Celles
qu'on a connues,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Elle est
la dernière<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Que l'on
oubliera,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">La
première fill'<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Qu'on a
pris' dans ses bras,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span lang="FR" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: FR;"> </span>Georges Brassens</span></div>
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">(1954 - Les amoureux des bancs publics.)</span></td>
<td style="border-left: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; width: 231.05pt;" valign="top" width="385"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">I’ve forgot’ all about campaigns<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Of Austerlitz and Waterloo<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Of Italy, Prussia and Spain<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Of Pontoise and of Landerneau.(1)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Never all life long<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Will there be forgotten<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">The very first girl<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Whom you took in your arms<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">The first, new acquaintance,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Whom you addressed as “tu”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">My heart do you remember?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">How dear she was to us<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Whether she be a nice girl<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Or not up to much<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Whether you’re her first <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Or she’s had a lot<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">You still remember her<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">You will still remember <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">The very first girl<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Whom you took in your arms<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">They have flown off at great speed<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">My recollections of Susan<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">And my memory’s been unfaithful<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">To Julie, Rosetta or Liza.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Never all life long<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Will there be forgotten<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">The very first girl<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Whom you took in your arms<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">It was a very good deal<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">My heart do you remember?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">I traded my virtue<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">For a primrose flower (6)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Whether it be with great show<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">As the « proper » folk do<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Or down in the back street<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Like the poor people and the dogs<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">You still remember her<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">You will still remember <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">The very first girl<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Whom you took in your arms<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">You who gave me the baptism<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Of love and of the seventh heaven<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">I keep you still, I love you still<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Last gift from Father Christmas (7)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Never all life long<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Will there be forgotten<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">The very first girl<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Whom you took in your arms<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">So much for my brave front<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">When she stripped off her clothes<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">(My heart do you remember?)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">You fell right down in my boots <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Many others, no doubt<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Have come along since <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Yes, but, among all of<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Those that you have known-<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">She is the very last one<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Who will be forgotten<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">The very first girl<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Whom you took in your arms<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
</td>
</tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">NOTES</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">(1) Brassens
says that he has forgotten all the military history he learnt at school and to
illustrate the point (perhaps unconsciously) he includes in the last line two
places that do not seem to have any record of an important battle.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">(2) The
change from using the “vous” form of you to the « tu » form is made when you
assume you have reached a certain stage of familiarity. It can be a sensitive
moment. In English, the first tense moment of asking a girl to go out with you
luckily does not also involve a question of speech etiquette.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">(3) fille
honnête – As well as the most usual meaning of honest, “honnête” also has the
sense of decent. When speaking of a woman it means virtuous. It seemed an old
fashioned adjective, but, in the end, I stuck with it. In the royal court of
the 17th century, there was the concept of the “honnête homme” which was the
equivalent of acting like a gentleman.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">(4) De rien means
“worth nothing”. This seemed too harsh in English.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">(5) pucelle
means virgin and putain means whore, but I wanted to soften these lines, as the
harsh moral standards of the 50s, which Brassens deplored, no longer apply.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">(6) Brassens
uses elsewhere, the primrose, flower of early spring, as a symbol of the young
love that replaces lost virginity<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">(7) The
experience of lovemaking marked the end of childhood.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">(8) On n'en
menait pas large- is an idiom that means "your heart was in your
boots". Other translations given in
the dictionary are: to be frightened, to be uneasy, to be in a terrible
situation<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Please click <a href="http://dbarf.blogspot.co.uk/2012/05/alphabetical-list-of-my-brassens-songs.html" target="_blank">here to return to the alphabetical list </a>of my Brassens selection</span>David Yendleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09171810352548143316noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3675807832604868087.post-61479777393994345102010-04-24T07:40:00.008+01:002016-06-22T22:48:31.849+01:00La Marguerite- A wild daisy that falls from the priest's prayer book sets evil tongues wagging<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">In this simple poem, Brassens describes the hysteria and malice, which is aroused in a parish of traditional believers, when they suspect that their priest, at Easter, has accepted a tiny token of sexual affection from a person unknown, but who, they readily believe, could be a young nun from the local convent, in love with him. Brassens tells the tale, largely suppressing his personal reaction until his last line of inarticulate disbelief
.</span><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<iframe allowfullscreen="" class="YOUTUBE-iframe-video" data-thumbnail-src="https://i.ytimg.com/vi/Zif-PzILQcA/0.jpg" frameborder="0" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Zif-PzILQcA?feature=player_embedded" width="320"></iframe></div>
<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">LA MARGUERITE</span></b></div>
<br />
<table border="1" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="MsoTableGrid" style="border-collapse: collapse; border: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-padding-alt: 0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; mso-yfti-tbllook: 1184;">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; width: 231.05pt;" valign="top" width="385"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">La petite</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Marguerite</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Est tombée,</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Singulière,</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Du bréviaire</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">De l'abbé</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Trois pétales</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">De scandale</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Sur l'autel,</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Indiscrète</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Pâquerette,</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">D'où vient-elle ?</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Dans l'enceinte</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Sacro-sainte,</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Quel émoi</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Quelle affaire,</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Oui, ma chère,</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Croyez-moi !</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">La frivole</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Fleur qui vole,</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Arrive en</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Contrebande</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Des plat's-bandes</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Du couvent.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Notre Père</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Qui, j'espère,</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Êt's aux cieux,</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">N'ayez cure</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Des murmures</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Malicieux,</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">La légère</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Fleur, peuchère !</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Ne vient pas</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">De nonnettes,(1)</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">De cornettes</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">En sabbat.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Sachez, diantre !</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Qu'un jour, entre</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Deux Ave,</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Sur la Pierre</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">D'un calvaire</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Il l'a trouvée,</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Et l'a mise,</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Chose admise</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Par le ciel,</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Sans ambages,</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Dans les pages</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Du missel.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Que ces messes</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Basses cessent,</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Je vous prie.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Non, le prêtre</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">N'est pas traître</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">À Marie.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Que personne</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Ne soupçonne,</span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Plus jamais,</span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">La petite</span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Marguerite,</span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Ah ! ça mais !*</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span><br /></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Georges Brassens</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">1961 - Les trompettes de la renommé</span></td>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">The so tiny</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Daisy flower</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Fell down </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Strange to say</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">From The breviary</span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Of the priest.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Three petals</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Of scandal </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">On the altar</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">An indiscreet</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Easter flower</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Whence comes it ?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">In the confines</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Sacrosanct</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">What a fuss !</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">What an outrage,</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Yes my dear</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Believe me.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">The frivolous </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Flower in flight</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Arrives as</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Contraband</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">From the flower beds</span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Of the convent.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Our father</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Who I hope</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Art in heaven</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Pay no regard</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">To the whispers</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Of mischief.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">The slight </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Flower, God's truth ! </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Does not come</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">From little nuns</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">In cornets </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">At a Black Sabbath.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Know – devil take me!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">That, one day between</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Hail Marys </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">On the footstone </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Of a wayside cross</span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">He found it.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">And he put it</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">A thing allowed</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">By heaven</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Without ado</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">In the pages</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Of the missal.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Let these masses,</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">All low, cease now</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">I pray you.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">No the priest</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Is not a traitor</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">To Mary.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Let nobody</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Ever suspect</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Ever more</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">The so tiny</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Daisy flower.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Words fail me!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span><br /></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">TRANSLATION NOTE</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">(1) De nonnettes – I had never met this word and thought that Brassens had invented this diminutive. In fact, Larousse tells me that nonnette means a young nun.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>COMMENTS</b></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">1) The music of this poem comes from the rhythm of two lines of four feet followed by one line of three feet. I have tried to keep to this, but have not always managed it. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">2) There is a story that Brassens offered this song to Brigitte Bardot, who, it is believed, was an intimate friend. The story goes on to say that she refused because of one line. The line to which she is supposed to have objected is: Fleur, peuchère ! The word "peuchère" is an oath of southern French origin, which Collins Robert translates as "streuth!"- which makes it quite mild. Only a native speaker knows the power of an expletive and,no doubt, Brigitte Bardot found this very unladylike.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">This is a relatively unimportant line and Brassens could have easily rephrased it. I would have thought that what she would have found difficult to deliver, would be the last line, where he finally expresses his despair and disbelief at the behaviour of the respectable devout in the supposedly enlightened 20th century.</span><br />
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">Please <a href="http://dbarf.blogspot.co.uk/2012/05/alphabetical-list-of-my-brassens-songs.html" target="_blank">clickhere to return to the full alphabetical list</a> of my Georges Brassens selection<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></div>
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<a href="http://brassenswithenglish.blogspot.com/2010/11/index-of-brassens-songs.html"><br />
</a>David Yendleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09171810352548143316noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3675807832604868087.post-82268429332973658822010-04-24T07:37:00.004+01:002017-09-16T11:08:36.752+01:00J'ai rendez-vous avec vous -disregarding all else in the first flush of love<br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">This lively song, which is often sung with audience participation, tells of a young man’s all absorbing love for his passionate girl-friend. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">During an interview that took place in the later years of his life, Brassens placed this song as the first of the numerous songs that were inspired by his love of Joha Heiman, his lifelong companion, for whom his affectionate name was “Püppchen”, his little doll. In this interview he quotes, in reference to her, the lines: “ La lumière que je préfère, C'est celle de vos yeux jaloux ». The rest of the poem suggests more explicitly that the start of their relationship was very passionate, in contrast with his complaints in later songs of his sexual deprivation.</span><br />
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<i>A feature of the performance of this song is the gliding of the vowels that I have marked sometimes with a hyphen<br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt;">Monseigneur
l’astre solaire,</span><span style="color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br />
<span style="background: white;">Comm’ je n’ l’admir’ pas beaucoup, (1)</span><br />
<span style="background: white;">M’enlèv’ son feu, oui mais, d’ son feu, moi
j’m’en fous,<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span lang="FR" style="background: white; color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt;">J’ai rendez-vous avec vous !</span><span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br />
<span style="background: white;">La lumièr’ que je préfère,</span><br />
<span style="background: white;">C’est cell’ de vos yeux jaloux,</span><br />
<span style="background: white;">Tout le restant m’indiffère,</span><br />
<span style="background: white;">J’ai rendez-vous avec vous !</span><br />
</span><span style="color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br />
</span><span lang="FR" style="background: white; color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt;">Monsieur mon propriétaire,</span><span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br />
<span style="background: white;">Comm’ je lui dévaste tout,</span><br />
<span style="background: white;">M’ chass’ de son toit, oui mais, d’ son toit,
moi j'm’en fous<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span lang="FR" style="background: white; color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt;">J’ai rendez-vous avec vous !</span><span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br />
<span style="background: white;">La demeur’ que je préfère,</span><br />
<span style="background: white;">C’est votre robe à froufrous (2),</span><br />
<span style="background: white;">Tout le restant m’indiffère,</span><br />
<span style="background: white;">J’ai rendez-vous avec vous !</span><br />
</span><span style="color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br />
</span><span lang="FR" style="background: white; color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt;">Madame ma gargotière,(3)</span><span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br />
<span style="background: white;">Comm’ je lui dois trop de sous,</span><br />
<span style="background: white;">M’ chass’ de sa tabl’, oui mais, d’ sa tabl’,
moi j’m’en fous,<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span lang="FR" style="background: white; color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt;">J’ai rendez-vous avec vous !</span><span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br />
<span style="background: white;">Le menu que je préfère,</span><br />
<span style="background: white;">C’est la chair de votre cou,(4)</span><br />
<span style="background: white;">Tout le restant m’indiffère,</span><br />
<span style="background: white;">J’ai rendez-vous avec vous !</span><br />
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<span style="background: white;">Sa Majesté financière,</span><br />
<span style="background: white;">Comm’ je n’ fais rien à son goût,</span><br />
<span style="background: white;">Garde son or, or, de son or, moi j’m’en
fous,(5)<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span lang="FR" style="background: white; color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt;">J’ai rendez-vous avec vous !</span><span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br />
<span style="background: white;">La fortun’ que je préfère,</span></span><span style="color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br />
<span style="background: white;">C’est votre cœur d’amadou,(6)</span><br />
<span style="background: white;">Tout le restant m’indiffère,</span><br />
<span style="background: white;">J’ai rendez-vous avec vous !</span><br />
<!--[if !supportLineBreakNewLine]--><br />
<!--[endif]--></span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: black; font-size: small;">1954 - Les amoureux des bancs publics.</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Monseigneur
the sun in the sky <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">As I
don’t admire him too much, <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Removes
his light, yes, but he can beggar his light<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">My
rendez-vous is with you. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">The
light- that I prefer-re,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Is what
your jealous eyes endue <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">For all
the rest I do not care-re <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">My
rendez-vous is with you.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">The
gent who owns my pied d’ terre- <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">As I
mess up all of his place <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Is
kicking me out, yes, but –can beggar his place <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt;">My
rendez-vous is with you.</span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">The
dwelling that I prefer- e<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">It’s
your dress of froufrous <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">For all
the rest I just do’nt care-e <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">My
rendez-vous is with you.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Madame,
my dodgy grub server <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">As I
owe her too many sous, <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Drives
me from her table, yes, but beggar her table <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">My
rendez-vous is with you.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">The
menu that I prefer-e, <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Is your
flesh meant for my kiss(4) <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">For all
the rest I don’t care-e <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">My
rendez-vous is with you.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">His
Highness my finance guru <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">As I do
nothing he approves <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Holds
back his cash, but he can beggar his cash <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">My
rendez-vous is with you!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">The
fortune that I prefer- e<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Is your
heart made of amadou <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">I’m left
cold by all of the rest<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt;">My
rendez-vous is with you.</span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>TRANSLATION NOTES</b></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b><br /></b></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">1) L’astre solaire is the sun and Brassens on a number of occasions expressed his exasperation with a climate where there were too many sunny days.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">2) The dictionary says froufrous are showy or frilly ornamentation on a dress</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">3) La gargotière – Masc – le gargotier. Larousse tells us that this is a person who runs « une gargote », which is a small cheap restaurant. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">4)"Cou" of course means "neck". More precisely, Larousse tells us that it means the part of the body that joins the head to the body. The French have the phrase "se jeter au cou de quelq'un" which is to greet some-one with a passionate embrace. I was unhappy with the image in English of "flesh of the neck" and I am making the sense more general..</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">5) Brassens seems to have written this line mainly because it amused him to have three « ors » in one line. The second “or” is the conjunction which means “now” not in a sense of time but holding a story together- eg: “There was once a very rich king, <b>now</b> this king had three daughters…….”</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">6) The other word for amadou is torchwood. It is a vegetable substance which in the olden days was used to light a fire or a lamp. Sparks were dropped onto the torchwood on which you then blew on to start a flame. The lady to whom the song was dedicated was apparently quickly stirred to passion.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="http://brassenswithenglish.blogspot.com/">P</a>lease click <a href="http://dbarf.blogspot.co.uk/2012/05/alphabetical-list-of-my-brassens-songs.html" target="_blank">here to return to the alphabetical list</a> of my Brassens selection</span>David Yendleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09171810352548143316noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3675807832604868087.post-34804703109054136992010-04-06T23:49:00.008+01:002017-09-16T11:24:46.612+01:00Pensees des morts Lamartine's thoughts on the death of loved ones<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">This is Georges Brassens at his most serious, putting into a song six verses written by one of France’s very greatest poets, Alphonse de Lamartine, who was born in 1790 in Mâcon and died in 1869 in Paris. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Lamartine was one of the leading figures of the 19th century Romantic Movement, which brought a consciousness of nature into literature and the arts. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">In my interpretation of these verses, I see an awareness not of the presence of dead people we have loved, but a strong awareness of them through the pangs of absence. This view may seem bleak, like the view of nature in the first and last stanza, but it is, perhaps, a more realistic depiction. The great sense of emptiness and the feeling of impatience for a reunion are a positive restatement of the survival of an experience of love shared across death.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">We can understand Brassens’ mood when he recorded this song in 1969. His mother had died in 1962 and his father three years later. He suffered a very great blow on the 24th October 1967, when his Jeanne died and it seemed to him that his world had fallen apart.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span lang="FR" style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-size: 12pt;">Voilà les feuilles sans sève</span><span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-size: 12pt;"><br />
<span style="background: white;">Qui tombent sur le gazon,</span><br />
<span style="background: white;">Voilà le vent qui s'élève</span><br />
<span style="background: white;">Et gémit dans le vallon,</span><br />
<span style="background: white;">Voilà l'errante hirondelle</span><br />
<span style="background: white;">Qui rase du bout de l'aile</span><br />
<span style="background: white;">L'eau dormante des marais,</span><br />
<span style="background: white;">Voilà l'enfant des chaumières</span><br />
<span style="background: white;">Qui glane sur les bruyères</span><br />
<span style="background: white;">Le bois tombé des forêts.</span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br />
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<br />
<span style="background: white;">C'est la saison où tout tombe</span><br />
<span style="background: white;">Aux coups redoublés des vents ;</span><br />
<span style="background: white;">Un vent qui vient de la tombe</span><br />
<span style="background: white;">Moissonne aussi les vivants:</span><br />
<span style="background: white;">Ils tombent alors par mille,</span><br />
<span style="background: white;">Comme la plume inutile</span><br />
<span style="background: white;">Que l'aigle abandonne aux airs,</span><br />
<span style="background: white;">Lorsque des plumes nouvelles</span><br />
<span style="background: white;">Viennent réchauffer ses ailes</span><br />
<span style="background: white;">À l'approche des hivers.</span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="background: white;">C'est alors que ma paupière</span><br />
<span style="background: white;">Vous vit pâlir et mourir,</span><br />
<span style="background: white;">Tendres fruits qu'à la lumière</span><br />
<span style="background: white;">Dieu n'a pas laissé mûrir!</span><br />
<span style="background: white;">Quoique jeune sur la terre</span><br />
<span style="background: white;">Je suis déjà solitaire</span><br />
<span style="background: white;">Parmi ceux de ma saison,</span><br />
<span style="background: white;">Et quand je dis en moi-même :</span><br />
<span style="background: white;">"Où sont ceux que ton coeur aime ?"</span><br />
<span style="background: white;">Je regarde le gazon.</span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br />
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<br />
<span style="background: white;">C'est un ami de l'enfance</span><br />
<span style="background: white;">Qu'aux jours sombres du malheur</span><br />
<span style="background: white;">Nous prêta la Providence</span><br />
<span style="background: white;">Pour appuyer notre coeur ;</span><br />
<span style="background: white;">Il n'est plus : notre âme est veuve(2)</span><br />
<span style="background: white;">Il nous suit dans notre épreuve</span><br />
<span style="background: white;">Et nous dit avec pitié :</span><br />
<span style="background: white;">"Ami si ton âme est pleine,</span><br />
<span style="background: white;">De ta joie ou de ta peine</span><br />
<span style="background: white;">Qui portera la moitié ?"</span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br />
<br />
<span style="background: white;">C'est une jeune fiancée</span><br />
<span style="background: white;">Qui, le front ceint du bandeau(3),</span><br />
<span style="background: white;">N'emporta qu'une pensée</span><br />
<span style="background: white;">De sa jeunesse au tombeau ;</span><br />
<span style="background: white;">Triste, hélas ! dans le ciel même,</span><br />
<span style="background: white;">Pour revoir celui qu'elle aime</span><br />
<span style="background: white;">Elle revient sur ses pas,</span><br />
<span style="background: white;">Et lui dit : "Ma tombe est verte !</span><br />
<span style="background: white;">Sur cette terre déserte</span><br />
<span style="background: white;">Qu'attends-tu ? Je n'y suis pas !"</span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="background: white;"><br /></span></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br />
<br />
<span style="background: white;">C'est l'ombre pâle d'un père</span><br />
<span style="background: white;">Qui mourut en nous nommant ;</span><br />
<span style="background: white;">C'est une soeur, c'est un frère</span><br />
<span style="background: white;">Qui nous devance un moment,</span><br />
<span style="background: white;">Tous ceux enfin dont la vie</span><br />
<span style="background: white;">Un jour où l'autre ravie,</span><br />
<span style="background: white;">Emporte une part de nous,</span><br />
<span style="background: white;">Semblent dire sous la pierre :</span><br />
<span style="background: white;">"Vous qui voyez la lumière,</span><br />
<span style="background: white;">De nous vous souvenez vous ?"</span></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br />
<br />
<span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: white; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;">Voilà les feuilles sans sève</span><br />
<span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: white; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;">Qui tombent sur le gazon,</span><br />
<span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: white; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;">Voilà le vent qui s'élève</span><br />
<span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: white; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;">Et gémit dans le vallon,</span><br />
<span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: white; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;">Voilà l'errante hirondelle</span><br />
<span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: white; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;">Qui rase du bout de l'aile</span><br />
<span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: white; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;">L'eau dormante des marais,</span><br />
<span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: white; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;">Voilà l'enfant des chaumières</span><br />
<span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: white; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;">Qui glane sur les bruyères</span><br />
</span><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: white; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Le bois tombé des forêts.</span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span></span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Poem (1826) by <span style="background: white;">Alphonse De Lamartine<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br />
<span style="background: white;">(In Brassens album of 1969 - La religieuse)</span><br />
<!--[if !supportLineBreakNewLine]--><br />
<!--[endif]--><span style="background: white;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">See
yonder the sapless leaves<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Which
fall on the grass beneath;<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">See too
how the wind is rising<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">And whines
soft in the valley;<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">See yonder
the stray swallow<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Which
skims with its wingtip<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">The still
water of the marshes;<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">See
there the cottagers’ child <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Who
gathers up off the heath<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Fallen
wood from the forests.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">It’s
the season when all things fall<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">To winds
gusting twice as strong;<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">There’s
a wind comes from the tomb<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">That
harvests the living too.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">They
fall then in their thousands<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Just like
the useless feather <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Which the
eagle sheds into the air<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">When its
new-grown feathers<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Come bring
warmth to its wings<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">At the
approach of winters.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">It was at
this time that my eyes<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Watched
as you grew pale and died<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Tender
fruits, which in the daylight<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">God did
not leave to ripen!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Though I
am young on this earth<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">I am already
alone<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Among my
generation<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">And
when I say to myself:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">« Where
are those whom your heart loves »<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">It’s to
the grass that I look.<span class="apple-converted-space"> <o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt;"><span class="apple-converted-space" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span>
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">He was
a friend from my childhood<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Whom
providence lent to us(1)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">For
dark days of misfortune<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">To give
a lift to our hearts;<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">He’s no
more : our souls are bereft<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">He
follows us in our trial<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">And
says to us with pity:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">“My
friend, if your soul is so filled<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">With
your joy and with your pain<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Who will
be there to bear one half ?”<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span>
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span>
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">She was
young, newly betrothed<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Who, a bandage round her brow<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Bore off just a thought of<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Her
youthfulness to the grave;<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Sad
alas! In heaven itself,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Again to see him she loves, <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">She
traces back her steps<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">And
tells him: «Green is my tomb!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">What on this
bleak land<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Do you wait for? I am not here! »<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">It’s
the pale shade of a father<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Who died,
our names on his lips;<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">It’s a
sister, it’s a brother<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Who precedes
us one brief while.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">All
those, at the last, whose life,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Snatched
one day or another,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Takes a
part of us away.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">They
seem to say ‘neath the stone<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">« You
who can see the light of day<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Do you
remember us still ? »<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">See
yonder the sapless leaves<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Which
fall on the grass beneath;<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">See too
how the wind is rising<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">And whines
soft in the valley;<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">See
yonder the stray swallow<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Which
skims with its wingtip<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">The
still water of the marshes;<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">See
there the cottagers’ child <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Who
gathers up off the heath<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Fallen
wood from the forests.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
</td>
</tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "cambria" , "serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">TRANSLATION NOTES<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18.0pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 115%;">1)<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">I have taken the liberty
of transposing these two lines for the clarity of my translation!</span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18.0pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 115%;">2)<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">notre
âme est veuve - Collins/Robert tells us that as well as translating
“widowed” “veuf” has a literary sense of “bereft”</span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18.0pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 115%;">3)<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Bandeau
- Collins/Robert gives four meanings- “Headband”, Hair coil, “Head bandage”,
“Blindfold”. Perhaps a different choice
in translation of one of these would suggest a different aspect to the story. (
See below)</span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;">
<b><span style="color: #666666; font-family: "cambria" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">A PERSONAL COMMENT<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<span style="color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br />
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">When I studied some poems of Lamartine for my «
A » level, fifty years ago, my French teacher taught me something that I have
never questioned or revised since. He said that, if you ask English people to
quote a poem they know, they will recite the first verse of Wordsworth’s
“Daffodils”- “I wandered lonely as a cloud…. . If you ask French people, he
said, they will recite the first verse of Lamartine’s poem: “Le Lac” (1820). As
I learned these verses at the age of 16, it is absolutely impossible for me to
forget them. Here is the first verse:</span><br />
<!--[if !supportLineBreakNewLine]--><br />
<!--[endif]--></span><br />
<table border="1" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="MsoTableGrid" style="border-collapse: collapse; border: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-padding-alt: 0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; mso-yfti-tbllook: 1184;">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; width: 231.05pt;" valign="top" width="385"><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="background: white; color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt;">Ainsi, toujours poussés
vers de nouveaux rivages,</span><span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br />
<span style="background: white;">Dans la nuit éternelle emportés sans retour,</span><br />
<span style="background: white;">Ne pourrons-nous jamais sur l’océan des âges</span><br />
<span style="background: white;">Jeter l’ancre un seul jour?</span><br />
<br />
<!--[if !supportLineBreakNewLine]--><br />
<!--[endif]--><o:p></o:p></span></div>
</td>
<td style="border-left: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; width: 231.05pt;" valign="top" width="385"><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt;">Always driven as we are to ever new shores<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt;">Into night eternal borne off with no return<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt;">Can we never ever on the ocean of time<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt;">Cast anchor for one single day?</span><span style="color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
</td>
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</tbody></table>
<br />
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt;">The lake in the poem was at Aix-les-Bains. In 1816, Lamartine
had gone there for convalescence and had fallen deeply in love with a fellow
patient, Julie Charles. She was a married lady and was suffering from
tuberculosis. They planned to meet up at Lake Bourget again, a year later, but
by that time, she was seriously ill and was unable to leave Paris, where she
died a few months later.</span><span style="color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br />
<br />
<span style="background: white;">Lamartine married Mary-Ann Birch, an
English-woman, in June 1820. He wrote the poem, “Pensées des morts” in 1826 and
it is perhaps unlikely that the young fiancée, mourned in it is Julie Charles.
The bandeau that he recalls was probably a favourite headband in which he
pictures some other young girlfriend, but I gave some idle thought whether I
should put down “bandage”, which is an alternative translation to suggest a
meeting of two convalescents .<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
<br />
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">Please <a href="http://dbarf.blogspot.co.uk/2012/05/alphabetical-list-of-my-brassens-songs.html" target="_blank">clickhere to return to the full alphabetical list</a> of my Georges Brassens selection</span></i></b><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"></span><br />
<h3>
A reminder to myself of a touching English poem on the emptiness when a deeply loved person is gone.</h3>
<br />
The great 17th century poet, John Donne, who dearly loved his wife said that if he lost her he could not bear to look at another woman. CS Lewis disagrees. It is in the small things formerly shared together that the pain lies. His lost love for his wife. Joy Gresham, was the subject of the film “Shadowlands”<br />
<br />
Joys that Sting by C S Lewis<br />
<br />
“Oh doe not die,” says Donne, “for I shall hate <br />
All women so”. How false the sentence rings. <br />
Women? But in a life made desolate<br />
It is the joys once shared that have the stings.<br />
<br />
To take the old walks alone, or not at all, <br />
To order one pint where I ordered two,<br />
To think of, and then not to make, the small <br />
Time-honoured joke (senseless to all but-you);<br />
<br />
To laugh (oh, one'll laugh), to talk upon<br />
Themes that we talked upon when you were there, <br />
To make some poor pretence of going on,<br />
Be kind to one's old friends, and seem to care,<br />
<br />
While no one (O God) through the years will say <br />
The simplest, common word just your way.<br />
<br />
Taken from Poems by C S Lewis 1964<br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Please <a href="http://dbarf.blogspot.co.uk/2012/05/alphabetical-list-of-my-brassens-songs.html" target="_blank">click here to return to the alphabetical list of my Brassens selection</a></span></b><b><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<br />
<br />David Yendleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09171810352548143316noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3675807832604868087.post-14311085592208273232010-04-06T22:54:00.009+01:002017-09-16T11:02:52.304+01:00Vénus callipyge - Brassens joins the Ancient Greeks in praise of a well-rounded bottom<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_5gF5voOaOUM/S7usO1XzbsI/AAAAAAAAAuQ/xKfvZG42_LI/s1600/callipyge.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" nt="true" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/_5gF5voOaOUM/S7usO1XzbsI/AAAAAAAAAuQ/xKfvZG42_LI/s320/callipyge.jpg" width="142" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Vénus callipyge</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">This song was inspired by the famous ancient sculpture, the Venus Kallipygos, picture left , which is now in the Royal Museum in Naples. It is a marble statuette, just under 6 inches in height. It was found in Rome but became the property of the king of Naples. The worship of this Venus had been widespread in Ancient Greece and then had spread to Italy. The word Kallipygos is formed by an adjective, Κάλλος, which means beautiful and a noun πυγὴ, which means bum.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">No doubt for reason of modesty, this ancient work of art it is always catalogued using the Greek title (Callipyge). Brassens, however, does not suffer from any such reticence. He makes absolutely clear the part of the anatomy that he is glorifying. He mentions this aesthetic preference in some of his other songs</span><br />
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<br />
<span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
</span><br />
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: FR;">Que jamais l'art abstrait, qui sévit maintenant,</span></div>
<span lang="FR" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: FR;">N'enlève à vos attraits ce volume étonnant.</span><br />
<br />
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: FR;">Au temps où les faux-culs (1) sont la majorité,</span></div>
<span lang="FR" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: FR;">Gloire à celui qui dit toute la vérité !.</span><br />
<br />
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: FR;">Votre dos perd son nom(2) avec si bonne grâce,</span></div>
<span lang="FR" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: FR;">Qu'on ne peut s'empêcher de lui donner raison.</span><br />
<br />
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: FR;">Que ne suis-je, (3) Madame, un poète de race,</span></div>
<span lang="FR" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: FR;">Pour dire à sa louange un immortel blason. </span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">(4)</span><br />
<br />
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<br /></div>
<span lang="FR" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: FR;">En le voyant passer, j'en eus la chair de poule,(5)</span><br />
<br />
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: FR;">Enfin, je vins au monde et, depuis, je lui voue</span></div>
<span lang="FR" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: FR;">Un culte (6) véritable et, quand je perds aux boules,</span><br />
<br />
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: FR;">En embrassant Fanny(7), je ne pense qu'à vous.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: FR;"> </span><span lang="FR" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: FR;">Pour obtenir, Madame, un galbe de cet ordre,</span></div>
<span lang="FR" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: FR;">Vous devez torturer les gens de votre entour,</span><br />
<br />
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: FR;">Donner aux couturiers bien du fil à retordre(8),</span></div>
<span lang="FR" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: FR;">Et vous devez crever votre dame d'atour.</span><br />
<br />
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<br /></div>
<span lang="FR" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: FR;">C'est (9) le Duc de Bordeaux qui s'en va, tête basse,</span><br />
<br />
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: FR;">Car il ressemble au mien comme deux gouttes d'eau,</span></div>
<span lang="FR" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: FR;">S'il ressemblait au vôtre on dirait, quand il passe :</span><br />
<br />
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: FR;">"C'est un joli garçon que le Duc de Bordeaux !"(10)</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: FR;">Ne faites aucun cas des jaloux qui professent</span></div>
<span lang="FR" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: FR;">Que vous avez placé votre orgueil un peu bas</span><br />
<br />
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: FR;">Que vous présumez trop, en somme de vos fesses</span></div>
<span lang="FR" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: FR;">Et surtout, par faveur, ne vous asseyez pas !</span><br />
<br />
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<br /></div>
<span lang="FR" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: FR;">Laissez-les raconter qu'en sortant de calèche (11)</span><br />
<br />
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: FR;">La brise a fait voler votre robe et qu'on vit,</span></div>
<span lang="FR" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: FR;">Écrite dans un cœur transpercé d'une flèche,</span><br />
<br />
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: FR;">Cette expression triviale : "À Julot pour la vie"</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: FR;"> </span><span lang="FR" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: FR;">Laissez-les dire encor’ is hard qu'à la Cour d'Angleterre,</span></div>
<span lang="FR" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: FR;">Faisant la révérence aux souverains anglois,</span><br />
<br />
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: FR;">Vous êtes, patatras ! Tombée assise à terre :</span></div>
<span lang="FR" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: FR;">La loi d' la pesanteur est dure, mais c'est la loi.</span><br />
<br />
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: FR;">Nul ne peut aujourd'hui trépasser sans voir Naples, (12)</span></div>
<span lang="FR" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: FR;">À l'assaut des chefs-d’œuvre ils veulent tous courir!</span><br />
<br />
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: FR;">Mes ambitions à moi sont bien plus raisonnables :</span></div>
<span lang="FR" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: FR;">Voir votre académie, madame, et puis mourir.</span><br />
<br />
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: FR;"> </span><span lang="FR" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: FR;">Que jamais l'art abstrait, qui sévit maintenant,</span></div>
<span lang="FR" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: FR;">N'enlève à vos attraits ce volume étonnant.</span><br />
<br />
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: FR;"> </span><span lang="FR" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: FR;">Au temps où les faux-culs (1) sont la majorité,</span></div>
<span lang="FR" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: FR;">Gloire à celui qui dit toute la vérité !</span><br />
<span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: black;"></span><br /></span><span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt;"></span>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span></div>
<span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt;">
<br />
</span><span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt;">Georges
Brassens</span><span style="color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /><span style="background: white;">(1964 - Les copains d'abord, )</span></span></div>
</td>
<td style="border-left: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; width: 9.0cm;" valign="top" width="425"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">May never
abstract art, all the rage right now</span></div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Rob your
female charms of that stunning dimension.</span></div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">At a time
when fake bums form the majority</span></div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Glory to the
one that tells us the complete truth</span></div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"></span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Your back
loses its name with such consummate grace,</span></div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">That one
cannot help but come out in its favour.</span></div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Aren’t I the
one, Madame, as poet born and bred</span></div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">To say in its
praise a short ode immortal?</span></div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Just seeing you
go by, it gave me goose pimples</span></div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">At last, I
was come alive and since then I’ve offered</span></div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">It true veneration
so when I lose at bowls</span></div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">And when
“kissing Fanny”, (7) I think only of you.</span></div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">For you to get,
Madame, a contour of that order </span></div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">You must put
great strain on the people around you,</span></div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">You must
give dressmakers loads of work sewing</span></div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">And you must
work to death your lady in waiting.</span></div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">It’s the
Duke of Bordeaux who runs off, head bowed</span></div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">For his
likeness to mine is as peas in a pod</span></div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">If he
resembled yours they’d say when he passes</span></div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">“He’s a
right handsome fellow the Duke of Bordeaux.”</span></div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Pay no
respect to those jealous who profess </span></div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">That you
placed your pride a little low at the back</span></div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">That you
presume too much in effect of your bum</span></div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Above all
though, kindly please do not take a seat.</span></div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Leave them to
tell the tale that stepping from your coach</span></div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The breeze blew
your dress up so high that people saw</span></div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Written
inside a heart pierced by an arrow</span></div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">These words
simple and clear: “To my love, Jules, for life.”</span></div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Let them
tell also that while at Court in England</span></div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Making a deep
curtsy to the British sovereigns</span></div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">You fell with
a wallop, with your seat on the ground</span></div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Hard is the
law of gravity but laws are laws.</span></div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">No-one can
die these days without seeing Naples</span></div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">We all want
to join the charge for great works of art!</span></div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The
ambitions I have make very much more sense</span></div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">To see your nude
statue my lady and then die.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">May never
abstract art, all the rage right now,</span></div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Rob your
female charms of that stunning dimension.</span></div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">At a time
when fake bums form the majority</span></div>
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Glory to the one that tells us the complete
truth.</span><b></b><i></i><u></u><sub></sub><sup></sup><strike></strike></div>
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<b>TRANSLATION NOTES </b></div>
1) Brassens makes a play on words: faux-cul means false arse. The nearest word I found in the dictionary was faux col – false collar which in English translates “loose collar”. .<br />
<br />
2) Votre dos perd son nom – Halfway down the back is no longer the back but the bottom. Out of delicacy some people may refer to it as the lower back.<br />
<br />
3) Que ne suis-je ? (3) Que followed by ne in a question or an exclamation is usually translated by “why”. E.g.: “Que n’est-tu allé la voir?.. In the end I chose a more literal translation.<br />
<br />
4) A blazon is a short verse which gives a list – for example of the features of the person you love<br />
<br />
5) j'en eus la chair de poule – I got goose pimples. <br />
<br />
6) Un culte. Brassens is amused to be talking about a cult dedicated to a cul. Such puns have to be abandoned in translation.<br />
<br />
8) Donner du fil a retordre means to give s.o. a lot of hard work. In French this gives a pun about sewing.<br />
<br />
7) En embrassant Fanny- It is explaned that there is a tradition, when playing bowls, that any player who fails to score a single point in a game has to ceremoniously kiss the bum of Fanny on a picture or a sculpture. Brassens associates this mischievously with the Christian faith, where the priest may sometimes present a religious icon to kiss, by talking about his own new “cult”. In fact that part of the sculpture in Naples has become slightly discoloured by furtive kisses, achieved in spite of the close supervision.<br />
<br />
9) C'est….. This phrase doesn’t fit in grammatically, but it is like a performer warning the audience that he is in the groove so hold on to their hats – like a comic saying : »Did you hear about……. Something scandalous is coming up.<br />
<br />
10) Mentioning the Duke of Bordeaux is a technique of making an insult or compliment by very indirect comparison<br />
<br />
The idea comes from a traditional French song. This is the verse to which Brassens is referring:<br />
<br />
Le Duc de Bordeaux ressemble à son frère,<br />
Son frère à son père et son père à mon cul.<br />
De là je conclus qu’le Duc de Bordeaux<br />
Ressemble à mon cul comme deux gouttes d’eau.<br />
<br />
11) Calèche – A fashionable carriage drawn by a pair of horses.<br />
<br />
12) The tourism slogan, of course is: “See Naples and die”<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_5gF5voOaOUM/S7uvMGXDwaI/AAAAAAAAAuY/Ion1w7IoJuo/s1600/Christina-Hendricks-Is-on-a-Diet.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" nt="true" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/_5gF5voOaOUM/S7uvMGXDwaI/AAAAAAAAAuY/Ion1w7IoJuo/s320/Christina-Hendricks-Is-on-a-Diet.jpg" /></a></div>
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Please click <a href="http://dbarf.blogspot.co.uk/2012/05/alphabetical-list-of-my-brassens-songs.html" target="_blank">here to return to the alphabetical list</a> of my Brassens selectionDavid Yendleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09171810352548143316noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3675807832604868087.post-27202471661074698722010-03-16T23:41:00.013+00:002017-09-16T11:17:41.225+01:00Supplique pour être enterré à la plage de Sète<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">This one of Brassens’ most entertaining poems- in spite of the gloomy title. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Paul Valéry, a highly respected man of letters of the previous generation, born also in Brassens’ home town of Sète, had written a famous poem called “Le cimetière marin”. Brassens gives an alternative viewpoint to Valéry’s symbolist vision of a seaside graveyard, as he writes with wit, imagination and nostalgia about the more down-to-earth realities of his birthplace and the love, friendship and enjoyment he had found there.</span><br />
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<strong>Supplique pour être enterré à la plage de Sète</strong><br />
Plea to be buried on the beach at Sète (1)<br />
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<span lang="FR" style="background: white; color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span>
<span lang="FR" style="background: white; color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">La Camarde, qui ne m'a jamais pardonné (2)</span><span class="apple-converted-space" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> </span></span><span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">D'avoir semé des fleurs dans les trous de son
nez,</span><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Me poursuit d'un zèle imbécile.</span><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Alors cerné de près par les enterrements,</span><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">J'ai cru bon de remettre à jour mon testament,</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">De me payer un codicille.</span></span><br />
<span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="background-color: white;"></span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
</span><br />
<span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Trempe dans l'encre bleue du Golfe du Lion,</span><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Trempe, trempe ta plume, ô mon vieux
tabellion,</span><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Et, de ta plus belle écriture,</span><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Note ce qu'il faudrait qu'il advînt de mon
corps,</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Lorsque mon âme et lui ne seront plus d'accord</span><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Que sur un seul point : la rupture.</span></span><br />
<span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span>
<span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt;">
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Quand mon âme aura pris son vol à l'horizon</span><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Vers celles de Gavroche et de Mimi Pinson, (5)</span><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Celles des titis, des grisettes,</span><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Que vers le sol natal mon corps soit ramené</span><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Dans un sleeping du
"Paris-Méditerranée" (6)</span><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Terminus en gare de Sète.</span></span><br />
<span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="background-color: white;"></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"></span><br /></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt;">
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Mon caveau de famille, hélas, n'est pas tout
neuf.</span><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Vulgairement parlant il est plein comme un œuf
(7)</span><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Et, d'ici que quelqu'un n'en sorte,</span><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Il risque de se faire tard et je ne peux</span><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Dire à ces braves gens:"Poussez-vous donc
un peu ! </span></span><span style="color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Place aux jeunes !"(8) en quelque sorte.</span></span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt;">
</span><span lang="FR" style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Juste au bord de la mer, à deux pas des flots bleus,</span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Creusez, si c'est possible, un petit trou
moelleux,</span><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Une bonne petite niche,</span><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Auprès de mes amis d'enfance, les dauphins (9)</span><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Le long de cette grève où le sable est si fin,</span><br />
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<span lang="FR" style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Sur la plage de la Corniche. (10)</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">
</span>
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">C'est une plage ou même, à ses moments
furieux,</span></span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Neptune ne se prend jamais trop au sérieux,</span><span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Où, quand un bateau fait naufrage,</span><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Le capitaine crie : "Je suis le maître à
bord ! </span></span><span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">(11)</span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Sauve qui peut ! Le vin et le pastis d'abord !</span><span style="color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Chacun sa bonbonne et courage !" (12)</span></span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt;">
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Et c'est là que jadis, à quinze ans révolus</span><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">À l'âge où s'amuser tout seul ne suffit plus</span><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Je connus la prime amourette..</span><br />
</span><span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Auprès
d'une sirène, une femme-poisson,</span><span style="color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br />
<span style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Je reçus de l'amour la première leçon,</span><span class="apple-converted-space" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> </span></span><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Avalai la première arête. </span></span><span lang="FR" style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">(13)</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">
</span>
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Déférence gardée envers Paul Valéry, (14)</span><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Moi, l'humble troubadour, sur lui je
renchéris,</span><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Le bon maître me le pardonne,</span><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Et qu'au moins, si ses vers valent mieux que
les miens,</span><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Mon cimetière soit plus marin que le sien,</span><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Et n'en déplaise aux autochtones.</span></span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt;">
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Cette tombe en sandwich entre le ciel et
l'eau,</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Ne donnera pas une ombre triste au tableau,</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt;">
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Mais un charme indéfinissable.</span><br />
</span><span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Les
baigneuses s'en serviront de paravent</span><span style="color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Pour changer de tenue, et les petits enfants</span><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Diront : "Chouette, un château de sable
!"</span></span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">
</span>
</span><span lang="FR" style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Est-ce trop demander...? Sur mon petit lopin</span><span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Plantez, je vous en prie, une espèce de pin</span><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Pin parasol, de préférence,</span><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Qui saura prémunir contre l'insolation</span><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Les bons amis venus fair' sur ma concession</span></span><br />
<span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">D'affectueuses révérences.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt;">
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Tantôt venant d'Espagne, et tantôt d'Italie,</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Tout chargés de parfums, de musiques jolies,</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt;">
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Le mistral et la tramontane (16)</span><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Sur mon dernier sommeil verseront les échos</span><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">De villanelle un jour, un jour de fandango,</span><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">De tarantelle, de sardane...</span></span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">
</span>
</span><span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Et
quand, prenant ma butte en guise d'oreiller,</span><span style="color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Une ondine viendra gentiment sommeiller</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Avec moins que rien de costume,</span><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">J'en demande pardon par avance à Jésus,</span><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Si l'ombre de ma croix s'y couche un peu
dessus</span><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Pour un petit bonheur posthume.</span></span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt;">
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Pauvres rois pharaons ! Pauvre Napoléon !</span></span><span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Pauvres grands disparus gisant au Panthéon !</span><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Pauvres cendres de conséquence !</span><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Vous envierez un peu l'éternel estivant,</span><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Qui fait du pédalo sur la vague en rêvant,</span><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Qui passe sa mort en vacances...</span></span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #666666;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"></span><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Vous envierez un peu l'éternel estivant,</span><span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Qui fait du pédalo sur la vague en rêvant,</span><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Qui passe sa mort en vacances...</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Georges Brassens</span><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">1966 - Supplique pour être enterré à la plage
de</span></span><span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> Sète</span></span><span lang="FR" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: FR;"></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"></span><br /></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The Grim Reaper, who has never forgiven me</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">For sowing flowers in the sockets of his nose (3)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> Pursues me with the
craziest zeal.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">And so, hemmed in close by funerals (4)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I thought right to bring back up to date my last will</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">To pay out for a codicil</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Dip well in the blue ink of the Gulf of Lion,</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Dip well, dip well your quill, oh my old legal scribe </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">And then in your finest handwriting,</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Note what there would have to become of my body</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">When my soul and it are no longer in accord</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Save on one sole point: the split-up.</span><br />
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</div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">When my soul has taken its flight to the sunset Towards those of
Gavroche and of Mimi Pinson Those of urchins and common tarts</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Let my body be brought to the soil of my birth</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">In a sleeper on "Paris-Méditerranée"</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Terminus at Sète station.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">My own family tomb, alas, is not brand new.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">It's, in vulgar parlance, packed like a sardine tin</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">And failing that someone might get out</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I risk getting there late and will not be able</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">To say to these good folk: “Move up then just a bit!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Give way to young ones!” or some such thing</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Right up on the sea shore, two yards from waves of blue,</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Dig out, if it’s possible, a little comfy hole</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> A nice and smallish niche</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Next to the friends of my childhood, the dolphins,</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Along that stretch of beach, where the sand is so fine</span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">On the Plage de la Corniche.</span><br />
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</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">It’s a beach where even, in his moments of rage Neptune doesn’t come on
too heavily</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Where at the shipwreck of his boat</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The captain bellows forth: “I’m the master of this ship!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Each for himself! The wine and the pastis go first Each take his
demi-john and chins up …”</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"></span><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">It was there in the past, at fifteen years of age</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">At an age when lonely pleasure was not enough</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> I had my first little taste of
love</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">From a little siren, a sea dwelling mermaid</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I got my first lesson about the rules of love Humbly learnt where you
are made to stop.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">With all deference due towards Paul Valéry,</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I, humble troubadour, can go one up on him </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">May the good master please excuse me</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">And if his verse is placed higher than mine, at least</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Let my cemetery be nearer the sea than his </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">And who cares about the Autochtones.(15)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">This tomb sandwiched between the sky and water </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Will not cast a gloomy shadow on the picture</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">But add an indefinable charm.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Female bathers will come to use it as a screen</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">In order to get changed, and the little children Will say: “Oh,
Brilliant. Look a sand castle!”</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Is it too much to ask… ? Upon my little plot</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Please plant for me, a tree, a species such as pine </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Umbrella pine, preferably</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">That’s able to protect from the risk of sunburn Those good friends who
have come upon my resting place</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">To lower their heads in fond regard.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"></span><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Sometimes coming from Spain, sometimes from Italy</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">All laden with perfumes, with prettiest music</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The mistral and the tramontana</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Upon my final sleep will pour forth the echos</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Of villanelle one day, one day of fandango,</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Of tarantella, of sardana….</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"></span><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">And when, taking my mound as a kind of pillow</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">A fair nymph from the sea, should kindly come to sleep</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">With close to nothing on as swimwear,</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I am asking pardon well in advance from Jesus</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">If the shade of my cross lies for a while on top</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">For a spot of posthumous bliss.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Poor Pharaoh kings ! Poor Napoleon !</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Poor departed greats, lying at the Pantheon</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Poor ashes of consequence!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">You’ll half envy th’eternal holiday-maker</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Who dreams as he rides his pedalo on the waves</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Who spends his death on vacation….</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">You’ll half envy th’eternal holiday-maker</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Who dreams as he rides his pedalo on the waves</span></div>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Who spends his death on vacation….</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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</td>
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</tbody></table>
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<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<strong><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> TRANSLATION NOTES</span></strong><br />
<b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></b></div>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">1) Brassens did not intend his petition to be buried on the beach too seriously. He once said he was only having fun with the idea. The tone of the poem verifies it.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">2) Five lines of each verse use the 12 syllable “alexandrine” of French Classical poetry</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">3) semé des fleurs –The dictionary says that “semer des fleurs sur la tombe de quelqu’un” means to turn someone’s memory into a cult. Brassens is rightly acknowledging that he goes on quite a lot about death in his songs. It has to be admitted that he did have a morbid streak. “The Grim Reaper”, our personification of death, is depicted with a dead skull with empty sockets for the nose and eyes. In French the personification of death is called La Camarde for this same reason. Camard is an adjective which means pug-nosed, having a flat nose, as if crushed –like the nose of an old-time boxer.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">4) cerné de près par les enterrements- "</span><strong><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Supplique pour être enterré à la plage de Sète"</span></strong><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> was written in 1966. In the previous year, Brassens lost his father on the 28th March and Marcel Planche, Jeanne’s husband, died on the 7th May.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">5) Gavroche - Mimi Pinson. Gavroche is a cheeky, rebellious young street urchin in the novel, “Les Misérables” by Victor Hugo. Mimi Pinson is a character in a work called “Mimi Pinson, profil de grisette" by the famous French poet, Alfred de Musset. A grisette is a young, sexually easy-going, working class girl. Both of these fictitious characters liked to express themselves in song. With such company Brassens’ soul would be in heaven. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">6) Paris-Méditerranée A train for holiday destinations.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">7) il est plein comme un œuf – Brassens says the tomb was full as an egg. I had not met this expression in English but on looking it up, I find that it is in use. As I am not certain of the context in which “full as an egg” is used in English, I have substituted the most common image in English for being packed together.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">8) Place aux jeunes. Perhaps this incongruous remark in the society of the dead can be interpreted as a disdainful Brassens’ reference to the call made to the older performers with the advent of the teenage pop groups of the 1960s. See “Les Trompettes de la Renommée”. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">9) les dauphins – This was the name given to the swimming club at Sète when Brassens was a boy. We can assume that the girl he is to recall in the next verse is also a keen swimmer.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">10) La plage de la Corniche is a very popular beach at Sète</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">11) The picture of life on a happy, boozy ship, with the odd nautical crisis, is reminiscent of Brassens’ memories of boating with his mates in “Les copains d’abord”. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">12) la première arête. There is a pun on “arête » which means fishbone and “Arrête!”, meaning stop. The fishbone is mentioned because the girl is mermaid and thus half fish. The image seems a bit contrived and is certainly impossible to translate. This is my tentative suggestion, but I regret that an explanation needs to replace the teasing puzzle that Brassens had left us with..</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">13) Chacun sa bonbonne et courage -I have translated this as a play on words. The "bon" in "bonbonne" also goes before "courage". Although the captain may make pretence of being in complete control, when the boat is sinking all he can say in the end is "bon courage" - hope for the best.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">14) Paul Valéry (1871-1945) was a famous poet, critic and essayist. “Cimetière Marin” was the title of one of his most famous poems. He was born in Sètes and buried there in the Cimetière St Charles. In the following year, 1946, the dignitaries changed its name to the “Cimetière Marin” in homage to him.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">15) “autochtones » These are the important men of the town, who had decreed that Valéry’s graveyard was the “cimetière marin” –whose authority Brassens is undermining! Brassens, the outsider, certainly did not identify with them.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">16) Le mistral et la tramontane -These are two winds that blow over the South of France. One seems to come from the West, the other from the East.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">17) villanelle and tarantella - sardane and fandango This is the music of song and dance, blown in from opposite directions from Italy and Spain.</span><br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_5gF5voOaOUM/S6AaKsoQ3xI/AAAAAAAAAtk/Sv1YVVMQXX8/s1600-h/Sete.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="372" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/_5gF5voOaOUM/S6AaKsoQ3xI/AAAAAAAAAtk/Sv1YVVMQXX8/s320/Sete.jpg" vt="true" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
<h3>
<strong><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The town of Sète</span></strong></h3>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Sète is the largest French fishing port on the Mediterranean , with tunny fishing boats and trawlers harboured there. Behind Sète is a large coastal lagoon called the étang de Thau where shellfish are cultivated.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"></span><br />
<strong><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Where Brassens was buried.</span></strong><br />
<strong><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></strong><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">
Brassens was not buried on the beach at Sète, but he would not have expected it as he was only joking. He was not buried with the worthy middle class and Paul Valéry in the cimetière Saint Charles, the so-called cimetière marin, but in the cimetière Le Py, from where can be seen the inland sea of l’étang de Thau. This second cemetery of Sète is known as the cimetière des pauvres , but it should not be assumed from this that the highly successful Brassens had a pauper’s funeral. It is reported that there is a pine tree near his grave, but that it had difficulty in establishing itself because of being trampled by the number of people who come to visit his grave.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">If any holiday maker in a skimpy bikini comes to his grave, the only sensation she is likely to have is a mysterious sharp stabbing feeling. When she died in 1999, Brassens' long-time companion, Joha Heiman, his « Püppchen », was buried at his side in the cemetery at Sète. His song, </span><a href="http://brassenswithenglish.blogspot.com/2008/02/je-me-suis-fait-tout-petit_08.html"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">“Je me suis fait tout petit”, </span></a><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">describes how she used her umbrella to ward off any seductress, seeking to offer Brassens the sexual consolation, which she was not prepared to offer him. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"></span><br />
<strong><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The contrast of Paul Valéry’s picture of a graveyard near the sea</span></strong><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> </span><br />
<strong><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></strong><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">
These are the first two verses of Paul Valéry’s symbolist poem</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Ce toit tranquille, où marchent des colombes, </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">This quiet roof, on which doves walk about</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Entre les pins palpite, entre les tombes;</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Between the pines vibrates, between the tombs</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Midi le juste y compose de feux</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Midday the exact composes upon it some lights.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">La mer, la mer, toujours recommencee</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The sea, the sea, always restarting anew</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">O récompense après une pensée</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Oh recompense after thinking</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Qu'un long regard sur le calme des dieux!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Than a long look upon the calm of the gods. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Quel pur travail de fins éclairs consume</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">What fine work of fine flashes of light consumes</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Maint diamant d'imperceptible écume,</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Many a diamond of imperceptible foam </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Et quelle paix semble se concevoir!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">And what peace seems to be conceived</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Quand sur l'abîme un soleil se repose,</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">When on theabyss a sun comes to rest</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Ouvrages purs d'une éternelle cause,</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Pure works of an eternal cause </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Le temps scintille et le songe est savoir</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Time flickers and dreaming is to know</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">Please <a href="http://dbarf.blogspot.co.uk/2012/05/alphabetical-list-of-my-brassens-songs.html" target="_blank">clickhere to return to the full alphabetical list </a>of my Georges Brassens selection<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></div>
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<br />
<br />David Yendleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09171810352548143316noreply@blogger.com16tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3675807832604868087.post-54946179723729552932010-01-21T00:51:00.009+00:002017-04-18T21:03:28.646+01:00Putain de Toi - In his years of poverty, the hurt he felt when his teenage lover betrayed him so lightly<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Some of Brassens’ biographers talk of a girl called Jo, with whom Brassens had a passionate relationship from June 1945 until August 1946. They tell us that Jo was only seventeen when she made her dramatic entry into his life - in the song Brassens talks of her twenty years but that will be poetic licence. He had to be careful not to be caught by his mistress, Jeanne, in whose house he was living in the Impasse Florimont. Jo was stunning to look at and totally amoral. Brassens’ bohemian character was attracted by her devil-may-care attitude to life and the liberality of her love. Unfortunately the irresponsibility, which was amusing when applied to the society around them, became unacceptable within a personal relationship and she brought a lot of turmoil into his life. This led to the break-up. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">As in “<a href="http://brassenswithenglish.blogspot.com/2008/02/une-jolie-fleur-by-georges-brassens.html">Une Jolie Fleur</a>”, the poet feels the need to insult his former girl-friend – in this case notably by his choice of title. He is blaming a young,spontaneous girl for what she is and what he had always known her to be. Men at times can be pathetic!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">There are other similarities between “Putain de Toi” and “Une Jolie Fleur”, and it could be that both poems refer to the same girl. In both, Brassens certainly betrays his sense of hurt and disappointment over this girl (or these girls).</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b><span lang="FR" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: FR;">Putain</span></b><span lang="FR" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: FR;">(1)<b> de toi<o:p></o:p></b></span></span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">En ce
temps-là, je vivais dans la lune(2) <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Les
bonheurs d'ici-bas m'étaient tous défendus<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Je semais
des violettes et chantais pour des prunes<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Et
tendais la patte aux chats perdus <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Ah ah ah
ah! putain de toi!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Ah ah ah
ah ah! pauvre de moi...<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Un soir
de pluie, v'là qu'on gratte à ma porte<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Je
m'empresse d'ouvrir, sans doute un nouveau chat !<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Nom de
Dieu, l' beau félin(3)... que l'orage m'apporte<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">C'était
toi, c'était toi, c'était toi...<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Ah ah ah
ah! putain de toi!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Ah ah ah
ah ah! pauvre de moi...<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Les yeux fendus
et couleur de pistache (4)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">T'as posé
sur mon coeur ta patte de velours(6)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Fort
heureus'ment pour moi t'avais pas de moustache<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Et ta
vertu ne pesait pas trop lourd...<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Ah ah ah
ah! putain de toi!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Ah ah ah
ah ah! pauvre de moi...<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Aux
quatre coins de ma vie de bohème<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">T'as
prom'né, t'as prom'né le feu de tes vingt ans<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Et pour
moi, pour mes chats, pour mes fleurs, mes poèmes<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">C'était
toi la pluie et le beau temps...<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Ah ah ah
ah! putain de toi!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Ah ah ah
ah ah! pauvre de moi...<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Mais le
temps passe et fauche à l'aveuglette<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Notre
amour mûrissait à peine que déjà,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Tu
brûlais mes chansons, crachais sur mes violettes,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Et
faisais des misèr's à mes chats...<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Ah ah ah
ah! putain de toi!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Ah ah ah
ah ah! pauvre de moi...<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Le comble
enfin, misérable salope,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Comme il
n' restait plus rien dans le garde-manger,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">T'as
couru sans vergogne, et pour une escalope,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Te jeter
dans le lit du boucher !<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Ah ah ah
ah! putain de toi!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Ah ah ah
ah ah! pauvre de moi...<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">C'était
fini, t'avais passé les bornes<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Et,
r'nonçant aux amours frivoles d'ici-bas,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">J' suis r'monté
dans la lune en emportant mes cornes,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Mes
chansons, et mes fleurs, et mes chats...</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Ah ah ah
ah! putain de toi!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Ah ah ah
ah ah! pauvre de moi...<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Album<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">1953 -
Les amoureux des bancs publics.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">In those days, I was living on the
moon<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">The joys down here below for me were
forbidden <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">I used to sow violets and sing for
peanuts<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">And held out my paw to welcome lost
cats.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Ah ah ah ah ! tramp that you are!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Ah ah ah ah ah! poor sucker me!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">One rainy night, there’s scratching at
my door <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">I rush to open it, no doubt another
cat !<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Heavens! the cute feline that the
storm brings to me<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">It was you, it was you, it was you<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Ah ah ah ah ! tramp that you are!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Ah ah ah ah ah! poor sucker me!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">With almond shaped eyes pistachio
green<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">You placed on my heart your paw, with claws
not on view<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Very luckily for me you did not have
whiskers<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">And your virtue did not weigh too
heavy.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Ah ah ah ah ! tramp that you are!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Ah ah ah ah ah! poor sucker me!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">To ev’ry inch of my bohemian life<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">You trailed, you trailed all the fire
of your twenty years<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">And for me, for my cats, for my
flowers, my poems<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">T’was you the rain and the fine
weather.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Ah ah ah ah ! tramp that you are!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Ah ah ah ah ah! poor sucker me!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">But time passes and reaps willy nilly<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Our love was scarcely ripe when you already<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Were burning my songs, spitting on my
violets<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">And making my cats’ lives a misery.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Ah ah ah ah ! tramp that you are!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Ah ah ah ah ah! poor sucker me!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Finally the last straw, miserable tart
<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Since there was nothing left to eat in
the pantry<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Without any shame you ran, and for a beef
steak<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">You jumped into bed with the butcher.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Ah ah ah ah ! tramp that you are!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Ah ah ah ah ah! poor sucker me!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">It was over, you’d overstepped the
mark<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">And, shunning frivolous loves down
below<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">I climbed back on the moon, taking my
cuckold’s horns <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">All my <span style="font-size: 12.0pt;"> songs, and my flowers, and my cats.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Ah ah ah ah ! tramp that you are!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Ah ah ah ah ah! poor sucker me!</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
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</tbody></table>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">
</span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast">
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"> </span><b style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">TRANSLATION NOTES</span></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">1) Putain de toi: “Putain” is an impolite word used to describe a prostitute. It is used, however also as a derogatory word for females who have no connection with the sex trade, where the abusive word in English would be “bitch”, “cow” etc.<br />Putain is also used with “de” as here to swear at some-one or something – e.g. “Éteins cette putain de lumière” = “Put out that bloody light!” <br />Thus in the translation of “Putain de toi”, we can stick with straight swearing saying “You bloody thing”. However Brassens thinks she has done many bad things and we should perhaps pick out a more specific idea from “Putain”, saying “Bitch that you are”or to refer to her low morals by saying ”Whore that you are” <br /><br />2) « je vivais dans la lune ». Brassens talks about these days in « <a href="http://brassenswithenglish.blogspot.com/2008/02/aupres-de-mon-arbre.html">Auprès de mon Arbre</a> ». He lived, under the care and eye of Jeanne, in theory at least, cut off from the world in a dilapidated attic, where there were gaps in the masonry that allowed him to live with the moon and the stars.<br /><br /><br />3) Le beau félin - Some of the felines whom Brassens welcomed during his bohemian days were indeed human. From « Auprès de mon Arbre » we learn that in those carefree days a number of different girls slipped in to pass the night with him. Apparently he was as cut off he sometimes claimed!<br /><br />4) “couleur de pistache ». The noun means pistachio nut and the adjective describes a soft shade of green<br /><br />5) patte de velours » - As in the English “velvet paws”, the meaning is “paws with claws retracted”. </span><br />
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<a href="http://brassenswithenglish.blogspot.com/">Return to Index page</a>David Yendleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09171810352548143316noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3675807832604868087.post-4685757493546815712010-01-21T00:39:00.002+00:002016-08-21T21:13:27.733+01:00Trompe la mort- As death approaches, Brassens has varied dreams of immortality<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">« Trompe la mort »: Brassens wrote this song in 1976 after alarmist reports appeared in the newspapers about the severity of his medical problems. Brassens was only 55 years old. The song claims that he as fit as ever and has a time left to live: « C'est pas demain la veille, Bon Dieu, de mes adieux ». The song explains that all the symptoms the journalists were quoting were just his theatrical pretences as a showman and he deals with each in turn. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">However the defence that Brassens makes is not what it seems. His excuses are deliberately preposterous, beginning with the claim that his hair hasn’t really gone white - for dramatic effect he is wearing a white wig over the jet black hair he had been well known for. He ends with a last verse of total farce. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Under the comic exaggeration is the sad message that the newspaper reports are correct. The formidable Georges Brassens is experiencing serious physical decline with death not far away. He had five more years to live after writing this song and died in 1981.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Seeking clarity of recording, I have chosen the following version by Brassens' friend. Le Forestier.</span><br />
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<td style="border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; width: 231.05pt;" valign="top" width="385"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: FR;">TROMPE LA
MORT(1) – <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: FR;">Avec
cette neige à foison<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="IT" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: IT;">Qui
coiffe, coiffe ma toison,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: FR;">On peut
me croire, à vue de nez,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: FR;">Blanchi
sous le harnais<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: FR;">Eh bien,
Mesdames et Messieurs,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: FR;">C'est
rien que de la poudre aux yeux,(2)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: FR;">C'est
rien que de la comédie,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: FR;">Que de la
parodie :<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: FR;">C'est
pour tenter de couper court<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: FR;">À
l'avance du temps qui court,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: FR;">De
persuader ce vieux goujat <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: FR;">Que tout
le mal est fait déjà.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: FR;">Mais
dessous la perruque j'ai<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: FR;">Mes vrais
cheveux couleur de jais,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: FR;">C'est pas
demain la veille,(3) Bon Dieu !<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">De mes adieux.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: FR;">Et si
j'ai l'air moins guilleret,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: FR;">Moins
solide sur mes jarrets,(4)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: FR;">Si je
chemine avec lenteur<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: FR;">D'un
train de sénateur,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: FR;">N'allez
pas dire : "Il est perclus"<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: FR;">N'allez
pas dire : "Il n'en peut plus ",<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: FR;">C'est
rien que de la comédie,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: FR;">Que de la
parodie :<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: FR;">Histoire
d'endormir le temps,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: FR;">Calculateur
impénitent,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: FR;">De tout
brouiller, tout embrouiller<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: FR;">Dans le
fatidiqu' sablier.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: FR;">En fait,
à l'envers du décor,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: FR;">Comme à
vingt ans, je trotte encore,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: FR;">C'est pas
demain la veille, Bon Dieu !<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">De mes adieux.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: FR;">Et si mon
coeur bat moins souvent<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: FR;">Et moins
vite qu'auparavant,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: FR;">Si je
chasse avec moins de zèle<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Les gentes demoiselles,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: FR;">Pensez
pas que je sois blasé<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: FR;">De leurs
caresses, leurs baisers,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: FR;">C'est
rien que de la comédie,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: FR;">Que de la
parodie :<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: FR;">Pour
convaincre le temps berné(5)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: FR;">Qu'mes
fêt's galantes sont terminées,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: FR;">Que je me
retire en coulisse,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: FR;">Que je
n'entrerai plus en lice.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: FR;">Mais je
reste un sacré gaillard<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: FR;">Toujours
actif, toujours paillard,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: FR;">C'est pas
demain la veille, Bon Dieu !<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">De mes adieux.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: FR;">Et si
jamais, au cimetière,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: FR;">Un de ces
quatre(6), on porte en terre,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: FR;">Me ressemblant
à s'y tromper,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: FR;">Un genre
de macchabée,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: FR;">N'allez
pas noyer le sous fleurs (7)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: FR;">En
lâchant la bonde à vos pleurs,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: FR;">Ce sera
rien que comédie<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: FR;">Rien que
fausse sortie.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: FR;">Et puis,
coup de theâtre, quand<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: FR;">Le temps
aura levé le camp,(8)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: FR;">Estimant
que la farce est jouée<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: FR;">Moi tout
heureux, tout enjoué(9),<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: FR;">Je
m'exhumerai du caveau<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: FR;">Pour
saluer sous les bravos...<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: FR;">C'est pas
demain la veille, Bon Dieu !<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">De mes adieux.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
</td>
<td style="border-left: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; width: 231.05pt;" valign="top" width="385"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: FR;">CHEATING
DEATH</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">With this snow a-plenty<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Which caps my mop of hair<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">One may think me,at a rough glance<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Turned white by the long grind.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Well then, ladies and gentlemen<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">It’s nothing more than powder in your
eyes<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">It’s nothing but simple play-acting<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: FR;">Than
simple parody :<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">It’s to try to stop in its tracks<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">The advance of racing time<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">To persuade this old tormenter<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">That all the harm’s already done<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">But under the wig I have<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">My true hair coloured still jet-black<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">It’s not the time quite yet, Good God!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">For my farewells.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">And if I look less sprightly<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Less firm on my sturdy legs<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">If I move with a some slowness<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">At a senator’s pace<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Don’t go saying : « He has gone lame »<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Don’t go saying : « He has had it »<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">It’s nothing but simple play-acting<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: FR;">Than
simple parody :<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Matter of lulling time to sleep<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Calculator impenitent<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Stirring everything up- the lot <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">In the hourglass of fate<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">In fact, backstage, behind the set<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">I trot nimbly as at twenty<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">It’s not the time quite yet, Good God!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">For my farewells.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">And if my heart beats less often<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">And less quickly then before<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">If I chase with less hot zeal<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Those of the fair sex<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Think not that I am grown weary<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Of their caress and of their kiss<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">It’s nothing but simple play-acting<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: FR;">Than
simple parody :<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">To convince credulous old time<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">That my amorous jaunts are over<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">That I’m retiring to the wings<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">That I’ll enter the lists no more<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">But I remain a lusty fellow<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Still hard at it, still as randy<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">It’s not the time quite yet, Good God
!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">For my farewells.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">And if ever, to the cemetery<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">One of these days, they bring for
burial<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">So like me to deceive people<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Something looking like a corpse<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Don’t go drowning it neath the flowers<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">While unplugging all of your tears,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">It will be merely play acting<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Nothing but a false exit.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">And then dramatic climax when<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Time has taken his hook<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Judging that the farce is over<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">I quite happy, game for a laugh<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">I will dig myself from the grave<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">To make my bows to loud applause<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">It’s not the time quite yet, Good God!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">For my farewells.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b><span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Translation Notes</span></b><span style="color: #666666; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">1) A trompe-la-mort is a
daredevil – someone who cheats death. Trompe la Mort was the nickname given to
Vautrin, in Balzac’s “Le Père Goriot”. He was a larger than life character, who
was secretly the head of the French criminal fraternity. They called him this
name believing that, whatever he did, including murder, he would always escape
death on the guillotine. As “tromper” means to deceive and the poem is about
deception, perhaps an English translation of the title should include this idea
– but it is better and easier to keep the name of Balzac’s famous character!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br />
2) Poudre aux yeux. The image is of a powder cloud as white powder is applied
to his wig- as in olden times</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">3) “C’est
pas demain la veille means “that will not happen just yet”<br />
<br />
4) Le jarret means the back of the knee for a man hock for an animal. There is
an expression: “Avoir des jarrets d’acier” to have strong legs. Brassens was of
athletic build and so I put in the word “sturdy” with this previous phrase in
mind.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">5) Berner
means to fool, to mislead<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">6) Un de ces
quatre is an idiom meaning « one of these days », « at some
point in the near future »<br />
<br />
7) “noyer le souffleur/sous fleurs” “Lâchant la bonde”. Here Brassens is
continuing his theatrical images with a contrived idea that I find impossible
to translate. The “souffleur” (prompter) is the person who whispers/ breathes
the words when the performer forgets his or her lines. The prompter is hidden
in a narrow pit at the front of the stage as confined as that in which the
corpse in this verse is placed. “La bonde” is bung hole on a barrel. The image
is of a flood of tears being released to flood the prompter’s pit. When spoken
“souffleur” sounds the same of “sous fleurs”. I have given up on most of the
image and stuck to Brassens’ pun with sous fleurs. I feel all the complication
is because Brassens is referring to his own internment and eschews sentiment.<br />
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8) “Lever le camp” means to strike camp<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">9) enjoué
means playful<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Please
<a href="http://dbarf.blogspot.co.uk/2012/05/alphabetical-list-of-my-brassens-songs.html" target="_blank">click here to return to the alphabetical list of my Brassens selection</a></span></b><b><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<br />
<a href="http://brassenswithenglish.blogspot.com/">Return to Index page</a>David Yendleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09171810352548143316noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3675807832604868087.post-77548475471155146672010-01-20T23:45:00.019+00:002016-08-22T13:44:50.263+01:00La legende de la nonne - Hugo's poetry finds full scope in the savagery of medieval superstition<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Brassens put to music nine verses of this famous poem written by Victor Hugo in 1828. (I include Hugo's poem in full along with my translation at the end of this post.) </span><br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-f9W0T1ykxww/V7rQHSVuENI/AAAAAAAABY8/zWYP0XjZkBMGy3w35iRZSUH2BJ7pJgm-wCLcB/s1600/Portrait%2Bof%2BVictor%2BHugo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-f9W0T1ykxww/V7rQHSVuENI/AAAAAAAABY8/zWYP0XjZkBMGy3w35iRZSUH2BJ7pJgm-wCLcB/s1600/Portrait%2Bof%2BVictor%2BHugo.jpg" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Left - Portrait of Victor Hugo</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Orthodox Christians might perhaps regard this poem as a salutary warning not to transgress the rules of the Church. It would seem however that Hugo’s intent - as well as to write a powerful, evocative poem - was to draw attention to a practice in education of instilling fabricated terrors in the minds of young children, at an age when they have no defence, in order to exercise permanent control over them through life. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">We can expect Georges Brassens, who was hostile to institutional authority, including that of the Church, to share Hugo's misgivings about these educational methods.</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">La légende de la nonne - The legend of the nun</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Venez, vous dont l'œil étincelle,( 1)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Pour entendre une histoire encor’</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Approchez, je vous dirai celle</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">De Doña Padilla del Flor.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Elle était d'Alanje, où s'entassent</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Les collines et les halliers.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Enfants, voici des bœufs (2) qui passent,</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Cachez vos rouges tabliers.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Il est des filles à Grenade,</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Il en est à Séville aussi,</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Qui, pour la moindre sérénade,</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">À l'amour demandent merci;</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Il en est que parfois embrassent,</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Le soir, de hardis cavaliers.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Enfants, voici des bœufs qui passent,</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Cachez vos rouges tabliers.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Ce n'est pas sur ce ton frivole</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Qu'il faut parler de Padilla,</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Car jamais prunelle espagnole</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">D'un feu plus chaste ne brilla;</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Elle fuyait ceux qui pourchassent</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Les filles sous les peupliers.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Enfants, voici des bœufs qui passent,</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Cachez vos rouges tabliers.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Elle prit le voile à Tolède,</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Au grand soupir des gens du lieu,</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Comme si, quand on n'est pas laide,</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">On n’avait droit d'épouser Dieu.(5)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Peu s'en fallut que ne pleurassent</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Les soudards et les écoliers.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Enfants, voici des bœufs qui passent,</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Cachez vos rouges tabliers.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Or, la belle à peine cloîtrée,</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Amour en son cœur s'installa.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Un fier brigand de la contrée</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Vint alors et dit : "Me voilà !"</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Quelquefois les brigands surpassent</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">En audace les chevaliers</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Enfants, voici des bœufs qui passent,</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Cachez vos rouges tabliers.</span><br />
<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Il était laid: les traits austères,</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">La main plus rude que le gant ;</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Mais l'amour a bien des mystères,</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Et la nonne aima le brigand.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">On voit des biches qui remplacent</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Leurs beaux cerfs par des sangliers.(6)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Enfants, voici des bœufs qui passent,</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Cachez vos rouges tabliers.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">La nonne osa, dit la chronique,</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Au brigand par l'enfer conduit,</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Aux pieds de Sainte Véronique (7)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Donner un rendez-vous la nuit,</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">À l'heure où les corbeaux croassent,</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Volant dans l'ombre par milliers.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Enfants, voici des bœufs qui passent,</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Cachez vos rouges tabliers.</span><br />
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Or quand, dans la nef descendue,</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">La nonne appela le bandit,</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Au lieu de la voix attendue,</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">C'est la foudre qui répondit.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Dieu voulut que ses coups frappassent</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Les amants par Satan liés.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Enfants, voici des bœufs qui passent</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Cachez vos rouges tabliers.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Cette histoire de la novice,</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Saint Ildefonse, abbé, voulut (8)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Qu'afin de préserver du vice</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Les vierges qui font leur salut,</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Les prieures la racontassent</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Dans tous les couvents réguliers.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Enfants, voici des bœufs qui passent</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Cachez vos rouges tabliers.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Verses taken by Brassens from the poem of Victor Hugo written in 1828<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Brassens song:1955 - Chanson pour l'Auvergnat</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Come near, you whose eyes sparkle bright</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">To hear me tell a story again,</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Gather round, I will tell the one</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Of Doña Padilla del Flor</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">She came from Alanje, where mount up high </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The hillsides and the brushland.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Children here are bullocks passing</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Cover your bright red pinafores.(3)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">There are girls in Grenada</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">There are some in Seville as well</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Who at the slightest serenade</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Are left begging mercy from love</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">And some of them chance to be kissed</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">By bold suitors, at eventide.(4) </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Children here are bullocks passing</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Cover your bright red pinafores.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">It is not in such light manner</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">That we should speak of Padilla</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">For never a Spanish eye</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Has shone with a fire so chaste</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">She would flee from men who chased</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Girls beneath the poplar trees</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Children here are bullocks passing</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Cover your bright red pinafores.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">In Toledo she took the veil</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">To shocked sighs from the local men</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">As if, when one is not plain,</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">You’d no right to get wed to God</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">They were very close to tears</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Ordinary lads and scholars</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Children here are bullocks passing</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Cover your bright red pinafores.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Now, scarce was the maid in cloisters,</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Love for a man seized her heart</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">A proud brigand from thereabouts</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Then had come and said: « Behold me ».</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Sometimes brigands go far beyond</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Noble knights in daring</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Children here are bullocks passing</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Cover your bright red pinafores.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">He was ugly : his looks austere</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">His hand rougher than a glove</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">But love has mysteries aplenty</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">And the nun fell for the brigand</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">You see female deer who oust</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Handsome bucks to be with wild boar</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Children here are bullocks passing</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Cover your bright red pinafores.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The nun dared, so history tells us</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">With the brigand, under hell’s lead</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">At the feet of St. Veronique</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">To arrange a night rendez-vous,</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">At the hour when the crows caw loud</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Flying thousands strong in the dark.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Children here are bullocks passing</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Cover your bright red pinafores.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Now when, having walked down the nave</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The nun called out for the bandit’</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> Instead of the voice expected</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">T’was a thunderbolt which replied</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">God wished its blasts to strike
down</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The lovers by Satan conjoined</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Children here are bullocks passing</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Cover your bright red pinafores.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">This tale of the novice nun</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Ildefonse, priest and saint, wanted</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">For the purpose of keeping from vice </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Virgins who seek their salvation</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Prioresses to relate</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">In all the regular convents.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Children here are bullocks passing</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Cover your bright red pinafores.</span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Translation Notes </span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">1) « vous dont l'oeil étincelle » The nun is telling her horrific tale to happy young children</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">2) « bœufs qui passent » - boeufs is the word for cattle, but the word is often used for bullocks- Larousse tells me. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">We all know about "a red rag to a bull” and hence the teacher nun's anxiety. However the use of these two lines as a final refrain to each verse, when they have no link with actual tale, gives us another message. Their teacher is deliberately filling the defenceless minds with exaggerated fears and the final verse of the poem explains that this is deliberate in order to exert religious discipline. 3) “vos rouges tabliers” The children would wear smocks to protect their clothes during the school day.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">4) The inappropriate, excited detail suggests the sexual repression of the celibate nuns</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">5) « épouser Dieu » When a novice nun made her vows, the ritual was of marriage to Jesus Christ and a ring was put on her finger.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">6)On voit des biches qui remplacent leurs beaux cerfs par des sangliers - The nuns equate human love with unnatural animal mating.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">7) Sainte Véronique. They are to meet under the statue of Saint Veronica. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">8) « Cette histoire de la novice, Saint Ildefonse, abbé, voulut » This last verse is also the last verse of Hugo’s poem. Here Hugo gives the name of the church dignitary from whom this story originated and gives his motive: to frighten any nuns tempted to break their vows. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">We should expect Hugo, the great humanitarian defender of downtrodden people to be hostile to this abuse of the innocence of children. We should be wary, however, of associating Hugo too closely with pure rationalism. Hugo was mystic who believed he was able to converse with Virgil, Shakespeare and Jesus Christ - but perhaps not with the Christ of Saint Ildefonse's depiction! </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Barbara gets the lilt of the poetry in her recording of Brassens' song:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">THE FULL TEXT OF HUGO'S POEM WITH TRANSLATION</span></h3>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #666666; line-height: 115%;">This poem is regarded as
one of Hugo’s most beautiful poems. Unfortunately the best verses are the later
ones that Brassens did not include. We can understand that it would have been a
very long song if he had!</span><span style="color: #666666; line-height: 115%;"><br />
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In these omitted verses the poetic imagination of the great
man of French literature is given full scope as he describes the nightmarish
ordeals undergone by the tortured lovers as they emerge from the jaws of hell
each night in their frustrated quest to meet together. As well as the epic
horror there is also the lyrical pathos of the tragedy of two human beings,
whose fatal crime was to fall in love.<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Venez, vous dont l’œil étincelle,<br />
Pour entendre une histoire encor,<br />
Approchez : je vous dirai celle<br />
De doña Padilla del Flor.<br />
Elle était d’Alanje, où s’entassent<br />
Les collines et les halliers.<br />
- Enfants, voici des bœufs qui passent,<br />
Cachez vos rouges tabliers ! <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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Il est des filles à Grenade,<br />
Il en est à Séville aussi,<br />
Qui, pour la moindre sérénade,<br />
À l’amour demandent merci ;<br />
Il en est que d’abord embrassent,<br />
Le soir, de hardis cavaliers.<br />
- Enfants, voici des bœufs qui passent,<br />
Cachez vos rouges tabliers !</span><br />
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Ce n’est pas sur ce ton frivole<br />
Qu’il faut parler de Padilla,<br />
Car jamais prunelle espagnole<br />
D’un feu plus chaste ne brilla ;<br />
Elle fuyait ceux qui pourchassent<br />
Les filles sous les peupliers.<br />
- Enfants, voici des bœufs qui passent,<br />
Cachez vos rouges tabliers !</span><br />
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Rien ne touchait ce cœur farouche,<br />
Ni doux soins, ni propos joyeux ;<br />
Pour un mot d’une belle bouche,<br />
Pour un signe de deux beaux yeux,<br />
On sait qu’il n’est rien que ne fassent<br />
Les seigneurs et les bacheliers.<br />
- Enfants, voici des bœufs qui passent,<br />
Cachez vos rouges tabliers !</span><br />
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Elle prit le voile à Tolède,<br />
Au grand soupir des gens du lieu,<br />
Comme si, quand on n’est pas laide,<br />
On avait droit d’épouser Dieu.<br />
Peu s’en fallut que ne pleurassent<br />
Les soudards et les écoliers.<br />
- Enfants, voici des bœufs qui passent,<br />
Cachez vos rouges tabliers !</span><br />
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Mais elle disait : « Loin du monde,<br />
Vivre et prier pour les méchants !<br />
Quel bonheur ! quelle paix profonde<br />
Dans la prière et dans les chants !<br />
Là, si les démons nous menacent,<br />
Les anges sont nos boucliers ! »<br />
- Enfants, voici des bœufs qui passent,<br />
Cachez vos rouges tabliers !</span><br />
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Or, la belle à peine cloîtrée,<br />
Amour en son cœur s’installa.<br />
Un fier brigand de la contrée<br />
Vint alors et dit : Me voilà !<br />
Quelquefois les brigands surpassent<br />
En audace les chevaliers.<br />
- Enfants, voici des bœufs qui passent,<br />
Cachez vos rouges tabliers ! <o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br />
<br />
Il était laid : les traits austères,<br />
La main plus rude que le gant ;<br />
Mais l’amour a bien des mystères,<br />
Et la nonne aima le brigand.<br />
On voit des biches qui remplacent<br />
Leurs beaux cerfs par des sangliers.<br />
- Enfants, voici des bœufs qui passent,<br />
Cachez vos rouges tabliers !</span><br />
<span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br />
<br />
Pour franchir la sainte limite,<br />
Pour approcher du saint couvent,<br />
Souvent le brigand d’un ermite<br />
Prenait le cilice et souvent<br />
La cotte de maille où s’enchâssent<br />
Les croix noires des Templiers.<br />
- Enfants, voici des bœufs qui passent,<br />
Cachez vos rouges tabliers !</span><br />
<span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span>
<span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span>
<span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span>
<span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span><span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br />
<br />
La nonne osa, dit la chronique,<br />
Au brigand par l’enfer conduit,<br />
Aux pieds de sainte Véronique<br />
Donner un rendez-vous la nuit,<br />
À l’heure où les corbeaux croassent,<br />
Volant dans l’ombre par milliers.<br />
- Enfants, voici des bœufs qui passent,<br />
Cachez vos rouges tabliers !</span><br />
<span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span>
<span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span>
<span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 13.85pt;">Padilla voulait, anathème !</span></span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">
Oubliant sa vie en un jour,<br />
Se livrer, dans l’église même,<br />
Sainte à l’enfer, vierge à l’amour,<br />
Jusqu’à l’heure pâle où s’effacent<br />
Les cierges sur les chandeliers.<br />
- Enfants, voici des bœufs qui passent,<br />
Cachez vos rouges tabliers !</span><br />
<span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span>
<span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span>
<span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br />
<br />
Or quand, dans la nef descendue,<br />
La nonne appela le bandit,<br />
Au lieu de la voix attendue,<br />
C’est la foudre qui répondit.<br />
Dieu voulu que ses coups frappassent<br />
Les amants par Satan liés.<br />
- Enfants, voici des bœufs qui passent,<br />
Cachez vos rouges tabliers ! <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span>
<span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span>
<span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br />
<br />
Aujourd’hui, des fureurs divines<br />
Le pâtre enflammant ses récits,<br />
Vous montre au penchant des ravines<br />
Quelques tronçons de murs noircis,<br />
Deux clochers que les ans crevassent,<br />
Dont l’abri tuerait ses béliers.<br />
- Enfants, voici des bœufs qui passent,<br />
Cachez vos rouges tabliers !</span><br />
<span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span>
<span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span>
<span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span>
<span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span>
<span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">
<br />
Quand la nuit, du cloître gothique<br />
Brunissant les portails béants,<br />
Change à l’horizon fantastique<br />
Les deux clochers en deux géants ;<br />
À l’heure où les corbeaux croassent,<br />
Volant dans l’ombre par milliers...<br />
- Enfants, voici des bœufs qui passent,<br />
Cachez vos rouges tabliers !</span><br />
<span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span>
<span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span>
<span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br />
<br />
Une nonne, avec une lampe,<br />
Sort d’une cellule à minuit ;<br />
Le long des murs le spectre rampe,<br />
Un autre fantôme le suit ;<br />
Des chaînes sur leurs pieds s’amassent,<br />
De lourds carcans sont leurs colliers.<br />
- Enfants, voici des bœufs qui passent,<br />
Cachez vos rouges tabliers !</span><br />
<span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span>
<span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span>
<span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br />
<br />
La lampe vient, s’éclipse, brille,<br />
Sous les arceaux court se cacher,<br />
Puis tremble derrière une grille,<br />
Puis scintille au bout d’un clocher ;<br />
Et ses rayons dans l’ombre tracent<br />
Des fantômes multipliés.<br />
- Enfants, voici des bœufs qui passent,<br />
Cachez vos rouges tabliers !</span><br />
<span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span>
<span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span>
<span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span>
<span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br />
<br />
Les deux spectres qu’un feu dévore,<br />
Traînant leur suaire en lambeaux,<br />
Se cherchent pour s’unir encore,<br />
En trébuchant sur des tombeaux ;<br />
Leurs pas aveugles s’embarrassent<br />
Dans les marches des escaliers.<br />
- Enfants, voici des bœufs qui passent,<br />
Cachez vos rouges tabliers !</span><br />
<span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br />
<br />
Mais ce sont des escaliers fées,<br />
Qui sous eux s’embrouillent toujours ;<br />
L’un est aux caves étouffées,<br />
Quand l’autre marche au front des tours ;<br />
Sous leurs pieds, sans fin se déplacent<br />
Les étages et les paliers.<br />
- Enfants, voici des bœufs qui passent,<br />
Cachez vos rouges tabliers !</span><br />
<span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span>
<span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span>
<span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br />
<br />
Élevant leurs voix sépulcrales,</span><br />
<span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Se cherchant les bras étendus,<br />
Ils vont... Les magiques spirales<br />
Mêlent leurs pas toujours perdus ;<br />
Ils s’épuisent et se harassent<br />
En détours, sans cesse oubliés.<br />
- Enfants, voici des bœufs qui passent,<br />
Cachez vos rouges tabliers ! <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br />
<br />
La pluie alors, à larges gouttes,</span><br />
<span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Bat les vitraux frêles et froids ;<br />
Le vent siffle aux brèches des voûtes ;<br />
Une plainte sort des beffrois ;<br />
On entend des soupirs qui glacent,<br />
Des rires d’esprits familiers.<br />
- Enfants, voici des bœufs qui passent,<br />
Cachez vos rouges tabliers ! <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span>
<span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br />
Une voix faible, une voix haute,</span><br />
<span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Disent : « Quand finiront les jours ?<br />
Ah ! nous souffrons par notre faute ;<br />
Mais l’éternité, c’est toujours !<br />
Là, les mains des heures se lassent<br />
À retourner les sabliers... »<br />
- Enfants, voici des bœufs qui passent,<br />
Cachez vos rouges tabliers !</span><br />
<span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span>
<span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span>
<span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br />
<br />
L’enfer, hélas ! ne peut s’éteindre.</span><br />
<span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Toutes les nuits, dans ce manoir,<br />
Se cherchent sans jamais s’atteindre<br />
Une ombre blanche, un spectre noir,<br />
Jusqu’à l’heure pâle où s’effacent<br />
Les cierges sur les chandeliers.<br />
- Enfants, voici des bœufs qui passent,<br />
Cachez vos rouges tabliers !</span><br />
<span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span>
<span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span>
<span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br />
<br />
Si, tremblant à ces bruits étranges,<br />
Quelque nocturne voyageur,<br />
En se signant demande aux anges<br />
Sur qui sévit le Dieu vengeur,<br />
Des serpents de feu qui s’enlacent<br />
Tracent deux noms sur les piliers.<br />
- Enfants, voici des bœufs qui passent,<br />
Cachez vos rouges tabliers ! <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span>
<span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br />
<br />
Cette histoire de la novice,<br />
Saint Ildefonse, abbé, voulut<br />
Qu’afin de préserver du vice<br />
Les vierges qui font leur salut,<br />
Les prieures la racontassent<br />
Dans tous les couvents réguliers.<br />
- Enfants, voici des bœufs qui passent,<br />
Cachez vos rouges tabliers !</span><span lang="FR"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
</td>
<td style="border-left: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; width: 231.05pt;" valign="top" width="385"><div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Come near, you whose eyes sparkle
bright<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">To hear me tell a story again,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Gather round, I will tell the one<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Of Doña Padilla del Flor<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">She came from Alanje, where mount
up high<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">The hillsides and the brushland.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Children here are bullocks passing<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Cover your bright red pinafores.(3)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br />
There are girls in Grenada<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">There are some in Seville as well<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Who at the slightest serenade<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Are left begging love for mercy <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">And some of them chance to be
kissed<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">By bold suitors, at eventide.(4)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Children here are bullocks passing<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Cover your bright red pinafores.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">It is not in such light
manner<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">That we should speak of Padilla<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">For never a Spanish eye<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Has shone with a fire so chaste<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">She would flee from men who chased<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Girls beneath the poplar trees<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Children here are bullocks passing<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Cover your bright red pinafores.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Nothing could touch this steadfast
heart<br />
Not kindnesses nor merry chat<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">For a word from beautiful mouth<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">For a sign from two lovely eyes<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">They knew there was nothing doing<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">The noblemen and the scholars<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Children here are bullocks passing<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Cover your bright red pinafores.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">In Toledo she took the veil<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">To shocked sighs from the local men<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">As if, when one is not ugly,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">You’d no right to get wed to God<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">They were very close to tears<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Both the roughnecks and the scholars<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Children here are bullocks passing<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Cover your bright red pinafores.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">But she would say:”Far from the
world<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">To live and pray for the wicked!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">What happiness! What deep peace!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">In the praying and in the chants!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">There if the demons threaten us<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">The angels are our shields!”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Children here are bullocks passing<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Cover your bright red pinafores.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br />
Now, scarce was the maid in cloisters,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Love in her heart found a firm
place<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">A proud brigand from thereabouts<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Then turned up and said: « Here I
am! ».<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Sometimes brigands go far beyond<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Noble knights in audacity<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Children here are bullocks passing<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Cover your bright red pinafores.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">He was ugly : his looks austere<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">His hand rougher than a glove<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">But love has mysteries aplenty<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">And the nun fell for the brigand<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">You see female deer who oust<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Handsome bucks to be with wild boar<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Children here are bullocks passing<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Cover your bright red pinafores.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: 12.0pt;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br />
To cross the holy boundary<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">To approach the holy convent<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Oft the brigand from a hermit<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Would take the cassock and often<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">The coat of mail in which are set<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">The black crosses of the Templars<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">- Children here are bullocks
passing<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Cover your bright red pinafores.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br />
<!--[if !supportLineBreakNewLine]--><br />
<!--[endif]--><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">The nun dared, so the chronicle
tells,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">With the brigand, under hell’s lead<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">At the feet of St. Veronique<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">To arrange a night rendez-vous,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">At the hour when the crows caw loud<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Flying thousands strong in the
dark.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Children here are bullocks passing<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Cover your bright red pinafores.<br />
<br />
</span><span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Padilla wanted- anathema !<u1:p></u1:p><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Forgetting her life in one day<u1:p></u1:p><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">To give herself in the church itself<u1:p></u1:p><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Sacred for hell, virginal for love,<u1:p></u1:p><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Until the pale hour when burn out<u1:p></u1:p><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">The candles on the candlesticks<u1:p></u1:p><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Children here are bullocks passing<u1:p></u1:p><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: 12.0pt;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Cover your bright red pinafores</span><span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br />
Now when, having walked down the nave<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">The nun called out for the bandit’<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"> Instead of the voice expected<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">T’was a thunderbolt which replied<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">God wished its blasts to
strike down<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">The lovers by Satan conjoined<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Children here are bullocks passing<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Cover your bright red pinafores.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: 12.0pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Nowadays, with furies divine<u1:p></u1:p><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">The shepherd impassioning his tales<u1:p></u1:p><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Points out on the slope of the ravines<u1:p></u1:p><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">A few remains of blackened walls<u1:p></u1:p><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Two steeples that the years have gnawed<u1:p></u1:p><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Whose shelter would kill his rams<u1:p></u1:p><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Children here are bullocks passing<u1:p></u1:p><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Cover your bright red pinafores.<u1:p></u1:p><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">When night, on the gothic cloister<u1:p></u1:p><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Burnishing the gaping portals<u1:p></u1:p><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Changes on the eery horizon<u1:p></u1:p><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">The two steeples to two giants<u1:p></u1:p><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">At time of day when the crows caw loud<u1:p></u1:p><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Flying in thousands in the darkness<u1:p></u1:p><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Children here are bullocks passing<u1:p></u1:p><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Cover your bright red pinafores.<u1:p></u1:p><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">A nun, holding a lamp<u1:p></u1:p><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Comes from a cell on midnight<u1:p></u1:p><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Along the walls the spectre creeps<u1:p></u1:p><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Another phantom follows<u1:p></u1:p><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Chains upon their feet are stacked<u1:p></u1:p><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Heavy iron yokes form their collars<u1:p></u1:p><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Children here are bullocks passing<u1:p></u1:p><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Cover your bright red pinafores.<u1:p></u1:p></span><span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #666666; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 13.85pt;">The lamp comes, is hid, shines</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Neath the arches runs for cover<u1:p></u1:p><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Then dithers behind a grill<u1:p></u1:p><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Then sparkles at the end of a steeple<u1:p></u1:p><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">And its beams in the darkness trace<u1:p></u1:p><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Phantoms in countless numbers<u1:p></u1:p><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Children here are bullocks passing<u1:p></u1:p><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Cover
your bright red pinafores.<u1:p></u1:p><o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">The two spectres devoured by fire<u1:p></u1:p><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Trailing their shrouds in tatters<u1:p></u1:p><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Seek once more to be together<u1:p></u1:p><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Staggering over the tombstones ;<u1:p></u1:p><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Their blind footsteps lose their way<u1:p></u1:p><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">On the steps of the stairways<u1:p></u1:p><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Children here are bullocks passing<u1:p></u1:p><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Cover
your bright red pinafores.<u1:p></u1:p><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 13.85pt;">But these are fairy staircases</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">In confused tangle neath them,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">One to the suffocating cellars<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">When the other leads to the front
of the towers.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Beneath their feet is a constant
shift<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Of levels and of landings.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Children here are bullocks passing<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Cover your bright red pinafores.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #666666; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 13.85pt;">Raising their sepulcral voices</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Seeking each other, arms outstretched,<u1:p></u1:p><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">They go… The magic spirals<u1:p></u1:p><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Merge their steps forever lost:<u1:p></u1:p><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Grown weary they exhaust themselves<u1:p></u1:p><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">In detours, always forgotten<u1:p></u1:p><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Children here are bullocks passing<u1:p></u1:p><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Cover your bright red pinafores.<u1:p></u1:p><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">The rain falls then in big drops<u1:p></u1:p><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Beats the stained panes frail and cold<u1:p></u1:p><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">The wind whistles through gaps in vaults<u1:p></u1:p><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">A moan comes from the belfries<u1:p></u1:p><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">One hears sighs which make blood run cold<u1:p></u1:p><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Laughter of ghostly spirits. –<u1:p></u1:p><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Children here are bullocks passing<u1:p></u1:p><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Cover
your bright red pinafores.<u1:p></u1:p><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">One voice weak, one voice loud<u1:p></u1:p><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Say : “When are the days to end?”<u1:p></u1:p><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Ah ! We suffer through our own fault<u1:p></u1:p><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">But eternity, is forever!<u1:p></u1:p><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">There the hands grow weary<u1:p></u1:p> turning<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Over the sandglasses of time ….<u1:p></u1:p><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Children here are bullocks passing<u1:p></u1:p><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Cover your bright red pinafores.<u1:p></u1:p><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #666666; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 13.85pt;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #666666; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 13.85pt;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #666666; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 13.85pt;">Hell alas can never burn out</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">All the nights in this old house<u1:p></u1:p><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">They seek each other never to touch<u1:p></u1:p><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">A shadow white, a spectre black<u1:p></u1:p><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Until the pale hour when die out<u1:p></u1:p><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">The candles upon their candlesticks<u1:p></u1:p><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Children here are bullocks passing<u1:p></u1:p><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: 12.0pt;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Cover
your bright red pinafores.<u1:p></u1:p><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.85pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Cover your bright red pinafores.</span><span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><o:p> </o:p><b style="text-indent: 36pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Please
click <a href="http://dbarf.blogspot.co.uk/2012/05/alphabetical-list-of-my-brassens-songs.html" target="_blank">here to return to the alphabetical list of my Brassens selection</a></span></b></span></div>
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<br />David Yendleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09171810352548143316noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3675807832604868087.post-18403779684180354282009-04-28T00:55:00.008+01:002017-09-16T11:02:14.998+01:00La mauvaise herbe - The famous song where he portrays himself as the social outcast<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">This is another of Brassens' songs that was banned on French radio. It is not hard to imagine why.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">In this song, Brassens asks people to allow some space and tolerance to individualists, like him, who cannot accept the conventional values of society. He feels indifferent to patriotism and has no respect for conventional sexual morality. He has a natural affinity with those whose life-style gets them looked down upon as outsiders. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><strong>La mauvaise herbe</strong> – The worthless weed (1)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Quand l' jour de gloire est arrivé, (2)<br />Comm' tous les autr's étaient crevés,<br />Moi seul connus le déshonneur <br />De n' pas êtr' mort au champ d'honneur. <br /><br /><br />Je suis d'la mauvaise herbe,<br />Braves gens, braves gens,<br />C'est pas moi qu'on rumine<br />Et c'est pas moi qu'on met en gerbe...(3)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">La mort faucha les autres <br />Braves gens, braves gens,<br />Et me fit grâce à moi, <br />C'est immoral et c'est comm' ça !<br />La la la la la la la la <br /><br /><br />Et je m' demand' <br />Pourquoi, Bon Dieu,<br />Ça vous dérange (5)<br />Que j' vive un peu... <br />Et je m' demand' <br />Pourquoi, Bon Dieu,<br />Ça vous dérange <br />Que j' vive un peu...<br /><br /><br /><br />La fille à tout l'monde(6) a bon coeur, <br />Ell' me donne, au petit bonheur<br />Les p'tits bouts d' sa peau, bien cachés,<br />Que les autres n'ont pas touchés. <br /><br /><br />Je suis d'la mauvaise herbe,<br />Braves gens, braves gens,<br />C'est pas moi qu'on rumine<br />Et c'est pas moi qu'on met en gerbe...<br /><br /><br />Elle se vend aux autres,<br />Braves gens, braves gens, <br />Elle se donne à moi, <br />C'est immoral et c'est comme ça !<br />La la la la la la la la <br /><br /><br />Et je m' demand' <br />Pourquoi, Bon Dieu,<br />Ça vous dérange<br />Qu'on m'aime un peu.<br />Et je m' demand'<br />Pourquoi, Bon Dieu,<br />Ça vous dérange<br />Qu'on m'aime un peu..<br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Les hommes sont faits, nous dit-on, <br />Pour vivre en band', comm' les moutons.<br />Moi, j' vis seul, et c'est pas demain<br />Que je suivrai leur droit chemin. <br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Je suis d'la mauvaise herbe,<br />Braves gens, braves gens,<br />C'est pas moi qu'on rumine<br />Et c'est pas moi qu'on met en gerbe...<br /><br /><br />Je suis d' la mauvaise herbe,<br />Braves gens, braves gens,<br />Je pousse en liberté<br />Dans les jardins mal fréquentés ! <br />La la la la la la la la <br /><br /><br />Et je m' demand' <br />Pourquoi, Bon Dieu,<br />Ça vous dérange<br />Que j' vive un peu... <br />Et je m' demand' <br />Pourquoi, Bon Dieu,<br />Ça vous dérange<br />Que j' vive un peu... <br /><br /><br /><br />Georges Brassens from the album<br />(1954) - Les amoureux des bancs publics</span></td>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">And me it left unharmed, <br />It’s immoral - it's how things go!<br />La la la la la la la la.<br /><br /><br />And I wonder<br />Why then, Good Lord,<br />It upsets you<br />That I live a bit <br />And I wonder<br />Why, Good Lord, <br />It upsets you <br />That I live a bit<br /><br /><br /><br /><br />The girl enjoyed by all all is kind,<br />She offers me, when I’m in luck,<br />Her littl' bits of skin well hidden <br />That the other men have not touched.<br /><br /><br />I'm a mere worthless weed</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Goodly folk, goodly folk,<br />It’s not I, gets chewed t’cud <br />And I'm not what gets put in sheaves.<br /><br /><br />She charges other men,<br />Goodly folk, goodly folk,</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">For what she gives to me.<br />It’s immoral , that’s how things go!<br />La la la la la la la la<br /><br /><br />And I wonder<br />Why then, Good Lord,<br />It upsets you<br />I get loved a bit<br />And I wonder<br />Why, Good Lord,<br />It upsets you<br />I get loved a bit<br /><br /><br /><br /><br />All men are made, they tell us,<br />To live in flocks, the way sheep do, <br />I live alone and it's not soon,<br />That I'll be foll’wing their strait path. <br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />I'm a mere worthless weed</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Goodly folk, goodly folk,<br />It’s not I, gets chewed t’cud <br />And I'm not what gets put in sheaves.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /><br />I'm a mere worthless weed</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Goodly folk, goodly folk,<br />I grow entirely free <br />In gardens where few folk venture!<br />La la la la la la la la <br /><br /><br />And I wonder<br />Why then, Good Lord,<br />It upsets you<br />That I live a bit<br />And I wonder<br />Why, Good Lord,<br />It upsets you<br />That I live a bit</span></td>
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<b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Translation Notes<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">(1) “La mauvaise herbe” means “the weed”, but I put “worthless” in
front because of image conveyed in English when the epithet is applied to a
person - we think of some-one weak and ineffectual. This is not appropriate for
the powerful physical presence and personality of Brassens. In reality, weeds
are often the biggest and sturdiest plants in our gardens and I suppose that
some-one described as a weed ought to feel quite flattered.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">(2) “Le jour de gloire est arrive” – a well-known line in the French
National Anthem- <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">(3) The “Good people” are not weeds like the author of the poem. The
contrasting image for these worthy folk is the corn of the fields. They have a
useful purpose in the world, just as the corn feeds the cattle and yields a
fruitful harvest, evidenced by the sheaves in the fields.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">(4) « Faire grâce à » means « to spare ». <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">(5) “Ça vous derange” – The “you” he is addressing is not primarily God
but all the worthy people who might disapprove of him and his conduct- in which
case “Good God” would seem to be more of an exclamation.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">(6) The girl who sells herself to everyone has put herself outside the
bounds of respectable society. She recognises that he is a fellow outsider. In
their natural fellowship, the poet and the prostitute enjoy an uninhibited and
sincere relationship.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Brassens had depicted himself as an outsider in his song collection of the previous year with his song; "<a href="http://brassenswithenglish.blogspot.com/2008/02/la-mauvaise-rputation.html">La mauvaise reputation</a>".</span><br />
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: "cambria" , "serif"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">Please <a href="http://dbarf.blogspot.co.uk/2012/05/alphabetical-list-of-my-brassens-songs.html" target="_blank">clickhere to return to the full alphabetical list</a> of my Georges Brassens selection<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></div>
David Yendleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09171810352548143316noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3675807832604868087.post-75758296004421796522009-03-16T22:26:00.014+00:002017-09-16T11:07:52.937+01:00 Mourir pour des idées- a deeply felt song where he pleads for tolerance and restraintMourir pour des idées <br />
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A heartfelt poem against those who propagate suicidal ideals.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Brassens tells us that after the hostile response he has had after writing two recent songs (“Les deux oncles” and “<a href="http://brassenswithenglish.blogspot.co.uk/2009/03/la-tondue.html" target="_blank">La tondue</a>”) he has decided to change his standpoint and accept that it’s a good idea to die for an ideology, his only proviso being that death should be a lifetime in coming. The song goes on to justify this delay.<br />
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<b><span lang="FR">Mourir pour des idées<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span lang="FR">Mourir pour des idées,
l'idée est excellente. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="FR">Moi j'ai failli mourir de
ne l'avoir pas eue,(1)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="FR">Car tous ceux qui
l'avaient, multitude accablante,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="FR">En hurlant à la mort me
sont tombés dessus. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="FR">Ils ont su me convaincre
et ma muse insolente, <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="FR">Abjurant ses erreurs, se
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<span lang="FR">Avec un soupçon de réserve
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<span lang="FR">Mourons pour des idées,
d'accord, mais de mort lente,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="FR">D'accord, mais de mort
lente.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="FR">Jugeant qu'il n'y a pas
péril en la demeure(2),<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="FR">Allons vers l'autre monde
en flânant en chemin<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="FR">Car, à forcer l'allure, il
arrive qu'on meure<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR">Pour des idées n'ayant
plus cours le lendemain. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR">Or, s'il est une chose
amère, désolante, <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR">En rendant l'âme à Dieu
c'est bien de constater<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR">Qu'on a fait fausse route,
qu'on s'est trompé d'idée,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR">Mourons pour des idées,
d'accord, mais de mort lente,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR">D'accord, mais de mort
lente.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR">Les Saint Jean Bouche d'Or
qui prêchent le martyre,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR">Le plus souvent,
d'ailleurs, s'attardent ici-bas.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR">Mourir pour des idées, c'est
le cas de le dire,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR">C'est leur raison de
vivre, ils ne s'en privent pas.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR">Dans presque tous les
camps on en voit qui supplantent<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR">Bientôt Mathusalem dans la
longévité.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR">J'en conclus qu'ils
doivent se dire, en aparté (2)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR">"Mourons pour des
idées, d'accord, mais de mort lente, <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR">D'accord, mais de mort
lente.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR">Des idées réclamant le
fameux sacrifice,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR">Les sectes de tout poil en
offrent des séquelles,(3) <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR">Et la question se pose aux
victimes novices (4)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR">Mourir pour des idées,
c'est bien beau mais lesquelles ?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR">Et comme toutes sont entre
elles ressemblantes,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR">Quand il les voit venir,
avec leur gros drapeau,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR">Le sage, en hésitant,
tourne autour du tombeau. </span>(5)</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR">Mourons pour des idées,
d'accord, mais de mort lente, <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR">D'accord, mais de mort
lente.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR">Encor s'il suffisait de
quelques hécatombes (6)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR">Pour qu'enfin tout
changeât, qu'enfin tout s'arrangeât ! <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR">Depuis tant de grands
soirs que tant de têtes tombent, (7)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR">Au paradis sur terre on y
serait déjà<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR">Mais l'âge d'or sans cesse
est remis aux calendes, <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR">Les dieux ont toujours
soif, (8)n'en ont jamais assez,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR">Et c'est la mort, la mort
toujours recommencée...<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR">Mourons pour des idées,
d'accord, mais de mort lente, <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR">D'accord, mais de mort
lente.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR">Ô vous, les boutefeux, ô
vous les bons apôtres, <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR">Mourez donc les premiers,
nous vous cédons le pas. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR">Mais de grâce, morbleu !
laissez vivre les autres,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR"> </span>La vie est à peu près leur
seul luxe ici-bas ;</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR">Car, enfin, la Camarde est
assez vigilante,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR">Elle n'a pas besoin qu'on
lui tienne la faux.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR">Plus de danse macabre
autour des échafauds !<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR">Mourons pour des idées,
d'accord, mais de mort lente, <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR">D'accord, mais de mort
lente.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
1972 – Fernande.</div>
</td>
<td style="border-left: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; width: 231.05pt;" valign="top" width="385"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
To die for your ideas. The idea is excellent</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
But I came close to dying for not having one, </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
For all those who had it, an overwhelming mass,</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
While howling for my blood came at me with full force.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
They managed to convince me, and my insolent muse </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Recanting her mistakes, rallies to their belief</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
With one tiny proviso all the same </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Let us die for ideas, fine! but let death come slow</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Fine! But, let death come slow. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Judging that there’s is no great risk in hanging on </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Let us go to the other world taking our time</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Because, forcing the pace, chance is that you might die </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
For ideas, no longer current on the morrow.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Now if there is a thing, bitter, and heart-breaking</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
On rendering one’s soul to God, it’s to find out </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
That you went wrong and latched onto the wrong idea.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Let us die for ideas, fine! but let death come slow</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Fine! But, let death come slow. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
The Saint John Chrysotoms (3) who preach for martyrdoms</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Most often, besides, dawdle down here on earth.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
To die for ideas, we are quite
right to say so</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Is their reason for living, they won’t do without.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
In almost all the groups, you see some supplanting </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Soon Methuselah’s record for longevity.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
I conclude that they must whisper to each other:</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Let us die for ideas, fine! but let death come slow</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Fine!! But, let death come slow. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Ideas demanding the supreme sacrifice <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Sects of every ilk offer followers of these<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
And the question is asked of the novice victims: <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
To die for ideas, is very nice - but which?<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
And as they are all alike, one with the other <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
When he sees them coming, with their great big standard<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
The wise man, hesitating, gives the tomb more time.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Let us die for ideas, fine! but let death come slow<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Fine! But, let death come slow<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Again, if it took only a few mass slaughters<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
For all at last to change, all at last be put right<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Since so many grand nights when so many heads fell <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
In our heaven on earth we’d be already there<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
But the golden age is postponed constantly<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
The gods are still athirst, have never had enough <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
And it is death, death, over and over again<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Let us die for ideas, fine! but let death come slow<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Fine! But, let death come slow</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Oh you firebrands, oh you the good apostles,<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Be the first to die then, we stand aside for you.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
But for mercy’s sake, heavens! allow the rest to live.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Life is nearly their sole luxury down here<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
For in truth, the grim reaper keeps close enough watch enough<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
She does not need people to hold for her the scythe<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
No more dance macabre around the grim scaffolds<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Let us die for ideas, fine! but let death come slow<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Fine! But, let death come slow<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
</td>
</tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<br />
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="background: white; margin-left: 39pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -21pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-size: 12pt;">(1)<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-size: 12pt;">When Brassens says he
almost died for not having ideas, he is referring to the violent reception he
was given after writing his song "Les Deux Oncles", in which he asked
for equal sympathy for one of his uncles who died fighting for the Allied cause
and a second who died fighting for the Fascist cause. The ideas that he expressed
towards the war caused great anger in the majority of the population.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="background: white; margin-left: 39pt; text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="background: white; margin-left: 39pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -21pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-size: 12pt;">(2)<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">la demeure –the general meaning is “dwelling”, but it
has a secondary meaning of a legal delay or stay. Il n'y a pas péril en la demeure is an
idiom meaning « One is not
taking any risk by waiting » </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="background: white; margin-left: 39pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -21pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-size: 12pt;">(3)<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Saint John Chrysotom
the 14th century bishop was known as the “Golden Mouth” on account of the power
of his oratory. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="background: white; margin-left: 39pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -21pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-size: 12pt;">(4)<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-size: 12pt;">En aparté : When
something is said as an aside on the stage, so that, in theory, the audience
can hear but the characters in the play cannot. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="background: white; margin-left: 39pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -21pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-size: 12pt;">(5)<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Les séquelles usually
means consequences, things that follow. Brassens is using its archaic meaning
of “followers”. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="background: white; margin-left: 39pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -21pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-size: 12pt;">(6)<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Brassens’ little
joke. Martyrdom is something you can’t build up experience in. All martyrs are
novices. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="background: white; margin-left: 39pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -21pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-size: 12pt;">(7)<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-size: 12pt;">tourne autour du
tombeau. There are two ideas in this line. Collins Robert tells us that “Un
individu tourne autour de la maison depuis une heure” means some-one has been
hanging around outside the house for an hour. The phrase could also link with
the expression: “tourner autour du pot” = take your time about what you are
going to do. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="background: white; margin-left: 39pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -21pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-size: 12pt;">(8)<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Hécatombes- A
hecatomb was originally a sacrifice to the ancient Greek and Roman gods of 100
oxen or cattle. Brassens uses it in its modern meaning of a mass slaughter. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="background: white; margin-left: 39pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -21pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span lang="FR" style="font-size: 12pt;">(9)<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Brassens is talking about
the frenzied slaughter of the French Revolution. The alliteration of the “t” in
this line is the drumbeat as heads fall.
</span><span lang="FR" style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="background: white; margin-left: 39pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -21pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span lang="FR" style="font-size: 12pt;">(10)<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> « Les dieux ont soif » is Anatole France’s
brilliant novel about the period of the Terror. I have a summary of the book on
my literature website. </span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="background: white; margin-left: 39pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -21pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-size: 12pt;">To read the summary -it's
long!- </span><span style="background-color: transparent;">- </span><a href="http://www.d-barfield.co.uk/Les%20dieux%20ont%20soif%20-Summary.html" style="background-color: transparent;">click here</a></div>
<br />
<strong><br /></strong>
<br />
<h3 style="text-align: center;">
<strong>A Footnote</strong></h3>
Arthur Koestler made this comment about ideologies:<br />
<br />
.<b><i>.... the crimes of violence committed for selfish, personal motives are historically insignificant compared to those committed ad majorem gloriam Dei, out of a self-sacrificing devotion to the flag, a leader, a religious faith or political conviction.</i></b><br />
<br />
Click <a href="http://dbarf.blogspot.co.uk/2012/05/alphabetical-list-of-my-brassens-songs.html" target="_blank">here to return to the full index of Brassens songs on this blog</a><br />
<br />David Yendleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09171810352548143316noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3675807832604868087.post-17282681513577490012009-03-16T13:17:00.017+00:002017-04-18T21:24:04.567+01:00 La Tondue - His disgust at the reprisals after the Liberation of France<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_5gF5voOaOUM/Sb5T9gfm3kI/AAAAAAAAAI8/NEG8jS_WrRI/s1600-h/Collaborators+2.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5313776926503394882" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/_5gF5voOaOUM/Sb5T9gfm3kI/AAAAAAAAAI8/NEG8jS_WrRI/s320/Collaborators+2.jpg" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer; float: left; height: 320px; margin: 0 10px 10px 0; width: 258px;" /></a><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">After the liberation of France from the Germans, there was a period when groups of people in France took the law into their own hands and settled scores against those who were accused of collaboration. In some cases people were arbitrarily condemned and then lined up against the wall and shot.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> Among the victims of these reprisals were women who had fraternised with the Germans. Some of these, we are told, were prostitutes who had worked in military brothels -as if this would excuse this public cruelty!- many were just ordinary girls who had fallen for the charms of young men of another nationality. The punishment for these women is described by Brassens.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">In this song Brassens expresses his shock at the cruelty of which groups of people are capable in the grip of a strong. self-righteous, idea.</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">La tondue -The girl with the shaven head</span></b></div>
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<td style="border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; width: 231.05pt;" valign="top" width="385"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">La belle qui
couchait avec le roi de Prusse,(1)<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Avec le roi
de Prusse,<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">À qui l'on a
tondu le crâne rasibus,<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Le crâne
rasibus,<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="FR" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: FR;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Son penchant prononcé pour les "ich liebe dich
", (2)<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Pour les
"ich liebe dich ",<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Lui valut de
porter quelques cheveux postiches, <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Quelques
cheveux postiches.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Les braves
sans-culottes, et les bonnets phrygiens, (3)<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Et les
bonnets phrygiens,<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Ont livré sa
crinière à un tondeur de chiens,<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">À un tondeur
de chiens.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="FR" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: FR;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">J'aurais dû prendre un peu parti pour sa toison,<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Parti pour
sa toison,<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">J'aurais dû
dire un mot pour sauver son chignon,<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Pour sauver
son chignon,<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="FR" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: FR;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Mais je n'ai pas bougé du fond de ma torpeur,<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Du fond de
ma torpeur.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Les coupeurs
de cheveux en quatre (4) m'ont fait peur,<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">En quatre
m'ont fait peur.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="FR" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: FR;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Quand, pire qu'une brosse, elle eut été tondue,<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Elle eut été
tondue,<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">J'ai dit :
" C'est malheureux, ces accroch'-cœur(5) perdus,<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Ces
accroch'-coeur perdus. "<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Et,
ramassant l'un d'eux qui traînait dans l'ornière,<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Qui traînait
dans l'ornière,<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Je l'ai,
comme une fleur, mis à ma boutonnière,<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Mis à ma
boutonnière.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">En me voyant
partir arborant mon toupet,<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Arborant mon
toupet (6)<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Tous ces
coupeurs de natt's m'ont pris pour un suspect,<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">M'ont pris
pour un suspect.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="FR" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: FR;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Comme de la patrie je ne mérite guère,<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Je ne mérite
guère<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">J'ai pas la
Croix d'Honneur, j'ai pas la Croix de Guerre,<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">J'ai pas la
Croix de Guerre,<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Et je n'en
souffre pas avec trop de rigueur,<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Avec trop de
rigueur.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="FR" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: FR;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">J'ai ma rosette (7) à moi : c'est un accroche-coeur,<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">C'est un
accroche-coeur.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Georges
Brassens<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">1964 – from the
album: Les copains d'abord.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
</div>
</td>
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<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The pretty
girl who'd slept with the king of Prussia<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">With the
king of Prussia<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Whose skull the people shaved as bald as a coot<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Skull bald
as a coot<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Her marked preference
for repeats of "ich liebe dich "<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Repeat
"ich liebe dich ",<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Meant her
wearing different mops of hair, not her own<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Mops of hair
not her own.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The brave
sans-culottes and the bonnets phrygiens<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">And the
bonnets phrygiens<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Handed her flowing
locks to a man who sheared dogs<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">To a man who
sheared dogs.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I ought ‘have
sided a bit for her gorgeous mane <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Have sided for
her mane ,.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I ought ‘have
said a word to save her tight curls<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">To save her tight
curls.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">But I just did
not budge from out of my torpor<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">From out of my torpor<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The extremist
hair cutters put the wind up me <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">They put the
wind up me..<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">When worse
than down to a crew-cut, she’d been shaven<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">She had been
shaven<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I said “It's
a shame, those kiss curls to go to waste<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Kiss curls
to go to waste “<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">And picking
one up, left behind in the tyre ruts<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">One left in
the tyre ruts,<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I placed it
like a flower, in my buttonhole<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Placed in my
buttonhole<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">On seeing me
leave, displaying my trophy<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Displaying
my trophy,<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">All those
cutters of plaits, eyed me with suspicion<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Eyed me with
suspicion.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">As of my country
I’m hardly deserving<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I’m hardly
deserving<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I've no
Medal of Honour, I've no Medal of War<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I've no
Medal of War<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">And I’m not
troubled about that overmuch<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Not troubled
overmuch<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I have a
rosette of my own : it's a girl’s kiss curl<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">It's a
girl’s kiss curl.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<b><span lang="FR" style="font-family: "cambria" , serif; font-size: 12pt;">TRANSLATION NOTES<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 10.0pt;"><br />
</span><span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-size: 12pt;">(1) Le roi de Prusse. </span><span style="color: #666666; font-size: 12pt;">Brassens just means a German soldier, not necessarily
a man of rank. A number of explanations have been given for
this device. My own feeling is that it conveys the romantic view of the French girl
in love of her German lover.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br />
<span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;">(2) "ich liebe dich ". This phrase, of
course, says « Je’t’aime</span> in German.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br />
<span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;">(3) Les braves sans-culottes, et les bonnets
phrygiens. </span></span><span style="color: #666666; font-size: 12pt;">In this line Brassens identifies the masses of ordinary
people who joined in the violent reprisals against alleged collaborators with
the “sans-culottes” of the Revolution of 1789. They were then given this name
because they didn't wear upper class breeches or “culottes”. The Phrygian
bonnet was a symbol adopted by the 18th Century Revolution because it was worn at
the time of the Roman Empire by former slaves who had been freed. Brassens
aroused the anger of left wing activists by his depiction of them in this song.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br />
</span><span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-size: 12pt;">(4) Les coupeurs de cheveux en quatre. </span><span style="color: #666666; font-size: 12pt;">« En quatre » is used
in a number of expressions to mean to the highest degree (for example “se
mettre en quatre pour quelq’un” = to do your utmost for some-one. If Brassens
was indeed threatened in 1945, he would not have been the first choice for
bullies to pick on. For a time, Brassens was employed as a bodyguard for
Jean-Paul Sartre.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br />
<span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;">(5) Soft kiss curls. I put in the adjective to
give me a 3 syllable translation.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br />
<span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;">(6) Toupet has 2 meanings (a) tuft of hair (b) impudence.
His gesture with the locket of hair was recognised by these administrators of
rough justice as an act of defiance.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br />
<span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;">(7) A Rosette is an insignia of honour in the
military and in the Légion d’honneur.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<strong>The job completed, the girl is led through the streets with her Franco-German baby.</strong><br />
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_5gF5voOaOUM/Sb5UXkOzjRI/AAAAAAAAAJE/BmVyvdYgmNE/s1600-h/La+tondue+the+finished+job.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" height="339" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_
5313777374183263506" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/_5gF5voOaOUM/Sb5UXkOzjRI/AAAAAAAAAJE/BmVyvdYgmNE/s400/La+tondue+the+finished+job.jpg" style="float: left; margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px;" width="400" /></a><strong><br /></strong>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-LN2qWpD9C48/V7mUt35FXlI/AAAAAAAABYs/6GlyCv5IkHQNZTE6eUEdMBmKvembA4vLgCLcB/s1600/Head%2Bshorn%2Bwomen.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="263" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-LN2qWpD9C48/V7mUt35FXlI/AAAAAAAABYs/6GlyCv5IkHQNZTE6eUEdMBmKvembA4vLgCLcB/s320/Head%2Bshorn%2Bwomen.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<strong>FOOTNOTE</strong></div>
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<strong><br /></strong></div>
Arthur Koestler has said:<br />
..... the evils of mankind are caused, not by the primary aggressiveness of individuals, but by their self-transcending identification with groups whose common denominator is low intelligence and high emotionality.<br />
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<b><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Please
<a href="http://dbarf.blogspot.co.uk/2012/05/alphabetical-list-of-my-brassens-songs.html" target="_blank">click here to return to the alphabetical list of my Brassens selection</a></span></b><b><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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David Yendleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09171810352548143316noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3675807832604868087.post-25136226369966780652009-01-20T11:39:00.034+00:002017-09-16T11:08:18.549+01:00La chasse aux papillons<div style="text-align: center;">
<strong><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">La chasse aux papillons</span> </strong></div>
<br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Brassens is usually pessimistic about the permanence of human love but in this merry, bawdy song he suggests that extreme sexual passion is able to weld a couple together, fate willing, in a happy, lasting union.</span><br />
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Un bon petit diable à la
fleur de l'âge,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">La jambe légère et l'oeil
polisson, <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Et la bouche plein' de
joyeux ramages,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Allait à la chasse aux
papillons.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Comme il atteignait l'orée
du village,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Filant sa quenouille,(1)
il vit Cendrillon,(2)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Il lui dit : « Bonjour,
que Dieu te ménage,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">J' t'emmène à la chasse
aux papillons.»<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Cendrillon, ravie de
quitter sa cage(3) <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Met sa robe neuve et ses
botillons ;<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Et bras d'ssus bras
d'ssous vers les frais bocages<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Ils vont à la chasse aux
papillons.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Ils ne savaient pas que
sous les ombrages,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Se cachait l'amour et son
aiguillon,(4)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Et qu'il transperçait les
coeurs de leur âge,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Les coeurs des chasseurs
de papillons.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Quand il se fit tendre,
ell' lui dit : « J' présage<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Qu' c'est pas dans les
plis de mon cotillon,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Ni dans l'échancrure de
mon corsage,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Qu'on va-t-à la chasse aux
papillons. »<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Sur sa bouche en feu qui
criait : « Sois sage ! »<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Il posa sa bouche en guis'
de bâillon,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Et c' fut l' plus charmant
des remue-ménage<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Qu'on ait vus d' mémoire
de papillon.(5)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Un volcan dans l'âme, i'
r'vinr'nt au village,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">En se promettant d'aller
des millions,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Des milliards de fois, et
mêm' davantage,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Ensemble à la chasse aux
papillons.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Mais tant qu'ils
s'aim'ront, tant que les nuages<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Porteurs de chagrins les épargneront,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Il' f'ra bon voler dans
les frais bocages,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I' f'ront pas la chasse
aux papillons..<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span lang="FR"> </span>Georges Brassens</span></div>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">(1953 - La mauvaise réputation)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">A right little devil in the prime of his life<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Nimble of limb and mischief in his eye<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">And mouth replete with the merriest of banter<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Was off on the chase of the butterflies.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">As he was approaching the edge of the village<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Threading her distaff, he saw Cind’rella<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">He said to her « Good day, may the Good Lord keep thee.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I’m taking thee to chase the butterflies"<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Cind’rella, delighted to escape her cage<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Puts on her new dress and her new bootees<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">And arms linked together, to the cool, leafy groves,</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">They go off on the chase of butterflies.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">They did know that under the thick foliage<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Cupid was hiding with his goading spear<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">And that he was wont to target hearts when young like theirs<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The hearts of the hunters of butterflies.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">When he grew romantic, she said to him: « I sense<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">It’s not in the folds of my petticoat,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Neither down the front of the bodice of my dress,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">That you go on the hunt for butterflies »<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Upon her mouth on fire which cried out « Behave now !»<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">He placed his mouth to gag her further words<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">And it turned into the most charming of frolics<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Seen in the memory of butterfly.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Volcanos in their hearts they made their way back home<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Pledging to each other to go, millions,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Nay, billions of times and even more than that,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Off together in chase of butterflies<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">While they love each other, as long as the dark clouds<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Bearers of life’s woes show mercy on them<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">It will be nice to fly to cool and leafy groves.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">They won’t be chasing any butterflies…. </span></div>
</td>
</tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<h3 style="text-align: center;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">TRANSLATION
NOTES </span></h3>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18.0pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]-->1<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">)<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal;">
</span><!--[endif]-->sa quenouille
- Her distaff, which is a tool used in spinning. It is designed to hold
the unspun fibres, keeping them untangled (Wikipedia).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18.0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18.0pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">2)<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal;">
</span><!--[endif]-->Cendrillon is Cinderella. Stories of a girl that goes from rags to riches
date back to antiquity. The great French
writer, Charles Perrault (1628- 1703), who transcribed traditional tales wrote
the story: Cendrillon ou la Petite
Pantoufle de verre .<i> (Below) Cinderella runs from the ball at midnight. An illustration from the French story drawn by Elena Ringo</i></span><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-EgKjQ0FjZ1k/VPoDbzFJCkI/AAAAAAAABII/X2Y7YPMinGQ/s1600/Cinderella_by_Elena_Ringo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="290" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-EgKjQ0FjZ1k/VPoDbzFJCkI/AAAAAAAABII/X2Y7YPMinGQ/s400/Cinderella_by_Elena_Ringo.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18.0pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18.0pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]-->3<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">)<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal;">
</span><!--[endif]-->Sa cage –No doubt a reference to her virtual
imprisonment by the ugly sisters.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18.0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18.0pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">4)<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal;">
</span><!--[endif]-->Un aiguillon is a goad, which is a metal point
on a long pole used to prick cattle to encourage them to move in the direction
required. Cupid’s usual weapon would be an arrow or a dart. “ Cupid’s darts”
translates into French: les flèches de Cupidon. On this occasion Cupid seems to
be using an extreme weapon to exert extra stimulus to the lovers.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18.0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<br />
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18.0pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">5)<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal;">
</span><!--[endif]-->“In the memory of man/ In living memory”
translates “De mémoire d’homme” hence this little joke, the butterflies being
the only spectators.</span><o:p></o:p></div>
<br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 36.0pt;">
<b><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Please
click <a href="http://dbarf.blogspot.co.uk/2012/05/alphabetical-list-of-my-brassens-songs.html" target="_blank">here to return to the alphabetical list of my Brassens selection</a></span></b><b><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<br />
<br />David Yendleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09171810352548143316noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3675807832604868087.post-26622721720989958832008-11-19T00:04:00.017+00:002019-09-30T20:28:47.053+01:00La non-demande en mariage<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The title of this song: “The Non proposal of Marriage” suggests a cynical view of the relationship of a man with a woman. In fact, the song is a sincere love song, in which Brassens expresses to his lifelong fiancée, Joha Heiman, his deep appreciation for her role in their very successful and very individual partnership.</span><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<iframe allowfullscreen="" class="YOUTUBE-iframe-video" data-thumbnail-src="https://i.ytimg.com/vi/8ZRL17KsHgM/0.jpg" frameborder="0" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/8ZRL17KsHgM?feature=player_embedded" width="320"></iframe></div>
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<br />
<table border="1" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="MsoTableGrid" style="border-collapse: collapse; border: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-padding-alt: 0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; mso-yfti-tbllook: 1184;">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; width: 231.05pt;" valign="top" width="385"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">Ma mie, de grâce, ne mettons</span><span style="color: #666666; font-size: 10.0pt;"><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Pas
sous la gorge à Cupidon</span><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Sa
propre flèche,</span><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Tant
d'amoureux l'ont essayé</span><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Qui,
de leur bonheur, ont payé</span><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Ce
sacrilège...</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br />
</span>
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">J'ai
l'honneur de</span><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Ne
pas te demander ta main,</span><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Ne
gravons pas</span><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Nos
noms au bas</span><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">D'un
parchemin.</span></span><br />
<span style="color: #666666; font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "verdana";"></span></span><span style="color: #666666; font-size: 10.0pt;"><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br />
</span>
<span lang="FR" style="background: white; font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Laissons le champ libre à l’oiseau,</span><span class="apple-converted-space" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> </span></span><span lang="FR" style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> </span>
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Nous
serons tous les deux priso-</span><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">nniers
sur parole,</span><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Au
diable, les maîtresses queux</span><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Qui
attachent les coeurs aux queues</span><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Des
casseroles!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">J'ai l'honneur de</span><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Ne
pas te demander ta main,</span><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Ne
gravons pas</span><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Nos
noms au bas</span><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">D'un
parchemin.</span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #666666; font-size: 10.0pt;"><span lang="FR" style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "verdana";"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br />
</span>
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Vénus se fait vieille souvent</span></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">Elle perd son latin
devant</span><span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-size: 10.0pt;"><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">La
lèchefrite</span><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">A
aucun prix, moi je ne veux</span><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Effeuiller
dans le pot-au-feu</span><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">La
marguerite.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br />
</span>
<span style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">J'ai
l'honneur de</span>
<span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Ne
pas te demander ta main,</span><br />
<span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Ne
gravons pas</span><br />
<span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Nos
noms au bas</span><br />
<span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">D'un
parchemin.</span></span></span><br />
<span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: "verdana";"></span></span></span><span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="background: white;"><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
</span><span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Il
peut sembler de tout repos</span><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">De
mettre à l'ombre, au fond d'un pot</span><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">De
confiture,</span><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">La
jolie pomme défendue,</span><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Mais
elle est cuite, elle a perdu</span><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Son
goût "nature".</span></span></span><br />
<span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "verdana";"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span lang="FR" style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">J'ai l'honneur de</span><span lang="FR" style="font-size: 10pt;"><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Ne
pas te demander ta main,</span><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Ne
gravons pas</span><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Nos
noms au bas</span><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">D'un
parchemin.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">On leur ôte bien des attraits,</span><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">En
dévoilant trop les secrets</span><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">De
Mélusine. (4)</span><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">L'encre
des billets doux pâlit</span><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Vite
entre les feuillets des li-</span><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">vres
de cuisine.</span></span></span></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"></span><br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">J'ai l'honneur de</span><span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-size: 10.0pt;"><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Ne
pas te demander ta main,</span><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Ne
gravons pas</span><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Nos
noms au bas</span><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">D'un
parchemin.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br />
</span>
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">De
servante n'ai pas besoin,</span><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Et
du ménage et de ses soins</span><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Je
te dispense...</span></span><span style="color: #666666; font-size: 10.0pt;"><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Qu'en
éternelle fiancée,</span><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">A la
dame de mes pensées</span><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Toujours
je pense...</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span lang="FR" style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">J'ai l'honneur de</span><span lang="FR" style="font-size: 10pt;"><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Ne
pas te demander ta main,</span><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Ne
gravons pas</span><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Nos
noms au bas</span><br />
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">D'un
parchemin.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<!--[if !supportLineBreakNewLine]--><br />
<!--[endif]--></span><span lang="FR" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: FR;"></span></span></div>
</td>
<td style="border-left: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; width: 231.05pt;" valign="top" width="385"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">Beloved, for mercy’s sake, let us </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">Not load, beneath Cupid’s chin </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">His own arrow, (1) So many lovers have tried Who
have paid with their lost joys for </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">This sacrilege…</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"></span><br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"></span><br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">I have the honour </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">Not to ask your hand in marriage </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">Let’s not inscribe </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">Our names at the end </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">Of some parchment</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"></span><br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"></span><br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"></span><br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Let’s leave a free hand to the fellow </span><em><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">(Cupid)</span></em></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">We will both of us be two pris ..</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">oners on parole </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">Devil take the cook-mistresses </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">Who pin their hearts to handles </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">Of pots and pans.</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana"; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"></span><br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">I have the honour </span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">Not to ask your hand in marriage </span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">Let’s not inscribe </span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">Our names at the end </span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">Of some parchment</span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">Venus often makes herself old </span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">She loses her latin (2) faced by </span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">The frying pan. </span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">At no price would I ever wish </span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">To tell off daisy petals in </span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">The pot of stew. (3)</span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">I have the honour </span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">Not to ask your hand in marriage </span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">Let’s not inscribe </span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">Our names at the end </span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">Of some parchment.</span><br />
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<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">It might seem to be nice and snug </span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">To put, out of view, at the bottom of </span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">A jar of jam</span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">The tasty forbidden apple </span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">But it is cooked, it has quite lost </span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">Its fresh picked taste.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"></span><br /></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">I have the honour </span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">Not to ask your hand in marriage </span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">Let’s not inscribe </span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">Our names at the end </span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">Of some parchment.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"></span><br /></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">You remove so much of the charms </span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">By revealing too many secrets </span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">Of Melusine. </span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">The ink of billets doux fades </span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">Fast in between the pages of </span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">Cookery books.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"></span><br /></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">I have the honour </span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">Not to ask your hand in marriage </span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">Let’s not inscribe </span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">Our names at the end </span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">Of some parchment.</span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">Of servant I have no need </span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">And from housekeeping and its tasks </span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">I set you free </span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">So as eternal fiancée </span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">Of you, lady of my thoughts, </span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">I think always.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"></span><br /></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">I have the honour </span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">Not to ask your hand in marriage </span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">Let’s not inscribe </span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">Our names at the end </span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">Of some parchment.</span></div>
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<b>TRANSLATION NOTES</b></div>
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1) It was for Cupid, the God of love, to aim his arrows himself. Love should be spontaneous and it is a sacrilege for people to think to arrange things for themselves.<br />
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2) perd son latin – The phrase « J’y perds mon latin » means « I am completely baffled by it ». Brassens uses this image to conjure up the mental decline caused by domestic chores and it is humorous as the Goddess of Love was a Roman Goddess.<br />
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3) Effeuiller la marguerite. Plucking the petals of the oxeye daisy is a game that lovers play, while saying “She loves me – she loves me not.”. Another image to suggest the adulteration of love by domesticity.<br />
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4) In Breton folk-lore, Mélusine was a fairy upon whom a wicked spell had been cast which turned her into a siren on one day each week. A local nobleman, Raimond de Lusignan, came across her with other fairies in the woods and was captivated by her beauty and gentle manners. She agreed to marry him on condition that he did not seek to find out her life story or try to see her on Saturdays. They had a happy and most prosperous relationship until one Saturday…. As this is a folk tale, which are invariably very miserable you can guess the rest. Brassens is saying that both parties in a relationship are entitled to their own private space, where they retain things secret from the other.<br />
5) The French also talk of “le fruit défendu”. In English we always say forbidden fruit, but with some hesitation, I have kept the word “apple” in this line<br />
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6) la dame de mes pensées….Toujours je pense. There is a play on words here that I find impossible to translate. In the tradition of chivalry, a knight before entering the lists would choose one lady, of whom he would be the champion and to whom he would dedicate his endeavours. She became “la dame de ses pensées”. It was a relationship of the mind, a platonic love, because the lady chosen by the knight would, more often, be married to someone else. In “Je me suis fait tout petit” Brassens suggests that their relationship was of the same kind. However the mention of the forbidden apple suggests that not only was sex an element of their relationship, but that it always retained the tangy flavour of seduction.<br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">A modern group has made a very sensitive and expressive recording
of this song on their album « <b>Catalina Claro et ses amis chantent
Brassens</b> ». <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">Listen and admire this rendition sung by: <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span lang="IT" style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">Catalina, Michel Maestro </span></b><span lang="IT" style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">et <b>Eduardo Peralta</b>. </span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">(Unfortunately I have no
video.)</span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.aupresdesonarbre.com/audio/pc_la_non_demande.mp3" style="word-break: break-word;" target="_blank"><span lang="FR" style="color: #0563c1; mso-ansi-language: FR;">http://www.aupresdesonarbre.com/audio/pc_la_non_demande.mp3</span></a></span></b><span lang="FR" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-rDJgh2jf0L0/Teq8bvSef1I/AAAAAAAAAxI/t1fdIeEv3I8/s1600/Brassens%2Band%2BPuppchen.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-rDJgh2jf0L0/Teq8bvSef1I/AAAAAAAAAxI/t1fdIeEv3I8/s200/Brassens%2Band%2BPuppchen.jpg" width="380" /></a></div>
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<h3>
<b>BIOGRAPHICAL NOTES</b></h3>
Georges Brassens and Joha Heiman shared each other's life, doing a lot of things together, but they lived apart in their separate homes. They had regular telephone conversations and called around to see each other frequently. She went on tour with him and stood in the wings during his performances, keeping an eye on everything. Their’s was a personal and a professional relationship but certainly not a domestic one. They each had their own space, which could be described perhaps as their Saturday of Mélusine.<br />
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Georges Brassens is reported as saying of his "Puppchen" that she was not his wife, she was his goddess. On her death in 1999, she was buried in the grave of Georges Brassens.<br />
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<b>Further Information about Joha Heiman</b><br />
There are a number of songs that Brassens wrote about Joha on this site. One of these is "Je me suis fait petit" and my posting of this song got me in discussion with other bloggers.As a result there is now much more detail about Joha and about her relationship with Brassens there, which I and other bloggers have written after the song. If you wish to look at it, the following title is the link: <a href="http://brassenswithenglish.blogspot.com/2008/02/je-me-suis-fait-tout-petit_08.html">Je me suis fait petit</a><br />
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http://brassenswithenglish.blogspot.com/2008/02/je-me-suis-fait-tout-petit_08.html<br />
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<em>The day after I posted this song, I read in the Times of the rise in the number middle-class, middle-aged couples, who choose to "live apart together". </em><br />
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<a href="http://dbarf.blogspot.com/2010/12/chronological-list-of-brassens-songs-on.html">Click here to return to the full index of Brassens songs</a> on this siteDavid Yendleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09171810352548143316noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3675807832604868087.post-71051814940488509582008-11-08T17:02:00.012+00:002017-09-16T11:01:39.137+01:00LES TROMPETTES DE LA RENOMMÉE His strong refusal to win publicity by sacrificing personal privacy<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">This is Brassens at his most shocking and offensive and he is deliberately so.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Apparently he had been advised (in 1960) to liven up his image in keeping with an age that was beginning to swing. </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">One suggestion was that he should revive public attention by leaking spicy details of his private life. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Brassens thinks that this would be nasty not only for him but for those who have shared his life. In each verse he mercilessly piles on the detail of the squalid, destructive role others would have him play.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">He refuses to change and says he will just stand still on stage and play his guitar as always. He calls this scratching his stomach to show his disregard for presentation. If the public do not want this, he will pack it all in and rest peacefully on his laurels, which in his case is not a laurel wreath but the solitary laurel sprig he believes he has earned.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Brassens chooses </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">“La Renomée” </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">the winged goddess of classical legend for his theme, because her fearsome character represents his own distaste and even horror at the experience of fame (</span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Renomée), which</span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> he has encountered. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Brassens is following the description of this goddess that he had read in his studies of Virgil, the eminent poet of Ancient Rome. In Virgil's account, Fama (her latin name), was conceived by her mother, the Earth, to revenge herself against the gods. Fama is a gigantic, grotesque monster, possessing countless tongues, ears and also mouths from which she sounds forth her trumpets.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Je vivais à l'écart de la place publique,<br />Serein, contemplatif, ténébreux, bucolique... (1)<br />Refusant d'acquitter la rançon de la gloir',<br />Sur mon brin de laurier je dormais comme un loir. (2)<br /><br /><br /><br />Les gens de bon conseil ont su me fair' comprendre<br />Qu'à l'homme de la ru' j'avais des compt's à rendre<br />Et que, sous peine de choir dans un oubli complet,<br />J' devais mettre au grand jour tous mes petits secrets.<br /><br /><br /><br />{Refrain:}<br />Trompettes(3)<br />De la Renommée,(4)<br />Vous êtes<br />Bien mal embouchées ! <br /><br /><br />Manquant à la pudeur la plus élémentaire,<br />Dois-je, pour les besoins d' la caus' publicitaire,<br />Divulguer avec qui, et dans quell' position<br />Je plonge dans le stupre et la fornication?<br />Si je publi' des noms, combien de Pénélopes(5)<br />Passeront illico pour de fieffé's salopes,<br />Combien de bons amis me r'gard'ront de travers,<br />Combien je recevrai de coups de revolver!<br /><br /><br /><br /><br />{Refrain:}<br />Trompettes<br />De la Renommée,<br />Vous êtes<br />Bien mal embouchées !<br /><br /><br /><br /><b><i>Brassens omits this next verse in </i></b><br /><br />A toute exhibition, ma nature est rétive,<br />Souffrant d'un' modesti' quasiment maladive,<br />Je ne fais voir mes organes procréateurs<br />A personne, excepté mes femm's et mes docteurs.<br />Dois-je, pour défrayer la chroniqu' (6) des scandales,<br />Battre l' tambour (7) avec mes parti's génitales,<br />Dois-je les arborer plus ostensiblement,<br />Comme un enfant de chœur porte un saint sacrement ?<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />{Refrain:}<br />Trompettes<br />De la Renommée,<br />Vous êtes<br />Bien mal embouchées !<br /><br /><br /><br />Une femme du monde, et qui souvent me laisse<br />Fair' mes quat' voluptés (8) dans ses quartiers d' noblesse,<br />M'a sournois'ment passé, sur son divan de soi',<br />Des parasit's du plus bas étage qui soit...<br />Sous prétexte de bruit, sous couleur de réclame,<br />Ai-j' le droit de ternir l'honneur de cette dame<br />En criant sur les toits, et sur l'air des lampions (9) :<br />" Madame la marquis' m'a foutu des morpions ! " ? (10)<br /><br /><br />{Refrain:}<br />Trompettes<br />De la Renommée,<br />Vous êtes<br />Bien mal embouchées !<br /><br /><br /><br />Le ciel en soit loué, je vis en bonne entente<br />Avec le Pèr' Duval, (11) la calotte chantante,<br />Lui, le catéchumène,(12) et moi, l'énergumèn',<br />Il me laisse dire « merd', je lui laiss' dire amen,<br />En accord avec lui, dois-je écrir' dans la presse<br />Qu'un soir je l'ai surpris aux genoux d' ma maîtresse,<br />Chantant la mélopé' d'une voix qui susurre, (13)<br />Tandis qu'ell' lui cherchait des poux dans la tonsure ? (14)<br /><br /><br /><br />{Refrain:}<br />Trompettes<br />De la Renommée,<br />Vous êtes<br />Bien mal embouchées !<br /><br /><br /><br />Avec qui, ventrebleu ! faut-il que je couche<br />Pour fair' parler un peu la déesse aux cent bouches ?<br />Faut-il qu'un' femme célèbre, une étoile, une star, (15)<br />Vienn' prendre entre mes bras la plac' de ma guitar' ?<br />Pour exciter le peuple et les folliculaires,<br />Qui'est-c' qui veut me prêter sa croupe populaire,<br />Qui'est-c' qui veut m' laisser faire, in naturalibus,<br />Un p'tit peu d'alpinism' sur son mont de Vénus ?<br /><br /><br /><br /><br />{Refrain:}<br />Trompettes<br />De la Renommée,<br />Vous êtes<br />Bien mal embouchées !<br /><br /><br />Sonneraient-ell's plus fort, ces divines trompettes,<br />Si, comm' tout un chacun, j'étais un peu tapette, (16)<br />Si je me déhanchais comme une demoiselle<br />Et prenais tout à coup des allur's de gazelle?<br />Mais je ne sache pas qu'ça profite à ces drôles<br />De jouer le jeu d' l'amour en inversant les rôles,<br />Qu'ça confère à ma gloire un' onc' de plus-valu', (17)<br />Le crim' pédérastique,(18) aujourd'hui, ne pai' plus.<br /><br /><br /><br />{Refrain:}<br />Trompettes<br />De la Renommée,<br />Vous êtes<br />Bien mal embouchées !<br /><br /><br /><br />Après c'tour d'horizon des mille et un' recettes<br />Qui vous val'nt à coup sûr les honneurs des gazettes,<br />J'aime mieux m'en tenir à ma premièr' façon<br />Et me gratter le ventre en chantant des chansons.<br />Si le public en veut, je les sors dare-dare,<br />S'il n'en veut pas je les remets dans ma guitare,<br />Refusant d'acquitter la rançon de la gloir',<br />Sur mon brin de laurier je m'endors comme un loir.<br /><br /><br /><br />{Refrain:}<br />Trompettes<br />De la Renommée,<br />Vous êtes<br />Bien mal embouchées !</span></td>
<td style="border-left: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; width: 231.05pt;" valign="top" width="385"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /><br />I used to live well away from the public eye<br />Serene, contemplative, sombre and bucolic<br />Refusing to hand over the ransom for fame<br />On my meagre laurels, I slept like a dormouse.<br /><br /><br /><br />People of good counsel managed to make me see<br />That to the man in the street, I’d some debts to pay<br />And, for fear of falling in complete oblivion,<br /><br />I must freely reveal all my little secrets<br /><br /><br /><br />{Refrain:}<br />Trumpets of<br />The Goddess “Fame”,<br />You are<br />So badly out of tune!<br /><br />Flouting the most elementary modesty<br />Must I, for the needs of agents of publicity,<br />Divulge with whom and in what exact position<br />I plunge in debauchery and fornication?<br />If I publish names, how many Penelopes<br />Will be known straightaway as the most arrant whores<br />How many valued friends will look at me askance<br />How many revolver shots will I be hit by!<br /><br /><br /><br /><br />{Refrain:}<br />Trumpets of<br />The Goddess “Fame”,<br />You are<br />So badly out of tune!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span><b style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i>the video I have posted above</i></b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /><br />At all public display my heart feels uneasy,<br />Suff’ring from modesty that’s almost unhealthy.<br />I do not reveal my reproductive organs<br />To anyone, except my women and my doctors.<br /><br />Must I, to be headline news in gossip columns,<br />Drum up attention with my genital parts.<br />Must I raise them on high more ostensibly<br />As a choir boy carries the holy sacrament.<br /><br /><br /><br /><br />{Refrain:}<br />Trumpets of<br />The Goddess “Fame”,<br />You are<br />So badly out of tune!<br /><br /><br /><br />A society woman of, who often gives me<br />Free rein to hot delights in her noble quarters<br />Slyly passed on to me, on her divan of silk,<br />Some parasites of the basest kind possible.<br />Under the pretext of sensation, under the heading of publicity<br />Have I the right to tarnish the honour of this lady?<br />By shouting from the rooftops and chanting the catchphrase<br />“The Marchioness has infected me with crabs”. <br /><br /><br />{Refrain:}<br />Trumpets of<br />The Goddess “Fame”,<br />You are<br />So badly out of tune!<br /><br /><br /><br />Heaven indeed be praised, I live on the best of terms,<br />With le père Duval, the singing skullcap,<br />He the strict conformist, I the non-conformist <br />He lets me say “Oh Shit!”, I let him say “Amen”,<br />In agreement with him, must I write in the press<br />That one night I surprised him at my girl friend’s knees,<br />Singing a flat, unvaried chant in slushing tones,<br />While she was searching for fleas on his tonsured head.<br /><br /><br /><br />{Refrain:}<br />Trumpets of<br />The Goddess “Fame”,<br />You are<br />So badly out of tune!<br /><br /><br /><br />So with whom, good heavens! must I go to bed<br />To make the goddess with hundred mouths talk of me?<br />Must a female celebrity, a famous star<br /><br />Come and take my guitar’s place to lie in my arms?<br />To get the people and the gutter press excited<br />Who really wants to lend me her popular butt?<br /><br />Who is willing to allow me to do, stripped naked, <br />A little bit of a climb on her mount of Venus?<br /><br /><br /><br />{Refrain:}<br />Trumpets of<br />The Goddess “Fame”,<br />You are<br />So badly out of tune!<br /><br /><br />Would they sound out more strong, these trumpets of the Gods ,<br />If, like each and everyone, I was a bit gay,<br />If I swayed with my hips more like a young woman<br />And I suddenly took on a gazelle-like gait<br />But I would not know whether these jokers profit </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">By playing the game of love while inverting the roles,<br />Whether this would add one single ounce to my fame.<br />The crime of same sex love, today, no longer pays.<br /><br /><br /><br />{Refrain:}<br />Trumpets of<br />The Goddess “Fame”,<br />You are<br />So badly out of tune!<br /><br /><br /><br />After this review of the thousand and one tricks<br />Which are sure to earn the honours of the papers<br />I prefer to keep to my first way of doing things<br />And scratch my stomach, as ever, while singing songs<br />If the public wishes, I get them out quick time.<br />If not, I put them all back into my guitar,<br />Refusing to pay over the ransom of fame<br />On my meagre laurels, I sleep like a dormouse<br /><br /><br /><br />{Refrain:}<br />Trumpets of<br />The Goddess “Fame”,<br />You are<br />So badly out of tune!</span></td>
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<span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">TRANSLATION NOTES<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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</span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">1) Bucolic= Pastoral . (The
adjective ‘bucolic’ is derived from the Greek word for herdsmen). Brassens felt
at home in a country setting, as we see in other songs of his- e.g.<a href="http://brassenswithenglish.blogspot.co.uk/2008/02/aupres-de-mon-arbre.html" target="_blank"> “Auprès demon arbre”</a>. By using this adjective “bucolic”, he reminds us that his attitude
has a long, honourable literary tradition dating back to the poets of Greece
and Rome</span><span style="color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br />
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<span style="background: white;">2) Je dormais comme un loir. There are two
expressions based on “sleeping” in this line. </span></span><span lang="FR" style="background: white; color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Dormir comme un loir= to sleep like a dormouse.
“S’endormir sur ses lauriers” to rest on one’s laurels.</span><span lang="FR" style="color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br />
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<span style="background: white;">3) Trompettes… mal embouchées. </span></span><span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Brassens
is making a play on words. “Emboucher la trompette” is to put the trumpet to
your lips to play – in this case wrongly. The idiom “Mal embouché » means
speaking coarsely like the English to bad mouth.<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="color: #666666; font-size: 12pt;">4) </span><span style="color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt;">la Renommée,= the Goddess of Fame.
Wikipedia tells us PHEME or OSSA was the goddess or spirit (daimon)
of rumour, report and gossip. She was also, by extension, the dual spirit of
fame and good repute in a positive sense, and infamy and scandal in the bad.</span><span style="color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt;">In
Greek mythology, Pheme (Greek: Φήμη, Roman equivalent: Fama) was the
personification of fame and renown, her favour being fame, her wrath being
scandalous rumors.</span><span style="color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="color: #666666; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /><span style="background: white;">5) Pénélope was the wife of Ulysses, faithful to
him in his long absence. Brassens has <a href="http://dbarf.blogspot.co.uk/2013/12/penelope.html" target="_blank">a song with this name as its title</a>. Brassens is not afraid to admit that he had consoled
a few lonely Penelopes.</span><br />
<br /><span style="background: white;">6) défrayer la chronique = to be in the news- to
be in the limelight</span><br />
<br /><span style="background: white;">7) Battre l' tambour. The translation of town
crier is tambour de ville because a little drum was used to draw attention,
where the English used a bell</span><br />
<br /><span style="background: white;">8) Mes quat' voluptés : This is a play on words
from the phrase « Laisser faire à quelqu’un ses quatre voluptés » = to leave
some-one a free hand to do what they like. Alone, the plural noun “voluptés”
means sensual pleasures. Ses quartiers refers to the quarters on her noble coat
of arms, but has a double meaning.</span><br />
<br /><span style="background: white;">9) l'air des lampions : This is a chant made by
a group of people, which should really be three syllables repeated on the same
note. For example, where impatient English people will sing repeatedly the one
line: “Why are we waiting?” the French will chant Com-men-cez.., Com-men-cez….
The chant here is shaped by the alliteration of four m sounds.</span><br />
<br /><span style="background: white;">10) morpions - are pubic lice</span><br />
<br />
<span style="background: white;">11) le Père Duval - Brassens has just said that
he should not be expected to reveal secrets of his friends and colleagues. In
this verse, he does just that. Le Père Duval (1918- 1984) was a Jesuit priest,
who was a gifted songwriter and solo guitarist. He appeared on the same stages
as Georges Brassens and was sometimes known as “Brassens in a cassock”. He was
very popular in the 1950s and 1960s and gave more than 3,000 concerts in 44
countries. Under the strain of his professional career he became an alcoholic
and had great difficulty in overcoming this addiction. Brassens mischievously
tells us he also had another weakness of the flesh.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="background: white;">12) Catéchumène – As this means some-one who is
receiving religious instruction it does not apply to a Jesuit priest , but
Brassens likes the play on the word with “énergumène” which means a rowdy
person.</span><br />
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<span style="background: white;">13) La mélopée means monotonous chant, Susurrer
means to whisper. The onomatopoeia of the two French words perfectly conveys
the action.</span><br />
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<span style="background: white;">14) This line is intended to give a description
of the relative positions of the man and woman rather than give an exact
explanation of their activity.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="background: white;">15) une étoile, une star, - as the two words
have the same meaning, one noun only is required in the translation.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="background: white;">16) Tapette- Collins Robert tells us that this
equates in English to « poof » or « queer ». I am reluctant to use this as the
translation would, in contemporary political correctness, make him guilty of a
hate crime. As an admirer of Brassens’ character, I am absolutely certain that
he did not hate homosexuals. As he says in this same line, homosexuality is all
around. A large number of the leading figures in entertainment and the arts
were homosexual. At some concerts, the great French songwriter and singer,
Charles Trenet was on the same bill as Brassens. What was different in those
days was that homosexuality was a criminal offence. Brassens cynically tells those
who might have him act as if he had such inclinations to arouse the clamour of
the press, that homosexuality does not pay. It is true that Brassens had on
some subjects strong feelings that could be represented by the unsympathetic as
hatred, but these were directed at people with power who oppressed their
fellows. Those vulnerable people he refers to in this verse do not come into
that category</span><br />
<br />
<span style="background: white;">17) plus-value is a word used in commerce =
increase in value, appreciation.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="background: white;">18) Le crime pédérastique. In the 1950s the word
pédéraste was used to describe a homosexual. The homosexual act was not
decriminalised in France until the 4th August 1982.</span></span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">CLICK <a href="http://brassenswithenglish.blogspot.com/2008/11/song-list.html"><strong>HERE</strong></a> TO RETURN TO INDEX WITH FULL LIST OF SONGS</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Click <a href="http://dbarf.blogspot.co.uk/2012/05/alphabetical-list-of-my-brassens-songs.html" target="_blank">here to return to the full index of Brassens songs</a> on this blog</span>David Yendleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09171810352548143316noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3675807832604868087.post-77058802436557559512008-07-06T17:58:00.014+01:002017-09-16T13:29:42.622+01:00Saturne<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Brassens said this song, which he acknowledged as written for his partner Joha, was one of his favourites. It deals with a major theme of classical poetry: that “youth is a thing that cannot last” but while accepting this, Brassens believes that the joys of youth need not end so prematurely. He celebrates instead the charms of the mature woman and the comforts of love that can be enjoyed in the Indian Summer of life. When he wrote this poem, Brassens was about 42 years old and his Puppchen had turned fifty.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Il est morne, il est taciturne, </span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Il préside aux choses du
temps<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Il porte un joli nom
"Saturne"(1) <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Mais c'est un dieu fort
inquiétant.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Il porte un joli nom
"Saturne"<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Mais c'est un dieu fort
inquiétant.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">En allant son chemin
morose, <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Pour se désennuyer un peu,
<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Il joue à bousculer les
roses, (2)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Le temps tue le temps
comme il peut.(1)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Il joue à bousculer les
roses,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Le temps tue le temps
comme il peut.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Cette saison, c'est toi ma
belle, <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Qui as fait les frais de
son jeu<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Toi qui as payé la
gabelle,(3)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Un grain de sel dans tes
cheveux.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Toi qui a payé la gabelle,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Un grain de sel dans tes
cheveux.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">C'est pas vilain les
fleurs d'automne,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Et tous les poètes l'ont
dit<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Je te regarde et je te
donne<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Mon billet (4) qu’ils
n'ont pas menti.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Je te regarde et je te
donne<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Mon billet qu'ils n'ont
pas menti.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Viens encore, viens ma
favorite(5),<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Descendons ensemble au
jardin<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Viens effeuiller la
marguerite (6)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">De l'été de la Saint
Martin.(7)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Viens effeuiller la
marguerite <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">De l'été de la Saint
Martin.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Je sais par coeur toutes
tes grâces<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Et, pour me les faire
oublier,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Il faudra que Saturne en
fasse <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Des tours d'horloge et de
sablier !(8)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Et la petite pisseuse d'en face (9)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Peut bien aller se rhabiller.(10)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">He is dour, he is taciturn, <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">He rules over matters of time<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">He bears a pretty name « Saturn »<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">But he is a most disquieting god, </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">He bears a pretty name « Saturn »<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">But he is a most disquieting god.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Pursuing his gloom laden path,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">To relieve his boredom a bit,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">He plays at knocking down roses.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Time kills time as he is able.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">He plays at knocking down roses, <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Time kills time as he is able.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">At this time, tis you, my fair one<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Who have borne the brunt of his sport<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">You who paid his penalty with <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">A fleck of silver in your hair.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">You who paid his penalty with <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">A fleck of silver in your hair.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> Autumn flowers lack not beauty
<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">And poets’ve all said the same<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I look at you and stake my word <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">That they were not telling a lie<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I look at you and stake my word <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">That they were not telling a lie.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Come once more, my favourite (5) lets <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Go down to the garden together<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Come count off our love with petals<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Of chrysanths, this Indian Summer.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Come count off our love with petals<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Of chrysanths this Indian summer.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I know by heart all your graces <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">And to force me to forget them <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Saturn would need to make endless<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Turns of the clock and the hourglass<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">And the little cheeky girl opposite</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Might as well give up and clear off</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">TRANSLATION NOTES</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">(1) Saturne – He is the God of time, who in legend eats up his children, just as time eventually destroys us all. Later we read: <span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">Le
temps tue le temps comme il peut- Saturn, as the god of time, is sometimes
depicted with an hourglass in one hand and a scythe in the other.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
(2) Les roses – As in English poetry- “Gather ye rosebuds while ye may….”, roses symbolise the beauty of young women.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">(3) La gabelle was a detested tax on salt levied by the monarchy before the Revolution. Brassens makes it the tax paid with age to Saturn and its mark is the salt white of the first grey hair. I find this image somewhat over-contrived, although the French who have the expression: “poivre et sel” to describe greying hair might accept it more readily.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">(4) Je te donne mon billet (or more common -je te fiche mon billet) means: I am ready to put my money on it.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">(5) Ma favorite. We are told that Brassens referred to Joha as “his favourite” as well as his “püppchen ”. As the meaning of “favourite” is a person preferred above others this does not preclude a liking for others, which could lead to a circumstance considered in the last verse of this poem(6) Effeuiller la marguerite is to play the lovers’ game of plucking the petals saying: “She loves me. She loves me not”.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">(7) La marguerite de l'été de la Saint Martin is the chrysanthemum, a flower of the late months of the year. The feast of Saint Martin on the 11th of November is associated with a spell of mild weather and is what we call an Indian Summer. To the poet this symbolises youth reborn.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">(8) Des tours d'horloge et de sablier : The fingers of the clock will have to go round and round and the hour glass will need to turned upside down endlessly, because he will never forget the beauty of his mistress.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">(9) Et la petite pisseuse d'en face. The word that Brassens chooses to describe the young girl gives the English speaking listener or reader a sharp shock. As we have the same word for “pisser” i.e. “to piss”, we can understand that he is contemptuously dismissing her as a girl who wets her knickers, which would seem to us no higher than schoolchild abuse. However French bloggers, whose comments are posted below, tell us that the word is not so objectionable in French. Looking in the French- English Robert dictionary, a meaning given is “a (female) brat”, but the word is starred to warn of its impolite usage.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Three degrees of interpretation are suggested for Brassens’ choice of this word:</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">i) The most practical and down to earth is that Joha was aware that his eye had been wandering to an attractive young neighbour, arousing Joha’s passionate jealousy which was an outstanding feature of her character. Brassens therefore had to express his strong distaste towards the girl.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">ii) The explanation put forward by those who have an absolute conviction in Brassens’ devotion to the one love of his life, is that Brassens had no interest in the girl but was using her to contrast the richer benefits that his mature partner brought to him.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">iii) The most idealistic interpretation is that there was no other female involved, but that the pisseuse is a personification of the inadequacies of raw youth.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The proponents of the last explanation would claim that the lofty tone of the poem is maintained to the end, while the proponents of the first delight in the dramatic contrast of the trivial language of the last two lines with the lofty tone of the rest.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">10) Elle peut bien aller se rhabiller – She might as well clear off/ buzz off/ beggar off. The colloquial expression of contempt continues the idea that she (or “it”-i.e. youth) has no relevance to their lives.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">MY ORIGINAL MISUNDERSTANDING OVER THE FINAL VERSE</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">When I first posted this song, I was working on a performance where Brassens omitted the final verse and I jumped to the conclusion that it was deliberate censorship on his part of lines which recorded a personal row between him and his sweetheart and which contained personal invective. I realised how wrong I was when I read a tribute that he made to Joha near the end of his life. In it he spoke of half a dozen of the songs that he had been inspired by his love for his Püppchen. Inevitably, Saturne was in the list, but the words he quoted were from the last verse of the song, which obviously meant a lot to him. He wrote:</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">.......... et «Saturne»</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Je sais par coeur toutes tes grâces</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Et pour me les faire oublier</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Il faudra que Saturne en fasse</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Des tours d'horloge, de sablier.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<strong><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">A comment from a french blogger:</span></strong><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I received this comment from a French blogger on the 25th March 2009, and was very grateful to be reminded how beautiful the French find this song. Unfortunately I accidentally deleted the message while making my most recent post. This is ungracious on my part and so I am copying it here:</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">K said... </span><br />
<em><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Je viens tout juste de tomber sur votre blog en cherchant Saturne... c'est une si belle chanson! :) ...même malgré les deux dernières lignes! :<br />
<br />
Je suis toujours agréablement surpris de trouver de l'anglais autour de mes chansonniers français préférés.<br />
<br />
Bravo pour votre blog; j'y reviendrai assurément!</span></em><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Merci K. Un message encourageant me fait du bien.</span><br />
<br />
<a href="http://brassenswithenglish.blogspot.com/2011/03/index-of-brassens-songs.html">Click here to return to the full index of Brassens songs</a> on this siteDavid Yendleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09171810352548143316noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3675807832604868087.post-75890811122905633782008-04-29T20:32:00.020+01:002017-09-16T11:10:56.846+01:00La cane de Jeanne- Brassens Translation<br />
<br />
The following is a simple Brassens song which a lot of French people know from their primary school days. It tells the true, sad story of the death of the pet female duck of his friend Jeanne Planche. Mme Planche had given Brassens a temporary home many years ago that he never got round to leaving. The solemn, slow rhythm makes the song a funeral march and the sentiments expressed for the deceased tell how deep was her sense of loss.<br />
<br />
Brassens knew, however, that Jeanne had originally bought this duck for them all to eat but she hadn’t had the heart to do it. In cold reality, non vegetarians must, of necessity, have limits to their sensitivities.<br />
<br />
I think we gather that Brassens, although a great animal lover himself, is having a gentle tease at the expense of this soft-hearted woman of whom he was so fond. ( <a href="http://dbarf.blogspot.co.uk/2012/01/story-of-georges-brassens-and-his.html" target="_blank">Click here to see my account of thestory of Brassens and Jeanne</a> )<br />
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<b>JEANNE'S PET DUCKLING</b><br />
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">La cane<br />
De Jeanne<br />
Est morte au gui(i) l'an neuf,<br />
Elle avait fait, la veille,<br />
Merveille !<br />
Un oeuf !<br />
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</span><span lang="FR" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: FR;">La cane<br />
De Jeanne<br />
Est morte d'avoir fait,<br />
Du moins on le présume,<br />
Un rhume,<br />
Mauvais !<br />
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<span lang="FR" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: FR;">La cane<br />
De Jeanne<br />
Est morte sur son oeuf<br />
Et dans son beau costume<br />
De plumes,<br />
Tout neuf !<br />
<br />
La cane<br />
De Jeanne,<br />
Ne laissant pas de veuf,<br />
C'est nous autres(ii) qui eumes<br />
Les plumes,<br />
Et l'oeuf !<br />
<br />
<br />
</span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Tous, toutes,<br />
Sans doute,<br />
Garderons longtemps le<br />
Souvenir de la cane<br />
De Jeanne<br />
Morbleu !<br />
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">The duckling<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Of Jeanne<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Died upon New Year’s day.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">It had made, on the Eve <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Mirac’lous!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">An egg!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">The duckling<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Of Jeanne<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">It died from having caught<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">At least so we presume,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">A cold<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Serious!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">The duckling<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Of Jeanne<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Died upon its egg<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">And in its fine costume <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Of feathers,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Brand new!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">The duckling<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Of Jeanne<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Leaving no widower<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">It was just us who got<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">The feathers<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">And th’ egg!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">One and all<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Don’t doubt it<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">We’ll retain for years the <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Mem’ry of the duckling<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Of Jeanne<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Good grief!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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In translation the vocabulary is simple but it is the rhythm that counts:3-3-6-7-3-2 to convey the sense of a slow funeral march. Brassens achieves this also by lingering on final syllables.<br />
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TRANSLATION NOTES<br />
(i) au gui = at the mistletoe. At the New Year, the tradition is to kiss under the mistletoe to wish good luck.<br />
(ii) nous autres = us lot - in expressions such as this"autres" is being used for emphasis with no sense of "other". Robert gives the example:<br />
Nous autres Francais, nous aimons la bonne cuisine - We French love good cooking.<br />
<br />
(iii) Morbleu ! We have to end with an oath. This is an old-fashioned oath that French children would not be familiar with. Collins Robert suggests “Gazooks” as a translation. Even if the rest of the song is put into English, I would like to keep the despairing French oath for effect. Some critics think it is a cry against human mortality. I think it is despair about how long Jeanne is going to go on about her sweet little duck.<br />
<br />
“LA CANE DE JEANNE” IN PRIMARY SCHOOLS<br />
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<b><a href="http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x508sw_la-cane-de-jeanne-hommage-brassens_creation">La Cane De Jeanne -Hommage Brassens Ecole Chantemerle</a></b><br />
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Please <a href="http://dbarf.blogspot.co.uk/2012/05/alphabetical-list-of-my-brassens-songs.html" target="_blank">click here to return to the alphabetical list of my Brassens selection.</a><br />
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<em>A private note for my primary schoolteacher daughter, Katharine.</em><br />
If I was turning this into a French presentation for Parents' evening, I would think of dividing it into three parts.<br />
Part one: The children's presentation.<br />
I would borrow some of the artwork fom the French video. I like the duck being only intermittently dead! If when the children bring their work to the central display, they can do a kind of slow march for the first two and last two lines, that would be clever. At some point a big egg is put on a separate stand and is left there.<br />
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Part two: the music teacher turns to the parents and tells them that the roles are going to be reversed and they are going to be the performers and the children are going to applaud them if deserving.<br />
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The chidren give out sheets with the copy of the song in English. The music teacher gives them a brief rehearsal of the first verse stressing the importance of the rhythm with excessive stress put on the "eu" endings. The parents then sing the whole song with the music teacher stopping for a repeat if the parents miss an "eu".<br />
The music teacher should insist that the parents say the final oath - which contains the last "eu" sound with feeling.<br />
The children finally give the applause that is merited.<br />
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Part three: the previous part is meant to be lighthearted and noisy, ready for a change of mood in this section.<br />
The teacher sees that all the artwork has been cleared from the stage, but that the egg has been forgotten. The teacher selects a child and says:<br />
"Anne, we have forgotten the egg of the Cane de Jeanne. Would you mind bringing it to me?"<br />
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The child goes up to the egg and makes to get hold of the artwork. Suddenly she stops and puts her ear to the egg.<br />
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The teacher asks what is wrong.<br />
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"I can hear a tapping sound", the child replies. Immediately she stands in front of the egg hiding it from the audience. Unseen, she removes the top part of the egg. Then she steps aside to show the egg to the audience and points to the egg saying:"Look what was in the egg of the Cane de Jeanne!" <br />
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The broken egg now has the face of a happy chick on show. -I would borrow that picture from the French video.<br />
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If our dramatic timing is good we have moved from the theme of death to re-birth.<br />
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Click <a href="http://dbarf.blogspot.co.uk/2012/05/alphabetical-list-of-my-brassens-songs.html" target="_blank">here to return to the full index of Brassens songs</a> on this blogDavid Yendleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09171810352548143316noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3675807832604868087.post-74240486049283496312008-04-26T21:08:00.021+01:002018-05-25T00:06:49.000+01:00Il n'y a pas d'amour heureux Brassens sings Aragon's famous poem of the ambiguity of love.<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_5gF5voOaOUM/SBO7YmfAPjI/AAAAAAAAAFY/zRtxy0E6nXY/s1600-h/ELSA.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5193700826610155058" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/_5gF5voOaOUM/SBO7YmfAPjI/AAAAAAAAAFY/zRtxy0E6nXY/s320/ELSA.jpg" style="float: left; margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px;" /></a>(<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Picture left) Elsa, the muse who inspired the poet, Louis Aragon..</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The lyrics of Brassens' song are taken from a very famous poem by Louis Aragon (1897-1982). Its mood is melancholic and pessimistic. Aragon admits that it was affected by his difficulties during the harsh times at the end of the war, which prevented him living life to the full with his beloved wife, Elsa. He felt that if you created a high ideal of love, the realities of life would of necessity involve a betrayal.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Below:</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Brassens' recording of "Il n'y a pas d'amour heureux"</span><br />
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<br /><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Il n'y a pas d'amour heureux by Louis Aragon</span></h3>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Rien n'est jamais acquis à
l'homme </span><br />
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Ni sa force</span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Ni sa faiblesse ni son
coeur </span><br />
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Et quand il croit</span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Ouvrir ses bras son ombre
est celle d'une croix</span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Et quand il croit serrer
son bonheur il le broie </span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Sa vie est un étrange et
douloureux divorce </span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Il n'y a pas d'amour
heureux.</span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Sa vie Elle ressemble à
ces soldats sans armes</span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Qu'on avait habillés pour
un autre destin </span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">A quoi peut leur servir de
se lever matin</span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Eux qu'on retrouve au soir
désarmés incertains </span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Dites ces mots Ma vie </span><br />
<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Et
retenez vos larmes</span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Il n'y a pas d'amour
heureux</span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Mon bel amour mon cher
amour ma déchirure</span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Je te porte dans moi comme
un oiseau blessé</span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Et ceux-là sans savoir nous
regardent passer</span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Répétant après moi les
mots que j'ai tressés </span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Et qui pour tes grands
yeux tout aussitôt moururent</span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Il n'y a pas d'amour
heureux</span><br />
<span lang="FR"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"></span><br /></span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Le temps d'apprendre à
vivre il est déjà trop tard</span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Que pleurent dans la nuit
nos cœurs à l'unisson</span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Ce qu'il faut de regrets
pour payer un frisson</span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Ce qu'il faut de malheur
pour la moindre chanson</span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Ce qu'il faut de sanglots
pour un air de guitare</span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Il n'y a pas d'amour
heureux</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"></span><br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Nothing is for man to have and hold. Not his strength</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Not his weakness and not his heart. And when he thinks</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">To open out his arms, his shadow forms a cross</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">And when he thinks to grasp true joy, he crushes it.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">His life is a divorce, strange and full of sorrow.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">There’s no
happiness in love.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">His life it resembles those troops stripped of their arms </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Who had been geared up for a quite different fate</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">To what end should they stir from their bunks at morning</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">They, whom one meets at evening disarmed, uncertain</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Say then these words, my love </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">And hold back your tears</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">There’s no happiness in love</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"></span><br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">My fairest love, my cherished love, my deepest cut</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I carry you within me just like an injured bird</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">And those who
unknowing watch us as we pass by</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Repeating after me the words that </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I've woven</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">And which through your wide eyes died straightway on my lips</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">There’s no happiness in love</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana";"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana";"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"></span><br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"></span><br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The time to learn to live, already, is too late</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">For our hearts to weep in unison in the night.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">How much remorse does it take to pay for one thrill</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">How much sorrow does it take for the slightest song</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">How much weeping does it take for one tune on guitar</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">There’s no happiness in love</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="http://brassenswithenglish.blogspot.com/2009/04/index-of-songs-of-georges-brassens.html">Click here</a> to return to the full index of Brassens songs on this blog</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">BIOGRAPHICAL NOTES</span></b></div>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Aragon met the Russian-born Elsa Triolet (1896-1970), his future wife, in 1928. Triolet was herself an authoress and her published work stretched from the late 1930s until the year of her death. She was Aragon's companion for forty years and greatly influenced his writing</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">TRANSLATION NOTES</span></b></div>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">(A few not too serious personal comments)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I am conscious of having no deep knowledge of Aragon. I was a teacher of French language and literature but my acquaintanceship with Aragon was only a passing one. Without any insight, however, I find myself wanting to play the game of asking what precise human experiences are hidden under the abstractions of the poem. Perhaps an expert on Aragon will put me right afterwards.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The first verse makes it quite clear, as Aragon himself explained, that he and Elsa were going through a bad patch. It had shaken their confidence as they had believed the love and understanding they used to share was forever.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The second verse is a single continuous image and I am hesitant about interpreting it. Something that as a man he has been prepared for, he is no longer able to do and his life is all empty frustration.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The third verse seems to be Aragon's acknowledgement of the great hurt he has caused Elsa, who is torn and wounded. The experience has convinced him that there is no such thing as happy love. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The last verse tells me in what way he hurt Elsa. I suspect that the short moments of excitement that have brought so much aggro with his wife were spent with an attractive young temptress. Aragon had quite a number of them listed in his little red book before he met Elsa. (Untypically, for a man with strong Communist principles, he had a love affair with Nancy Cunard, who was the heiress to the great international shipping company.)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">His final plea is that they should get through these moments of torment side by side, blaming all the suffering on the human condition. However he reminds her that suffering is the inspiration of so much great art.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Thee photograph is of Louis Aragon.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Below is a new version of the song made by Eva </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Dénia and Merxe Martinez, recorded in concert on the 6th June 2016.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Before the song, Eva tells us, at some length, that she is very nervous at this, her first performance of Brassens beautiful rendition of Aragon's poem</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">JUST TALKING TO MYSELF</span></b><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">A similar poem in English literature on the theme of melancholic pessimism about love and life would perhaps be “Dover Beach”, which Matthew Arnold wrote in about 1851. In it the poet asks his new wife to stand with him to face the insecurities and disappointments of modern life, when love is inadequate, traditional moral values are collapsing and men fight each other in a darkness of ignorance, where they do not know whom they are fighting and why.</span><br />
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<span lang="EN" style="border: none 1.0pt; font-family: "roboto"; font-size: 15.0pt; line-height: 115%; padding: 0cm;">"Dover <u>Beach"
by Matthew Arnold (read by Tom O'Bedlam)</u></span><o:p></o:p></div>
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I must admit that I am also adding this poem, because I admire the style of the reader and wish to keep this handy as a reminder to myself. He conveys the rhythm and the poetry but does not get in the way himself. Not an easy thing to achieve!David Yendleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09171810352548143316noreply@blogger.com15tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3675807832604868087.post-57202110179770916942008-04-26T20:35:00.015+01:002017-09-16T11:06:40.667+01:00Dans l'eau de la claire fontaine<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_5gF5voOaOUM/SBOEjGfAPhI/AAAAAAAAAFI/HDLMHrJ-l9w/s1600-h/mfr478m.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" height="400" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5193640533859253778" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/_5gF5voOaOUM/SBOEjGfAPhI/AAAAAAAAAFI/HDLMHrJ-l9w/s320/mfr478m.jpg" style="float: left; margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px;" width="289" /></a><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">This is a light-hearted song about a young girl swimming naked in a country spring. "A la claire fontaine" is one of the multitude of traditional French songs that Brassens knew so well and which gave him such great pleasure. However he limits himself to the first verse:</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>A la claire fontaine<br />
M'en allant promener<br />
J'ai trouve l'eau si belle<br />
Que je m'y suis baigne.</i></span><br />
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</i>All the rest of the song is Brassens' gentle fantasy.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I think the delicate illustration painted by Marie-France RIVIERE perfectly conveys the idyll. </span><br />
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Dans l'eau de la claire
fontaine (i) <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Elle se baignait toute nue</span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Une saute de vent soudaine<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Jeta ses habits dans les
nues (ii)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">En détresse, elle me fit
signe<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Pour la vêtir, d'aller
chercher <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Des monceaux de feuilles
de vigne <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Fleurs de lis ou fleurs
d'oranger <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Avec des pétales de roses<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Un bout de corsage lui fis<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">La belle n'était pas bien
grosse<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Une seule rose a suffi </span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Avec le pampre de la vigne
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Un bout de cotillon lui
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Mais la belle était si
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Qu'une seule feuille a suffi </span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Elle me tendit ses bras,
ses lèvres<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Comme pour me remercier<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Je les pris avec tant de
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Qu'ell' fut toute déshabillée</span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Le jeu dut plaire à
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Car, à la fontaine souvent<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Ell' s'alla baigner toute
nue<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">En priant Dieu qu'il fit
du vent<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Qu'il fit du vent...</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">In the clear pool of a forest spring<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">She was bathing all in the nude <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">A sudden change of wind direction <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Threw her clothes up into the sky.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">In distress, she signalled to me <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">To fetch. in order to clothe her,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Piles of vine leaves and of flowers<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="FR" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Fleurs de lis or orange blossom.
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">With the help of petals of roses <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">A bit of a top I made her. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The fair maid was not very big <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">One single rose proved adequate.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">With the help of a branch of vine<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">A bit of a skirt I made her <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">But the fair maid was so dainty<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">One single leaf proved adequate.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">She offered me her arms, her lips <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">As if to show her thanks to me.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">So feverishly did I accept<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">That she was all undressed again.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The game must’ve pleased the innocent</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">For she went often to the spring</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">And used to bathe all in the nude, <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Praying God that the wind might blow <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The wind might blow </span></div>
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TRANSLATION NOTES<br />
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(i) Fontaine – as well as meaning fountain, it also means a water spring (The most common word to translate spring is - une source)<br />
(ii) Les nues – means the clouds, the skies. It is more literary than “les nuages”<br />
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Click <a href="http://dbarf.blogspot.co.uk/2012/05/alphabetical-list-of-my-brassens-songs.html" target="_blank">here to return to the full index of Brassens songs</a> on this blogDavid Yendleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09171810352548143316noreply@blogger.com3