Friday, October 5, 2018

Charles Aznavour - From now on


Original Title: "Désormais"
Year: 1969
From now on, we won't be seen together anymore
From now on, my heart will live under the rubbles
Of this world which looks like us
And which has been devastated by time

From now on, my voice won't say "I love you" anymore
From now on, I who wanted to become your shadow
I'll be the shadow of my own self
My hand separated from your hand

Never more, will we bite the same fruit
Will we sleep in the same bed
Will we do the same gestures
Never more, will we know the same fear
To see our happiness flee
And incidentally...From now on.

From now on, people will see us one without the other
From now on, we will change our habits
And those words I believed ours
You will tell them between other arms

From now on, I will keep my door closed
From now on, locked in my loneliness
I'll hang out among things
Which will still be talking about you

Never more, will we bite the same fruit
Will we sleep in the same bed
Will we do the same gestures
Never more, will we know the same fear
To see our happiness flee
And incidentally...From now on.

We won't be seen together anymore
We won't be seen together anymore

Live version:

Sunday, September 30, 2018

Monique Morelli - Villon - The legacy


Original Title: "L'an quatre cent cinquante six (Le Lais)"
Text: François Villon
Music: Lino Léonardi
Year: 1974
Quite a difficult translation, will need a rework
Year Fourteen hundred fifty six
I, François Villon, student
Considered, having stale sense,
The bit between the teeth, being straightforward
That we must advise his work ,
Like Vegetius says
Wise Roman, big conseillor
Or else we are mistaken ...

In those times, I talked about,
Around Christmas, dead seasons,
That the wolves live of the wind,
And that we hold ourself in our home
For the wintry weather, near the brand
Come to me the desire to break
The very loving prison
Which always was unbreaking my heart

I did it in such a way
Seeing her in front of my eyes
Agreeing to my undoing
Without anything being better for her
Of which I mourn and complain to the sky
By requesting vengeance of her
To all the victorious gods
And alleviation of the love grief

And if I took in my favor
Those sweet regrets and pretty pretenses
Of very disappointing taste,
Piercing through me up to the sides
Fine they have their white feet towards me
And fail me when in great need
Seed, I must, other complaints
And hit in another corner

The look of That one took me
Who was perfedious and tough to me
Without this would have any contempt
Wants and commands that I endure
Death and that I do not last anymore
If I see no other assistance but in fleeing
Break up the keen binding
Without hearing my pious regrets!

To obviate to those dangers
The best for me is, I believe, to go away
Farewell! I'm going to Angers
As she does not want to grant me
Her grace, nor abandoning me
By her, die the healthy limbs
Deep inside, I am a martyr lover
Among the loving saints!

Friday, August 10, 2018

Léo Ferré - Caussimon - Nights of absence


Original Title: "Nuits d'absence"
Text: Jean-Roger Caussimon
Year: 1985

There are nights when I go away
Discretely, secretely
My image alone is present
It has my forehead, my clothes...
It's my double in that mirror
It's my cinema stand-in
To that reflection replacing me
You'd swear I'm there

But I fly over in a hang-glider
The blue tops of the Pyrénées
In Andorra-The-Catalan
I let my destiny go...
I trample a rye field
Or maybe a wheat field
In the air, I've met eagles
And I thought I looked like them...

The summer wind, sometimes, carry me away
Too far, it's a risk to take
In the tumult of the arena's
I'm everything which must die
I am the poor nag
Belly opened by a bull
I'm the bull who falters
I'm the fear...of the torrero
Weekday or is it Sunday?
All shivering in the thaw
I'm on the edge of the White sea
In the white night of Arkhangelsk
I hail drunk sailors
As much from alcohol than sleep
"That bleak glare on the frost
Is if the moon...or the sun?"

The pale day saddens the furniture
And here it's, it's already tomorrow
The frost persists to the blind eyes
Of my dog which is looking for my hand...
And you, you sleep in the silence
Where, without me, you manage to recover
That calm face from childhood
Which moved me...to the point of crying...

There are nights when I go away
Discretely, secretely
My image alone is present
It has my forehead, my clothes...
It's my double in that mirror
It's my cinema stand-in
To that reflection replacing me
You'd swear I'm there

There are nights when I go away
Discretely, secretely
My image alone is present
It has my forehead, my clothes...
It's my double in that mirror
It's my cinema stand-in
To that reflection replacing me
You'd swear I'm there

Friday, May 25, 2018

Jean-Roger Caussimon - On a wish by Paul Eluard


Original Title: "Sur un voeu"
Year: 1977
Any caress, any trust survive themselves
Those words so simple made of light
Were written by Paul Eluard
More fervent words than a prayer
And louder than a shout
They are stronger than invectives
Than violence or contempt
They spurted out like flowing water
There speaks the heart before the mind

Any caress, any trust survive themselves
Where are the singing futures
And that forever promised happiness
In the indifferent cities
Everybody thinks he sees his enemies
But if by chance it happens
To glimpse a friendly gaze
Among so many fleeing shadows
Let that gaze be passed on

Any caress, any trust survive themselves
For the motherly lulaby
The voice of the father at home
And for the memory of the one
Who loved you more than reason
Let nothing drift off
And let the happiness of a moment
Write itself on a sky of future
And shines with time
Any caress, any trust survive themselves

Monday, May 14, 2018

Anne Vanderlove - Tell me


Original Title: "Dites-moi"
Year: 1967
Tell me, you had it though the heart for laughing
Tell me, you had it though the heart between your teeth
And then from the heart to the eyes so many things to say
When you were the color of the Grand Meaulnes and the wind
But from sand to dunes, and from falls to rains
Grand Meaulnes fled away
And your frail teenage years followed him

Tell me, you had it though the heart for laughing
Tell me, you had it though the heart between your teeth
When you were shown the big words in the books
Those that toppled down the walls and make children grow older
But the children are dead and the rifles rusty
The neglected paths
And already on the stone
Grass closed in

Tell me, you had it though the heart for laughing
Tell me, you had it though the heart between your teeth
And then from the heart to the eyes so many things to say
That you could have well done better really
Tell me, what have you done with so many seasons?
Your gardens, without further ado
are tearing your heart up
With heavy blows of thistle

Saturday, May 5, 2018

Mouloudji - Verrières - My pal the Gipsy


Original Title: "Mon pot' le gitan"
Text: Jacques Verrières
Music: Marc Heyral
Year: 1955

My pal the Gipsy is an odd fellow
A mug all black, eyes all blue
He stays for hours without saying a word
Sitting beside the stove, at the bottom of the bistrot
That guy, a caravan wanders in his head,
And when it travels, never does it stop
A whole bunch of sceneries come out of his eyes
My pal the Gipsy, is one odd fellow

My pal the Gipsy is not a funny guy
And in our bistrot, noboby understands him
Like all those guys, he has his guitar
A dirty guitar which makes you brood
When he starts playing, the old caravan
runs wild in his head, the belote players stops
And nothing no more, we hurt inside.
My pal the Gipsy is not a funny guy

My pal the Gipsy left one day
And God only knows where he trails his life
That guy was a great musician
That I was certain of, I felt it
The boss told me someone came looking for him
A great music hall wanted to buy him
My pal the Gipsy, he refused, a shrug, and he left

I had the feeling to lose a friend,
And yet that guy never told me anything
But he left me a piece of his caravan
And in my small head, there is some dream wandering
His weird music, stayed inside of me
When I think of him, it happens I sing
You, damn Gipsy who smelled of the blues
Afterall your music was full of hope.

Tuesday, February 20, 2018

Serge Reggiani - The old couple


Original Title: "Le vieux couple"
Text: Jean-Loup Dabadie.
Music: Jacques Datin
Year: 1972
What I like about this duo
It's that you make the higher voice
It's you who know, you who say
You who think and I who is
But on the big evenings when you are crying
When you are afraid in your rowing boat
I am the one talking for hours
All in all we are an old couple

I don't remember where I have met you anymore
It was at school or at a puppet show
I remember that ingenuous person
Who had lost his compass
Since I stopped you from drinking
Except the big evenings in your rowing boat
When you sing to me about your setbacks
All in all we are an old couple

With your spaniel face
Which did not learn how to swim
With my face to remain alone
Behind half shandy's
The big evenings in your rowing boat
When we talk about your moods
And that you slander my wife
All in all we are an old couple

The sixteenth August Nineteen sixty
I married that lovely lady
Five days later, I was gone
And you were tucking me in my bed
Then the night started
Then the night started
Of which we believed we were the stars
But we were nothing more than the cicadas

We fought, we lost one another
You often started new relationships
And the best is that you betrayed me
But you held no grudge against me
And during the big evenings in your rowing boats
You know my habits well
I know your solitude well
All in all we are an old couple

My friend, my buddy, my brother
My old chance, my galley
My child, my Judas, my judge
My comfortance, my shelter
My brother, my counterfeiter
My friend, my jack of heart
I wouldn't want you to die
I wouldn't want you to die.

Léo Ferré - You never say anything

Original Title: " Tu ne dis jamais rien " Year: 1971 I see the world a bit like one sees the unbelievable This what the unbeli...