It all started with lounging at Cofee Bean & Tea Leaves Holland Village while having breakfast with Snowylass one morning ...
The tricky retailers compiled a selection of songs which they played and sold in CDs.
All it took was a couple of "hooks" like Joe Dassin's Les Champs-Elysees and Los Trio Panchos' Quizás, Quizás, Quizás and I ended up buying the CD.
I got the lyrics and translations from http://www.paroleslyrics.net/index.php?title=Les_Champs-Elys%C3%A9es_-_Joe_Dassin
and the video from youtube.
Interesting chap, Joe Dassin, a reverse refugee from the Land of the Free.
Corrections or improvements to translations welcomed.
Je m'baladais sur l'avenue le cœur ouvert à l'inconnu
J'avais envie de dire bonjour à n'importe qui
N'importe qui et ce fut toi, je t'ai dit n'importe quoi
Il suffisait de te parler, pour t'apprivoiser
Aux Champs-Elysées, aux Champs-Elysées
Au soleil, sous la pluie, à midi ou à minuit
Il y a tout ce que vous voulez aux Champs-Elysées
Tu m'as dit "J'ai rendez-vous dans un sous-sol avec des fous
Qui vivent la guitare à la main, du soir au matin"
Alors je t'ai accompagnée, on a chanté, on a dansé
Et l'on n'a même pas pensé à s'embrasser
Aux Champs-Elysées, aux Champs-Elysées
Au soleil, sous la pluie, à midi ou à minuit
Il y a tout ce que vous voulez aux Champs-Elysées
Hier soir deux inconnus et ce matin sur l'avenue
Deux amoureux tout étourdis par la longue nuit
Et de l'Étoile à la Concorde, un orchestre à mille cordes
Tous les oiseaux du point du jour chantent l'amour
Aux Champs-Elysées, aux Champs-Elysées
Au soleil, sous la pluie, à midi ou à minuit
Il y a tout ce que vous voulez aux Champs-Elysées
I strolled on the avenue, open to everything
I wanted to say hello to anyone
No matter who - and it was you, I said anything to you
It was enough to speak to you, to calm down.
On the Champs-Elysées, on the Champs-Elysées
With the sun, under rain, at midday or midnight
There is everything you want on the Champs-Elysées
You told me "I’ve got an appointment in a basement with the nutjobs"
Who live with guitar in hand, from evening to morning
Then I accompanied you, we sang, we danced
And we didn’t think of kissing
On the Champs-Elysées, on the Champs-Elysées
With the sun, under rain, at midday or midnight
There is everything you want on the Champs-Elysées
Yesterday night, two strangers and this morning we’re on the avenue
Two lovers dazed by the long night
And the star at the place de Concorde, an orchestra of a thousand chords
All the morning birds sing the love
On the Champs-Elysées, on the Champs-Elysées
With the sun, under rain, at midday or midnight
There is everything you want on the Champs-Elysées
This is one of the favourite songs of my dad, with 'le petit pain au chocolat'. This song is well-known in France :-)
ReplyDeleteSome amendments to understand better the lyrics (though my english is not perfect) :
'It was enough to speak to you, to calm down'
>>'It was enough to speak to you, to tame you'
And we didn’t think of kissing
>> And we didn’t even think of kissing
And the star at the place de Concorde, an orchestra of a thousand chords
>>And from 'Etoile' to 'place de la Concorde', an orchestra of thousand strings
Merci.
ReplyDeleteI will use this song as practice for my French, Joe Dassin's dictions are very clear.