French Music – Juliette Greco Posted by Tim Hildreth on Aug 27, 2019 in Culture, Music, Vocabulary
Juliette Gréco, whose career spanned more than 70 years, is an emblematic star of French cinema and song. She interpreted songs by artists from Jacques Brel to Serge Gainsbourg … and even had a romantic relationship with the American Jazz legend Miles Davis.
Little French Songs
As France’s former first lady Carla Bruni reminded us, the French are famous for songs that tell stories. This song, encore une histoire d’amour celle-là (another love story this one), as she tells us, from Juliette Gréco, is a perfect example … and happens to be full of easy-but-useful vocabulary and examples of some useful grammar points.
| Un petit poisson*, un petit oiseau | A little fish, a little bird |
| S’aimaient d’amour tendre | Loved each other tenderly |
| Mais comment s’y prendre | But what to do/how to proceed |
| Quand on est dans l’eau | When one is in the water |
| Un petit poisson, un petit oiseau | A little fish, a little bird |
| S’aimaient d’amour tendre | Loved each other tenderly |
| Mais comment s’y prendre | But what to do/how to proceed |
| Quand on est là-haut | When one is up there |
| Quand on est là-haut | When one is up there |
| Perdu aux creux des nuages | Lost in the hollow of the clouds |
| On regarde en bas pour voir | One looks down to see |
| Son amour qui nage | Their love swimming |
| Et l’on** voudrait bien changer | And one would gladly transform |
| Au cours du voyage | In flight |
| Ses ailes en nageoires | Their wings into flippers |
| Les arbres en plongeoir | The trees into diving boards |
| Le ciel en baignoire | The sky into a bathtub |
| Refrain | Chorus |
| Quand on est dans l’eau | When one is in the water |
| On veut que vienne l’orage*** | Wishing that a storm would come |
| Qui apporterait du ciel | To carry from the sky |
| Bien plus qu’un message | More than a message |
| Qui pourrait changer d’un coup | That would change in an instant |
| au cours du voyage | In the course of things |
| Des plumes en écailles | Feather sinto scales |
| Des ailes en chandail | Wings into a sweater |
| Des algues en paille | Algae into straw |
| Refrain | Chorus |
* Reminder: In French, adjectives usually come after the noun that they modify (une voiture rouge, un livre interessant … a red car, an interesting book). Certain adjectives though come before the noun. See here for a description of the rules.
** Sometimes you’ll find that little l’ showing up before on. This previous post explains some of the reasons why … including because sometimes it just sounds right!
*** This is an example of the French subjunctive. You can find lots of info about the subjunctive in earlier posts including this one.
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About the Author: Tim Hildreth
Since my first trip to France at 16, I have been a passionate francophile. I love the language, food, music, art, people, and more that make France and la Francophonie in general such an amazing part of our global community. Having lived in France and studied the language and culture for over 35 years, it is my great pleasure to be able to share a little bit of my deep love with you through this blog.