French Music – Calogero Posted by Tim Hildreth on Apr 17, 2018 in Culture, Music
Before becoming a writer, Antoine de Saint-Exupéry had a very different professional life. A new song from the French chanteur (singer) Calogero, celebrates that previous career as well as some of Saint-Exupéry’s most famous works.
While he may be best known outside France for his charming novella Le petit prince (The little prince), Antoine de Saint-Exupéry wrote many other works and even had an entirely different professional life before becoming an author. For many years, Saint-Exupéry worked as a pilot and as an administrator during the early days of airmail service. His novel Vol de nuit (Night flight) was inspired by that experience . . . and this song in turn is inspired by that (and just a bit by Le petit prince).
| Je transporte des lettres, des rêves dans les étoiles | I carry letters, dreams in the sky (lit. in the stars) |
| Je suis facteur du ciel pour l’aéropostale | I am a mail carrier for the air mail service |
| Je regarde le monde depuis mon appareil | I look at the world from my machine |
| C’est beau comme vu d’ici on a tous l’air pareil | It’s beautiful the way, seen from here, we all look the same |
| Je rêve dans mon ciel solitaire | I dream in my solitude (lit. lonely sky) |
| Qu’on soit tous un peu solidaire | That we’re all a little connected |
| Voler de nuit comme St Exupéry | Fly through the night like Saint-Exupéry |
| Voir le monde d’en haut sans le prendre de haut1I love how this phrasing works so well in both languages. Another way to say ‘to look at something from above‘ can simply be ‘to look down on it (without any value judgement)’. ‘Prendre de haut‘ means ‘to look down on‘ in the negative sense of that phrase (‘to disparage‘, ‘to think less of‘). | See the world from above without looking down on it |
| Voler de nuit, voir ce qui nous unis | Flying at night, see what unites us |
| Sonner l’écho que nous sommes tous égaux | Sound the echo that we’re all equals |
| Vu d’en haut ces frontières, ces lignes qui nous écartent | Seen from up here all these borders, these lines that push us apart |
| Ne sont que des dessins, que des traits sur la carte | Are nothing but drawings, just lines on the map |
| Derrière chaque maison, des gens rêvent, des gens s’aiment | Behind each house, people dream, people love |
| C’est beau comme vu d’avion on a l’air tous les mêmes | It’s beautiful how seen from an airplane we all seem the same |
| Je pense à ça dans mon ciel si vide | I think about that in my empty sky |
| En bas éclatent des guerres civiles | While below civil wars rage |
| Voler de nuit comme St Exupéry | Fly through the night like Saint-Exupéry |
| Voir le monde d’en haut sans le prendre de haut | See the world from above without looking down on it |
| Voler de nuit, voir ce qui nous unis | Flying at night, see what unites us |
| Sonner l’écho que les hommes sont égaux | Sound the echo that we’re all equals |
| Si je suis descendu2‘Être descendu‘ can also mean ‘to be shot down’., je ne regretterai rien | If I’ve come down, I will not have any regrets |
| J’étais fait pour planter des fleurs dans un jardin | I was made to plant flowers in a garden |
| Certains soirs il me semble entendre dans le cockpit | Some nights, I seem to hear in the cockpit |
| Comme une voix d’enfant entre les parasites | What sounds like the sound of a child in the static |
| Un enfant qui dit s’il vous plaît… | A child who says please… |
| Monsieur, dessine-moi la paix3‘Dessine-moi un mouton‘ might be one of the most famous lines from Le petit prince. Tune in next week for more on that. | Sir, draw me (a picture of) peace |
| (Dessine-moi… la terre)4I wasn’t quite sure what I was hearing here the first few times I listened to this song so I did a little internet sleuthing. The majority of sites seem to agree on “Dessine-moi la terre”, but a few listed “Dessine-moi la paix.” Calogero says “la paix” but the children… Well, I’ll let you decide. Tell me what you think in the comments! Either is equally beautiful. | (Draw me… the earth) |
| (Dessine-moi … la terre) | (Draw me… the earth) |
| Voler de nuit comme St Exupéry | Fly through the night like Saint-Exupéry |
| Voir le monde d’en haut sans le prendre de haut | See the world from above without looking down on it |
| Voler de nuit, voir ce qui nous unis | Flying at night, see what unites us |
| Rêver dans l’ombre le réveil du monde | Dream in the dark (lit. the shadow) of the awakening of the world |
Photo of Calogero by Guy Delsaut (Own work) [CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)], via Wikimedia Commons
- 1I love how this phrasing works so well in both languages. Another way to say ‘to look at something from above‘ can simply be ‘to look down on it (without any value judgement)’. ‘Prendre de haut‘ means ‘to look down on‘ in the negative sense of that phrase (‘to disparage‘, ‘to think less of‘).
- 2‘Être descendu‘ can also mean ‘to be shot down’.
- 3‘Dessine-moi un mouton‘ might be one of the most famous lines from Le petit prince. Tune in next week for more on that.
- 4I wasn’t quite sure what I was hearing here the first few times I listened to this song so I did a little internet sleuthing. The majority of sites seem to agree on “Dessine-moi la terre”, but a few listed “Dessine-moi la paix.” Calogero says “la paix” but the children… Well, I’ll let you decide. Tell me what you think in the comments! Either is equally beautiful.
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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.