Words: Alain Bashung & Jean Fauque
Music: Alain Bashung
J'passe pour une caravane
I pass for a caravanPour un chien qui n'en démord pas
For a dog that doesn't bite
Le labyrinthe
The labyrinth
Conduit l'homme habile
Drives the clever man
À des étreintes
To restraints
Loin du réconfort
Far from comfort
J'passe de
sas en sas
I pass from lock to lock
Et mes visites s'espacent
And my visits space out
Des ombres s'échinent
Shadows wear themselves down
À me chercher des noises
Looking for me to start an argument
Le plus clair de mon temps
The brightest of my time
Dans ma chambre noire
In my dark bedroom
De l'étuve au blizzard
From the oven to the blizzard
Des coups de latte
Blows from the floorboards (A kick)
Un baiser
A kiss
Des coups de latte
Blows from the floorboards
Un baiser
A kiss
Des coups de latte
Blows from the floorboards
Un baiser
A kiss
I pass from lock to lock
Et mes visites s'espacent
And my visits space out
Des ombres s'échinent
Shadows wear themselves down
À me chercher des noises
Looking for me to start an argument
Le plus clair de mon temps
The brightest of my time
Dans ma chambre noire
In my dark bedroom
De l'étuve au blizzard
From the oven to the blizzard
Des coups de latte
Blows from the floorboards (A kick)
Un baiser
A kiss
Des coups de latte
Blows from the floorboards
Un baiser
A kiss
Des coups de latte
Blows from the floorboards
Un baiser
A kiss
J'passe
sous silence mes
avatars
I pass my avatars under silence
J'passe sur tes frasques
I pass on your escapades
M'obnubiler pourquoi
Obsessing for what
Pour un vasistas
For a fanlight
Loin du réconfort
Far from comfort
I pass my avatars under silence
J'passe sur tes frasques
I pass on your escapades
M'obnubiler pourquoi
Obsessing for what
Pour un vasistas
For a fanlight
Loin du réconfort
Far from comfort
J'passe de sas en sas
I pass from lock to lock
Et mes visites s'espacent
And my visits space out
Mes élans me courent et m'entraînent
My elan races me and leads me
Vers d'autres riveraines
Toward other river dwellers
Vers la grande inconnue
Toward the great unknown
Loin du réconfort
Far from comfort
J'passe de
sas en sas
I pass from lock to lock
Et tes visites s'espacent
And your visits space out
Des ombres s'échinent
Shadows wear themselves down
À me chercher des noises
Looking for me to start an argument
Le plus clair de mon temps
The brightest of my time
Dans ma chambre noire
In my dark bedroom
De l'étuve au blizzard
From the oven to the blizzard
Des coups de latte
Blows from the floorboards
Un baiser
Blows from the floorboards
Un baiser
A kiss
Des coups de latte
Blows from the floorboards
Un baiser
I pass from lock to lock
Et tes visites s'espacent
And your visits space out
Des ombres s'échinent
Shadows wear themselves down
À me chercher des noises
Looking for me to start an argument
Le plus clair de mon temps
The brightest of my time
Dans ma chambre noire
In my dark bedroom
De l'étuve au blizzard
From the oven to the blizzard
Des coups de latte
Blows from the floorboards
Un baiser
A kiss
Des coups de latteBlows from the floorboards
Un baiser
A kiss
Des coups de latte
Blows from the floorboards
Un baiser
A kiss
9 comments:
This and La nuit je mens are two of my favourite AB songs, but they're both so damn obscure! Couldn't someone force Jean F to explain them at least a little bit?? One suggestion, what about something like "from the steam room to the blizzard, blows with the canes"...which at least makes sense in terms of typical Scandinavian sauna practice!
hahhhahhaaaaa!!!! :>>)))))
Very Nice translation. One remarque: 'des coups de latte' is not a blow on the floorboard, but with the floorboard. IT is slang for a kick. As opposed to a Kiss.
fixed it, thank you, frans! xoxoxoox
Love what you have done here and thanks so very much. You have made clear many, many words which would have been difficult to understand.
Un Was ist Das however is the name of the small window over a door that enables one to have a (small) view outside. Perhaps here just a glimpse of what life is about.
Thank you, robin! I can't find "Was ist Das" in this song... am I missing something? Is it another song? Thanks again for taking the time. ~L
This one is full of puns. Love it.
"J'passe pour une caravane, pour un chien…" : pun on the French proverb "le chien aboie, la caravane passe".
"Pour un chien qui n'en démord pas", "démord" can be translated as "a dog that won't let go" as you did, but it's also a pun on "chien"/"(dé)mord" = "dog"/"bites".
"De sas en sas", small pun on the "sensas'" (= "arousing") slang word that was quite popular in the 90s.
"De sas en sas, et tes visites s'espacent", there's the rhyme, but there's also a pun between "sas" (= "airlock") and "espace" (= "space", as an airlock in the Space Shuttle or whatever).
"Les ombres s'échinent à me chercher des noises": it's already an extremely really beautiful sentence, but say it quickly, and it becomes "les ombres chinoises" (shadow play).
"Ma chambre noire" can be understood as "my dark bedroom" (then a pun again with "clair", the opposite of "dark"), indeed, but it also means "Camera obscura".
"Pourquoi, pour un vasistas", probably a pun between "Pourquoi ?" and "Was ist Das?". He grew up near Germany.
"Des coups de latte": not sure about this one, but I think "latte" is meant as the Lorraine slang (he grew up there) for "ruler". As having your hands hit by a school ruler.
kbbi, thank you, thank you, thank you... for taking the time to write so extensively and for bringing so many valuable puns and word play to light! Just wonderful. ~L
ps. I initially had "a dog that doesn't bite"... I'm changing it back! :>>))
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