Waterloo

This is one which somehow escaped me until quite recently. I lived in France for a good few years and never heard this - I wonder why?

Love it love it love it....


Lyrics below...

French version (see below for English version)


Déjà à Waterloo, Napoléon dût se rendre
My my at Waterloo Napoleon did surrender
Et moi, je crois que mon destin prend aujourd'hui le même chemin
Oh yeah, and I have met my destiny in quite a similar way
Les livres d'histoire et la vie racontent la même comédie
The history book on the shelf is always repeating itself

Waterloo, tu es vainqueur et je perds la guerre
Waterloo, I was defeated, you won the war
Waterloo, je me constitue ta prisonnière
Waterloo, promise to love you for ever more
Waterloo, je n'peux plus fuir et plus t'échapper
Waterloo, couldn't escape if I wanted to
Waterloo, pour la vie je promets de t'aimer
Waterloo, knowing my fate is to be with you
Waterloo, il est arrivé mon Waterloo
Waterloo, finally facing my waterloo

Pourtant, j'ai bien tenté de résister mais en vain
My my, I tried to hold you back but you were stronger
Alors, je crois que ma seule chance est d'abandonner le combat
Oh yeah, and now it seems my only chance is giving up the fight
Comment faire encore pour y croire
And how could I ever refuse?
quand je souhaite ta victoire ?
I feel like I win when I lose

Waterloo, tu es vainqueur et je perds la guerre
Waterloo, I was defeated, you won the war
Waterloo, je me constitue ta prisonnière
Waterloo, promise to love you for ever more
Waterloo, je n'peux plus fuir et plus t'échapper
Waterloo, couldn't escape if I wanted to
Waterloo, pour la vie je promets de t'aimer
Waterloo, knowing my fate is to be with you
Waterloo, il est arrivé mon Waterloo
Waterloo, finally facing my waterloo

Comment faire encore pour y croire
So how could I ever refuse
quand je souhaite ta victoire ?
I feel like I win when I lose

Waterloo, je n'peux plus fuir et plus t'échapper
Waterloo, couldn't escape if I wanted to
Waterloo, pour la vie je promets de t'aimer
Waterloo, knowing my fate is to be with you

Waterloo, il est arrivé mon Waterloo
Waterloo, finally facing my Waterloo

English Version

Sunday Girl

So on to the lyrics.

This is where it all started. You do not know how many hundred hours it took to understand the lyrics to this degree.

It still isn't perfect, so help me if you can. The bits in italics are the hardest ones to pin down. I'm not happy with any of the lyrics I have found on the internet for these. I haven't seen "savoureuse" anywhere else, but I think it's more likely than "syrupy" which I have seen elsewhere - hardly very French!

Update 10/12/08 - An enormous big thank you to Myriam for coming up with "L'air du weekend déclenche sa fierté" for "The weekend mood and she's feeling proud" - that line had always completely escaped me. And also for correcting "mais non" to "minou", which clearly corresponds better to "baby".

Lyrics below...

French version (see below for English version)

Je connais une fille dans une rue déserte
I know a girl from a lonely street

Froide comme glace mais aussi savoureuse
Cold as ice cream but still as sweet

Sèche tes pleurs Sunday Girl
Dry your eyes Sunday Girl

Hé j'ai vu ton mec avec une autre fille
Hey I saw your guy with a different girl

Il semblait dans un autre monde
Looks like he's in another world

Cours te cacher Sunday Girl
Run and hide Sunday Girl

Dépêche-toi, dépêche-toi et attends
Hurry up, hurry up and wait

Toute la semaine absent et pourtant j'attends
I stay away all week and still I wait

J'ai le cafard, je t'en prie viens voir
I got the blues, please come see

Ce que ton amour représente pour moi
What your loving means to me

Elle ne peut s'en tirer en monde ouvrier
She can't catch up with a working crowd

L'air du weekend déclenche sa fierté
The weekend mood and she's feeling proud

- Quand tu rêves Sunday Girl
- Live in dreams Sunday Girl

Minou, moi je sortirais bien ce soir
Baby I would like to go out tonight

Toi et moi, mes parents vont flipper
If I go with you, my folks will get up tight

- Reste chez toi Sunday Girl
- Stay at home Sunday Girl

Hé j'ai vu ton mec avec une autre fille
Hey I saw your guy with a different girl

Il semblait dans un autre monde
Looks like he's in another world

Cours te cacher Sunday Girl
Run and hide Sunday Girl

Quand je t'ai revu l'été j'ai décidé
When I saw you again in the summertime

Si ton amour était pareil au mien
If your love was as sweet as mine

Je pourrais être Sunday Girl
I could be Sunday Girl

Dépêche-toi, dépêche-toi et attends
Hurry up, hurry up and wait

Toute la semaine absent et pourtant j'attends
I stay away all week and still I wait

J'ai le cafard, je t'en prie viens voir
I got the blues, please come see

Ce que ton amour représente pour moi
What your loving means to me

Dépêche-toi, dépêche-toi et attends
Hurry up, hurry up and wait

Toute la semaine absent et pourtant j'attends
I stay away all week and still I wait

J'ai le cafard, je t'en prie viens voir
I got the blues, please come see

Ce que ton amour représente pour moi
What your loving means to me

I got the blues

O dépêche-toi, dépêche-toi

Moi, j'attends

O dépêche-toi

I got the blues

English version

With thanks to Alfreda Smith and Zabeth Featherstone for helping me to get this far.

My life 1

A school-trip to Boulogne was where it all started for me. Or was it Calais? I'm guessing it really doesn't matter or I'd remember. I must have been about 11 or 12, which means it was late 70's. It was probably the first time I had been to France, and my early teenager hormones were just beginning to kick in.

We were there because it was France and we were learning French. After the obligatory visit to some random museum, we were set free by our teachers for a few hours. Walking around, I noticed that somehow the French kids we saw seemed kind of weedy, yet kind of confident and cool. And me and my scrawny and nerdy British mates ended up in one of those French book and record shops - the kind where you could ask them to play one of the records.

As we looked through the different singles, I was vaguely fascinated to find that besides all the French records there were probably just as many in English and was bemused by the fact that the record sleeves of tracks I owned were not the same in France. Not only were there bits printed in French but also different photos. It never occured to me then that UK record sleeves were probably also quite different from American ones.

Then my life almost didn't change forever.

My mate picked up Sunday Girl. And I noticed something. It said «version française». And I don't know why but I wanted it. I really really wanted it. But he'd got it and it was the only one in the shop. So I got something else. I don't even remember what - something that wasn't in French, that's all I know. We rejoined our teachers and got back on the boat.

And then my life did change forever.

Me and my mate were looking at our singles and it slowly dawned on me. He actually preferred the single I'd bought and I wanted the one he'd got. So I became the proud owner of my first « version française » single...

I didn't know quite how much that single would change my life.

Cold as ice cream

This will be a blog to build up a record of the French lyrics of songs in English which have been released in French...

The lyrics of recently-released tracks are easily tracked down; however it is still hard to track down correct lyrics for some older ones... so hopefully you will be able to help me.