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hamlet · Joined: 05 Jan 2006 Posts: 456

Ema, or somebody. I need a one line summary of this poem for some CD liner notes I am writing.. I'm afraid I don't understand what's being added, subtracted and multiplied here. I don't get the point of this. Can you help again? Thanks so much!

Yves Montand
L'addition Paroles: J.L.Dabadie. Musique: M.Légrand
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Des jours heureux, une colombe
Des soirs qui tombent, un regard bleu
Plus un sanglot, plus un violon
La vie et tout ce temps cassé
Que l' on appelle le passé

Plus l' avenir en dix leçons
De nos prophètes bénévoles
Plus une bombe sur une école
Et les oiseaux qui chantent après
L' avion ne l' a pas fait exprès

Plus les amis dans la maison
Moins ceux qui pour toujours s' en vont
Les enfants sont déjà devant
Ôté de nous, ôté de moi
Il ne nous reste pas beaucoup

Plus les combats, le cœur qui bat
Les défaites souvent secrètes
Et tous les doutes qu' on redoute
Mas quand on a perdu le nôtre
Il y a encore l' espoir des autres

Multiplié par les idées
Divisé par tous les mots d' ordre
Certains finissent par confondre
Certains ne peuvent pas répondre
Bouche sans cri au bout d' une corde

Et plus la pluie et le bon temps
Et l' herbe qui pousse entre-temps
Plus tous les désobéissants
Qui ne veulent plus se mettre en rang
Les enfants sont déjà devant

Moins ceux qui sont encore à naître
Plus l' inconnu dans la fenêtre
Et plus l' amour de quelques-uns
Et plus ou moins de quelques-unes
Je pose tout, je retiens une

Égale...
Égale un homme en équilibre
Sur trois vers
De Prévert
Mais ce sont des vers libres

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[10307] http://www.paroles.net - Texte soumis aux Droits d'Auteur - Réservé à un usage privé ou éducatif.

ema · Joined: 31 Oct 2005 Posts: 1074 Location: france

wow! this song is even more difficult to translate than the first one!!! but i'll try as soon as i can!
Montand used to quote Prévert to introduce this song live:

Embauché malgré moi dans l'usine à idées
j'ai refusé de pointer
Mobilisé de même dans l'armée des idées
j'ai déserté
Je n'ai jamais compris grand-chose
Il n'y a jamais grand-chose
ni petite chose
Il y a autre chose.

Autre chose
c'est ce que j'aime qui me plaît
et que je fais.

maybe it can help you!
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hamlet · Joined: 05 Jan 2006 Posts: 456

Indeed it's autre chose. Metaphor upon metaphor. Image upon image. I only need a one line summation. What's added up here? Life? If no-one knows, I can say anything! Thanks for the help ema!

ema · Joined: 31 Oct 2005 Posts: 1074 Location: france

Des jours heureux, une colombe
Des soirs qui tombent, un regard bleu
Plus un sanglot, plus un violon
La vie et tout ce temps cassé
Que l' on appelle le passé

i think i'll need to listen the song first, cuz you prolly know that, but "plus" has several meanings, comparatif de supériorité, superlatif de supériorité and adverbe de négation and for the third lines, i don't really know if he means errr "no more" or a addition..... i'd say "no more", but i'm not sure
well, i think that dove has the same meaning for everyone, i mean, peace, spirit etc..
the first verse is about life and time mostly.

Plus l' avenir en dix leçons
De nos prophètes bénévoles
Plus une bombe sur une école
Et les oiseaux qui chantent après
L' avion ne l' a pas fait exprès

there's an addition there, future, religion (kinda ironic about the subject btw).... bombs killing kids at school....the plane didn't do it on purpose....and still birds sing just after...so yeah, still about lives

Plus les amis dans la maison
Moins ceux qui pour toujours s' en vont
Les enfants sont déjà devant
Ôté de nous, ôté de moi
Il ne nous reste pas beaucoup

plus the friends at home, less the ones who are gone forever (died)....i don't really get "les enfants sont déjà devant" if he's talking about the kids killed by the bombs or not....but i think they're already dead......take us off, take me off and there's not much left....

Plus les combats, le cœur qui bat
Les défaites souvent secrètes
Et tous les doutes qu' on redoute
Mais quand on a perdu le nôtre
Il y a encore l' espoir des autres

add the fights.....heart beats, secret defeat, fearsome doubts....even when you're lost, there's still others's hope..... cuz if there's no hope, life doesn't worth it

Multiplié par les idées
Divisé par tous les mots d' ordre
Certains finissent par confondre
Certains ne peuvent pas répondre
Bouche sans cri au bout d' une corde

multiplied by ideas, divided by orders, some of us end up confused, some cannot answer, mouth without any scream with a rope around the neck....life without freedom leads to death

Et plus la pluie et le bon temps
Et l' herbe qui pousse entre-temps
Plus tous les désobéissants
Qui ne veulent plus se mettre en rang
Les enfants sont déjà devant

plus the rain, the good ol' days....and the grass grows meanwhile(life), plus all the disobedients, who don't wanna line up anymore...and the kids are already at the front.......time, freedom, life.....again

Moins ceux qui sont encore à naître
Plus l' inconnu dans la fenêtre
Et plus l' amour de quelques-uns
Et plus ou moins de quelques-unes
Je pose tout, je retiens une

not counting those who are still to be born, plus the unknown in the window ( and not at the window) and add the love of some men ..... and more or less the love of few women...i put everything down, carry one (female)

Égale...
Égale un homme en équilibre
Sur trois vers
De Prévert
Mais ce sont des vers libres

equal....a man on a tightrope...on 3 Prévert's verses.....but these are free verses

hope it can help you! i'd say it talks about life, time and freedom mostly....it makes me think to our motto "liberté, égalité, fraternité"....which of course, is not topical anymore nowadays , at least totally never-never.
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hamlet · Joined: 05 Jan 2006 Posts: 456

Here were are chipping away at the language barrier from both sides and the poetry barrier as well. I think you're right about liberty, equality and fraternity,and I think he is saying, "Everything and its opposite added to/ subtracted from life equals a man in balance (en equilibre)." I will see Jeff doing his Punk History of the Lower East side on the Lower East Side tonight. He's easier than Prevert.

Dav · Posted: Sun May 28, 2006 2:46 pm Post subject:

ema · Joined: 31 Oct 2005 Posts: 1074 Location: france

hamlet · Joined: 05 Jan 2006 Posts: 456

So it would mean a man on a tightrope who can fall any minute? Interesting. Incidentally, I'm a female,just using the name hamlet because it's the letters of my name scrambled (Thelma). I saw Jeff and Jack last night at a Lower East side Festival doing their punk history and they were great. Tremendous applause. I got some video for my friend's cable TV show but can't upload it because my camera (Sony) is not compatible with my computer (Mac). Jeff said it would be OK to send Dav or somebody a disc and maybe he could figure out how to up load it. PM a mailing address in Franc or England if you can do this .

Dav · Posted: Mon May 29, 2006 4:04 pm Post subject:

héhé that's great ! I'll pm you my maling adress, i'm sure you had a great time !
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http://uberaffe.bandcamp.com

Dav · Posted: Mon May 29, 2006 4:11 pm Post subject:

If you're into la chanson française d'antan, i suggest you to look for Boris Vian stuff, he was great with lyrics, he imported jazz music to france and he is/was the best french writer in my opinon, i own almost all his book and lyrics so if you need anything, well, you know what to do !
_________________
http://uberaffe.bandcamp.com

Dav · Posted: Mon May 29, 2006 4:21 pm Post subject:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boris_Vian if you're curious.
_________________
http://uberaffe.bandcamp.com

hamlet · Joined: 05 Jan 2006 Posts: 456

We heard Le Deserteur over here. He translated Brecht Weil's Bilbao song for Montand. I should really check him out. Thats for the info.

ema · Joined: 31 Oct 2005 Posts: 1074 Location: france

hey, good to see that you had fun, chapette ! ; )
mmmm a vid sounds great!
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hamlet · Joined: 05 Jan 2006 Posts: 456

Yes we all had fun thanks to Jeff ,J ack and Dave. Found an Engish translation of L'Addition which ends with a man being balanced on 2 or 3 verses by Prevert but the verses are free ( pun--unrhymed verse and don't cost anything or add to 'addition). The lyrics are not by Prevert but by J.L Dabadie, music by Michel Legrand.

ema · Joined: 31 Oct 2005 Posts: 1074 Location: france

hehhe, well i know that, actually Montand esp asked to Dabadie to write the lyrics.....and i don't think i ever said that the lyrics were from Prévert, what i said is just below: