Despite the numerous biographies, many facts and events of Édith's life are shrouded in mystery. She was born Édith Giovanna Gassion in Belleville, Paris, France, the high-immigration district later described by Daniel Pennac. Legend has it that she was born on the pavement of Rue de Belleville 72 but according to her birth certificate that was at Hôpital Tenon, the Belleville arrondissement hospital. She was named Édith after the executed British nurse Edith Cavell (Piaf —Parisian jargon for "sparrow"— came from a nickname she would receive twenty years later).
Her mother, Annetta Giovanna Maillard (1898 – 1945), was a partly-Italian 17-year-old girl, native of Livorno, working as a café singer under the pseudonym Line Marsa; from her, Édith took the middle name of Giovanna. Her father, Louis-Alphonse Gassion (1881 – 1944), was a street acrobat with a theatrical past. The little Édith was soon abandoned and left for a short time to her maternal grandmother, Mena (probably a Kabyle). Shortly after, Édith's father brought the child to his mother, who ran a brothel in Normandy, and then joined the French Army (1916). Thus Édith was in contact with the prostitutes and the various attenders of the brothel since her early years, a circumstance which must have had a deep impact on her personality and vision of life.
From the age of three to seven she was blind. As part of Piaf's legend, she allegedly recovered her sight after her grandmother's prostitutes went on a pilgrimage to Saint Thérèse de Lisieux. In 1929 she joined her father in his acrobatic street performances. Then took a room at Grand Hôtel de Clermont (18 rue Veron, Paris 18ème) and separated from him, going her own way as a street singer in Pigalle, Ménilmontant and Paris suburbs (cf. the song "Elle fréquentait la Rue Pigalle"). She was about 16 years of age when she fell in love with a delivery-boy, Louis Dupont, and shortly after had a child, a little girl named Marcelle. Sadly, Marcelle died in infancy of meningitis.
In 1935, Édith was discovered in the Pigalle area of Paris by the nightclub owner Louis Leplée, whose club was frequented by the upper and lower classes alike. He persuaded her to sing despite her extreme nervousness, which, combined with her height of only 4' 8" (142 cm) inspired him to give her the nickname that would stay with her for the rest of her life and become her stage name: La Môme Piaf (The Little Sparrow). Her first record was produced in the same year. Shortly afterwards, Leplée was murdered and Piaf was accused of being an accessory; she was acquitted.
In 1940, Jean Cocteau wrote the successful play Le Bel Indifférent for her to star in. She began to make friends with famous people, such as the actor Maurice Chevalier and the poet Jacques Borgeat. She wrote the lyrics of many of her songs, and collaborated with composers on the tunes.
Her signature song, "La vie en rose" (which was voted a Grammy Hall of Fame Award in 1998) was written in the middle of the German occupation of Paris in World War II. During this time, she was in great demand and very successful. She befriended many high-ranking Germans and sang for them. It is said that she collaborated with the Nazis, too. After the war, she toured Europe, the United States, and South America, becoming an internationally known figure. Her popularity in the U.S. was such that she appeared on the Ed Sullivan Show eight times. She helped to launch the career of Charles Aznavour, taking him on tour with her in France and the United States.
The great love of Piaf's life, the boxer Marcel Cerdan, died in 1949. Piaf was married twice. Her first husband was Jacques Pills, a singer; they married in 1952 and divorced in 1956. Her second husband, Theophanis Lamboukas (also known as Théo Sarapo), was a hairdresser-turned-singer and actor, and was twenty years younger than Piaf; they married in 1962.
In 1951 she was in a car accident, and thereafter had difficulty breaking a serious morphine habit.
The Paris Olympia is the place where Piaf achieved fame and where, just a few months before her death, she gave one of her most memorable concerts while barely able to stand. In early 1963, Piaf recorded her last song, "L'homme de Berlin".
At the early age of 47, Piaf died of cancer in Plascassier, on the French riviera, on October 10, 1963. Her friend Jean Cocteau, very shocked and afflicted by her death, died a few hours later. Her body was returned to Paris where her death was only announced on October 11, the official date of her death. She was buried in Père Lachaise cemetery, Paris. Although she was forbidden a Mass by the Roman Catholic archbishop of Paris (because of her lifestyle), her funeral procession drew hundreds of thousands of mourners onto the streets of Paris and the ceremony at the cemetery was jammed with more than forty thousand fans. Charles Aznavour recalled that Piaf's funeral procession was the only time, since the end of World War II, that Parisian traffic came to a complete stop.
There is a museum dedicated to Piaf, the Musée Édith Piaf at 5, rue Crespin du Gast, 75011, Paris.
Today she is still remembered and revered as one of the greatest singers France has ever produced. Her life was one of sharp contrasts: the range of her fame as opposed to her tragic personal life, and her fragile small figure on stage with the resounding power of her voice.
La fête continue
Édith Piaf Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
REFRAIN
La fêt' bat son plein musique et manège.
Nougats, carabines, voyante, femm'nue
Du matin au soir, c'est un long cortège.
Chansons, balançoires, la fêt' continue
1.
A l'étage au d'ssous, y'a des goss's qui braillent,
Le père est malad', la mere est partie,
Il fout des taloch's à tout la marmaille,
Mais les bruits d'la rue couvrent tous leurs cris
Au d'ssus deux jeun's gens, faut voir comme ils s'aiment.
Oui mais leurs parents ne veul'nt rien savoir.
Ils ont décidé qu'ils s'aim'raient quand même
Puis qu'ils se tueraient, et c'est pour ce soir.
La fêt' bat son plein musique et manège.
Nougats, carabines, voyante, femm'nue
Du matin au soir, c'est un long cortège.
Chansons, balançoires, la fêt' continue
2.
Plus haut c'est un' veuv', plus rien n'l'intéresse
Ell' n'avait qu'un fils, c'était tout' sa vie
Il a disparu emportant la caisse
Depuis ce temps-là, ell' pleur' jour et nuit
En fac' les p'tits vieux qui sont bien aimables
Ont perdu leur fill' depuis vingt cinq ans.
Ils n'ont qu'un'marott' :
Fair' tourner les tables
Marie es-tu là... et ils sont contents.
La fêt' bat son plein musique et manège.
Nougats, carabines, voyante, femm'nue
Du matin au soir, c'est un long cortège.
Chansons, balançoires, la fêt' continue
3.
Voilà qu'au carr'four' pass' un' longu'voiture.
Un cycliste arriv' qui n'avait rien vu
Un marchand d'journaux :
C'est p't'être un'fracture.
L'ambulanc'l'e-mèn', la fêt' continue.
Et moi comm'tout l'mond', j'assiste à ces drames.
Mais je ferm' les yeux, j'pense à mon bonheur
Nous nous somm's donnés, tous deux, corps et âme.
On est trop heureux pour avoir du coeur
La fêt' bat son plein musique et manège.
Baisers, carabines, "je t'aime", femm'nue
Amour et nougats, "quittons le cortège.
Chéri, rentrons vite" la fêt' continue
Chansons, balançoires, la fêt'continue.
The song La fête continue by Édith Piaf is a reflection on the life of the people in the carnival. Through its lyrics, Piaf tells a story of the carnival that keeps going on despite the sadness and misery that people are experiencing. The carnival is a place where people forget their troubles and enjoy the moment. The lyrics of the song are quite insightful, as they depict the life of the people, their struggles, and desires.
In the first verse, Piaf talks about the young lovers who want to be together but cannot because of their parents. They have decided to die together, and it is for this reason that they have come to the carnival. In the second verse, Piaf talks about a widow who has lost her only son and a couple who have lost their daughter. They come to the carnival to forget their sorrows and instead have fun. In the final verse, Piaf talks about an accident that happens at the carnival, but people continue to party as if nothing has happened.
Overall, the song is quite powerful, as it depicts the harsh realities of life, but at the same time, it shows how people try to forget their sorrows and live in the moment. Piaf's voice adds a lot of emotion to the song, making it a true masterpiece.
Line by Line Meaning
La fêt' bat son plein musique et manège.
The party is in full swing with music and rides.
Nougats, carabines, voyante, femm'nue
There are sweets, games, a fortune-teller, and even a naked woman around.
Du matin au soir, c'est un long cortège.
From morning till night, it's a long procession of events.
Chansons, balançoires, la fêt' continue
Songs and swings keep the party going.
A l'étage au d'ssous, y'a des goss's qui braillent,
Downstairs, there are kids crying.
Le père est malad', la mere est partie,
The father is sick, and the mother has left.
Il fout des taloch's à tout la marmaille,
He hits all the children.
Mais les bruits d'la rue couvrent tous leurs cris
But the noise from the street covers up their cries.
Au d'ssus deux jeun's gens, faut voir comme ils s'aiment.
Upstairs, there are two young people deeply in love.
Oui mais leurs parents ne veul'nt rien savoir.
But their parents don't want to acknowledge their love.
Ils ont décidé qu'ils s'aim'raient quand même
They have decided to love each other anyway.
Puis qu'ils se tueraient, et c'est pour ce soir.
And that they'll kill themselves, and it's tonight.
Plus haut c'est un' veuv', plus rien n'l'intéresse
Higher up, there's a widow who's not interested in anything anymore.
Ell' n'avait qu'un fils, c'était tout' sa vie
She had only one son who was her whole life.
Il a disparu emportant la caisse
He disappeared with the money box.
Depuis ce temps-là, ell' pleur' jour et nuit
Since that time, she cries day and night.
En fac' les p'tits vieux qui sont bien aimables
At the face, there are lovely old people.
Ont perdu leur fill' depuis vingt cinq ans.
They lost their daughter 25 years ago.
Ils n'ont qu'un'marott' :
They only have one game:
Fair' tourner les tables
Turning tables.
Marie es-tu là... et ils sont contents.
'Marie are you here?' And they are happy.
Voilà qu'au carr'four' pass' un' longu'voiture.
Suddenly, a long car passes by the intersection.
Un cycliste arriv' qui n'avait rien vu
A cyclist arrives, oblivious to it all.
Un marchand d'journaux : C'est p't'être un'fracture.
A newsstand vendor suggests it could be a fracture.
L'ambulanc'l'e-mèn', la fêt' continue.
An ambulance takes them away, but the party goes on.
Et moi comm'tout l'mond', j'assiste à ces drames.
And like everyone else, I witness these dramas.
Mais je ferm' les yeux, j'pense à mon bonheur
But I close my eyes and think of my happiness.
Nous nous somm's donnés, tous deux, corps et âme.
We have given ourselves to each other, body and soul.
On est trop heureux pour avoir du coeur
We are too happy to have any concern.
Baisers, carabines, "je t'aime", femm'nue
Kisses, rifles, 'I love you's, and naked women.
Amour et nougats, "quittons le cortège.
Love and sweets, let's leave the procession.
Chéri, rentrons vite" la fêt' continue
'Darling, let's go home quickly', but the party goes on.
Chansons, balançoires, la fêt'continue.
Songs and swings keep the party going.
Lyrics © BEUSCHER ARPEGE
Written by: MICHEL EMER
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@neila8663
Edith Piaf at her best! Vive la France!
@vxd6884
Me encanta su música, soy de Peru🇵🇪
@medbenyakoub1934
Qu'elle repose en paix.
@annamaksimova8510
Эдит Пиаф
замечательно спела,
чуть-ли не рассказала какую-то
жизненную историю!
Какую?
@felizjuevesuwu7092
La beauté à son meilleur