Souchon signed his first contract in 1971, but had no success until he began to collaborate with composer/arranger Laurent Voulzy ; they would write together, but each released albums under his own name. Souchon's first hit was "J'ai 10 ans" (1974), from the album of the same name. Souchon's biggest hit was probably "Foule Sentimentale" from 1995's C'est Deja ca. His recent album is from 2005, called La Vie Theodore which features his song "Et si en plus, y'a personne" [What if, even more, there is no one], a song condemning religious intolerance.
He wrote the theme for François Truffaut's 1979 film Love on the Run (L'amour en fuite).
Tailler La Zone
Alain Souchon Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Boulevard de la plage
Sous sa bâche elle était belle
Un sourire un peu triste
J'ai senti fraise cassis
Que je pourrais tailler la zone avec elle
Le soir sur les falaises
On est allé vanille fraise
Saluer le soleil sur son trône
En m'enlaçant elle m'a dit
Vendre des glaces m'ennuie
On laisse tout on taille la zone
Dans mon deux pièces à Paris
Elle répétait toutes les nuits
On reste pas dans l'hexagone
Je lui disais laisse-moi faire
Je règle quelques affaires
Après c'est sûr on taille la zone
Moi le bureau l'ordinateur
Elle mon aspirateur
Ses catalogues de Mobile-Home
Je savais que c'était minable
Je me suis abonné au câble
On taillait pas vraiment la zone
Elle me disait déconne pas, déconne pas
On va pas rester comme ça
Je veux les prairies, les fleurs jaunes
On va pas faire comme les gens
Vivre à cause de l'argent
On laisse tout on taille la zone
Elle rêvait de voyages
De bagages de paysages
Les grosses Harley avec des chromes
Moi mon portable et mes calmants
Mon plan d'épargne logement
Notre amour taillait la zone
Je me suis réveillé une nuit
Marchande de glaces partie
J'avais perdu mon petit Kim cône
Y a plein de filles sur le terre
Mais quand je vois une planisphère
J'ai le cœur qui taille la zone
J'ai le cœur qui taille la zone
J'ai le cœur qui taille la zone
The song "Tailler La Zone" by Alain Souchon is a melancholic yet delightful ode to the desire for a life of freedom and adventure. The lyrics capture the singer's encounter with a charming ice cream vendor on the Boulevard de la Plage. He senses the sadness behind her smile while tasting her delicious strawberry and blackcurrant flavors. He fantasizes about running away with her, leaving behind their mundane lives and everything they know to "tailler la zone" or hit the road together.
As the story unfolds, the ice cream vendor and the singer embark on a romantic journey, sharing their dreams of leaving their present lives and traveling around the world. The singer struggles with the practicalities of their plan, torn between his responsibilities as a provider and his desire for adventure. He promises her that after he takes care of some business dealings, they will carve out a life on their own terms.
However, as time goes by, he realizes that their grand plan was just a fantasy. Their drastically different ideas of what a life of freedom means are just too incompatible. As he loses touch with the ice cream vendor, he holds on to the memory of their shared dream, yearning for a life of adventure, but painfully aware that he can never get it back.
Overall, "Tailler La Zone" is a tragic yet evocative commentary on the fleeting nature of dreams and the realities of life that always seem to get in the way.
Line by Line Meaning
Vendeuse de glaces
A woman who sells ice cream
Boulevard de la plage
A street near the beach
Sous sa bâche elle était belle
She looked beautiful under her canopy
Un sourire un peu triste
She had a slightly sad smile
J'ai senti fraise cassis
I smelled strawberry and blackcurrant
Que je pourrais tailler la zone avec elle
That I could bust out and explore with her
Le soir sur les falaises
In the evening, on the cliffs
On est allé vanille fraise
We went for vanilla and strawberry ice cream
Saluer le soleil sur son trône
To greet the sun on its throne
En m'enlaçant elle m'a dit
As she hugged me, she said
Vendre des glaces m'ennuie
I'm bored of selling ice cream
On laisse tout on taille la zone
Let's leave everything behind and explore
Dans mon deux pièces à Paris
In my two-room apartment in Paris
Elle répétait toutes les nuits
She repeated every night
On reste pas dans l'hexagone
We won't stay in this country
Je lui disais laisse-moi faire
I told her to let me handle it
Je règle quelques affaires
I just need to take care of some things
Après c'est sûr on taille la zone
After that, we'll definitely bust out and explore
Moi le bureau l'ordinateur
Me, the desk, the computer
Elle mon aspirateur
Her, the vacuum cleaner
Ses catalogues de Mobile-Home
Her catalogs of mobile homes
Je savais que c'était minable
I knew it was pathetic
Je me suis abonné au câble
I subscribed to cable TV
On taillait pas vraiment la zone
We weren't really exploring
Elle me disait déconne pas, déconne pas
She'd say 'don't mess around, don't mess around'
On va pas rester comme ça
We're not gonna stay like this
Je veux les prairies, les fleurs jaunes
I want meadows, yellow flowers
On va pas faire comme les gens
We're not gonna do what everyone else does
Vivre à cause de l'argent
Live just to make money
On laisse tout on taille la zone
Let's leave everything behind and explore
Elle rêvait de voyages
She dreamed of travel
De bagages de paysages
Of baggage and landscapes
Les grosses Harley avec des chromes
Big Harleys with chrome
Moi mon portable et mes calmants
Me, my phone, and my tranquilizers
Mon plan d'épargne logement
My housing savings plan
Notre amour taillait la zone
Our love was exploring
Je me suis réveillé une nuit
I woke up one night
Marchande de glaces partie
The ice cream vendor was gone
J'avais perdu mon petit Kim cône
I had lost my little Kim cone
Y a plein de filles sur le terre
There are plenty of women on earth
Mais quand je vois une planisphère
But when I see a map of the world
J'ai le cœur qui taille la zone
My heart is busting out and exploring
J'ai le cœur qui taille la zone
My heart is busting out and exploring
J'ai le cœur qui taille la zone
My heart is busting out and exploring
Lyrics © LES EDITIONS ALAIN SOUCHON
Written by: Alain Souchon, Laurent Voulzy
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind