La rue Traversière
Arlette Tephany Lyrics

The song, "La rue Traversière" by Arlette Téphany, paints a vivid picture of a street that exists only in the imagination. It speaks of a street with roses and wonders that no one sees. It tells of a crying baby who might fall out the window, a grandmother who sells herself for money, and a military man sitting on his bicorne by a post in silence. There is an inventor who makes hot air balloons of all colors and a guillotine that cuts cigars for Aline's father. There are lovers counting each other's eyes under a front porch and lions dressed as Cossacks getting ready for a wedding.

The street seems to exist outside the realm of reality and may only exist in the mind of the songwriter. Despite the street's fantastical nature, it contains real people and objects that belong in a historical narrative. The eroticization of older women through a reference to prostitution, the guillotine that holds significance in the French Revolution, and the use of a bicorne hat that harkens back to the Napoleonic era are all tangible elements that anchor the song in the past.

This song seems to be a commentary on how the surreal and the bizarre can exist effortlessly in our everyday life if we allow imagination to take over. It suggests that by looking at the mundane and the ordinary with a new set of eyes can alter our perception and make life more exciting. The song also highlights how real people and objects can take on mythic proportions when woven into stories.