Arthur H first performed in 1988 in clubs in Paris, as leader of a trio with bassist Brad Scott and drummer Paul Jothy. His first album, Arthur H (1990), combined rhythmic experimentation and bal-musette elements with a vocal style which has been compared to Tom Waits. He toured widely around this time, particularly in France and Japan, adding a fourth band member, Jon Handelsman (saxophone), and produced a second album, Bachibouzouk (1992). In early 1993, he did a six week season at the Magic Mirrors, an antique circus big top, which was later put on as a touring show and recorded on the live album En chair et en os. In 1996, he released the album Trouble Fête, following which he performed a season at the Gymnase in Paris. The live album Fête Trouble (1997) included some tracks from these shows as well as others recorded on tour in Africa. He toured the USA and Canada in 1998.
In 2000, he wrote the soundtrack for Michel Couvelard’s film, Inséparables, before touring in Asia and Canada. His next album, Pour Madame X (2000), featured the touring band of Nicolas Repac (guitar), Brad Scott (double bass) and Laurent Robin (drums). In 2001, he took part in the show "Cabaret Imprudent" with "Le Cirque Cahin-caha". The following year, he released the album Piano Solo, recorded live in a studio and mainly consisting of solo interpretations of earlier songs. This was followed by a band album, Négresse Blanche (2003), comprising tracks dedicated to the memory of famous women such as "Marilyn Kaddish" and "Bo Derek". In 2005, a planned tour of China was cancelled, and he returned to the studio to record the album Adieu Tristesse. This was the most commercially successful of his career, and included several duets, one with his father and another, "Est-ce que tu aimes?", with the musician -M- (Matthieu Chedid). He subsequently toured widely in France, Lebanon and Canada. In 2006 he published a book, "Onirique attaque", containing lyrics, reflections and photographs. He also composed the soundtrack for the film "L’homme qui rêvait d'un enfant", directed by Delphine Gleize. The soundtrack was performed by an ensemble of children from a local music school. The album "Show Time", issued late in 2006, was recorded live on tour and includes duets with Matthieu Chedid, Pauline Croze, Lhasa de Sela and Jacques Higelin. In June 2008 he released the album "L'Homme du Monde".
Discography
* 1990 : Arthur H
* 1991 : Cool Jazz (remixes)
* 1992 : Bachibouzouk
* 1993 : En chair et en os (live)
* 1996 : Trouble-Fête
* 1997 : Fête Trouble (live)
* 1999 : Inséparables (soundtrack)
* 2000 : Pour Madame X
* 2002 : Piano Solo (live)
* 2003 : Négresse Blanche
* 2005 : Adieu Tristesse
* 2006 : Show Time (live)
* 2008 : L'Homme du Monde
www.arthurh.net
Quai N°3
Arthur H Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
À chaque escale je pense à toi
À Barcelone et à Casablanca
Je t'ai envoyé quelques lettres déjà
J'ai rencontré plusieurs femmes de choix
Et j'ai souvent refusé leurs caresses
Car je n'ai cessé de penser à toi
À toi et à certaines promesses
Alors sache que si je ne te vois pas
Le mardi 23 au quai n°3
Je ne descendrai plus du bateau
Et on se reverra pas de si tôt
Tu n'as pas le choix, tu n'as pas le choix,
Tu n'as pas le choix, tu n'as pas le choix,
Le mardi 23, quai n°3
Le mardi 23, tu n'as pas le choix
Tu n'as pas répondu une seule fois
Alors j'ai douté de toi
Je ne suis qu'un pauvre soldat
Mais sous le feu, je ne lâche pas
Quand je suis seul dans ma grande chambre noire
J'ai des visions et des cauchemars
Car je te sais parfois cruelle, aussi cruelle que tu es belle
Alors sache que si je ne te vois pas
Le mardi 23 au quai n°3
Je ne descendrai plus du bateau
Et on se reverra pas de si tôt
Tu n'as pas le choix, tu n'as pas le choix,
Tu n'as pas le choix, tu n'as pas le choix,
Le mardi 23, quai n°3
Le mardi 23, tu n'as pas le choix
Prépare ton mouchoir, ton grand mouchoir blanc,
Agite-le bien, que je le voie de loin
Les putes de Hambourg, j'en ai rien à foutre,
Celles de Marseille encore moins,
Ce à quoi vraiment je tiens
C'est le grain de ta peau contre le mien
Le mardi 23, quai n°3, le mardi 23, tu n'as pas le choix
Le mardi 23, quai n°3, le mardi 23, tu n'as pas le choix
Le mardi 23, quai n°3, le mardi 23, tu n'as pas le choix
Le mardi 23, quai n°3, le mardi 23, tu n'as pas le choix
Tu n'as pas le choix.
The lyrics to Arthur H's song "Quai N°3" begin with a depiction of a soldier who has been away from home for six months, indulging in various affairs with different women at different ports. However, the soldier cannot shake off the memory of a particular woman, and he has not forgotten the promises that he made to her. He professes his love for her via letters, yet she has not replied to any of them, causing him to doubt her loyalty to him. Even in his solitary moments, he hallucinates and dreams about her. The chorus of the song delivers a somber ultimatum - if she does not show up at Quai 3 on Tuesday 23, he will not leave the boat and they will not be reunited anytime soon.
The lyrics are a poignant portrayal of a love that defies the distance and the uncertainty that come with long absences. The soldier struggles between fidelity and the temptation of multiple flings while away, but his love for one woman, possibly the one he hopes to see at Quai 3 remains unwavering. His insistence that she must be present at the precise time and place to reunite is a sign of the importance he places on their relationship despite everything else. The lyrics are delivered with an intensity that captures the mood of the singer, whose emotions vacillate between hope and despair, love, and anger.
Line by Line Meaning
En grandes manoeuvres depuis six mois
I have been on military exercises for six months
À chaque escale je pense à toi
Whenever we stop at a port, I think of you
À Barcelone et à Casablanca
I've been to Barcelona and Casablanca
Je t'ai envoyé quelques lettres déjà
I've sent you a few letters already
J'ai rencontré plusieurs femmes de choix
I've met several women that I could have chosen
Et j'ai souvent refusé leurs caresses
But I've often rejected their advances
Car je n'ai cessé de penser à toi
Because I never stopped thinking of you
À toi et à certaines promesses
About you and certain promises we made
Alors sache que si je ne te vois pas
So if I don't see you
Le mardi 23 au quai n°3
On Tuesday the 23rd, at pier number 3
Je ne descendrai plus du bateau
I won't get off the ship
Et on se reverra pas de si tôt
And we won't see each other anytime soon
Tu n'as pas le choix, tu n'as pas le choix,
You don't have a choice
Le mardi 23, quai n°3
On Tuesday the 23rd, at pier number 3
Le mardi 23, tu n'as pas le choix
On Tuesday the 23rd, you don't have a choice
Tu n'as pas répondu une seule fois
You haven't replied once
Alors j'ai douté de toi
So I doubt you
Je ne suis qu'un pauvre soldat
I'm just a poor soldier
Mais sous le feu, je ne lâche pas
But under fire, I never give up
Quand je suis seul dans ma grande chambre noire
When I'm alone in my big dark room
J'ai des visions et des cauchemars
I have visions and nightmares
Car je te sais parfois cruelle, aussi cruelle que tu es belle
Because I know you can be cruel at times, as beautiful as you are
Prépare ton mouchoir, ton grand mouchoir blanc,
Get your handkerchief ready, your big white handkerchief
Agite-le bien, que je le voie de loin
Wave it well, so I can see it from far away
Les putes de Hambourg, j'en ai rien à foutre,
I don't care about the whores in Hamburg
Celles de Marseille encore moins,
And even less about those in Marseille
Ce à quoi vraiment je tiens
What I really care about
C'est le grain de ta peau contre le mien
Is the feel of your skin against mine
Tu n'as pas le choix.
You don't have a choice.
Le mardi 23, quai n°3,
On Tuesday the 23rd, at pier number 3,
le mardi 23, tu n'as pas le choix
On Tuesday the 23rd, you don't have a choice
Le mardi 23, quai n°3, le mardi 23, tu n'as pas le choix
On Tuesday the 23rd, at pier number 3, you don't have a choice
Le mardi 23, quai n°3, le mardi 23, tu n'as pas le choix
On Tuesday the 23rd, at pier number 3, you don't have a choice
Le mardi 23, quai n°3, le mardi 23, tu n'as pas le choix
On Tuesday the 23rd, at pier number 3, you don't have a choice
Le mardi 23, quai n°3, le mardi 23, tu n'as pas le choix
On Tuesday the 23rd, at pier number 3, you don't have a choice
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
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