At the age of 5, her family left for Paris. When she was 19, she decided to stop studying art and architecture, to become a full-time model.
She was a very successful fashion model until 1998. Since then she has devoted herself to chanson. Her debut album, Quelqu'un m'a dit, on which she sings in French (despite her Italian origin), was released in 2002. To date it has sold over a million copies across Europe. Her second album, No Promises (this time in English, with songs inspired by famous English-language poets), was released in January 2007.
She married then French president, Nicolas Sarkozy, in the beginning of 2008.
Her music career still did not cease after becoming the First Lady. She released her third album Comme si de rien n'était ("As If Nothing Happened") on 11 July 2008. The songs are self-penned except for one rendition of You Belong to Me and another song featuring a poem by Michel Houellebecq set to music. Royalties from the album will be donated to unidentified charitable and humanitarian cause.
Promises Like Pie-Crust
Carla Bruni Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
So will I not promise you
Keep we both our liberties
Never false and never true
Let us hold the die uncast
Free to come as free to go
For I cannot know your past
You, so warm, may once have been
Warmer towards another one
I, so cold, may once have seen
Sunlight, once have felt the sun
Who shall show us if it was
Thus indeed in time of old?
Fades the image from the glass
And the fortune is not told
If you promised, you might grieve
For lost liberty again
If I promised, I believe
I should fret to break the chain
Let us be the friends we were
Nothing more but nothing less
Many thrive on frugal fare
Who would perish of excess
Promise me no promises
Well, promise me no promises
So will I not promise you
Keep we both our liberties
Never false and never true
Let us hold the die uncast
Free to come as free to go
For I cannot know your past
And of mine what can you know?
And if you promised, you might grieve
For lost liberty again
If I promised, I believe
I should fret to break the chain
Let us be the friends we were
Nothing more, nothing less
Many thrive on frugal fare
Who would perish of excess
Promises like pie-crust
Promises like pie-crust
The song "Promises Like Pie Crust" by Carla Bruni is a thoughtful reflection on the nature of romantic relationships and the value of maintaining individual freedom within them. The title of the song alludes to the fragility of promises, comparing them to the delicate and easily-broken pastry crust of a pie. Bruni begins the song by expressing her desire for both herself and her partner to keep their freedom intact and to neither make nor expect promises of each other. She suggests that promises can be constraining and that she would rather enjoy a relationship based on mutual respect and trust than one in which promises are made and kept or broken.
She then muses on the idea that she and her partner cannot truly know each other's pasts or feelings. She recognizes that both of them may have once had stronger feelings for other people or experienced greater emotions than they do for each other now. Bruni suggests that the past is impossible to fully understand or to compare to the present, and therefore there is no benefit in making promises about the future. Instead, she values the idea of being free to come and go as they please, without guilt or obligation.
The final verse of the song reinforces the idea that promises should be avoided. Bruni acknowledges that making promises can be constricting and can even lead to resentment and regret. Rather than tying themselves to one another, she suggests that they remain friends without expectations. Ultimately, the song's lyrics celebrate the beauty of relationships that are built on mutual respect rather than expectations, promises, or obligations.
Line by Line Meaning
Promise me no promises
Do not make promises to me that you may not be able to keep.
So will I not promise you
Similarly, I will not make promises to you.
Keep we both our liberties
We should both maintain our freedom and independence.
Never false and never true
We should not be dishonest or insincere, but we should not be bound by rigid promises either.
Let us hold the die uncast
We should not commit to any particular course of action, but remain open to different possibilities.
Free to come as free to go
We should both be free to leave the relationship if it no longer serves us.
For I cannot know your past
I cannot fully understand your history and experiences.
And of mine what can you know?
Likewise, you may not understand my own background and life story.
You, so warm, may once have been
You may have been passionately in love with someone else before.
Warmer towards another one
You may have felt deeper feelings for another person in the past.
I, so cold, may once have seen
In contrast, I may have been more distant and unemotional in previous relationships.
Sunlight, once have felt the sun
However, I may have experienced warmth and affection before as well.
Who shall show us if it was
It is impossible to be sure whether our assumptions about each other's past are correct.
Thus indeed in time of old?
We cannot be certain about the accuracy of our memories or perceptions of past events.
Fades the image from the glass
Memories and recollections of the past can become less clear or vivid over time.
And the fortune is not told
We cannot predict the future or know what will happen in our relationship.
If you promised, you might grieve
If you made a promise to me, you might feel regret or sorrow later on if you could not keep it.
For lost liberty again
You might resent losing your freedom or independence if you make promises you cannot keep.
If I promised, I believe
Similarly, if I made a promise to you, I would worry about breaking it in the future.
I should fret to break the chain
I would feel anxious and upset if I could not keep my promise to you.
Let us be the friends we were
Instead of being romantically involved, let's go back to just being friends.
Nothing more but nothing less
We shouldn't try to be anything more than friends, but we should still value each other's company and connection.
Many thrive on frugal fare
We don't need grand gestures or promises to enjoy our relationship.
Who would perish of excess
Too much intensity or commitment could actually harm our friendship or personalities.
Promises like pie-crust
Just like promises made in pie crusts can easily crumble and fall apart, so too can promises in relationships be unstable and unreliable.
Promises like pie-crust
We should avoid making promises that might be too difficult or unrealistic to fulfill, just as we would not trust a pie whose crust is not strong enough.
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Written by: CARLA BRUNI, CHRISTINA ROSSETTI
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind