Some of his best known songs include "Boum...!", "Y'A D'La Joie", "Que Reste-T-Il De Nos Amours?", "Ménilmontant", and "Douce France". His catalog of songs is enormous, numbering close to a thousand. While many of his songs mined relatively conventional topics such as love, Paris, and nostalgia for his younger days, what set Trenet's songs apart were their personal, poetic, sometimes quite eccentric qualities, often infused with a warm wit. Some of his songs had unconventional subject matter, with whimsical imagery bordering on the surreal. "Y'A D'La Joie" evokes "joy" through a series of disconnected (though all vaguely phallic) images, including that of a subway car shooting out of its tunnel into the air, the Eiffel Tower crossing the street and a baker making excellent bread. The lovers engaged in a minuet in "La Polka Du Roi" reveal themselves at length to be "no longer human": they are made of wax and trapped in the Musée Grévin. Many of his hits from the 1930s and 1940s effectively combine the melodic and verbal nuance of French song with American swing rhythms.
Other artists have had hits with some of Trenet's songs, such as the American Bobby Darin's success with "Beyond the Sea" ("La Mer"). Darin's version preserved the charming chording of Trenet's original which the author dashed off in about an hour in 1946 as an homage to the French coastline, once again free of battleships and the scars of World War II.
Other Trenet songs were recorded by such popular French singers as Maurice Chevalier, Jean Sablon, and Frehel.
Mon Vieil Atlantique
Charles Trenet Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Mon vieil Atlantique?
Je vois ta crinière de cheval
Derrière mon hublot
Je n'ai rien d'anormal
Mais le goût antique
De faire sauter les bateaux
En faisant le gros dos
Mes moutons se sont enfuis
Je les cherche par gros temps
Le jour et la nuit
Qu'est-ce qu'il y a qui ne va pas
Toi dans ta cabine?
Ici tout le monde va très bien
À part mon petit chien
Que faut-il pour calmer
Mon vieil Atlantique
Cette fureur déchaînée
Depuis tant d'années?
Il me faut du printemps
Des journées bibliques
Et de l'amour en un mot
Pour calmer mes maux
Pour l'instant c'est l'hiver
Et le vent va de travers
La lune ajoute un zéro
À tous les hublots
Qu'est-ce qu'il y a qui ne va pas
Vieux transat qui roule?
Il y a la houle qui me soûle
Entre les repas
Qu'est-ce qu'il y a qui va mieux
Mon vieil Atlantique?
Il y a la couleur des cieux
Ouvre un peu les yeux
Le voyage est fini
Vois, je suis statique
Regarde les bateaux-remorques
Dans le port de New York
Mais pourtant ne crois pas
Que sitôt tu m'oublieras
Je resterai dans ton cœur
Encore quelques heures
Tu verras dans la nuit
Tourner mille boutiques
Ça te prouvera que l'Atlantique
Est encore chez lui
Ça te prouvera que l'Atlantique
Est encore chez lui
The lyrics of Charles Trenet's song "Mon Vieil Atlantique" depict a nostalgic and longing sentiment towards the Atlantic Ocean. The singer addresses the ocean, referring to it as "Mon vieil Atlantique" or "My old Atlantic," and wonders what is causing its unrest. The singer observes the ocean's powerful waves, comparing them to the mane of a horse seen through a small window. While nothing seems out of the ordinary, there is an ancient desire within the singer to make the boats jump by arching their backs. The singer mourns the loss of a white horse and sheep that have gone missing.
In the second stanza, the singer questions what is troubling the listener, who seems to be in a cabin. While everyone else seems to be doing well, the singer mentions their small dog as an exception. The singer then ponders what it would take to calm the "vieil Atlantique," the old Atlantic. The answer lies in the arrival of spring, biblical days, and love – all three things combined would soothe the singer's pain. However, for now, winter prevails, the wind blows in the wrong direction, and even the moon seems indifferent.
The third stanza brings attention to an old rolling deck chair or "vieux transat," which also seems troubled. The constant rocking motion feels nauseating, especially between meals. Eventually, the song transitions to a more hopeful tone. The singer notes that something is improving for the old Atlantic, and that is the color of the skies. The listener is urged to open their eyes and observe the scene. The journey may be over, and the singer appears static, but there is still a connection between them. The singer mentions the sight of tugboats in the port of New York, implying a sense of permanence. The song ends with a reminder that the Atlantic still belongs, emphasized by the presence of bustling shops during the night.
Overall, "Mon Vieil Atlantique" conveys a wistful longing for the Atlantic Ocean, expressing both its power and the singer's emotional attachment to it. The lyrics capture a mix of melancholy, nostalgia, and hope, highlighting the enduring bond between the singer and the ocean.
Line by Line Meaning
Qu'est-ce qu'il y a qui ne va pas
What's wrong
Mon vieil Atlantique?
with my old Atlantic?
Je vois ta crinière de cheval
I see your horse's mane
Derrière mon hublot
behind my porthole
Je n'ai rien d'anormal
I'm not abnormal
Mais le goût antique
But the ancient taste
De faire sauter les bateaux
Of blowing up the boats
En faisant le gros dos
While playing it cool
J'ai perdu mon cheval blanc
I lost my white horse
Mes moutons se sont enfuis
My sheep have run away
Je les cherche par gros temps
I'm searching for them in bad weather
Le jour et la nuit
Day and night
Qu'est-ce qu'il y a qui ne va pas
What's wrong
Toi dans ta cabine?
with you in your cabin?
Ici tout le monde va très bien
Everyone here is doing well
À part mon petit chien
Except for my little dog
Que faut-il pour calmer
What does it take to calm
Mon vieil Atlantique
my old Atlantic
Cette fureur déchaînée
This unleashed fury
Depuis tant d'années?
For so many years?
Il me faut du printemps
I need spring
Des journées bibliques
Biblical days
Et de l'amour en un mot
And love in one word
Pour calmer mes maux
To calm my pains
Pour l'instant c'est l'hiver
For now, it's winter
Et le vent va de travers
And the wind blows sideways
La lune ajoute un zéro
The moon adds a zero
À tous les hublots
To all the portholes
Qu'est-ce qu'il y a qui ne va pas
What's wrong
Vieux transat qui roule?
Old rolling deckchair?
Il y a la houle qui me soûle
The swell that intoxicates me
Entre les repas
Between meals
Qu'est-ce qu'il y a qui va mieux
What's going better
Mon vieil Atlantique?
with my old Atlantic?
Il y a la couleur des cieux
There's the color of the skies
Ouvre un peu les yeux
Open your eyes a little
Le voyage est fini
The journey is over
Vois, je suis statique
Look, I'm static
Regarde les bateaux-remorques
Look at the tugboats
Dans le port de New York
In the New York harbor
Mais pourtant ne crois pas
But still don't believe
Que sitôt tu m'oublieras
That you'll forget me right away
Je resterai dans ton cœur
I'll stay in your heart
Encore quelques heures
Just a few more hours
Tu verras dans la nuit
You'll see in the night
Tourner mille boutiques
A thousand shops spinning
Ça te prouvera que l'Atlantique
That will prove to you that the Atlantic
Est encore chez lui
Still belongs to it
Ça te prouvera que l'Atlantique
That will prove to you that the Atlantic
Est encore chez lui
Still belongs to it
Lyrics © RAOUL BRETON EDITIONS, Peermusic Publishing
Written by: Charles Trenet, Albert Lasry
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind