Son of an opera singer and an Italian piano teacher (Liette), he was raised by his grandparents in Toulouse, where he heard Glenn Miller, Édith Piaf and Louis Armstrong (among others) on the radio.
In 1947 he failed his baccalaureat and commenced a career in journalism, writing for various journals including Le Journal des Curistes at Vichy and L'Echo d'Alger. At the same time he wrote songs for Marcel Amont (Le barbier de Belleville, Le balayeur du roi) and Philippe Clay (Joseph, La sentinelle). He met Georges Brassens, who became his friend and mentor.
In 1949 he performed his military service in the foreign legion at Rabat, Morocco.
He sent his lyrics to Marguerite Monnot, Édith Piaf's songwriter, who put them to music. (Méphisto, Le Sentier de la guerre). He started to sing for a livelihood in 1959 in a Parisian cabaret in Montmartre, Le lapin agile.
In 1962, he decided to sing his works himself: Une petite fille and Cécile ma fille (dedicated to his daughter, born in 1962 to his wife Sylvie, whom he met at Le lapin agile). These songs made him immediately known to the larger public, which he had already started to penetrate by participating in the concerts of Dalida.
A car accident immobilised him for several months in 1963. The following year he travelled to Brazil, and sang in prestigious halls in Paris: the Olympia, the Palais, the Théâtre de la Ville.
Following the death of his friend Jacques Audiberti in 1965 he wrote, in homage, the song Chanson pour le maçon.
The events of May 1968 inspired him to the torrential Paris Mai, a plea for life, which would be banned from the airwaves. The same year he recorded his first live album at the Olympia: Une soirée avec Claude Nougaro.
His career continued normally punctuated with success: Le jazz et la java, Tu verras, Île de Ré, Armstrong, Toulouse, Petit taureau. But in 1984, his recording company did not renew his contract. Nougaro left for New York, seeking inspiration, and while there wrote and recorded a self-financed disc, Nougayork, whose resounding success was a surprise.
In 1988 Victoires de la musique rewarded him with best album and best artist, and between 1993 and 1997 he released three new albums.
His health deteriorated after 1995, when he underwent a heart operation. In 2003, his condition left him unable to appear at the festival du Verbe at Toulouse. From 1998 to 2004 he devoted himself more to concerts and festivals, apart from an album in aid of children suffering from AIDS. Having undergone further surgery in early 2004, he died of cancer in March, 74 years old.
His music drew inspiration, among other sources, from American jazz, from which he borrowed heavily (Charles Mingus, Louis Armstrong, Dave Brubeck, Sonny Rollins), but also from Brazilian music (Antonio Carlos Jobim, Baden Powell de Aquino, Chico Buarque).
A Tes Seins
Claude Nougaro Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Je ne dis pas non, mais là n'est pas mon dessein
Je n'en veux qu'à tes seins,
Je ne veux parler qu'à tes seins!
Sur terre un peu partout, retentit le tocsin
Je fais l'escalade vers des sommets plus sains
Je m'élève vers tes seins,
D'un rayonnement aigu d'un visible oursin
Il protège leur tendre duvet de poussin
Innocents assassins,
Je ne veux parler qu'à tes seins!
Ce poème maladroit, suspect et succinct
Je l'enfante comme si j'en étais enceint
Depuis Nice où tes seins
Giclaient blancs dans l'eau du bassin
Depuis Nice où tes seins
Giclaient blancs dans l'eau du bassin
In these lyrics from Claude Nougaro's song "A Tes Seins," the singer expresses his fixation on a woman's breasts. He asserts that he would rather speak to God than to his saints, but that his aim is solely to communicate with her breasts. The singer hears warning bells ringing everywhere on earth, but he climbs towards higher ground, towards her bosom. He describes the breasts as being protected by sharp radiance resembling that of a visible sea urchin, with soft fuzz like that of a newborn chicken. The singer acknowledges the breasts as "innocent assassins," indicating their power over him. He concludes the poem admitting its clumsiness, but declaring his love for the woman, whom he remembers from Nice, where her breasts were visible in the pool water.
The song, "A Tes Seins," was initially introduced in 1987 as part of Nougaro's album, "Nougayork." In addition to his signature jazz sound, Nougaro is known for his poetic lyrics, which blend traditional French chanson with contemporary culture. "A Tes Seins" is considered one of Nougaro's most provocative songs, drawing both attention and criticism for its explicit language.
Line by Line Meaning
Il vaut mieux s'adresser au Bon Dieu qu'à ses saints
It's better to pray to God than to saints, but that's not my intention here.
Je ne dis pas non, mais là n'est pas mon dessein
I'm not saying no, but that's not what I'm trying to do here.
Je n'en veux qu'à tes seins,
I only want your breasts,
Je ne veux parler qu'à tes seins!
I only want to talk to your breasts!
Sur terre un peu partout, retentit le tocsin
All over the earth, the alarm bell rings.
Je fais l'escalade vers des sommets plus sains
I climb to higher, healthier peaks.
Je m'élève vers tes seins,
I rise towards your breasts,
Je ne veux parler qu'à tes seins!
I only want to talk to your breasts!
D'un rayonnement aigu d'un visible oursin
With the sharp radiance of a visible sea urchin.
Il protège leur tendre duvet de poussin
It protects their tender chick down.
Innocents assassins,
Innocent assassins,
Je ne veux parler qu'à tes seins!
I only want to talk to your breasts!
Ce poème maladroit, suspect et succinct
This awkward, suspicious, and concise poem
Je l'enfante comme si j'en étais enceint
I give birth to it as if I were pregnant with it.
Depuis Nice où tes seins
From Nice where your breasts
Giclaient blancs dans l'eau du bassin
Were squirting white in the water of the pool.
Depuis Nice où tes seins
From Nice where your breasts
Giclaient blancs dans l'eau du bassin
Were squirting white in the water of the pool.
Contributed by Camden L. Suggest a correction in the comments below.