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).
Gratte-Moi La Tête
Claude Nougaro Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Dessus, pourquoi tu le demandes?
Tes ongles taillés en amande
Gratte moi la tete, m'ont fasciné
Gratte moi la tete, c'est bon
Gratte moi la tete, j'aime ca
La mienne est vide voilà mon drame
Quand tes doigts remuent sur mon crâne
Il me semble avoir des idées
Gratte moi la tete, c'est bon
Gratte moi la tete, j'aime ca
Tiens mais c'est vrai, j'ai une idée
Tandis que tu m'creuses les méninges
On dit que l'homme descend du singe
Eh bien on va y remonter
Gratte moi la tete, c'est bon
Gratte moi la tete, j'aime ca
Tu me gratteras toute la journée
Moi je m'éplucherai des bananes
Les grosses puces de mon âme
Tu n'en feras qu'une bouchée
Gratte moi la tete, c'est bon
Gratte moi la tete, j'aime ca
The song Gratte-Moi La Tête by Claude Nougaro is a playful and lighthearted ode to the simple pleasures of life, namely the sensation of having one's head scratched or massaged. The lyrics describe the singer's fascination with a woman's hands and her almond-shaped nails, which he imagines as perfect for scratching his scalp. He revels in the feeling of having his head scratched, which he describes as not only physically pleasurable, but also mentally stimulating. He suggests that the act of scratching his head may actually help him to think more clearly and come up with new ideas.
As the song progresses, the lyrics take on a more absurd and humorous tone. The singer speculates that perhaps humans are descended from monkeys, and suggests that the act of having one's head scratched could be a way to "go back" to our roots as primates. He imagines spending the whole day having his head scratched while he eats bananas and muses on the nature of the universe. The song is a charming and whimsical celebration of the pleasures of life and the often-overlooked joys of simple physical sensations.
Line by Line Meaning
Quand je t'ai vue, je t'ai sauté
Dessus, pourquoi tu le demandes?
When I saw you, I jumped on you, why do you ask?
Tes ongles taillés en amande
Gratte moi la tete, m'ont fasciné
Your almond-shaped trimmed nails fascinated me, scratch my head
Gratte moi la tete, c'est bon
Gratte moi la tete, j'aime ca
Scratch my head, it feels good, I love it
La tete c'est fait pour penser
La mienne est vide voilà mon drame
Quand tes doigts remuent sur mon crâne
Il me semble avoir des idées
The head is made for thinking, mine is empty that's my tragedy, when your fingers move on my skull, it seems like I have ideas
Tiens mais c'est vrai, j'ai une idée
Tandis que tu m'creuses les méninges
On dit que l'homme descend du singe
Eh bien on va y remonter
Wait, it's true, I have an idea, while you're digging into my brain, they say that man descended from apes, well, let's go back
Tu me gratteras toute la journée
Moi je m'éplucherai des bananes
Les grosses puces de mon âme
Tu n'en feras qu'une bouchée
You will scratch me all day long, while I peel bananas, the big fleas of my soul, you'll eat them up
Lyrics © LES EDITIONS DU CHIFFRE NEUF
Written by: Maurice VANDER, Claude NOUGARO
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind