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).
Mon Assassin
Claude Nougaro Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Bien avant que je meure
Et je connais mon assassin
Mon assassin sera une jeune fille
Elle n'est pas née encore mais demain
Elle sera là sur mon chemin
Parfaite des cheveux aux chevilles
J'aimerai toujours la nuit, le soleil
Je me croirai presque pareil
En somme au jeune homme que je fus
C'est alors qu'elle et moi on se rencontrera
Je la vois, elle arrive, un garçon à son bras
Ils sont beaux, le monde est beau
Et moi aussi, pourquoi pas ?
Oui, je suis pareil à eux
Alors je leur souris et je passe et dans mon dos,
Elle, elle dit ces mots : " T'as vu le vieux ? "
Mon assassin sera cette jeune fille
Qui n'est pas née encore mais demain
Elle passera sur mon chemin
Et moi je cesserai de vivre
Je n'aurai plus de nuits ni de matins
Je n'aurai plus en moi que du vide
Il n'y aura plus que des rides
Au creux des lignes de ma main
Il n'y aura plus de jeunes filles
Il n'y aura plus d'assassins
The lyrics of Claude Nougaro's song "Mon Assassin" depict the contemplation of one's own death and the acceptance that it will come at the hands of another. The singer knows that he will be killed long before he dies, and he even knows who his killer will be: a young girl who hasn't even been born yet but will cross his path in the future. The singer imagines her to be perfect from head to toe, and himself twenty years older but still in love with the night and the sun, seeing himself as the same young man he once was.
When the singer finally encounters his killer, she is accompanied by a boy and they both appear beautiful. The singer is struck by the beauty of the world, and he smiles at the young couple. However, in a cruel twist, the young girl turns to her companion and remarks on the old man that just passed them by. In the end, the singer accepts that this future event is inevitable and that he will cease to exist once he encounters his assassin. There will be nothing left for him but emptiness and wrinkles on his hands.
The lyrics of "Mon Assassin" are poignant and profound, inviting the listener to reflect on the fleeting nature of life and how one's own death is always lurking around the corner. The imagery of the beautiful girl who will be the singer's undoing adds to the poignancy of the lyrics.
Line by Line Meaning
Je sais qu'on me tuera
I know that someone will kill me.
Bien avant que je meure
Before I die.
Et je connais mon assassin
And I know who my killer is.
Mon assassin sera une jeune fille
My assassin will be a young girl.
Elle n'est pas née encore mais demain
She hasn't been born yet, but tomorrow.
Elle sera là sur mon chemin
She will come into my life.
Parfaite des cheveux aux chevilles
Perfect from head to toe.
Et moi j'aurai vingt ans, vingt ans de plus
And I will be twenty years older.
J'aimerai toujours la nuit, le soleil
I will still love the night and the sun.
Je me croirai presque pareil
I will almost feel the same as I did when I was young.
En somme au jeune homme que je fus
In essence, I will still be the young man I once was.
C'est alors qu'elle et moi on se rencontrera
That's when she and I will meet.
Je la vois, elle arrive, un garçon à son bras
I see her coming, with a boy by her side.
Ils sont beaux, le monde est beau
They are beautiful, the world is beautiful.
Et moi aussi, pourquoi pas ?
And so am I, why not?
Oui, je suis pareil à eux
Yes, I am like them.
Alors je leur souris et je passe et dans mon dos,
So I smile at them and walk by, and behind my back,
Elle, elle dit ces mots : " T'as vu le vieux ? "
She says these words: "Did you see that old guy?"
Mon assassin sera cette jeune fille
My killer will be that young girl.
Qui n'est pas née encore mais demain
Who hasn't been born yet, but tomorrow.
Elle passera sur mon chemin
She will cross my path.
Et moi je cesserai de vivre
And then I will stop living.
Je n'aurai plus de nuits ni de matins
I will have no more nights or mornings.
Je n'aurai plus en moi que du vide
There will be nothing inside me but emptiness.
Il n'y aura plus que des rides
There will only be wrinkles.
Au creux des lignes de ma main
In the lines of my hand.
Il n'y aura plus de jeunes filles
There will be no more young girls.
Il n'y aura plus d'assassins
There will be no more killers.
Lyrics © LES EDITIONS DU CHIFFRE NEUF
Written by: Claude NOUGARO, Jacques DATIN
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Cllione but make it ✨inactive forever✨
Cette chanson est géniale !!!!R.I.P Claude, on t’aimait😭😭😭😭