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).
Nobody Knows
Claude Nougaro Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Nobody knows but Jesus
Nobody knows the trouble I've seen
Toujours il chantait ça
Paupières mi-closes, tout seul, en sourdine
Nobody knows but Jesus
Cherchant une cause humaine ou divine
Je cherche un ciel, j'ai mal aux saints
Oh yes my Lord
Disait-il mi-figue, mi-raisin
Oh yes my Lord
En attendant je m' fais des ailes
Oh yes my Lord
Aux paradis artificiels
Oh yes my Lord
Nobody knows the trouble I've seen
Dans son nuage comme un Zeus
Cherchant une cause humaine ou divine
Il chantait toujours ça
Hier il est mort, ras-le-bol ou névrose
D'une overdose assassine
Il souriait les paupières bien closes
Les mains sur sa poitrine
Glory Alleluia
The lyrics to Claude Nougaro's song Nobody Knows express feelings of loneliness and despair, and the comfort that someone finds in their faith in Jesus. Nougaro describes the person leaving behind their troubles and seeking solace in religion. The repetition of the line "Nobody knows but Jesus" emphasizes the idea that the person feels isolated and misunderstood by others but finds comfort in their faith. The second verse further illustrates the person's struggles, describing their search for a better place amidst pain and suffering. The song ends with the character's death, and the final line "Glory Alleluia" can be interpreted as gratitude for the person's release from their struggles.
Line by Line Meaning
Nobody knows the trouble I've seen
I have been through difficult times that no one can fully understand.
Nobody knows but Jesus
Only Jesus knows the depth of my struggles.
Toujours il chantait ça
He always sang about his troubles.
Paupières mi-closes, tout seul, en sourdine
With half-closed eyes, alone, and quietly.
Cherchant une cause humaine ou divine
Looking for either a human or divine cause for his troubles.
Je cherche un ciel, j'ai mal aux saints
I am searching for heaven, but I have trouble connecting with religious saints.
Disait-il mi-figue, mi-raisin
He said it with mixed emotions, unsure of how to feel or react.
En attendant je m' fais des ailes
In the meantime, I will create my own wings (find my own escape).
Aux paradis artificiels
In the artificial paradise (referring to drugs).
Dans son nuage comme un Zeus
Lost in his own cloud, like the Greek god Zeus on Mount Olympus.
Hier il est mort, ras-le-bol ou névrose
Yesterday he died, either from being fed up or from a mental illness.
D'une overdose assassine
From a lethal drug overdose.
Il souriait les paupières bien closes
He smiled with his eyes closed.
Les mains sur sa poitrine
His hands over his chest.
Glory Alleluia
An exclamation of praise and thanksgiving to God.
Contributed by Sadie R. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Solange Giraud
J'ai connu le negro spiritual et le gospel grâce aux "verts paturages" de Jean Christophe Averty avec "ol' man river" de Paul Robeson. Depuis, j'ai donc écouté "nobody knows"dans de nombreuses versions , mais celle-ci , par Nougaro le toulousain, je l'ai trouvée époustouflante .
Celine Perruquon
Inoubliable claude 💘❣️💛💞💖
TheXynos7
NOBODY KNOWS
Nobody knows the trouble I've seen
Nobody knows but Jesus
Nobody knows the trouble I've seen
Toujours il chantait ça
Paupières mi–closes, tout seul, en sourdine
Nobody knows but Jesus
Cherchant une cause humaine ou divine
Il chantait toujours ça
Je cherche un ciel, j'ai mal aux saints
Oh yes my Lord
Disait–il mi–figue, mi–raisin
Oh yes my Lord
En attendant je me fais des ailes
Oh yes my Lord
Aux paradis artificiels
Oh yes my Lord
Nobody knows the trouble I've seen
Dans son nuage comme un Zeus
Cherchant une cause humaine ou divine
Il chantait toujours ça
Hier il est mort, ras–le–bol ou névrose
D'une overdose assassine
Il souriait les paupières bien closes
Les mains sur sa poitrine
Glory Alléluia
dey randi
Marc Steckar, Jacques Bolognesi, Bob Garcia saxe, Charles Bellonzi drums, Tony Russo trompette, Eddy Louiss, Vander, Luigi Trussardi basse,
Don Dorgan
Rectification:
Richard Galliano Trombone
Francis Cournet Sax Tenor
Exit Jacques Bolognesi
Groupe Parenthèse
De qui parle Nougaro dans cette chanson ? (Armstrong ? d'un personnage imaginaire ?)