Michel Sanchez came up with the idea of mixing Baka Pygmy chants with modern music after hearing on-site recordings of these tribes. Along with Eric Mouquet they created the project Deep Forest. Their first self-titled album (nominated for a Grammy) was released in 1992, with Sweet Lullaby being the smash single which would put Deep Forest on the musical map (UK Top 10 hit). The song "Sweet Lullaby" is adapted from a traditional song from the Solomon Islands. The album Deep Forest was dance-driven and the samples were heavily digitised and edited. It was re-released as a limited edition in 1994 under the name World Mix.
For their second album Boheme, Eric and Michel left behind the sounds of the forest and ventured into Eastern Europe bringing tender, lonesome Hungarian and Gypsy chants with upbeat, yet sad, music. The chants were no longer brief, instead extended phrases had been sampled from Hungarian, Russian and Transylvanian sample CDs. Marta Sebestyen performed on this album.
The duo also performed and produced the remixes for the Youssou N'Dour single "Undecided" in 1994, with guest vocals by Neneh Cherry (who featured on n'Dour's break-through single "Seven Seconds"). That same year Deep Forest made remixes for Jon Anderson's "Deseo", Apollo 440's "Liquid Cool" and Cesária Évora's "My Fatigue is Endless". In 1996 Deep Forest collaborated with Peter Gabriel on the song While the Earth Sleeps, which was written for the film Strange Days.
The follow-up third album, Comparsa, contained sounds and chants from Madagascar and Cuba. The music is often upbeat and celebratory. The last song from the album Media Luna, which was also released as a single, features a duet of Syrian and Spanish singers Abed Azrei and Ana Torroja from Spanish band Mecano. The duo collaborated with Joe Zawinul during the recording of the album. A recording of their live concert in Japan was also released on a CD called Made in Japan. Although all the songs featured in the show are from the previous three albums, they have new often-longer arrangements and all the chants are performed and reinterpreted by live performers.
In 1999 Deep Forest worked with Cheb Mami and Catherine Lara on the song "L'Enfant Fleur" which had been composed for Sol En Si (a French charity which helps HIV families).
In 2000, Deep Forest released a music for the movie Le Prince du Pacifique, Pacifique. It mixes pacific and island beats with electronic music. Music Detected was the title of their fifth much-anticipated official Deep Forest album which saw the duo turn its attention to the Far East and the Orient for inspiration. It also signalled a change in musical style for Deep Forest, from dance to a more rock-influence.
In 2008 Eric Mouquet released Deep Brasil, this album is a collaboration with Brazilian artist Flavio Dell Isola Amazonia.
In 2009, 2010 Eric Mouquet went on tour and prepared the upcoming album Deep Africa.
This album should be released in summer 2011 and will feature lot of African artists, Lokua Kanza, Blick Bassy, Oliza, Wasis Diop, Zama Magudulela, and Wes's brother, Dany Dikoume.
While The Earth Sleeps featuring Peter Gabriel
Deep Forest Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
(Macedonian)
Dali znaesh mila majko
shto sum ne srekjna
Cel den doma sama sedam
Nadvor ne smejam.
(translation)
How unlucky I am?
All day I sit at home,
I am not allowed outside
Deep Forest's "While the earth sleeps" is a song that tells the story of a girl who has been banned from venturing out and about her daily life. The lyrics are so poignant and heart-rending as they provide a glimpse into the life of a young girl who has been restricted in so many ways. The storyteller uses the Macedonian language to convey the message of the song, which further adds to the elusive and mystical aura of the melody.
The singer of the song is a young girl who is feeling oppressed, isolated, and powerless, and unable to experience the joys of life. She is stuck at home, prohibited from doing anything and everything that she wants to do. The lyrics are a metaphor for the rules, societal norms, and traditions that bind and restrict us from living our lives freely.
The song is a perfect embodiment of the style of music that Deep Forest is famous for - combining ethnic vocals and melodies with electronic beats and sounds. It is a musical masterpiece that evokes raw and powerful emotions, capable of transporting the listener to another world. Overall, "While the earth sleeps" is a poignant and passionate song that will leave a long-lasting impression on any listener.
Line by Line Meaning
Do you know, mother,
Asking if mother is aware of something
How unlucky I am?
Expressing an unfortunate situation
All day I sit at home,
Spending the entire day indoors
I am not allowed outside
Being forbidden from going outdoors
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: ERIC MOUQUET, MICHEL SANCHEZ, PETER GABRIEL
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@franciscobuendiadelmolino
What an unforgettable marvel! Here are the lyrics to it:
Chorus: Katya Petrova]
Dali znaesh, mila majko
Shto sum nesrekna
Cel den doma sama sedam
Nadvor ne smeiam
(Do you know, mother,
How unlucky I am?
All day I sit at home,
I am not allowed outside)
Dali znaesh, mila majko
Shto sum nesrekna
Cel den doma sama sedam
Nadvor ne smeiam
[Non-Lyrical Vocalizing: Peter Gabriel]
[Chorus: Peter Gabriel and Katya Petrova]
Dali znaesh, mila majko
Shto sum nesrekna
Cel den doma sama sedam
Nadvor ne smeiam
[Verse: Peter Gabriel]
Hold the rest and let them go
Hold the rest and let them go
No, no, let them go
[Chorus: Peter Gabriel and Katya Petrova, Both]
Dali znaesh, mila majko
Shto sum nesrekna
Cel den doma sama sedam
Nadvor ne smeiam
@slobodangrasic5649
You misspelled nesrekna, that is one word.
While the Earth Sleeps is a typical example of world music, a genre that combines traditional music from the whole world, mainly from non-Western into unique intercultural sound. While the Earth Sleeps mixes the old, rather obscure Macedonian folklore song Da li znaeš, mila majko (Да ли знаеш, мила мајко) with African traditional sub-Saharan harmony. You can find maybe the only native version of Da li znaeš, mila majko performed by Violeta Tomovska and Kiril Mančevski here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=suMKJjMLD18
The original text of the Macedonian song is as follows.
Да ли знаеш, мила мајко,
што сум несреќна.
Стално дома сама седам,
надвор не смеам.
Еј мила мајко, проклета да си,
еј од либето што ме раздели.
Од либето што ме раздели
без да сакам јас,
в' гради болка ми остави
на срце мраз.
Еј мила мајко, проклета да си,
еј од либето што ме раздели.
Да ли пак тој ќе се врати
јас да го чекам,
до две думи јас да му кажам
дека ќе умрам.
Еј мила мајко, проклета да си,
еј од либето што ме раздели.
Две години тајна љубов,
нека секој знај,
таа мене ќе ме мачи
дури до гроба.
Еј мила мајко, проклета да си
еј од либето што ме раздели.
Romanised
Da li znaeš, mila majko,
što sam nesrećna.
Stalno doma sama sedam,
надвор не смеам.
Ej mila majko prokleta da si,
ej od libeto što me razdeli.
Оd libeto što me razdeli
Bez da sakam jas,
v' gradi bolka da mi ostavi,
na zrce mraz.
Ej mila majko prokleta da si,
ej od libeto što me razdeli.
Da li pak toj će se vrati
jas da go čekam,
do dve dumi jas da mu kažam
deka će umram.
Ej mila majko prokleta da si,
ej od libeto što me razdeli.
Dve godini tajna ljubov,
neka sekoj znaj,
taa mene će me mači
duri do groba.
Ej mila majko prokleta da si,
ej od libeto što me razdeli.
In English
Do you know, dear mother,
that I am unhappy.
I sit alone at home all the time,
not allowed outside.
Hey dear mother, be damned,
hey from the love you separated me.
From the love you separated me
without my will,
left my chest in pain,
ice in the heart.
Hey dear mother, be damned,
hey from the love you separated me.
Will he come back
to wait for him,
two words to tell him
that I will die.
Hey dear mother, be damned,
hey from the love you separated me.
Two-year secret love,
let everyone know,
will torture me
even to the grave.
Hey dear mother, be damned,
hey from the love you separated me.
@sisho2000
Дали знаеш мила мајко
што сум несреќна
стално дома сама седам
надвор не смеам.
Еј мила мајко проклета да си
Еј од либето што ме раздели.
Од либето што ме раздели
без да сакам јас
в' гради болка ми остави
на срце мраз.
Еј мила мајко проклета да си
Еј од либето што ме раздели.
Дали пак тој ќе се врати
јас да го чекам
до две думи јас да му кажам
дека ќе умрам.
Еј мила мајко проклета да си
Еј од либето што ме раздели.
Две години тајна љубов
нека секој знај
таа мене ќе ме мачи
дури до гроба.
Еј мила мајко проклета да си
Еј од либето што ме раздели.
@nigerra
[Chorus: Katya Petrova]
Dali znaesh mila majko
shto sum nesrekjna
Cel den doma sama sedam
Nadvor ne smejam
(Dear Mother, don't you know
How unhappy I am so?
All day long I sit at home
Not allowed to walk alone)
(Мила мамо, знаєш ти?
Так не радісно мені
Днями вдома я сиджу
Відпусти мене, прошу )
[Non-Lyrical Vocalizing: Peter Gabriel]
[Chorus: Peter Gabriel and Katya Petrova]
Dali znaesh mila majko
shto sum ne srekjna
Cel den doma sama sedam
Nadvor ne smejam
2:28 [Verse: Peter Gabriel]
Hold the rest and let them go
Hold the rest and let them go
No, no, let them go
(Візьми своє, а решті волю дай )
5:41 [Outro: Peter Gabriel]
[?]
On the road let the rain right down
(Нехай умиє шлях твій водограй)
(free translation @nigerra2020oct)
@i.s.h.5426
It's a Macedonian song. The original words are:
"Дали знаеш, мила мајко,
што сум несреќна?
Цел ден дома сама седам,
надвор не смеам."
In English:
"Do you know, dear mother,
why am I unhappy?
I'm alone at home the whole day,
I must not go out."
@luiswetzel5694
One of the greatest end credits in film HISTORY
@JoGemma
I just wanted to write the same :)
@calkelpdiver
He also had the end credits music for Wall-E, great song there as well.
@ersturdevant2831
Agreed.
@OskiCoJeBoski
Top 5
@lindsaymonroe567
I rememeber watching this film for the first time and I was only 8 years old, I was straight MESMERIZED by the end credits and the music
@phyllissweeney7602
Still love this song and the movie.
@user-cp3yu4fi3n
長年探していた曲がやっと見つかった！とても懐かしい！
@parolesdelego
I have been listening to this song for 20 years off the CD. Today is the first time I hear a longer version. Love Gabriel’s raspy voice. Saw him twice in concert. Outstanding
@keithg1313
Wait... what CD. I've come to THIS YouTube video only. I can't find this song on streaming.