Hardy signed her first contract with the record label Vogue in November 1961. In April 1962, shortly after finishing school, her first album, "Oh oh Chéri", appeared, with the title song written by Johnny Hallyday's writing duo. The flip side of the record, "Tous les garçons et les filles" became a huge success, which sold 2 million copies. She had long hair and usually wore jeans with a leather jacket, while accompanying her songs on the guitar.
She sang in English, Spanish, and German occasionally. In 1963, she represented Monaco in the Grand Prix d'Eurovision de la Chanson with "L'amour s'en va" and emerged in fifth place. In 1968, she received the Grand Prix du Disque Académie Charles Cros.
In 1981, she married her long-time companion Jacques Dutronc, with whom she had already had a son (Thomas Dutronc) in 1973. In May 2000, she had a comeback with the album "Clair Obscur". Her son played the guitar, and her husband sang the duet "Puisque vous partez en voyage". Iggy Pop and Etienne Daho participated, as well. She currently lives near Paris.
In 2006 she released a new duets album entitled "Parenthèses" which included a song with her son Thomas.
In 2021, Hardy announced that her health had worsened and that she would not be able to sing again owing to the effects of cancer therapy.
La nuit est sur la ville
Françoise Hardy Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Près de moi, tranquille
Il est là qui attend
Loin, dans une autre ville
Toi que j'aime tant,
Que fais-tu maintenant ?
J'étais si sûre de nous
Mais voilà qu'à présent
Tout me semble fragile
Ce serait facile
Lui et moi maintenant
Loin de toi, que je m'ennuie !
Toute seule tant de nuits
Pourquoi, pourquoi
Tout me pousse-t-il vers lui ?
Tout de moi soudain t'oublie,
Pourquoi, pourquoi ?
Le jour est sur la ville,
Dans cette autre ville
Dors-tu seul insouciant ?
Tout n'est pas si facile
Je crois bien pourtant
Que je t'aime vraiment
Oui, je t'aime vraiment
The song "La nuit est sur la ville" by Françoise Hardy is a melancholy reflection on being apart from someone you love. The lyrics describe the city at night and the singer's feelings of isolation and longing for the person she loves. The first stanza sets the scene: the night is upon the city, and the singer is feeling peaceful with someone by her side. But then she thinks of the person she loves, who is far away in another city, and wonders what they are doing at that moment. The second stanza reveals her doubts and fears: she thought she was sure of their love, but now everything seems fragile, and she feels tempted by the idea of being with someone else. The third and final stanza is a plea to the person she loves. She imagines him sleeping peacefully in his city, but she knows that things are not as easy as they seem. She confesses that she loves him truly and deeply, despite the turmoil in her heart.
One of the interesting facts about this song is that it was released in 1963, during the heyday of the French "yé-yé" movement, of which Françoise Hardy was one of the biggest stars. Yé-yé was a style of pop music characterized by its catchy melodies and upbeat lyrics, but "La nuit est sur la ville" is a departure from that style. The song is much more subdued and introspective, with a slower tempo and more complex lyrics.
Another interesting fact is that Françoise Hardy wrote the lyrics herself, as she did for many of her songs. She was known for having a poetic sensibility and a gift for crafting memorable phrases. In an interview, she said that the song was inspired by her own experiences of being apart from someone she loved.
The chords for "La nuit est sur la ville" are not available online, as far as I can tell. However, the song is in a minor key and uses a simple chord progression that would be easy to figure out with some basic knowledge of music theory.
Line by Line Meaning
La nuit est sur la ville
The night has fallen on the city
Près de moi, tranquille
Close to me, calm
Il est là qui attend
He is there waiting
Loin, dans une autre ville
Far away, in another city
Toi que j'aime tant,
You whom I love so much,
Que fais-tu maintenant?
What are you doing now?
J'étais si sûre de nous
I was so sure of us
Si confiante en tout
So confident in everything
Mais voilà qu'à présent
But now,
Tout me semble fragile
Everything seems fragile to me
Ce serait facile
It would be easy
Lui et moi maintenant
Him and me now
Loin de toi, que je m'ennuie!
I'm so bored without you!
Toute seule tant de nuits
All alone so many nights
Pourquoi, pourquoi
Why, why
Tout me pousse-t-il vers lui?
Why am I being pushed towards him?
Tout de moi soudain t'oublie,
Suddenly everything about me forgets you
Pourquoi, pourquoi?
Why, why?
Le jour est sur la ville,
The day has risen on the city,
Dans cette autre ville
In this other city
Dors-tu seul insouciant?
Are you sleeping alone carefree?
Tout n'est pas si facile
Everything is not so easy
Je crois bien pourtant
But I still believe
Que je t'aime vraiment
That I truly love you
Oui, je t'aime vraiment
Yes, I really love you
Lyrics © BMG RIGHTS MANAGEMENT US, LLC
Written by: Hardy Francoise
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind