Françoise Hardy signed her first contract with the record label Vogue in November 1961. In April 1962, shortly after finishing school, her first record Oh Oh Chéri appeared, written by Johnny Hallyday's writing duo. Her own flip side of the record, "Tous Les Garçons Et Les Filles" became a success, riding the wave of Yé-yé music in France, with two million sales.
Hardy sang in French, English, Italian, Spanish, and German. In 1963 she came fifth for Monaco in the Eurovision Song Contest with "L'amour s'en va". In 1963, she was awarded the Grand Prix Du Disque of the Charles Cros Academy.
In 1981, she married her long-time companion Jacques Dutronc, with whom she had had a son, Thomas Dutronc, in 1973. In 1994, she collaborated with the British pop group Blur for their "La Comedie" version of To The End. In May 2000, she made a comeback with the album Clair Obscur. Her son played guitar and her husband sang the duet "Puisque Vous Partez En Voyage." Iggy Pop and Étienne Daho also took part. Hardy lives near Paris and Dutronc lives in Monticello, Corsica, although they remain a couple.[citation needed]
La Beauté Du Diable
Francoise Hardy Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Plus ou moins connue...
Porté ou non
Disparu?
Pas sûr...
Passé pas simple
Avenir exclu...
Le rend identifiable
Entre tous...
Sa beauté du diable
Aveugle qui
La regarde en face
Et malgré lui
Cloue sur place
Vous crucifie
Par sa présence...
Sans domicile
Histoires décousues...
Imprévisible
Ambigu...
Coeur pur...
Vie dissolue
Mort violante prévue...
La beauté du diable
Le rend inoubliable
Entre tous...
Sa beauté du diable
Entraîne qui
La voit de trop près
Vers la folie
A jamais
Vous démolit
Par son absence...
The lyrics of Françoise Hardy's song La Beauté Du Diable ponder on the enigmatic nature of beauty and how it can be a double-edged sword, both captivating and destructive. The verses paint a picture of someone who is lost and uncertain about their past and future, with their present being murky and unclear. The chorus amplifies this theme with the haunting repetition of "La beauté du diable" (The beauty of the devil) and how it can both blind and crucify those who come in contact with it. The second verse delves deeper into the paradoxical nature of the subject, describing a person with a pure heart but a dissolute life who is predicted to have a violent death.
The song has a melancholic tone, with the slow-paced music and Françoise's plaintive vocals mirroring the themes of confusion and uncertainty in the lyrics. The use of religious imagery further emphasizes the idea of the dichotomy between good and evil, with the devil symbolising the seductive power of beauty as well as its potential to harm.
Overall, the lyrics of La Beauté Du Diable offer a thought-provoking look at the complexities and dangers of beauty, and how it can have a transformative effect on those who encounter it.
Line by Line Meaning
Destination
Where she's headed in life
Plus ou moins connue...
She's somewhat known, but not completely
Porté ou non
Whether she's being carried or not
Disparu?
Has she disappeared?
Pas sûr...
Not entirely certain
Passé pas simple
Her past hasn't been easy
Avenir exclu...
Her future is uncertain
La beauté du diable
The devil's beauty
Le rend identifiable
Makes him easily recognizable
Entre tous...
Above everyone else...
Sa beauté du diable
His devilish allure
Aveugle qui
It blinds whoever
La regarde en face
Looks at him/her head-on
Et malgré lui
And despite himself
Cloue sur place
It stops him/her in their tracks
Vous crucifie
Crucifies you
Par sa présence...
Through his/her presence...
Sans domicile
Homeless
Histoires décousues...
Unconnected stories
Imprévisible
Unpredictable
Ambigu...
Ambiguous
Coeur pur...
Pure heart...
Vie dissolue
Dissolute life
Mort violante prévue...
Violent death foreseen...
Le rend inoubliable
Makes him/her unforgettable
Entraîne qui
Drags along whoever
La voit de trop près
Sees him/her too up close
Vers la folie
Towards madness
A jamais
Forever
Vous démolit
Destroys you
Par son absence...
Through his/her absence...
Contributed by David B. Suggest a correction in the comments below.