Manset spent his childhood in the suburbs of Paris (Saint-Cloud) and then in the sixteenth arrondissement of Paris. He failed his baccalauréat due to the degree of a failing grade in French.
In 1964, Manset was the recipient of the Concours général, and enrolled in the École Nationale Supérieure des Arts Décoratifs. The Salon d'Automne welcomed Manset in its engraving section in 1966. Manset's work was also shown at the Paris Salon. At the same time Manset approached various French advertising agencies with his drawings, without success, however.
Manset began to play guitar, but was also interested in the drums. He borrowed his sister's piano book, and began learning to play it as well.
In 1978 he released an album, titled 2870, equivalent to an album of Pink Floyd. Which never happened in France and will never happen again.
The mystery that was created around Gérard Manset was born from the rarity of his media appearances, the refusal of the scene (he never gave concert), and, above all, the uncompromising character of his work.
Lumières
Gérard Manset Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Qui nous guidaient ?
Peut-être étions-nous trop fiers
Pour baisser la tête.
Le monde a tourné sans nous,
Sans nous attendre.
Les ténèbres sont partout
Couvertes de cendres.
Mais souviens-toi
Que l'on s'aimait quand même.
Nous étions si jeunes, si fiers
Et, comment le dire,
Nous avons perdu la lumière,
L'étoile qui caressait nos paupières.
Tout m'est égal.
Et quand même
On se souvient,
On se rappelle
De quelque chose
Qu'on pose près du lit,
D'une lumière
Qui brillait la nuit.
Mais où sont passées les lumières
Qui nous guidaient ?
Devenus statues de pierre,
Qu'avons nous fait ?
Les instants, comme des clous de fer
Qu'on enfonce
Et rien que le bruit de la mer
Pour seule réponse.
Souviens-toi, c'était hier,
Mais aujourd'hui,
Le lion secoue sa crinière.
Peur de la nuit,
Gratte le fond de la rivière
Où il venait boire.
Nous avons perdu la lumière.
Nous sommes dans le noir.
Mais où sont passées les lumières
Qui nous guidaient ?
Le lion secoue sa crinière
A chaque coup de fouet
Derrière les barreaux de fer,
Sans illusion.
Derrière les barreaux de fer,
De sa prison
The French song Lumières by Gérard Manset is a melancholic reflection on the passing of time and the loss of hope that comes with it. The lyrics ask where the guiding lights have gone, perhaps suggesting that the illumination they once provided no longer exists. Manset notes that the world has moved on without us, implying a sense of isolation and inability to keep pace with society's changes. He then recalls a time when he and another person loved each other, but now they've grown apart, as if they can no longer see the star that previously lit their way.
The singer seems resigned to his fate, stating that he doesn't care, despite the sense of sadness running through the song. The lyrics suggest that, even when we try to remember what we've lost, the memories can be fleeting and may not provide the comfort or guidance we seek. Instead, we may be left with a sense of confinement, as if we're trapped behind bars that prevent us from reaching the light we once knew.
Overall, the lyrics of Lumières paint a bleak picture of loss and isolation, suggesting that our connections to others and the world around us can be tenuous and fleeting. The song speaks to the human experience of struggling to find meaning and purpose, even as life rushes by us.
Line by Line Meaning
Mais où sont passées les lumières
The lights that once guided us are missing, and we are lost without them.
Qui nous guidaient ?
We relied on those lights to guide us on our way, but they are gone.
Peut-être étions-nous trop fiers
Perhaps we were too proud to recognize our need for guidance.
Pour baisser la tête.
We refused to humble ourselves and accept help from others.
Le monde a tourné sans nous,
While we stood still, the world continued to move forward.
Sans nous attendre.
It did not wait for us to catch up, and we were left behind.
Les ténèbres sont partout
Darkness now surrounds us on all sides.
Couvertes de cendres.
We are surrounded by ashes, as though all that was once bright has been reduced to smoldering embers.
Mais souviens-toi
But let us not forget
Que l'on s'aimait quand même.
that we loved each other all the same.
Nous étions si jeunes, si fiers
We were young and full of pride,
Et, comment le dire,
hard to express how much
Nous avons perdu la lumière,
we have lost the light
L'étoile qui caressait nos paupières.
the star that used to soothe our eyes.
Tout m'est égal.
But now nothing seems to matter anymore.
Et quand même
And yet, somehow
On se souvient,
We still remember
On se rappelle
We recall
De quelque chose
Something
Qu'on pose près du lit,
We set it by our bed.
D'une lumière
It was a light
Qui brillait la nuit.
That shone in the darkness.
Mais où sont passées les lumières
The lights that once guided us are missing, and we are lost without them.
Devenus statues de pierre,
We have become like stone statues,
Qu'avons nous fait ?
Unable to move or progress, we ask ourselves what we have done to get here.
Les instants, comme des clous de fer
Our moments in life feel like heavy iron nails,
Qu'on enfonce
being hammered relentlessly into place,
Et rien que le bruit de la mer
while the only sound is the relentless pounding of the waves.
Pour seule réponse.
It is our only answer, the sound of the sea against the shore.
Souviens-toi, c'était hier,
Remember, it wasn't so long ago
Mais aujourd'hui,
But now,
Le lion secoue sa crinière.
the lion shakes its mane, and we are afraid of the dark.
Peur de la nuit,
Terrified of the night,
Gratte le fond de la rivière
We reach for the bottom of the river
Où il venait boire.
where the lion used to drink.
Nous avons perdu la lumière.
We have lost the light.
Nous sommes dans le noir.
We are in the dark.
Le lion secoue sa crinière
the lion shakes its mane,
A chaque coup de fouet
responding to every lash of the whip,
Derrière les barreaux de fer,
behind the iron bars of its cage,
Sans illusion.
with no hope of escape or freedom.
Derrière les barreaux de fer,
behind the iron bars of its cage,
De sa prison
the lion is trapped and will never be free.
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: GERARD MANSET
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Augustin Camilleri
Géant ! Il n'y a qu'un grand artiste qui peut faire ce genre de musique : GERARD MANSET
Ce géant du monde de la musique nous met le cœur à l'heure de son pas de "solitaire" . Ses pieds frôlent la terre et nous emporte sur son tempo. Il nous propulse aux portes de l'univers, et comme lui, imprégné par ce courant plein d'étoiles, on devient lumière. Merci Gérard d'éclairer notre monde où tous les morts vivants qui nous entourent trouvent plus de valeur dans l'éphémère que dans la lumière.
Eric Ebrard
Tout à fait juste vous avez les mots justes
Yves Duffaud Turrel
Quel artiste ! Cet album est magnifique. On devrait tous l'entendre pour essayer de faire un monde nouveau.
Youk Youk
Oui ! Je ressens chacun de vos mots . (Avec une préférence pour Royaume de Siam ( à écouter sur un vieux Vinyle pour atteindre l'extase chère à Manset ) ).
Isabelle Duplaquet
Lumières.
Isabelle Duplaquet
Lumière
TheJcdu30
musique et son hyper sophistiqué; les paroles sortent d'un univers parallèle auquel seul GM peut prétendre appartenir. un IMMENSE auteur, compositeur, interprète et arrangeur de son.
Lionel Bellec
Magnifique...tire des larmes tellement c'est beau...du niveau de "Comme un guerrier", "Le train du soir", et de...tant d'autres...
Pascal Robin
L'un des plus grands auteur/compositeur/interprète francais
VANDENBOSSCHE WILLY
Enorme, somptueuse, la chanson que j'ai sans doute le plus écoutée et réécoutée, avec un plaisir grandissant !