He was uncompromising when composing his songs. His tactical method of addressing issues was profound and often humorous, making him a unique and effective figure in the French community.
Brassens, born in 1921 in the small Mediterrenean port of Sete, wanted to be a poet. He realized very early however that poetry in the 20th century could hardly put bread on the table and instead set himself to become a singer.
He is much less famous internationally than contemporaries like Charles Aznavour, Edith Piaf and Yves Montand, as much of the impact of his songs came from the lyrics, which proved difficult to translate into other languages. He loved the Middle Ages and used a great deal of Old French vocabulary, as well as many classical - ie., Latin and Greek - references. Few people, even in France, possess the background to fully understand his songs.
Yet he was at the same time a hugely popular singer and many of his songs still carry a lot of appeal and relevance. In this sense, he can be compared to Boris Vian, to Jacques Brel, and to a lesser extent to Serge Gainsbourg.
He was very sophisticated, yet at the same time used profanity liberally. While he wasn't politically engaged, he was nevertheless unambiguously a leftist, many of his songs carrying blatant and buoyant anarchist overtones.
While his music was initially quite primitive, the 1950's St-Germain-des-Pres influence quickly made itself felt and while subdued and - in his mind - always secondary to the lyrics, it became increasingly sophisticated - to the point that many of his songs have been covered and reinterpretated by jazzmen (see for instance this UK site: www.projetbrassens.eclipse.co.uk)
He died in 1981, but up to this date (2006) there are few French people - including most of those born since - who can't sing along to his most famous song, Les Copains d'abord ("Friends foremost") or his "Bancs public" ("Public Benches").
For those interested, this site carries a number of (quite good) English tranlations of his songs: www.brassens.org
Comme une soeur
Georges Brassens Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Ell' ressemblait à sa poupée, à sa poupée,
Dans la rivière, elle est venue
Tremper un peu son pied menu, son pied menu.
Par une ruse à ma façon, à ma façon,
Je fais semblant d'être un poisson, d'être un poisson.
Je me déguise en cachalot
J'ai le bonheur, grâce à ce biais, grâce à ce biais,
De lui croquer un bout de pied, un bout de pied.
Jamais requin n'a, j'en réponds,
Jamais rien goûté d'aussi bon, rien d'aussi bon.
Ell' m'a puni de ce culot, de ce culot,
En me tenant le bec dans l'eau, le bec dans l'eau.
Et j'ai dû, pour l'apitoyer,
Faire mine de me noyer, de me noyer.
Convaincu' de m'avoir occis, m'avoir occis,
La voilà qui se radoucit, se radoucit,
Et qui m'embrasse et qui me mord
Pour me ressusciter des morts, citer des morts.
Si c'est le sort qu'il faut subir, qu'il faut subir,
A l'heure du dernier soupir, dernier soupir,
Si, des noyés, tel est le lot,
Je retourne me fiche à l'eau, me fiche à l'eau.
Chez ses parents, le lendemain, le lendemain,
J'ai couru demander sa main, d'mander sa main,
Mais comme je n'avais rien dans
La mienne, on m'a crié: "Va-t'en!", crié: "Va-t'en!"
On l'a livrée aux appétits, aux appétits
D'une espèce de mercanti, de mercanti,
Un vrai maroufle, un gros sac d'or,
Plus vieux qu'Hérode et que Nestor, et que Nestor.
Et depuis leurs noces j'attends, noces j'attends,
Le cœur sur des charbons ardents, charbons ardents,
Que la Faucheuse vienne cou-
-per l'herbe aux pieds de ce grigou, de ce grigou.
Quand ell' sera veuve éploré', veuve éploré',
Après l'avoir bien enterré, bien enterré,
J'ai l'espérance qu'elle viendra
Faire sa niche entre mes bras, entre mes bras.
"Comme une Soeur" is a tragic love ballad narrated by the singer, who is madly in love with a girl who sees him just as a brother figure. In the first verse, he describes her as beautiful as a doll, and as they are walking by a river, she dips her feet in the water, which inspires the singer to play an amusing trick to get close to her. He pretends to be a fish and bites her foot, which makes her irritated, and she holds him underwater until he almost drowns. However, as soon as she realizes he is still alive, she hugs and kisses him to resuscitate him.
In the following verse, the singer confesses his love for the girl to her parents, but he is rejected because he doesn't have any possessions or money. The girl ends up marrying a wealthy old man, and the singer waits for her to become a widow, hoping that she will finally reciprocate his love.
The song paints a picture of unrequited love, the pain and frustration of having someone you love like a sister, and the torment of letting them go to be with someone else. The title "Comme une Soeur" means "like a sister," suggesting the impossibility of romantic love between the singer and the girl he loves.
Line by Line Meaning
Comme une sœur, tête coupée, tête coupée
She was like a sister, her head cut off, head cut off.
Ell' ressemblait à sa poupée, à sa poupée,
She looked like her doll, like her doll.
Dans la rivière, elle est venue
She came to the river
Tremper un peu son pied menu, son pied menu.
To soak her delicate foot a little, her delicate foot.
Par une ruse à ma façon, à ma façon,
By a trick my way, my way,
Je fais semblant d'être un poisson, d'être un poisson.
I pretend to be a fish, to be a fish.
Je me déguise en cachalot
I disguise myself as a sperm whale
Et je me couche au fond de l'eau, au fond de l'eau.
And I lay down at the bottom of the water, at the bottom of the water.
J'ai le bonheur, grâce à ce biais, grâce à ce biais,
I have the joy, thanks to this trick, thanks to this trick,
De lui croquer un bout de pied, un bout de pied.
To bite off a piece of her foot, a piece of her foot.
Jamais requin n'a, j'en réponds,
Never has a shark, I promise,
Jamais rien goûté d'aussi bon, rien d'aussi bon.
Never tasted anything as good, anything as good.
Ell' m'a puni de ce culot, de ce culot,
She punished me for this boldness, for this boldness,
En me tenant le bec dans l'eau, le bec dans l'eau.
By holding my beak in the water, my beak in the water.
Et j'ai dû, pour l'apitoyer,
And I had to, to move her,
Faire mine de me noyer, de me noyer.
Pretend to drown myself, to drown myself.
Convaincu' de m'avoir occis, m'avoir occis,
Convinced that she killed me, that she killed me,
La voilà qui se radoucit, se radoucit,
Here she is who softens, who softens,
Et qui m'embrasse et qui me mord
And who kisses me and bites me
Pour me ressusciter des morts, citer des morts.
To bring me back from the dead, to quote the dead.
Si c'est le sort qu'il faut subir, qu'il faut subir,
If this is the fate to be endured, to be endured,
A l'heure du dernier soupir, dernier soupir,
At the hour of the last breath, last breath,
Si, des noyés, tel est le lot,
If, for the drowned, that is the fate,
Je retourne me fiche à l'eau, me fiche à l'eau.
I'll go back into the water.
Chez ses parents, le lendemain, le lendemain,
At her parents' house the next day,
J'ai couru demander sa main, d'mander sa main,
I ran to ask for her hand, to ask for her hand,
Mais comme je n'avais rien dans
But as I had nothing in
La mienne, on m'a crié: "Va-t'en!", crié: "Va-t'en!"
Mine, they shouted at me: "Get out!", shouted at me: "Get out!"
On l'a livrée aux appétits, aux appétits
They gave her to the appetites, to the appetites
D'une espèce de mercanti, de mercanti,
Of a kind of merchant, of a merchant,
Un vrai maroufle, un gros sac d'or,
A real swindler, a big bag of gold,
Plus vieux qu'Hérode et que Nestor, et que Nestor.
Older than Herod and Nestor, and Nestor.
Et depuis leurs noces j'attends, noces j'attends,
And since their wedding I've been waiting, waiting for the wedding,
Le cœur sur des charbons ardents, charbons ardents,
With my heart on burning coals, burning coals,
Que la Faucheuse vienne cou-
For the Reaper to come
-per l'herbe aux pieds de ce grigou, de ce grigou.
And mow the grass at the feet of this miser, of this miser.
Quand ell' sera veuve éploré', veuve éploré',
When she's a grieving widow, grieving widow,
Après l'avoir bien enterré, bien enterré,
After burying him well, burying him well,
J'ai l'espérance qu'elle viendra
I hope that she will come
Faire sa niche entre mes bras, entre mes bras.
And make her nest in my arms, in my arms.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: GEORGES CHARLES BRASSENS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Agnès Prat
la magie est toujours là et je ne me lasse pas d'écouter chanter ce monsieur. Il m'enchante, au sens étymologique, m"enrobe de son chant et me ravit.
La GammE France
Le Dieu Des Poètes Chantants
jean daniel jolivald
Il faut lire le commentaire de René Fallet sur le disque (Brassens N°5) où Georges défend cette chanson comme une de ses plus "hautes", par opposition à "la Chasse aux papillons" (face B du Gorille en78t) "car elle aborde le phénomène de la métamorphose cher aux Anciens" (on pense à Apulée, IIè Siècle) . Mais au fait , le papillon, justement, n'est-il pas le produit vivant de la métamorphose