Nantes
Georges Chelon Lyrics

Il pleut sur Nantes, donnez moi la main
It is raining in Nantes and I need someone to hold my hand for comfort.

Le ciel de Nantes rend mon coeur chagrin
The sky of Nantes represents my sad and heavy heart.

Un matin comme celui-là, il y a juste un an déjà
It was just a year ago on a morning like today.

La ville avait ce teint blafard lorsque je sortis de la gare
The city had a pale and lifeless appearance as I exited the train station.

Nantes m'était alors inconnue, je n'y était jamais venu
Nantes was unknown to me, I had never been there before.

Il avait fallu ce message pour que je fasse le voyage
I only made the trip because of a message I had received.

"Monsieur soyez au rendez-vous, vingt-cinq rue de la Grange-au-Loup
The message instructed me to be at a certain address for a meeting.

Faites vite, il y a peu d'espoir, il a demandé à vous voir."
The message urged me to hurry because the request to meet came with little hope and urgency.

A l'heure de sa dernière heure, après bien des années d'errance
At the time of his final moments, after years of wandering.

Il me revenait en plein coeur, son cri déchirait le silence
His cries tore through the silence and deeply affected me emotionally.

Depuis qu'il s'en était allé, longtemps je l'avais espéré
I had been hoping for his return for a long time since he had gone away.

Ce vagabond, ce disparu, voilà qu'il m'était revenu
The vagabond who had been missing had returned to me.

Vingt-cinq rue de la Grange-au-Loup, je m'en souviens du rendez-vous
I remember the address where we were supposed to meet.

Et j'ai gravé dans ma mémoire cette chambre au fond d'un couloir
The room in the back of a hallway has been forever engraved in my memory.

Assis près de la cheminée, j'ai vu quatre hommes se lever
Sitting near the fireplace, I witnessed four men standing up.

La lumière était froide et blanche, ils portaient l'habit du dimanche
The light in the room was cold and white, and the men were dressed in their Sunday best.

Je n'ai pas posés de questions à ces étranges compagnons
I did not ask any questions of these strange companions.

Je n'ai rien dit, mais à leurs regards, j'ai compris qu'il était trop tard
Without speaking, their looks conveyed the message that it was already too late.

Pourtant j'étais au rendez-vous, vingt-cing rue de la Grande-au-Loup
Despite being at the meeting place, I was unable to fulfill the intended meeting.

Mais il ne m'a jamais revu, il avait déjà disparu
I never got to see him again, as he had already vanished.

Voilà, tu l'as connais l'histoire, il était revenu un soir
There you have it, now you know the story - he had returned one evening.

Et ce fut son dernier voyage, et ce fut son dernier rivage
But it turned out to be his final journey and his final resting place.

Il voulait avant de mourir se réchauffer à mon sourire
Before he died, he wanted to be comforted by my smile.

Mais il mourut à la nuit même sans un adieu, sans un "je t'aime"
But he died that same night without saying goodbye, without saying 'I love you.'

Au chemin qui longe la mer, couché dans un jardin de pierre
In the path that follows the sea, lying in a stone garden.

Je veux que tant qu'il repose, je l'ai couché dessous les roses
As long as he rests, I want him laid beneath the roses.

Mon père, mon père
My father, my father.

Il pleut sur Nantes et je me souviens
It is raining in Nantes and I remember.

Le ciel de Nantes rend mon coeur chagrin.
The sky of Nantes represents my sad and heavy heart.