Moustaki was born Yussef Mustacchi on the 3rd May 1934 in Alexandria, Egypt, of Sephardic Jewish parents who had moved there from Corfu, and who ran a bookshop in the city. The family spoke Italian at home, but Georges (then Yussef) spoke Arabic with his friends and attended a French school to which his Francophile parents sent him and his sisters. In 1951 he moved to Paris, where he was inspired by the young Georges Brassens, in honour of whom he changed his name to Georges Moustaki.
Moustaki wrote and sang in French, Italian, Greek, Spanish, English, Yiddish, and Arabic. Early influences included Edith Piaf, with whom Moustaki carried on a year-long romance. His pan-national approach to music made him a star in Europe in the late sixties and early seventies.
He died on the 23rd May 2013 in Nice, France.
Je Réussis Ce Que Je Rate
Georges Moustaki Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Libertin je me veux spartiate
Et je poursuis ce que je fuis
Héros quand je crois être lâche
Paresseux je meurs à la tâche
Oiseau de jour je vis la nuit
Je vais devant en marche arrière
Lorsque je mens je suis sincère
C’est en été que je grelotte
Je m’empoisonne aux antidotes
Et je suis moi en travesti
Je réussis ce que je rate
Je suis gauche de la main droite
Et je suis triste quand je ris
Innocent je me sens coupable
J’ai le génie des incapables
Nomade j’habite Paris
Je vais tout droit en ligne courbe
Honnête quand je parais fourbe
Fidèle à ceux que je renie
C’est en hiver que je transpire
Quand je fais de mon mieux c’est pire
Je commence quand je finis
Je réussis ce que je rate
En blue-jean j’ai l’air en cravate
Je dors partout sauf dans mon lit
Main de velours et gant de fer
À l’endroit je suis à l’envers
À l’envers je me rétablis
Avec tout ça comment pourrais-je
Avoir un jour le privilège
D’être vraiment ce que je suis
Je suis tout ce que je précède
Et quand je vais de A à Z
Je reviens sans être parti
Avec tout ça comment pourrais-je
Avoir un jour le privilège
D’être vraiment ce que je suis
Je réussis ce que je rate
Je réussis ce que je rate
Je réussis ce que je rate!
Georges Moustaki's song Je Réussis Ce Que Je Rate is a playful and paradoxical exploration of the complexities of identity and self-perception. The song's opening verse sets the tone for this exploration, as Moustaki declares with apparent confidence that he succeeds in what he fails at and that he strives to be both libertine and spartan. This pattern continues throughout the song, as he presents a series of contradictory statements about himself that reveal the ways in which he embodies and resists various stereotypes and conventions.
One of the key themes of the song is the idea of performance and appearance. Moustaki plays with the idea of being someone other than himself, as he describes himself as an "oiseau de jour" who lives at night and poisons himself with antidotes. He also expresses a sense of being trapped in his own performances, as he notes that he is a "main de velours et gant de fer" and that he is both honest and deceitful depending on the situation. This sense of unease and discomfort with performing is reinforced by the song's chorus, in which Moustaki declares that he succeeds at what he fails at and vice versa.
Another important theme of the song is the idea of identity as a fluid and multiple concept. Moustaki describes himself as "innocent" but also "genie des incapables," as someone who is both honest and devious, and as someone who is both lazy and hard-working. These contradictions suggest that identity is not fixed or stable, but rather a constantly shifting and evolving process. Moustaki also interrogates the notion of authenticity, suggesting that the idea of being "really" oneself is an illusion, given the constant changes and contradictions that make up any individual's identity.
Line by Line Meaning
Je réussis ce que je rate
I succeed in what I fail at
Libertin je me veux spartiate
I want to be a libertine and a Spartan at the same time
Et je poursuis ce que je fuis
And I chase what I run away from
Héros quand je crois être lâche
I feel like a hero when I think I'm a coward
Paresseux je meurs à la tâche
I'm lazy, but I work myself to death
Oiseau de jour je vis la nuit
I'm a bird of the day but I live at night
Je vais devant en marche arrière
I go forward while moving backwards
Lorsque je mens je suis sincère
When I lie, I'm being truthful
Je promets quand je me dédie
I make promises only to break them
C’est en été que je grelotte
I shiver in the summer
Je m’empoisonne aux antidotes
I poison myself with antidotes
Et je suis moi en travesti
And I'm myself in disguise
Je suis gauche de la main droite
I'm left-handed with my right hand
Et je suis triste quand je ris
And I'm sad when I laugh
Innocent je me sens coupable
I feel guilty even when innocent
J’ai le génie des incapables
I have the genius of incompetence
Nomade j’habite Paris
I'm a nomad living in Paris
Je vais tout droit en ligne courbe
I go straight in a curved line
Honnête quand je parais fourbe
I'm honest when I seem deceitful
Fidèle à ceux que je renie
I'm faithful to those I deny
C’est en hiver que je transpire
I sweat in the winter
Quand je fais de mon mieux c’est pire
When I try my best, it's worse
Je commence quand je finis
I start when I finish
En blue-jean j’ai l’air en cravate
I look like I'm wearing a tie in blue jeans
Je dors partout sauf dans mon lit
I sleep everywhere except my bed
Main de velours et gant de fer
Velvet hand with an iron glove
À l’endroit je suis à l’envers
I'm upside down when right-side up
À l’envers je me rétablis
I recover when I'm upside down
Avec tout ça comment pourrais-je avoir un jour le privilège d'être vraiment ce que je suis
With all this, how could I ever have the privilege of truly being myself?
Je suis tout ce que je précède
I am everything that came before me in this song
Et quand je vais de A à Z je reviens sans être parti
And when I go from A to Z, I come back without ever having left
Je réussis ce que je rate!
I succeed in what I fail at!
Contributed by Owen R. Suggest a correction in the comments below.