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.
Le Jugement Dernier
Georges Moustaki Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Au jugement dernier?
Gens de paroles et gens qui trichent
Au jugement dernier?
Où seront toutes vos richesses,
Vos joies, l'argent et vos maîtresses
Au jugement dernier?
Et vous, le pauvre et la pauvresse,
Au jugement dernier?
Mais moi, la faute la plus belle
Au jugement dernier,
C'est d'avoir trop aimer les belles.
Je ne peux pas le nier.
J'en ai aimé trois au lieu d'une.
J'ai fait de la peine à chacune.
Faut me pardonner.
Nul n'est parfait sur cette terre.
Qui me jettera la première pierre
Au jugement dernier?
Si l'or n'était pas chose qui brille,
Je n'aurais pas volé.
S'il ne plaisait pas tant aux filles,
Le long des colliers.
Je n'aurais pas coupé les bourses,
Je n'aurais pas joué aux courses,
Je m'en serais passé.
Y aura-t-il pour chanter mes louanges
Un seul ami parmi les anges
Au jugement dernier?
Cloches du ciel, résonnez toutes
Au jugement dernier.
Et vers Saint-Pierre, ouvrez ma route
Dans l'éternité.
Je ne peux rien dire pour ma défense.
Épargnez-moi tant de souffrances
Au jugement dernier.
Et voici la main qui pardonne
Toutes les fautes de tous les hommes
Au jugement dernier.
Au jugement dernier.
Au jugement dernier.
Au jugement dernier.
Au jugement dernier.
Georges Moustaki's Le Jugement Dernier is a song that deeply asks the question of where we will stand in the final judgement day. The lyrics of the song reflect on the many aspects of life that will be brought into account at the end of time. It is a contemplation of the actions and decisions made by individuals in the face of life's challenges.
In the chorus, the song asks where the rich and poor, the honest and deceitful, will stand in the final judgement. It asks where all the material possessions and pleasures will be at the end of time, and where the sorrows and suffering of the poor will stand. The song calls for an introspection of the heart and the deeds that have been done, weighing it on the scales of justice in the final judgement.
The song's last verse takes a more personal turn, with Moustaki confessing his misdeeds, such as loving too many "belles" and stealing, in the hopes of being pardoned by God. It concludes on a note of seeking mercy and forgiveness from the divine, and harboring hope that there may be someone to speak in favor of his soul.
Line by Line Meaning
Où serons-nous pauvres et riches
Where will we be, whether rich or poor, in the final judgment?
Gens de paroles et gens qui trichent
People who speak the truth and those who deceive will both face the judgment.
Où seront toutes vos richesses,
Vos joies, l'argent et vos maîtresses
Au jugement dernier?
Where will all your wealth, pleasures, money, and mistresses be in the final judgment?
Et vous, le pauvre et la pauvresse,
Où seront toutes vos détresses
Au jugement dernier?
And you, the poor and the afflicted, where will all your sufferings be in the final judgment?
Mais moi, la faute la plus belle
Au jugement dernier,
C'est d'avoir trop aimer les belles.
Je ne peux pas le nier.
But for me, the most beautiful fault in the final judgment is having loved too much. I cannot deny it.
J'en ai aimé trois au lieu d'une.
J'ai fait de la peine à chacune.
Faut me pardonner.
I loved three instead of one, and I hurt each one. Please forgive me.
Nul n'est parfait sur cette terre.
Qui me jettera la première pierre
Au jugement dernier?
No one is perfect on this earth. Who will cast the first stone in the final judgment?
Si l'or n'était pas chose qui brille,
Je n'aurais pas volé.
S'il ne plaisait pas tant aux filles,
Le long des colliers.
If gold were not something that shone, I would not have stolen. If it did not please the women, along with necklaces.
Je n'aurais pas coupé les bourses,
Je n'aurais pas joué aux courses,
Je m'en serais passé.
I would not have cut purses or bet on races. I would have gone without.
Y aura-t-il pour chanter mes louanges
Un seul ami parmi les anges
Au jugement dernier?
Will there be a single friend among the angels to sing my praises in the final judgment?
Cloches du ciel, résonnez toutes
Au jugement dernier.
Et vers Saint-Pierre, ouvrez ma route
Dans l'éternité.
Bells of heaven, all resound on the final judgment. And towards Saint Peter, open my path to eternity.
Je ne peux rien dire pour ma défense.
Épargnez-moi tant de souffrances
Au jugement dernier.
I cannot say anything in my defense. Spare me from so much suffering in the final judgment.
Et voici la main qui pardonne
Toutes les fautes de tous les hommes
Au jugement dernier.
And here is the hand that forgives all the faults of all men in the final judgment.
Au jugement dernier.
In the final judgment.
Au jugement dernier.
In the final judgment.
Au jugement dernier.
In the final judgment.
Au jugement dernier.
In the final judgment.
Writer(s): Serge Gainsbourg
Contributed by Maria H. Suggest a correction in the comments below.