In 1990, some friends recorded her at the Petite-Vallée song festival without her consent, but she completed a performance there and was regarded as a huge success. The following year she won at the Granby song festival for her rendition of Jacques Brel's "Amsterdam". That same year she was invited to take part in the festival Les FrancoFolies de Montréal.
In 1993 she represented Radio Canada at the "Truffe de Périgueux" festival held in Périgord, France. She carried off the prize for Best Singer in the "chanson francophone" (French song) category. Following her success in France, she was noticed by songwriter Luc Plamondon who was looking for emerging talents to perform in a new production of his rock opera Starmania. There, Boulay portrayed the role of Marie-Jeanne.
In 1996, Isabelle Boulay provided the singing voice for Alys Robi in the television series of the same name. She released her debut album, Fallait pas, that year.
Two years later, came "États d’amour" an album that included some of her most popular songs. "Je t’oublierai, je t’oublierai", "La lune" or "Le saule".
The following years were filled with success and recognition all over the world. In that time her albums "Scènes d’amour", which included thirteen live duets and "Mieux qu'ici-bas" were released. This last one became an instant success.
"Au moment d'être à vous" was again recorded live in Montreal in 2002. Acompanied by the Symphonic Orchestra of Montreal, she performed her favourite songs from many composers.
"Tout un Jour" was released in 2004 and it included 14 new songs.
"Du Temps pour Toi" was recorded live at L'Olympia in Paris and released in 2005 and a DVD of the concert was also released.
In 2007, she went back to her childhood memories and songs and recorded a Country music album called "De Retour à la source"
In the spring of 2008 she released an album produced in France, "Nos Lendemains" that you can hear in her official site: www.isabelleboulay.ca
Les amours sans importance
Isabelle Boulay Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Un beau baiser en noir et blanc
On avait quoi dix-huit vingt ans
Là dessus pour toujours ton bateau
A quitté te quai du métro
T'as pas eu le temps de m'être fidèle
Normal, je savais même pas ton nom
Mais je gardais ta photomaton
Amours sans importance
Baisers au coin des rues
Visages disparus
Près d'un train en partance
Trois mots dans un café
Un sanglot étouffé
Personne ne pleure
Malheur d'un quart d'heure
Sous le pont des soupirs
La Seine est à la coule
Et la ville s'étire
Et la foule s'écoule
Amours sans importance
Baisers au coin des rues
Visages disparus
Et la vie s'en balance
Et marguerites effeuillées
Petites annonces sans réponses
Histoires sur un trottoir mouillé
Amour entre deux cigarettes
Un numéro de téléphone
Sur le dos d'une boite d'allumettes
Quand on appelle il n'y a personne
O les beaux voiliers oubliés
Sur un bout de nappe en papier
Amours sans importance
Baisers au coin des rues
Visages disparus
Prés d'un train en partance
Trois mots dans un café
Un sanglot étouffé
Personne ne pleure
Malheur d'un quart d'heure
Le soir chacun navigue
Sur la mer de fatigue
Et la foule s'écoule
Et la ville s'étire
Amours sans importance
Baisers au coin des rues
Visages disparus
El la vie s'en balance
Amours sans importance
La la, la la la la
La la, la la la la
Et la vie s'en balance
La la, la la la la
Baisers au coin des rues
La la, la la la la
Et la vie s'en balance
The lyrics of Isabelle Boulay's song Les amours sans importance talk about brief, fleeting romantic encounters that do not hold any significant value or meaning. The first stanza focuses on a memory of a kiss shared in a black and white movie theatre when the singer and her lover were only 18 or 20 years old. However, their romance was short-lived as the man's boat left the subway station's quay, and he did not have the chance to be faithful. The singer did not even know his name, but she kept the photo booth picture they took together, reminiscing about the fleeting beauty of their love.
The chorus repeats the theme of the song, describing these encounters as hopeless and insignificant. From stolen kisses on street corners to faces and names forgotten, the singer talks about the transitory nature of these relationships. The second and third stanzas list some of the other brief encounters that the singer has had or has witnessed, such as throwing away daisy petals, unanswered personal ads, and love stories that happen between two cigarettes, emphasizing the futility of such relationships. The bridge brings the focus to the setting of the song, Paris, describing the Seine River and the city's crowds that continue to move forward, uncaring for these little love stories.
Overall, the song paints a picture of the beauty and melancholy of brief affairs and their inevitable end. It conveys the message that not all love stories need to last forever to be meaningful, as even the shortest moments can leave a lifetime's worth of memories.
Line by Line Meaning
Tu m'as donné dans un ciné
You gave me, in a cinema,
Un beau baiser en noir et blanc
a beautiful black and white kiss
On avait quoi dix-huit vingt ans
We were, what, eighteen, twenty years old
Là dessus pour toujours ton bateau
And then your boat, forever,
A quitté te quai du métro
Left the metro platform
T'as pas eu le temps de m'être fidèle
You didn't have the time to be faithful to me
Normal, je savais même pas ton nom
Normal, I didn't even know your name
Mais je gardais ta photomaton
But I kept your photo booth picture
Où je me rappelle que t'étais belle
Where I remember that you were beautiful
Amours sans importance
Love affairs without importance
Baisers au coin des rues
Kisses on street corners
Visages disparus
Faces disappeared
Près d'un train en partance
Near a departing train
Trois mots dans un café
Three words in a café
Un sanglot étouffé
A stifled sob
Personne ne pleure
No one cries
Malheur d'un quart d'heure
A fifteen-minute misfortune
Sous le pont des soupirs
Under the bridge of sighs
La Seine est à la coule
The Seine flows
Et la ville s'étire
And the city stretches
Et la foule s'écoule
And the crowd flows
Et marguerites effeuillées
And daisy petals pulled off
Petites annonces sans réponses
Classified ads with no response
Histoires sur un trottoir mouillé
Stories on a wet sidewalk
Amour entre deux cigarettes
Love between two cigarettes
Un numéro de téléphone
A phone number
Sur le dos d'une boite d'allumettes
On the back of a matchbox
Quand on appelle il n'y a personne
When you call, there's no one
O les beaux voiliers oubliés
Oh, the beautiful forgotten sailboats
Sur un bout de nappe en papier
On a piece of paper napkin
Le soir chacun navigue
In the evening, everyone sails
Sur la mer de fatigue
On the sea of exhaustion
Amours sans importance
Love affairs without importance
Et la vie s'en balance
And life doesn't care
La la, la la la la
Et la vie s'en balance
And life doesn't care
Baisers au coin des rues
Kisses on street corners
La la, la la la la
Et la vie s'en balance
And life doesn't care
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: GEORGES MOUSTAKI
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind