Higelin's entertainment career began at age 14, when he left school to work as a stunt double. While playing a number of small roles in various motion pictures, Higelin was taught to play the guitar by Henri Crolla, an Italian film composer. By the early sixties, Higelin was attending the René Simon drama school, where he won the François Perier award.
For two years starting in 1961, Higelin served in the French military. Upon returning to France, he resumed his cinematic career, but increasingly began to focus on music over film. By the end of the decade, he was also very active in the artistic underground in Paris, and he began to channel his music towards radical militancy. He began attracting popular attention through his live concerts, typically held in smaller venues, and released his first solo album, in 1971. By the middle of the 1970s, Higelin had become one of France's most successful musicians, and he continued to be influential.
Amor Doloroso
Jacques Higelin Lyrics
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L'amour s'en va
Seul sur les quais
Je broie du noir
Le train repart sans moi
La route est longue
Le temps est lourd
La nuit est blanche encore
Je te revois fière et sauvage
Ensorcelée pieds nus dans la poussière
T'embraser comme une flamme affolée par le vent
Et te jeter dans mes bras
L'amour, l'amour, l'amour, l'amour est mort
Amor doloroso
Je sens encore
Entre mes bras
Chavirer ton corps
Douleur, douleur, douleur, regrets et remords
Amor doloroso
Si loin de toi, j'ai mal, j'ai froid, j'ai peur
Je n'aime que toi.
Combien de jours
De nuits encore
A délirer sans toi ?
La fièvre au corps
La mort dans l'âme
Bien plus de mille et une fois
Je me suis senti mourir dans tes bras
Jusqu'au jour où lassée
Peut-etre
Tu m'as quitté sans dire
Un mot
Sans un regard
Me laissant seul désemparé
Et le cœur lourd
A attendre ton retour.
Douleur, douleur, douleur, regrets et remords
Amor doloroso
J'entends encore tout contre moi
Battre ton cœur.
La vie, l'amour, l'oubli, la douleur et la mort
Amor doloroso
Si loin de toi, j'ai mal, j'ai froid, j'ai peur
Je n'aime que toi.
The lyrics of Jacques Higelin's "Amor Doloroso" convey a profound sense of grief and longing. The song tells the story of a man who has been left alone on the quay by his lover's departure on a train. As the train goes away, he is left with the memories of their passionate relationship. He sees her image, a proud and wild woman, enchanted with her bare feet in the dust. He remembers the way he used to embrace her and how she used to throw herself into his arms. But now she's gone, and he is left to cope with the agony of separation.
The chorus of the song, "Amor doloroso," which translates to "painful love," underscores the singer's pain as he sings of his sorrow, regret, and overwhelming sense of emptiness. Even though he feels like he's dying without her, he still loves her with all his heart. He can't find relief from his agony, which leads to insomnia, coldness, and fear.
This song can be seen as an artistic depiction of the feeling of "saudade," a term commonly used in Portuguese to describe a feeling of profound longing or nostalgia, often for someone who is far away or has passed on. Jacques Higelin perfectly captures the pain of separation and the power of love that leave the listener with a feeling of bittersweet emotions.
Line by Line Meaning
La mort s'en vient
Death is approaching
L'amour s'en va
Love is leaving
Seul sur les quais
Alone on the docks
Je broie du noir
I'm feeling down
Le train repart sans moi
The train leaves without me
La route est longue
The road is long
Le temps est lourd
The time is heavy
La nuit est blanche encore
The night is still white
Et noir le jour
And black the day
Je te revois fière et sauvage
I see you again proud and wild
Ensorcelée pieds nus dans la poussière
Bewitched, barefoot in the dust
T'embraser comme une flamme affolée par le vent
To kiss you like a flame crazed by the wind
Et te jeter dans mes bras
And throw you into my arms
L'amour, l'amour, l'amour, l'amour est mort
Love, love, love, love is dead
Amor doloroso
Painful love
Je sens encore
I still feel
Entre mes bras
In my arms
Chavirer ton corps
Your body capsize
Douleur, douleur, douleur, regrets et remords
Pain, pain, pain, regrets and remorse
Si loin de toi, j'ai mal, j'ai froid, j'ai peur
So far from you, I hurt, I'm cold, I'm scared
Je n'aime que toi.
I love only you.
Combien de jours
How many days
De nuits encore
Of nights still
A délirer sans toi ?
To delirious without you?
La fièvre au corps
A fever in the body
La mort dans l'âme
Death in the soul
Bien plus de mille et une fois
Well over a thousand times
Je me suis senti mourir dans tes bras
I felt like I was dying in your arms
Jusqu'au jour où lassée
Until the day when tired
Peut-etre
Maybe
Tu m'as quitté sans dire
You left me without saying
Un mot
A word
Sans un regard
Without a glance
Me laissant seul désemparé
Leaving me alone and helpless
Et le cœur lourd
And the heavy heart
A attendre ton retour.
Waiting for your return.
J'entends encore tout contre moi
I still hear next to me
Battre ton cœur.
Your heart beating.
La vie, l'amour, l'oubli, la douleur et la mort
Life, love, forgetfulness, pain and death
Si loin de toi, j'ai mal, j'ai froid, j'ai peur
So far from you, I hurt, I'm cold, I'm scared
Je n'aime que toi.
I love only you.
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Written by: Higelin Jacques
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind