Jean Sablon (Nogent-sur-Marne 25 March 1906 – 24 February 1994 at Cannes) w… Read Full Bio ↴Jean Sablon (Nogent-sur-Marne 25 March 1906 – 24 February 1994 at Cannes) was a popular French singer and actor.

The son of a composer, with brothers and sisters who had successful careers of their own in musical entertainment, Jean Sablon studied piano at the Lyceé Charlemagne in Paris. He left before graduating to enroll at the Paris Conservatoire in order to concentrate on a vocal career. He started in the cabarets of Paris at the age of 17, and was subsequently accompanied on his first album by the pianist/composer Mireille, whose song Couchés dans le foin became a great success. Later, he partnered the wildly popular Mistinguett at the Casino de Paris and boosted his career considerably. He was the first cabaret singer to use a microphone in his stage act. In the 1920s he spent time in Brazil where his recordings remain extremely popular today.
In 1937 he won the Grand Prix du Disque for the song "Vous qui passez sans me voir," written for him by Charles Trenet and Johnny Hess. That same year, he went to the United States, where he sang on live radio broadcasts for CBS and made several records in the English language. On Broadway, he worked with luminaries such as Cole Porter and George Gershwin. He returned to Paris but with the German occupation of France in World War II, he went back to America for the duration.
Jean Sablon became one of the most widely acclaimed male French singers, considered second only in overall lifetime popularity to Maurice Chevalier. His records sold in the millions around the world and he is frequently referred to as the French equivalent of America's Bing Crosby. During his career, he recorded with some of the world's top musicians, including Django Reinhardt and Stéphane Grappelli. Sablon is credited with arranging Reinhardt's debut in a fashionable cabaret in 1933. He is also recognized for his talents as a lyricist and a composer. Sablon appeared in a number of motion pictures and television films performing as a vocalist or pianist, his last coming in 1984 when he sang "April in Paris" in Mistral's Daughter, the popular American TV miniseries filmed in France.
Jean Sablon died in 1994 and was interred in the Cimetière du Montparnasse in Paris.

Par correspondance
Jean Sablon Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

J'ai lu dans un journal du soir
Qu'avec six francs soixante
Chez soi l'on pouvait recevoir
Des leçons fort intéressantes

J'apprends le tennis et la dance
Par correspondance
Et je fais des progrès immenses

Par correspondance

Mon professeur que je ne connais pas
Chaque lundi m'envoie quelques bons points
Cette petite récompense
Par correspondance
Me procure un plaisir intense
Par correspondance

Mon maître un beau jour je l'apprends
Etait une maîtresse
Le cours devient tout différent
Le sexe faible m'intéresse

Et nous avons fait connaissance
Par correspondance
C'est bien plus doux que l'on ne pense
Par correspondance

Nous échangeons des serments et des photos
Quelques cheveux et des baisers postaux
Et je ressens un trouble immense
Par correspondance
Je vais perdre mon innocence
Par correspondance

Hélas l'objet de tant d'ardeur
Me trompait sans scrupules
Changeant d'amant tous les quarts d'heures
Elle me rendait ridicule

J'ai dû flétrir son impudence
Par correspondance
Et lui faire des remontrances
Par correspondance

Elle m'a dit dans cinq cartes postales
Les mots affreux, les injures fatales
Pour lui montrer ma répugnance
Par correspondance

J'ai repris mon indépendance
Par correspondance

Overall Meaning

The lyrics to Jean Sablon's song Par Correspondance tell a story of someone who reads in the newspaper that with six francs sixty, one can receive interesting and useful lessons at home through correspondence. The singer then goes on to explain that they are learning tennis and dance through the correspondence courses, and making great progress as a result. They receive rewards in the form of "good points" from their teacher every Monday, and this reward brings them immense pleasure. However, things take a turn when the singer finds out that their teacher is actually a woman, and they become interested in the opposite sex. They begin an intense correspondence with their teacher, exchanging promises and photos, and they feel a great excitement and sense of anticipation. Unfortunately, the object of their desire turns out to be unfaithful, and the singer is left feeling foolish and betrayed. They must confront the teacher through correspondence and end the relationship. The song serves as a cautionary tale about the dangers of getting too caught up in correspondence and falling for someone they have never actually met.

Overall, the song speaks to the idea that correspondence can offer great opportunities for learning, connection, and pleasure, but it also warns of the potential downfalls, such as falling for someone who turns out to be unfaithful or not who they appear to be. The chorus, which repeats several times throughout the song, emphasizes the idea that all of these experiences are taking place "par correspondance," or through correspondence.

Line by Line Meaning

J'ai lu dans un journal du soir
I read in an evening newspaper

Qu'avec six francs soixante
That for six francs sixty

Chez soi l'on pouvait recevoir
One could receive at home

Des leçons fort intéressantes
Very interesting lessons

J'apprends le tennis et la dance
I'm learning tennis and dance