Dassin was born in New York City to Jules Dassin (Yiddish actor and film noir director) and Béatrice Launer. He began his childhood first in New York and Los Angeles, California. However after his father became a victim of the anti-communist policies of Senator Joseph McCarthy, he and his family moved from place to place across Europe.
After studying at Institut Le Rosey in Switzerland, Dassin moved back to the United States to go to college at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, Michigan after doing very well on his bachelor's exam. After college, he moved back again to France where, while working at a radio station, a record label convinced him to begin to record his songs.
By the early 1970s, Dassin's songs topped the charts in France and he became well known. Probably as a recognition of his parents' left leanings, Dassin's records were officially released in the USSR. However, the political views of his parents were not well known to the general public in the USSR, and Dassin's popularity in the USSR should be connected to his talent only. He was also a talented polyglot, recording songs in German, Spanish, Italian and Greek, as well as French and English.
He died of a heart attack during a vacation to Tahiti on August 20, 1980. He is buried at the Hollywood Forever Cemetery in Hollywood, California.
Songs:Les Champs-Élysées ,L'été indien ,Ça va pas changer le Monde ,Et si tu n'existais pas, Salut ....
Indian Summer
Joe Dassin Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
You know, I've never been as happy as I was that morning
We were walking along the beach a little like this one
It was a rare kind of autumn day that you only find in North America
Over there they call it "Indian summer"
What it was just our summer
And I can see you now in your long dress
Looking like a beautiful water-colour
A year ago
A thousand years ago
Think of me, when this is just a memory,
Will you still belove in me
When the summer is gone?
All my life the taste of you will fill my life
Even when the summer is gone...
SPOKEN:
Today I'm far away of not-autumn morning
But it's almost as if I was there.
I'm thinking of you. Where are you? What are you doing?
Do I still exist for you? I'm like a wave drawn by the moon
Slipping back on the sand, remembering high tides
Remembering the happiness in the sun shining over the sea
A thousand years ago
Or was it just last year?
Think of me, when this is just a memory,
Will you still belove in me
When the summer is gone?
All my life the taste of you will fill my life
Even when the summer is gone...
The lyrics of "Indian Summer" by Joe Dassin express nostalgia and longing for a past love. The song starts with a spoken conversation where the singer reminisces about a happy moment spent with their loved one. The memory is of a rare autumn day in North America, often called "Indian summer." The singer describes the beauty of the day and the appearance of their loved one in a long dress, looking like a beautiful watercolor. The morning culminated with the singer telling their loved one that they would always remember them, even if the summer was gone.
The song then transitions into a spoken musing where the singer reflects on their current state, which is far away from that autumn morning. They are thinking of their loved one and wondering if they still exist in their life. The singer compares themselves to a wave drawn by the moon, slipping back on the sand and remembering the happiness they once had. Despite the distance and time that have passed, the singer declares that the taste of their loved one will fill them even when the summer is gone, expressing the idea that their love will last forever.
Overall, the song is a poignant expression of a love that has passed, but the memories and emotions of which continue to linger.
Line by Line Meaning
You know, I've never been as happy as I was that morning
I have never experienced as much happiness as I did that particular morning.
We were walking along the beach a little like this one
We were taking a walk by the beach, somewhat similar to this one.
It was a rare kind of autumn day that you only find in North America
It was a unique type of autumn day that can only be discovered in North America.
Over there they call it "Indian summer"
They refer to it as "Indian summer" in that area.
What it was just our summer
But for us, it was just like any other summer.
And I can see you now in your long dress
I can still picture you in my mind, wearing a lengthy dress.
Looking like a beautiful water-colour
Looking as if you came straight out of a stunning watercolor painting.
And I can remember what I told you that morning
And I vividly recall the words that I had said to you on that morning.
A year ago
It happened a year ago.
A thousand years ago
It feels as if it occurred a thousand years ago.
Think of me, when this is just a memory,
Recall me, when all of this is just a memory,
Will you still belove in me
Will your love for me last?
When the summer is gone?
Even after the summer is long gone?
All my life the taste of you will fill my life
Your essence will forever fill up my life.
Even when the summer is gone...
Even after the summer has faded away...
Today I'm far away of not-autumn morning
While I find myself somewhere far, it is not autumn here.
But it's almost as if I was there.
But it almost feels like I am there still.
I'm thinking of you. Where are you? What are you doing?
I wonder about you, where you are and what you're up to.
Do I still exist for you?
Do I still cross your mind now and then?
I'm like a wave drawn by the moon
I feel like a wave being pulled by the moon.
Slipping back on the sand, remembering high tides
Ebbing away on the sand, reminiscing of days with big tides.
Remembering the happiness in the sun shining over the sea
Recalling the joy that the sun shining over the sea brought us.
A thousand years ago
It feels like an eternity ago.
Or was it just last year?
Or was it just last year that we were together?
Contributed by London P. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@donatellaborciccibelloni5328
@Alex Torres it is not about who sings it better, it is about the fact that it is an italian song and not a french song :) here's the list of songs written by Toto Cutugno and offered to Joe Dassin. You may be surprised to discover that some of Joe's best songs are actually covers of italian songs...
1. Cote' banjo, cote' violon (1979)
2. Et l'amour s'en va (Gran premio, 1977)
3. Et si tu n'existais pas (Oasis, 1975)
4. Il etait une fois noux deux (Monja Monja, 1976)
5. L'albatros
6. L'ete Indien (Africa, 1975)
7. Le jardin du Luxembourg (Quindici minuti di un uomo, 1978)
8. Qu'est-ce que tu fais de moi? (Volevo amarti un po', 1979) sung by Ornella Vanoni
9. Salut
@shalimarsgirl
Excellent video creation and beautiful love song. When so deeply love, even a day away from each other, feels like a year.
@giorgioragvelidze2007
And a year feels like thousand
@edithavictorino801
I remember my late husband, he was the love of my life, my first love, my one and only true love.
@adsdentiste
ΤHank you ❤️
@troymccane3620
The melody of my early youth. When I think of most innocent, most beautiful times of my life, this melody plays in the background. Sometimes, I don't even think of anything; this melody IS the most beautiful thing. It is also there when I think of another lost love, my only true love that came way past the time this song came out. It adds beauty to my pain. It makes me hurt less and dream more.....
@adsdentiste
Beautiful comment!!!!!! Thank you so much
@MyVadson
I was 15. My first dance with a girl. I am 61 now. But l always remember her name and our dance.
@adsdentiste
Very touching, thank you so much
@MyVadson
@adsdentiste She refused another guy but went to dance with me! Oh, his glance I never forget too!😆
@Misslotusification
That's why it's amongst the killer slows.