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 ....
Mé Qué Mé Qué
Joe Dassin Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Des paquets posés sur le quai
Dans un petit troquet d'un port Martiniquais, une fille belle à croquer
Pleure dans les bras d'un garçon de couleur
Car il s'en va, il lui brise son cœur
Elle, dans un hoquet, lui tendant son ticket
Lui dit "Chéri, que tu vas me manquer!"
Une histoire de tous les jours
Mé qué, mé qué, mais qu'est-ce que c'est ?
Peut-être la fin d'un amour
La sirène brusqua leurs adieux délicats
Mais soudain tout se compliqua
La petite masqua un instant ses tracas, pourtant son courage manqua
Elle dit "J'ai peur, il ne faut pas partir
Vois-tu, mon cœur, sans toi je vais mourir !"
Le garçon expliqua qu'il fallait en tous cas
Qu'il parte et c'est pourquoi il embarqua
Mé qué, mé qué, mais qu'est-ce que c'est ?
Une histoire de tous les jours
Mé qué, mé qué, mais qu'est-ce que c'est ?
Peut-être la fin d'un amour
Les paquets embarqués, le bateau remorqué, lentement a quitté le quai
Ne soyez pas choqués, n'allez pas vous moquer
De ce que je vais expliquer
Regardant au port son bel amour à terre
Pris de remords, il plongea dans la mer
Devant ce coup risqué par l'amour provoqué
Les requins en restèrent interloqués
Mé qué, mé qué, mais qu'est-ce que c'est ?
Une histoire de tous les jours
Mé qué, mé qué, mais qu'est-ce que c'est ?
C'est l'aurore d'un nouveau jour qui est fait pour durer toujours
Car l'amour vient pour retrouver l'amour.
The lyrics of the song "Mé qué, mé qué" by Joe Dassin narrate a story that is perhaps a typical everyday occurrence for many people. The scene is set by the sea with a ship docked at the quay, piles of packages on the wharf, and a beautiful girl crying in the arms of a boy of color whom she loves deeply. The boy is leaving, and his departure breaks her heart. In a distressed state, the girl hands her ticket to the boy and tells him that he would be missed so much.
As the ship sounds the horn to herald the departure, the small moment of tranquillity was shattered. The girl hides her misgivings, but her courage begins to fail, and she openly confesses her fears. She pleads with the boy not to leave her because she will die without him. The boy tries to explain, but he cannot remain ashore. He must leave. With the packages loaded and the ship ready to set sail, the ship begins to move away from the quay, and the girl watches her lover disappear into the distance.
However, fate would interject one last twist into this tale. Seeing his lover standing at the port, the remorseful boy jumps into the sea to swim back to the shore, risking his life for his beloved, but fortunately, he was saved from the sharks lurking beneath the surface. The lyrics of the song "Mé qué, mé qué" could mean the end of a love affair, but true love will never die, and in the end, it may come back with a new sunrise.
Line by Line Meaning
Le navire est à quai, y'a des tas de paquets
The ship is at the dock, with piles of packages
Des paquets posés sur le quai
Packages are placed on the dock
Dans un petit troquet d'un port Martiniquais, une fille belle à croquer
In a small pub in a Martinique port, there is a beautiful girl
Pleure dans les bras d'un garçon de couleur
She cries in the arms of a colored boy
Car il s'en va, il lui brise son cœur
Because he is leaving and breaking her heart
Elle, dans un hoquet, lui tendant son ticket
She, with a sob, hands him her ticket
Lui dit "Chéri, que tu vas me manquer!"
She says "Darling, I'm going to miss you!"
Mé qué, mé qué, mais qu'est-ce que c'est ?
"Mé qué, mé qué" What is it?
Une histoire de tous les jours
Just an everyday story
Peut-être la fin d'un amour
Perhaps the end of a love story
La sirène brusqua leurs adieux délicats
The siren disrupted their delicate goodbyes
Mais soudain tout se compliqua
But suddenly everything became complicated
La petite masqua un instant ses tracas, pourtant son courage manqua
The girl hid her troubles for a moment, but then lost her courage
Elle dit "J'ai peur, il ne faut pas partir
She said "I'm afraid, you shouldn't leave
Vois-tu, mon cœur, sans toi je vais mourir !"
You see, my heart, I will die without you!"
Le garçon expliqua qu'il fallait en tous cas
The boy explained that he had to go anyway
Qu'il parte et c'est pourquoi il embarqua
He had to leave and that's why he boarded the ship
Les paquets embarqués, le bateau remorqué, lentement a quitté le quai
With the packages onboard and the ship towed, it slowly left the dock
Ne soyez pas choqués, n'allez pas vous moquer
Don't be shocked, don't make fun
De ce que je vais expliquer
Of what I'm about to explain
Regardant au port son bel amour à terre
Looking at his beautiful love on shore
Pris de remords, il plongea dans la mer
Filled with remorse, he dove into the sea
Devant ce coup risqué par l'amour provoqué
Faced with this risky move caused by love
Les requins en restèrent interloqués
The sharks were left perplexed
C'est l'aurore d'un nouveau jour qui est fait pour durer toujours
It's the dawn of a new day that's meant to last forever
Car l'amour vient pour retrouver l'amour.
Because love comes to find love.
Lyrics © RAOUL BRETON EDITIONS, Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: CHARLES AZNAOURIAN, GILBERT FRANCOIS LEOPOLD BECAUD
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind