After the very famous song Mon amant de Saint-Jean (my lover from Saint-Jean), in 1942, Lucienne Delyle became the most popular French female singer of 1950s.
Born in Paris, she was a fully educated pharmacist. First she sung as an amateur singer, until 1939, when she was heard and immediately engaged by Jacques Canetti, the artistic director of Radio Cité. In 1940 she married the jazzman Aimé Barelli (1917-1995), who guided her career ever since. With him she had a daughter, Minouche Barelli (1947-2004). After the immense success of the song "Mon amant de Saint-Jean" (My Lover From Saint-Jean), in 1942, Lucienne Delyle became the most popular French female singer in France. She was most popular during the 1950s. In 1953, Bruno Coquatrix invited her and young Gilbert Bécaud to be the stars for the gala opening concert at the „Olympia". Delyle's career declined rapidly in the end of the 1950s, due to the progress of the leukemia she suffered from. In 1960 she gave the last series of concerts on the stage of „Bobino". She died in Monte Carlo, in 1962.
Si J'avais Un Ami
Lucienne Delyle Lyrics
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Vraiment fidèle
Je lui dirais tout bas
Tout bas pourquoi
La vie pourtant si belle
N'a plus d'attrait pour moi
Si j'avais un ami
Je lui dirais combien
Mon cœur est lourd
Je lui dirais ma peine
De vivre sans amour
Je lui avouerais
Mes rêves secrets
Et tout ce qui fait
Ma tristesse
Il me calmerait
Me consolerait
Quitte à me mentir exprès
Si j'avais un ami
Vraiment sincère
Je pourrais dans ses bras
Longtemps, longtemps
Sans peur de lui déplaire
Pleurer comme une enfant
Si j'avais un ami
Vraiment qui m'aime
Je lui dirais comment
J'ai tout perdu
Jusqu'à l'espoir lui-même
Pour un amour déçu
Si j'avais un ami
Dans ma souffrance
Je pourrais malgré tout
Le cœur blessé
Trouver dans sa présence
L'oubli de mon passé
Timide et discret
Il me parlerait
De nos souvenirs de jeunesse
Et peut-être après
Je lui sourirais
Remplie d'un désir secret
Mais je n'ai plus d'ami
Pour me comprendre
Et c'est la seule raison
De mon chagrin
Mon cœur lassé d'attendre
Mon cœur n'attend plus rien {x 2}
The song "Si j'avais un ami" by Lucienne Delyle speaks of the desire for a true friend, someone who will listen and understand the singer's pain and sadness. The lyrics express a feeling of loneliness and the longing for companionship in the face of life's difficulties, especially the loss of love and hope. The repeated use of the phrase "si j'avais un ami" ("if I had a friend") underscores the singer's isolation and emphasizes the importance of having someone to confide in and share one's innermost thoughts and feelings with.
The first verse sets the tone for the rest of the song, as the singer expresses how life, which is supposed to be beautiful, has lost its attraction for her. She seems to be suffering from depression or simply feeling overwhelmed by the challenges and struggles of life. The second verse reinforces this sense of despair, as the singer reveals that she is living without love and is burdened with a heavy heart. She longs to unburden herself to a true friend who will understand and help her through her pain.
The third verse has a somewhat hopeful tone, as the singer imagines what it would be like to have a friend who could comfort and console her. She admits that she might even want her friend to lie to her if it would make her feel better, showing that she is desperate for any kind of solace. The fourth verse returns to a more melancholy mood, as the singer recounts how she has lost everything, including hope itself, due to a failed love affair. She imagines that a true friend might be able to help her forget her past and find peace in the present.
Overall, "Si j'avais un ami" is a poignant and heartfelt song about the human need for connection and the difficulty of finding someone who truly understands us. It speaks to the universal experience of loneliness and the longing for companionship, especially during times of sadness and distress.
Line by Line Meaning
Si j'avais un ami
If I had a friend
Vraiment fidèle
Who is truly faithful
Je lui dirais tout bas
I would whisper to him
Tout bas pourquoi
Quietly, why
La vie pourtant si belle
Life, nonetheless beautiful
N'a plus d'attrait pour moi
No longer has appeal for me
Qui me comprenne
Who understands me
Je lui dirais combien
I would tell him how much
Mon cœur est lourd
My heart is heavy
Je lui dirais ma peine
I would tell him my pain
De vivre sans amour
Of living without love
Je lui avouerais
I would confess to him
Mes rêves secrets
My secret dreams
Et tout ce qui fait
And all that makes
Ma tristesse
My sadness
Il me calmerait
He would calm me
Me consolerait
He would console me
Quitte à me mentir exprès
Even if he had to lie to me on purpose
Vraiment sincère
Who is truly sincere
Je pourrais dans ses bras
I could in his arms
Longtemps, longtemps
For a long, long time
Sans peur de lui déplaire
Without fear of displeasing him
Pleurer comme une enfant
Cry like a child
Vraiment qui m'aime
Who truly loves me
Je lui dirais comment
I would tell him how
J'ai tout perdu
I have lost everything
Jusqu'à l'espoir lui-même
Even hope itself
Pour un amour déçu
For a love that disappointed
Dans ma souffrance
In my suffering
Je pourrais malgré tout
I could despite everything
Le cœur blessé
With a wounded heart
Trouver dans sa présence
Find in his presence
L'oubli de mon passé
The forgetting of my past
Timide et discret
Shy and discreet
Il me parlerait
He would talk to me
De nos souvenirs de jeunesse
Of our memories of youth
Et peut-être après
And maybe later
Je lui sourirais
I would smile at him
Remplie d'un désir secret
Filled with a secret desire
Mais je n'ai plus d'ami
But I no longer have a friend
Pour me comprendre
To understand me
Et c'est la seule raison
And that is the only reason
De mon chagrin
For my grief
Mon cœur lassé d'attendre
My heart tired of waiting
Mon cœur n'attend plus rien {x 2}
My heart no longer expects anything {x 2}
Writer(s): max françois, jimmy davis
Contributed by Gabriella Y. Suggest a correction in the comments below.