In 1965, Le Forestier formed a duo (Cat et Maxime) with his sister Catherine. Playing at cabaret venues on Paris' Left Bank, the pair met and formed a friendship with Georges Moustaki. They were amongst the first artists to cover a number of songs by Moustaki - including Ma Liberté and Ma Solitude. In 1968, Catherine joined Moustaki as a backing singer. Le Forestier began to focus on songwriting and composed Ballade pour un traître which was recorded and released by the French/Italian singer and actor, Serge Reggiani.
Le Forestier continued as part-time singer/songwriter during his military service (beginning 1969) with a parachute regiment (the inspiration for the song Parachutiste). He recorded two songs: "Cœur de Pierre, Face de Lune", and La Petite Fugue.
His military service ending September 1970, Le Forestier refocused on his musical career. He developed a folksy style which was enormously popular in the 1970s and '80s. His first album Mon Frère, released in 1973, contains several pieces that have entered French folklore, including the title song Mon frère, San Francisco, Comme un arbre and Education sentimentale. He toured extensively, both in France and abroad. In 1976, he toured in 14 cities in the USSR. Recently he has gained particular acclaim for his reworkings of the songs of Georges Brassens.
Raymonde
Maxime Le Forestier Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
On vend la peau de l'ours pour une salade.
Au bal des empires, on se ronge les sangs.
On laisse les allumettes jouer avec les enfants.
La pluie prend de l'acide, le désert gagne.
L'entendez-vous mugir jusque dans nos campagnes?
Et puis les eaux reviennent, plus qu'il n'en faut.
Plus les pendules s'affolent,
Plus les rongeurs se tirent.
Plus y'a de monde en sous-sol,
Plus je vois les gens courir,
Plus j'entends.
Monde, monde, vaste monde,
Si tu t'appelais Raymonde,
Ça ferait peut-être plus intime, monde,
On t'appellerait par ton prénom.
Monde, monde, vaste monde,
Si tu t'appelais Raymonde,
Ça ferait peut-être une rime, monde,
Mais ça ferait pas une solution.
D'ici de là, les drapeaux refleurissent
Quand c'est dans le même jardin, de profundis.
Ça finit quelques fois définitif, comme
Si la nuit s'écrasait, comme ça, sur des hommes.
Les statues qu'on dégomme, on les enterre.
Ça donne un peu de répit dans les cimetières.
On sait qu'un jour où l'autre, elles reviendront,
Avec une autre gueule, avec un autre nom.
The lyrics of Maxime Le Forestier's song "Raymonde" present a bleak and pessimistic view of the world. The first stanza describes the decay of Lenin's statues and how people are willing to trade bear skins for a salad, suggesting a lack of values and morality. The second stanza painted a picture of a world in ecological crisis, with acid rain and encroaching deserts, and the growing sense of anxiety and despair that is sweeping the world. The chorus provides a poignant reflection of the absurdity of trying to personalize or humanize the vast and abstract concept of the world, suggesting that this would be a futile and ultimately pointless endeavor.
The third stanza suggests a more violent and confrontational view of the world, where flags come and go, often in the same backyard, and where death is inevitable and sometimes final. The final stanza speaks to the cyclical nature of change, where the statues that get torn down are buried and eventually come back with a new face and a new name. This speaks to the idea that history repeats itself, and true change is often elusive.
Overall, Maxime Le Forestier's song "Raymonde" is a haunting and melancholic reflection on the state of the world and the human condition. It is a stark reminder that despite our progress and advancements, we still face tremendous challenges and that our future is far from certain.
Line by Line Meaning
Les statues de Lenine partout se dégradent.
The Lenin statues are deteriorating everywhere.
On vend la peau de l'ours pour une salade.
We sell the bear skin for a salad, meaning that we undervalue important things in exchange for trivial ones.
Au bal des empires, on se ronge les sangs.
At the ball of empires, we worry and fret over things that are out of our control.
On laisse les allumettes jouer avec les enfants.
We let our children play with matches, and indirectly allow them to play with fire or danger.
La pluie prend de l'acide, le désert gagne.
Acid rain is taking over, and the desert is expanding.
L'entendez-vous mugir jusque dans nos campagnes?
Can you hear it roaring from the fields?
Et puis les eaux reviennent, plus qu'il n'en faut.
And then too much water returns.
Aujourd'hui, les lendemains chantent faux.
Today, the promises of tomorrow are false.
Plus les pendules s'affolent,
The more the clocks go crazy,
Plus les rongeurs se tirent.
The more rodents run away.
Plus y'a de monde en sous-sol,
The more people hide in basements,
Plus je vois les gens courir,
The more I see people running,
Plus j'entends.
The more I hear.
Monde, monde, vaste monde,
World, world, vast world,
Si tu t'appelais Raymonde,
If your name was Raymonde,
Ça ferait peut-être plus intime, monde,
It might make it more personal, world,
On t'appellerait par ton prénom.
We would call you by your name.
Si tu t'appelais Raymonde,
If your name was Raymonde,
Ça ferait peut-être une rime, monde,
It might make a rhyme, world,
Mais ça ferait pas une solution.
But it wouldn't be a solution.
D'ici de là, les drapeaux refleurissent
From here to there, flags blossom again
Quand c'est dans le même jardin, de profundis.
When it's in the same garden, de profundis (meaning grave or abyss).
Ça finit quelques fois définitif, comme
It sometimes ends up being final, like
Si la nuit s'écrasait, comme ça, sur des hommes.
If the night crushed down on people like that.
Les statues qu'on dégomme, on les enterre.
The statues we destroy, we bury them.
Ça donne un peu de répit dans les cimetières.
It gives a bit of respite in the cemeteries.
On sait qu'un jour où l'autre, elles reviendront,
We know that one day, they will come back,
Avec une autre gueule, avec un autre nom.
With a different face, and a different name.
Contributed by Jack L. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Sophia
Chanson plus que jamais d’actualité....
arramy evelyne
Clip époustouflant sur une chanson engagée chantée avec délicatesse et poésie sur un texte engagé ! Merci