She studied songwriting at New York University with Paul Simon. Manchester then appeared on the Manhattan club scene, where she was discovered by Bette Midler and Barry Manilow, who took her on as a backup singer in 1971.
Her debut album, Home to Myself, was released in 1973; Manchester co-wrote many of its songs with Carole Bayer Sager. Two years later Manchester's album Melissa produced her first top ten hit, "Midnight Blue". Manchester collaborated with Kenny Loggins to co-write Loggin's 1978 hit duet with Stevie Nicks, "Whenever I Call You Friend". At this time, she guest-starred on the soap opera Search for Tomorrow to teach a main character, who was a singer-songwriter, the essentials of the craft. In 1979 Manchester made the top ten with her version of Peter Allen's "Don't Cry Out Loud", for which she received a Grammy nomination for Best Pop Female Vocal Performance.
In 1980 Manchester became the first singer to have two movie themes nominated for an Academy Award—"Through The Eyes Of Love" from the film Ice Castles and "I'll Never Say Goodbye" from the film The Promise'.
Two years later she had her biggest hit "You Should Hear How She Talks About You", which won a Grammy for Best Female Vocal Performance. It was her last Top 40 Pop hit, but Manchester did well on the Adult Contemporary charts the rest of the 1980s. Her most recent big Adult Contemporary hit was a 1989 updating of Dionne Warwick's "Walk On By".
Through the 1980s and 1990s Manchester alternated recording with acting, appearing with Bette Midler in the film For the Boys and on the television series Blossom.
Melissa also wrote and starred in the musical I Sent A Letter To My Love based on the Bernice Rubens novel of the same name.
In spring 2004, Manchester returned with her first album in 10 years: When I Look Down That Road.
La vie en rose
Melissa Manchester Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
(M. David, Louiguy, E. Piaf)
I thought that love was just a word
They sang about in songs I heard.
It took your kisses to reveal
That I was wrong, and love is real.
Quand il me prend dans ses bras,
Il me parle tout bas
Je vois la vie en rose
Il me dit des mots d'amour
das mots de tous les Jours,
Et ca me fait quelques choses
Il est entre dans mon coeur,
Une part de bonheur
Dont je connais la cause
C'est lui pour
Moi, moi pour lui dans la vie
Il me L'a dit, L'a jure pour la vie,
Et des que je L'apercois
Alors je sens en moi, mon coeur qui bat...
Hold me close and hold me fast,
The magic spell you cast
This is La vie en rose.
When you kiss me heaven sighs,
And though I close my eyes
I see La vie en rose.
When you press me to your heart...
I'm in a world apart...
A world where roses bloom.
And when you speak... angels sing from above,
Everyday words seem to turn into love songs.
Give your heart and soul to me,
And life will always be
La vie en rose.
Melissa Manchester's song, La Vie En Rose, is a beautiful tribute to the power of love. The opening verse is a reflection on how the singer previously believed love to be simply a word sung about in songs, but their perspective was changed by the arrival of their lover. The chorus is an ode to the transformative nature of love, where everything becomes rosy, magical, and infused with a sense of other-worldly happiness. The adorable French lyrics enhance the romanticism of the song and adds a certain level of sophistication.
The song is structured around the idea that love transforms the world around us. The first verse aptly sets the tone for this when it speaks of the singer's prior misconceptions about love. With the arrival of the lover, the singer realizes that love is a transformative force that awakens the world they believed to be mundane. The chorus and French lyrics add a level of romanticism to the song that captures the magic of love. The idea that the world becomes a more beautiful place when you're in love couldn't be better expressed than through the lyrics of La Vie En Rose.
Line by Line Meaning
I thought that love was just a word
I previously believed that 'love' was merely a term used in songs
They sang about in songs I heard.
I had heard the term 'love' being used in songs before
It took your kisses to reveal
Your kisses taught me
That I was wrong, and love is real.
To prove that my previous belief regarding love was incorrect and love actually exists in reality
Quand il me prend dans ses bras,
When he takes me in his arms,
Il me parle tout bas
He speaks to me softly
Je vois la vie en rose
I see life in pink
Il me dit des mots d'amour
He tells me words of love
das mots de tous les Jours,
Everyday words,
Et ca me fait quelques choses
They hold a special meaning for me
Il est entre dans mon coeur,
He entered my heart,
Une part de bonheur
A piece of happiness
Dont je connais la cause
Of which I know the cause
C'est lui pour
It is him for whom
Moi, moi pour lui dans la vie
I, also, for him in life
Il me L'a dit, L'a jure pour la vie,
He said it to me, swore it for life,
Et des que je L'apercois
And as soon as I see him,
Alors je sens en moi, mon coeur qui bat...
I feel my heart beating inside me...
Hold me close and hold me fast,
Embrace me and keep me tight,
The magic spell you cast
The enchantment you create
This is La vie en rose.
This is life in pink.
When you kiss me heaven sighs,
When you kiss me, the heavens sigh,
And though I close my eyes
And although I close my eyes
I see La vie en rose.
I still see life in pink.
When you press me to your heart...
When you hold me tightly to your heart...
I'm in a world apart...
I am transported to another world...
A world where roses bloom.
A world where roses always bloom.
And when you speak... angels sing from above,
And when you speak, angels sing from above,
Everyday words seem to turn into love songs.
Ordinary words sound like love songs.
Give your heart and soul to me,
Give me your heart and soul,
And life will always be
And life will always remain
La vie en rose.
Life in pink.
Lyrics © BEUSCHER ARPEGE, Peermusic Publishing
Written by: David Mack, Edith Piaf, Louis "Louiguy" Guglielmi
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Sophia Santos
La Vie En Rose
by: Melissa Manchester
I thought that love was just a word
They sang about in songs I heard.
It took your kisses to reveal
That I was wrong, and love is real.
Quand il me prend dans ses bras,
Il me parle tout bas
Je vois la vie en rose
Il me dit des mots d'amour
Das mots de tous les Jours,
Et ca me fait quelques choses
Il est entre dans mon coeur,
Une part de bonheur
Don't je connais la cause
See'est lui pour
Moi, moi pour lui dans la vie
Il me L'a dit, L'a jure pour la vie,
Et des que je L'apercois
Alors je sens en moi, mon coeur qui bat...
Hold me close and hold me fast,
The magic spell you cast
This is La vie en rose.
When you kiss me heaven sighs,
And though I close my eyes
I see La vie en rose.
When you press me to your heart...
I'm in a world apart...
A world where roses bloom.
And when you speak... angels sing from above,
Everyday words seem to turn into love songs.
Give your heart and soul to me,
And life will always be
La vie en rose.
J.C Kennedy
I've heard many versions of this song but Melissa takes it to another level, beautifully sung with such passion.
JIM RICK
SHE DOES EVERY SONG PERFECTLY...GREAT SINGER AND THANK GOD STILL WRITING AND PERFORMING....
TamEva Uch
My favorite performer of this song. She does this song perfectly
Roger Huff
Tamrae Uchrinscko in deed i also have it by edith piaff
Ed Nielsen
Totally agree! And, IMHO, the best male rendition was done by Yves Montand.
Patrick Stevenson
The years have passed and I still am transported to another place by her rendition of this song. Below you will see a post from an Army Special Forces Sergeant that loves this too. Yep, still here, 70 years old and I still am mesmerized by this video. I still love her and always will.
mr. warmth
76 HERE FRIEND PEACE
Patrick Stevenson
@mr. warmth lAmen
lola
Love Melissa Manchester's version the best... emotionally beautiful... thank you for sharing :)
Zack Parsons
To me this is perfection. She is brilliant.