Michel Sardou (born January 26, 1947) is a French singer.

He was bor… Read Full Bio ↴Michel Sardou (born January 26, 1947) is a French singer.

He was born in Paris, the son of Fernand Sardou and Jackie Rollin (Jackie Sardou). Contrary to what has been written at the beginning of his career, he is not the grandson of the dramatist Victorien Sardou.

He is known for songs dealing with various social and political issues, such as the rights of women in Islamic countries, clerical celibacy and colonialism. Another sometimes controversial theme found in some of his songs ("Les Ricains," for example) is respect and support for the culture and foreign policies of the United States. Another notable fact about his career is that he has focused his full attention on his homeland, ignoring the prospect of an international audience, although his 1981 single "Les lacs du Connemara" did manage to become a big international hit. A number of his hit songs were written in collaboration with Jacques Revaux, a few others (most notably "En chantant") with Italian singer Toto Cutugno.

Even in the 21st century, Michel Sardou remains immensely popular in France, selling out 18 consecutive dates at Palais Omnisports de Paris-Bercy in 2001, while his 2004 album "Du plaisir" went straight to the no. 1 spot on the French album charts.

He has been married three times, first to a French dancer, then to Babette (the mother of his children) and lastly to an lifelong friend who edits the French version of Vogue.

He is currently (2023) at the center of a controversy over a song he wrote fifty years ago: the lakes of Connemara. Juliette Armanet, a French pop starlet answering a question about a song that would made her leave a party and it was LES LACS DU CONNEMARA. Sardou, an idol of the French right, in spite of himself, is stuck between the left which finds him corny and the right which does not support that one attacks its institutions. Music is a strong force and nobody fights harder than those who LOVE certain songs. Amazingly this song has nothing to do with politics.

Carcassonne
Michel Sardou Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Ceux qui sont de ma famille
Ne sont pas tous du même sang
De sa Pologne aux Antilles
Mon père a fait pas mal d'enfants
Ceux qui sont de ma famille
Ne sont pas nés sous le même toit
Mes frères et soeurs s'éparpillent
D'israéliennes en québécois

Deux cousines à Saïgon
Quatre filles deux garçons
Un pianiste à Rochester
Et la moitié d'un frère

A thousand years around the earth
A thousand sisters and brothers

Les couleurs de ma famille
Ne sont pas toutes du même blanc
D'Amazonie à Manille
Et du Behring à Magellan...

Ceux qui sont de ma famille
Ne croient jamais en un seul Dieu
Pourtant nous finirons argile
Au rendez-vous des bienheureux

Deux cousines à Saïgon
Quatre filles deux garçons
Un pianiste à Rochester
Et la moitié d'un frère...

Mais si j'avais pu choisir l'endroit
De ma naissance de ma vie d'homme
J'aurais sûrement aimé qu'il soit
Sous les remparts de Carcassonne

J'ai le sang violent de leurs femmes
J'ai dans l'Hérault la Tramontane

Overall Meaning

In this song, Michel Sardou reflects on the diversity and complexity of his family. He sings about how his family members come from different parts of the world and have different ethnicities and beliefs. Despite these differences, they are all connected by blood. He mentions how his father has had many children from his travels, and his siblings are spread out all over the world.

The chorus emphasizes the vastness of his family, with "a thousand sisters and brothers" scattered around the earth. Sardou sings about the different colors of his family, and how they are not all white. His family has roots in many different parts of the world, from the Amazon to Manilla, and from the Behring to Magellan.

The song ends with Sardou expressing his pride in his heritage. He talks about how he has the "violent blood of their women," and how he feels connected to his family roots in Carcassonne, a medieval city in France. This song celebrates the diversity of family and emphasizes the importance of heritage and connection, even among those who are separated by distance and differences.

Line by Line Meaning

Ceux qui sont de ma famille
The people who belong to my family

Ne sont pas tous du même sang
Are not all related by blood

De sa Pologne aux Antilles
From Poland to the Antilles

Mon père a fait pas mal d'enfants
My father had quite a few children

Ne sont pas nés sous le même toit
Were not born under the same roof

Mes frères et soeurs s'éparpillent
My brothers and sisters are scattered

D'israéliennes en québécois
From Israelis to Quebecers

Deux cousines à Saïgon
Two cousins in Saigon

Quatre filles deux garçons
Four girls, two boys

Un pianiste à Rochester
A pianist in Rochester

Et la moitié d'un frère
And half a brother