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.
Je N'Suis Pas Mort Je Dors
Michel Sardou Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Je n'suis pas mort
Je dors.
Et n'encombrez pas ma mémoire
De vos regrets de vos histoires
Je dors.
Mais j'n'ai pas fini d'en finir
Je dors, je dors.
Gardez vos larmes et vos cris,
Que l'on m'ait aimé ou haï
Je dors.
Si par hasard, sait-on jamais,
J'avais un ami qui m'aimait,
Tant pis.
Qu'il m'oublie
Je dors.
Maître des ombres et des lumières,
Combien dure une éternité?
Combien de fois faudra-t-il faire
La même route pour arriver?
Combien de lunes à disparaître?
Combien d'hommes encore à renaître?
En attendant, je dors.
Je n'veux pas qu'on m'ensevelisse.
Je n'veux pas être piétiné.
Je dors.
J'aim'rais qu'un océan rugisse
Tous ses chevaux sur des rochers.
Je dors, je dors.
Et ne couvrez pas ma mémoire
De chrysanthèmes, de femmes en noir
Je dors.
Si quelque part, sait-on jamais,
J'avais un ami qui m'aimait,
Tant pis.
Qu'il m'oublie.
Je dors, je dors, je dors.
Michel Sardou's song "Je Ne Suis Pas Mort Je Dors" can be translated to "I'm Not Dead I'm Sleeping". The song expresses that the singer is not dead but merely sleeping and asks not to be buried or mourned too soon. He asks for memories instead of tears and for an ocean to roar over his resting place instead of flowers.
The lyrics suggest that the singer is at peace with the idea of death and asks for his memories to live on instead of mourning. He looks beyond time and space by mentioning the eternal cycle of life and death, questioning how many times one has to go through this cycle to reach an ultimate end. The song’s lyrics also express hope that he had at least one friend who loved him, but even if he didn't, he is still happy with his life and is ready to rest peacefully.
Overall, the song by Michel Sardou is a meditation on death and life, encouraging the listener to embrace their mortality and live their lives to the fullest before they return to the eternal sleep.
Line by Line Meaning
Ne m'enterrez pas encore.
Don't bury me yet.
Je n'suis pas mort
I am not dead.
Je dors.
I am asleep.
Et n'encombrez pas ma mémoire
And do not clutter my memory.
De vos regrets de vos histoires
With your regrets and your stories.
Rangez-moi dans vos souvenirs
Put me away in your memories.
Mais j'n'ai pas fini d'en finir
But I am not finished yet.
Je dors, je dors.
I am sleeping, sleeping.
Gardez vos larmes et vos cris,
Keep your tears and your cries,
Que l'on m'ait aimé ou haï
Whether I was loved or hated.
Je dors.
I am sleeping.
Si par hasard, sait-on jamais,
If by chance, who knows,
J'avais un ami qui m'aimait,
I had a friend who loved me,
Tant pis.
Too bad.
Qu'il m'oublie
Let him forget me
Je dors.
I am sleeping.
Maître des ombres et des lumières,
Master of shadows and lights,
Combien dure une éternité?
How long does eternity last?
Combien de fois faudra-t-il faire
How many times must we do
La même route pour arriver?
The same road to arrive?
Combien de lunes à disparaître?
How many moons to disappear?
Combien d'hommes encore à renaître?
How many more men to be born again?
En attendant, je dors.
In the meantime, I am sleeping.
Je n'veux pas qu'on m'ensevelisse.
I do not want to be buried.
Je n'veux pas être piétiné.
I do not want to be trampled on.
Je dors.
I am sleeping.
J'aim'rais qu'un océan rugisse
I would like an ocean to roar
Tous ses chevaux sur des rochers.
All its horses on rocks.
Je dors, je dors.
I am sleeping, sleeping.
Et ne couvrez pas ma mémoire
And do not cover my memory
De chrysanthèmes, de femmes en noir
With chrysanthemums, women in black.
Je dors.
I am sleeping.
Si quelque part, sait-on jamais,
If somewhere, who knows,
J'avais un ami qui m'aimait,
I had a friend who loved me,
Tant pis.
Too bad.
Qu'il m'oublie.
Let him forget me.
Je dors, je dors, je dors.
I am sleeping, sleeping, sleeping.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: JACQUES ABEL JULES REVAUD, MICHEL CHARLES SARDOU, PIERRE JEAN MAURICE BILLON
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind