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.
Le Verre Vide
Michel Sardou Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Le bruit d'un ascenseur
La bizarre rumeur
Et le monde commence
En prélude à la danse
Un visage lumière
Le sang qui accélère
Dans un silence énorme
Gestes incohérents
Quelques rires en passant
Et pour combler le vide
Un verre que l'on vide
Et pour combler le vide
Un verre que l'on vide
Un frisson dans la nuit
Un vertige une envie
Une flambée de chaleur
Une étrange douleur
Le corps qui se délivre
De son désir de vivre
Et soudain qui s'effondre
Et bascule dans l'ombre
Deux ou trois mots informes
Dans un silence énorme
Gestes incohérents
Quelques rires en passant
Et pour combler le vide
Un verre que l'on vide
Et pour combler le vide
Un verre que l'on vide
Un océan qui roule
Des torrents et des foules
Un horizon penché
Un lit pour se coucher
Et la mer se retire
Emportant le navire
Nous laissant tout mouillés
Sur un sable argenté
Deux ou trois mots informes
Dans un silence énorme
Gestes incohérents
Quelques rires en passant
Et pour combler le vide
Un verre que l'on vide
Et pour combler le vide
Un verre que l'on vide
The lyrics to Michel Sardou's "Le Verre Vide" describe the sensation of emptiness and the efforts to fill it through various means. The opening lines describe the emptiness of time with the sound of an elevator, and the odd rumbling that comes with it. The world slowly comes to life in anticipation of a dance, but this is only the prelude. The blood quickens and the heart races as strange but indiscernible words are spoken and incoherent gestures are made. Despite this, there are those passing moments of laughter.
The second verse delves a bit deeper into the sensation of emptiness and the attempts to fill it. There is a shiver of excitement and a sudden desire that ignites a flame of passion. However, the body betrays its life force and succumbs to a strange pain, collapsing into darkness. There are again some indiscernible words, incoherent gestures, and a few brief moments of laughter.
Finally, the lyrics move towards a larger sense of emptiness, describing the rolling ocean, the crowds and the horizon, as well as a bed to lie upon. The sea surges and takes with it a ship, leaving everyone soaked on a silver sand. Again, there are unrecognizable words, incoherent gestures, and laughter, as the void is filled by the repeated emptying of a glass.
Line by Line Meaning
Dans le désert des heures
In the emptiness of time
Le bruit d'un ascenseur
The sound of an elevator
La bizarre rumeur
The strange rumor
Et le monde commence
And the world begins
En prélude à la danse
As a prelude to the dance
Un visage lumière
A face of light
Le sang qui accélère
The heart racing
Et quelques mots informes
And some indistinct words
Dans un silence énorme
In a huge silence
Gestes incohérents
Incoherent gestures
Quelques rires en passant
Some laughs in passing
Et pour combler le vide
And to fill the void
Un verre que l'on vide
A glass that we empty
Un frisson dans la nuit
A shiver in the night
Un vertige une envie
A dizziness, a desire
Une flambée de chaleur
A surge of heat
Une étrange douleur
A strange pain
Le corps qui se délivre
The body that frees itself
De son désir de vivre
From its desire to live
Et soudain qui s'effondre
And suddenly collapses
Et bascule dans l'ombre
And falls into the darkness
Deux ou trois mots informes
Two or three indistinct words
Dans un silence énorme
In a huge silence
Gestes incohérents
Incoherent gestures
Quelques rires en passant
Some laughs in passing
Un océan qui roule
An ocean that rolls
Des torrents et des foules
Torrents and crowds
Un horizon penché
A leaning horizon
Un lit pour se coucher
A bed to lie down
Et la mer se retire
And the sea withdraws
Emportant le navire
Taking the ship away
Nous laissant tout mouillés
Leaving us soaked
Sur un sable argenté
On a silver sand
Et pour combler le vide
And to fill the void
Un verre que l'on vide
A glass that we empty
Et pour combler le vide
And to fill the void
Un verre que l'on vide
A glass that we empty
Contributed by Parker B. Suggest a correction in the comments below.