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 Vieux Est De Retour
Michel Sardou Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Il est quatre heures du matin,
Et tu trouves ta fille
Dans son lit avec un copain.
Tu les entends se faire l'amour.
Ils ne savent pas que tu es là,
Ton pardessus autour du bras.
Comment pourrais-tu la comprendre,
Toi qui depuis plusieurs années
N'oses plus entrer dans sa chambre,
Ne l'a pas vue déshabillée ?
Tu restes là devant sa porte
Avec une idée dans la tête,
Une envie de tuer ce blanc-bec,
Ce chevelu qui te l'emporte.
Tu les entends se faire l'amour.
Ils ne savent pas que tu es là,
Ton pardessus autour du bras.
Ça y est : le vieux est de retour.
Elle a entendu les prophètes
Qu'on laisse parler librement
Et qui ont refait dans sa tête
Un monde avec des mots d'enfant.
Tu n'es qu'un pauvre militaire
Rigide et pur, un justicier
Fier d'avoir eu ta croix de guerre
En enterrant la croix gammée.
Tu les entends se faire l'amour.
Ils ne savent pas que tu es là,
Ton pardessus autour du bras.
Ça y est : le vieux est de retour.
The lyrics to Michel Sardou's song Le Vieux Est De Retour tell the story of a father who comes home at four in the morning to find his daughter in bed with a boy. He overhears them making love and is filled with rage and jealousy. The father realizes that he cannot understand his daughter's world, having been away for years, and feels powerless against the new generation. His military background and strict moral code clash with his daughter's liberal and carefree attitude towards sex, and he struggles to come to terms with the fact that his daughter is no longer a child, but a grown woman with her own desires and experiences.
The lyrics portray a generational gap between the father and daughter in terms of their attitudes towards sex and relationships. The father's worldview is shaped by his experiences as a soldier and his traditional upbringing, while his daughter is part of a generation that rejects traditional norms and seeks greater freedom and self-expression. The father's reaction to his daughter's sexual activity highlights this divide and underscores the challenges of communication and understanding between parents and children.
Le Vieux Est De Retour is a poignant and nuanced commentary on the changing social attitudes and values of the time. It captures the tension between tradition and modernity, authority and individualism, and the generational divide that has marked many societies throughout history.
Line by Line Meaning
Tu rentres chez toi,
You come home,
Il est quatre heures du matin,
It's four o'clock in the morning,
Et tu trouves ta fille
And you find your daughter
Dans son lit avec un copain.
In bed with a guy.
Tu les entends se faire l'amour.
You hear them making love.
Ils ne savent pas que tu es là,
They don't know you're there,
Ton pardessus autour du bras.
Your coat around your arm.
Ça y est : le vieux est de retour.
That's it: the old man is back.
Comment pourrais-tu la comprendre,
How could you understand her,
Toi qui depuis plusieurs années
You, who for several years
N'oses plus entrer dans sa chambre,
Haven't dared to enter her room anymore,
Ne l'a pas vue déshabillée ?
Haven't seen her undressed?
Tu restes là devant sa porte
You stand there in front of her door
Avec une idée dans la tête,
With an idea in your head,
Une envie de tuer ce blanc-bec,
A desire to kill this youngster,
Ce chevelu qui te l'emporte.
This long-haired guy who takes her away from you.
Elle a entendu les prophètes
She heard the prophets
Qu'on laisse parler librement
Who are allowed to speak freely
Et qui ont refait dans sa tête
And who remade in her head
Un monde avec des mots d'enfant.
A world with childish words.
Tu n'es qu'un pauvre militaire
You're just a poor soldier
Rigide et pur, un justicier
Strict and pure, a stickler for justice
Fier d'avoir eu ta croix de guerre
Proud of having earned your war cross
En enterrant la croix gammée.
By burying the swastika.
Tu les entends se faire l'amour.
You hear them making love.
Ils ne savent pas que tu es là,
They don't know you're there,
Ton pardessus autour du bras.
Your coat around your arm.
Ça y est : le vieux est de retour.
That's it: the old man is back.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: JACQUES ABEL JULES REVAUD, MICHEL CHARLES SARDOU
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind