He spent a long part of his childhood in the café which his parents owned, where he learned work jargon and slang. At the age of 14 he signed up to the conservatoire de musique de Toulouse and to a dramatic arts institute. In the mean time, he set up his first band of 4 musicians in his own name, with whom he played at events throughout the region. In 1957, he was snapped up by Eddie Barclay who signed him on. It was in the studio of Barclay where he met his future wife, Simone Mazaltarim.
In 1958 Perret carried on touring round Parisian cabaret bars and crossed France and Africa as a part of the American group, The Platters. In Novemeber that year, a pleurisy forced him to take two years off in a sanatorium.
A master of the subtleties of the French language and French slang (he even rewrote some of Jean de La Fontaine's fables), his songs are often cheeky (for example Le zizi (The willy)) , asking questions in a seemingly naive child's tone, but has written more serious political songs, such as La bête est revenue, La petite kurde, Vert de Colère ou Lily.
Ça va bien ça va mal
Pierre Perret Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Je pars avec mon chien
On va faire des conquêtes
Il a la queue en trompette
Quand ça va mal
Mon fidèle animal
A la queue entre les jambes
Et c'est normal
Ce cabot intelligent c'est ma passion
Songez que pour un chien il a fait des trucs coton
Au carrefour sa queue devient pour traverser
Rouge orange et verte on peut passer
Quand ça va mal
Je prends du gardénal
Je revends ma bicyclette
Et le soir je la rachète
Quand ça va bien
Je bois cinq litres de vin
Et j'ai une belle crise de foie le lendemain
Aussitôt j'absorbe autant d'eau minérale
C'est à ce moment là que tout va vraiment mal
Je prends un cordial pour me remettre en train
Et c'est la jaunisse qui n'est pas loin
Quand ça va bien
Je donne à mon prochain
Quelques bons coups de pied où je pense
S'il est furieux je recommence
Quand ça va mal
Je vais me foutre au canal
Mon chien qui sait que je vais me rater prépare le thé
Trois sucres pour lui et seulement deux pour moi
On évite bien de prendre du thé chinois
Car d'après lui le poil perd tout son reflet
C'est pour ça qu'on boit du thé anglais
Quand ça va bien
Je pars avec mon chien
On va faire des conquêtes
Il a la queue en trompette
Quand ça va mal
Mon fidèle animal
A la queue entre les jambes
Et c'est normal
The lyrics to Pierre Perret's song "Ça va bien ça va mal" are a humorous reflection on how one's mood can affect their behavior and interactions with the world around them. The song follows a pattern where the singer describes particular actions they take when they are feeling good versus when they are feeling down. The singer references their relationship with their dog throughout the song, noting how their faithful companion's behavior changes along with theirs.
When the singer is feeling good, they take their dog out to "conquer" the world, and their pet's tail wags excitedly in agreement. However, when the singer is feeling low, their dog's tail hangs between their legs, reflecting their owner's current mood. The singer humorously notes that their dog is a clever animal who can do impressive "tricks" like changing the direction of their tail at a crosswalk to indicate whether it is safe to cross.
The singer's behavior also changes in response to their mood. When things are good, they drink excessively and give their fellow human beings a hard time (literally), while when things are bad, they consume medication and sell their belongings only to buy them back again that same night. The singer's behavior reaches a comedic crescendo when they contemplate jumping into a canal in despair but are dissuaded by their dog, who prepares tea for them to drink and warns them to avoid Chinese tea as it may result in their coat losing its shine.
Overall, the lyrics to Pierre Perret's "Ça va bien ça va mal" offer a humorous reflection on how our moods can impact our actions and interactions with the world around us. The use of the dog as a symbol of the singer's emotional state is clever and commonly relatable to dog owners.
Line by Line Meaning
Quand ça va bien
When everything is going well
Je pars avec mon chien
I go out with my dog
On va faire des conquêtes
We are going to conquer the world
Il a la queue en trompette
His tail is all fluffed up
Quand ça va mal
When things are going badly
Mon fidèle animal
My faithful pet
A la queue entre les jambes
His tail tucked between his legs
Et c'est normal
And that's normal
Ce cabot intelligent c'est ma passion
This smart dog is my passion
Songez que pour un chien il a fait des trucs coton
Just think, for a dog he's done some amazing things
Au carrefour sa queue devient pour traverser
At the crosswalk his tail becomes the signal to cross
Rouge orange et verte on peut passer
Red, orange, and green, we can cross
Je prends du gardénal
I take sleeping pills
Je revends ma bicyclette
I sell my bike
Et le soir je la rachète
And at night I buy it back
Je bois cinq litres de vin
I drink five liters of wine
Et j'ai une belle crise de foie le lendemain
And the next day I have an awful stomach ache
Aussitôt j'absorbe autant d'eau minérale
Immediately after, I drink as much mineral water as I can
C'est à ce moment là que tout va vraiment mal
That's when everything really goes wrong
Je prends un cordial pour me remettre en train
I take a tonic to get back on track
Et c'est la jaunisse qui n'est pas loin
And jaundice is not far behind
Je donne à mon prochain
I give to my neighbor
Quelques bons coups de pied où je pense
A few kicks where it hurts
S'il est furieux je recommence
If he's mad, I do it again
Je vais me foutre au canal
I go sit by the canal
Mon chien qui sait que je vais me rater prépare le thé
My dog, knowing that I'll miss the mark, prepares tea
Trois sucres pour lui et seulement deux pour moi
Three sugars for him and only two for me
On évite bien de prendre du thé chinois
We avoid drinking Chinese tea
Car d'après lui le poil perd tout son reflet
Because, according to him, Chinese tea dulls the coat
C'est pour ça qu'on boit du thé anglais
That's why we drink English tea
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
CHRISTELLE
Merci pour ce partage ;) :) ça fait très plaisir
veve
J'en découvre ... beaucoup...Merci Pierrot
Emilienne Agostini
Très drole bravo pierrot