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.
Loulou
Pierre Perret Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Je le sais Dugenou, je le sais Dugenou
D'autres que toi me l'ont dit maintes fois
Plus beaux et plus intelligents que toi
Comme disait ma douce maman
Qui trompait tous ses maris
Une heure à peine en sortant de la mairie
L'amour ça va un moment, l'amour ça va un moment
Des amants, Loulou, en as-tu, Loulou ?
J'en ai plein, Dugenou, qui s' pendent à mon cou
De beaux machos, cependant, rassure-toi !
Qui dans un lit sont aussi nuls que toi
Comme disait ma douce maman
Qui réchauffa ses maris
Et une kyrielle d'abrutis dans son lit
L'amour ça va un moment, l'amour ça va un moment
Et mes sous, Loulou, et mes sous Loulou
Les veux-tu, Loulou ? Mais bien sûr, grand fou
Pourquoi crois-tu que je suis encore là
Depuis vingt ans que je m'emmerde avec toi ?
Comme disait ma douce maman
Qui pluma quelques maris
S'il faut être pauvre et fidèle en même temps
L'amour ça va un moment, l'amour ça va un moment
J'en mourrai, Loulou ! Si tu meurs Dugenou
Je suivrai la leçon d'un auteur fécond
Je s'rai première à mouiller mon mouchoir
Fermer tes yeux et vider tes tiroirs
Comme disait ma douce maman
Qui pouvait citer Shakespeare
L'amour c'est que d' la vapeur de soupir
L'amour ça va un moment, l'amour ça va un moment
L'amour ça va un moment
The lyrics to Pierre Perret's song "Loulou" follow a conversation between two characters, Loulou and Dugenou. Loulou is a beautiful woman who admits to having many lovers, including Dugenou. However, she also admits that none of them satisfy her and that she is only with Dugenou for his money. Loulou seems to scoff at the idea of love lasting forever, as her mother had multiple marriages and affairs. Loulou's mother taught her that love only lasts for a time and ultimately fades away.
The lyrics highlight the themes of love, seduction, and deceit. Loulou seduces men for their money and enjoys the attention that comes with having multiple lovers, but she is also cynical about the idea of love and fidelity. She is willing to be with someone who she finds unattractive and unintelligent as long as they provide her with financial stability. Loulou's mother serves as a role model for her, and her quotes about love reflect her own beliefs. The repeated refrain, "L'amour ça va un moment" ("Love only lasts for a time"), emphasizes the fleeting nature of relationships and the transience of love.
Overall, "Loulou" is a satirical and cynical take on love and relationships. It portrays Loulou as a seductress who values money more than anything else, and it suggests that love is only temporary and ultimately fades away.
Line by Line Meaning
Que tu es belle Loulou, que tu es belle Loulou
Dugenou compliments Loulou on her beauty, which she already knows.
Je le sais Dugenou, je le sais Dugenou
Loulou acknowledges Dugenou's remark about her beauty.
D'autres que toi me l'ont dit maintes fois
Plus beaux et plus intelligents que toi
Loulou has been told by others that she is beautiful, but they were also more attractive and smarter than Dugenou.
Comme disait ma douce maman
Qui trompait tous ses maris
Une heure à peine en sortant de la mairie
L'amour ça va un moment, l'amour ça va un moment
Loulou's mother used to say that love only lasts for a moment, citing her own actions of cheating on her husbands after getting married.
Des amants, Loulou, en as-tu, Loulou ?
J'en ai plein, Dugenou, qui s' pendent à mon cou
De beaux machos, cependant, rassure-toi !
Qui dans un lit sont aussi nuls que toi
Dugenou asks if Loulou has any lovers, to which she confirms and claims to have many. However, they are all just as bad in bed as Dugenou.
Comme disait ma douce maman
Qui réchauffa ses maris
Et une kyrielle d'abrutis dans son lit
L'amour ça va un moment, l'amour ça va un moment
Loulou's mother also used to say that love only lasts for a moment, and she had many lovers, including some idiots, in her bed.
Et mes sous, Loulou, et mes sous Loulou
Les veux-tu, Loulou? Mais bien sûr, grand fou
Pourquoi crois-tu que je suis encore là
Depuis vingt ans que je m'emmerde avec toi ?
Dugenou asks if Loulou wants his money, to which she sarcastically responds with yes. She questions why he thinks she's still with him despite being bored for the last 20 years.
Comme disait ma douce maman
Qui pluma quelques maris
S'il faut être pauvre et fidèle en même temps
L'amour ça va un moment, l'amour ça va un moment
Loulou's mother used to say that love only lasts for a moment and it's hard to stay faithful when poor, as she used to take money from her husbands.
J'en mourrai, Loulou ! Si tu meurs Dugenou
Je suivrai la leçon d'un auteur fécond
Je s'rai première à mouiller mon mouchoir
Fermer tes yeux et vider tes tiroirs
Dugenou claims he'll die if Loulou dies, to which she responds with a sarcastic remark about following a famous author's lesson and being the first to cry at his funeral, then taking all his belongings.
Comme disait ma douce maman
Qui pouvait citer Shakespeare
L'amour c'est que d' la vapeur de soupir
L'amour ça va un moment, l'amour ça va un moment
L'amour ça va un moment
Loulou's mother, who was knowledgeable in Shakespeare, believed love was only momentary and compared it to a sighing vapor.
Contributed by London S. Suggest a correction in the comments below.