Richard Desjardins (born 16 March 1948, Rouyn-Noranda, Quebec, Canada) is a… Read Full Bio ↴Richard Desjardins (born 16 March 1948, Rouyn-Noranda, Quebec, Canada) is a quebecois folk singer and film director.

He and his friends formed the country rock ensemble Abbittibbi in the 1970s. Desjardins played piano, guitar, and sang. When the group disbanded in 1982, Desjardins pursued a solo career.

He also found work scoring films, especially documentaries. This involvement in the Quebec film industry even led him to co-direct a number of feature length documentaries. As well as his singing career, he is well known for his environmental activism.

Que sont devenus mes amis?
Richard Desjardins Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Que sont devenus mes amis ?

Réfugiés dans des femmes?
Oh! Que je les envie
Dans leurs nuits, une flamme.
Peut-être sont-ils mal pris ?

Des démons à leurs trousses

Ou en chaude compagnie
Pas mal cotée en bourse.
Peut-être sont-ils heureux ?

Sans même me le dire
Mais qu’est-ce qu’une soirée sans eux ?
Un petit feu froid et pire.
Que sont devenus mes amis ?

On aimait sans remise de peine
Les barmaids l’avaient prédit:
« Y s’ront pirates ou capitaines
Mais boiront pas à crédit. »

Peut-être avons-nous trop fait chier ?
Tous les jaloux d’la terre
Aux abords de notre amitié
La vie venait prendre l’air.

On chatouillait même les momies
Qui hurlaient : « Encore, encore! »
C’est ça que j’veux pour mes amis
Qu’y dansent même quand’sont morts.

Que sont devenus mes amis ?

Overall Meaning

The song "Que sont devenus mes amis?" by Richard Desjardins is a poignant reflection on the lives and whereabouts of the singer's friends. Throughout the song, Desjardins ponders whether his friends have found happiness, love, and success or have fallen victim to demons and bad choices. From the first line, "What have my friends become?" ("Que sont devenus mes amis?"), the singer establishes a mood of melancholy and loss, and this is reinforced by the mournful accordion melody that accompanies his voice.

The lyrics delve into various possibilities for what may have happened to Desjardins' friends. He suggests that they may have taken refuge in women, and "envies" them their warmth and passion, indicating perhaps that he feels lonely and deprived of these pleasures. He also suggests that they may be pursued by "demons," possibly a reference to addiction, depression, or other psychological problems, or that they may have fallen into the clutches of powerful and wealthy people who are manipulating or using them for their own ends.

Throughout the song, Desjardins expresses a yearning for his friends, and laments the loss of their company. He suggests that their absence leaves him cold and unmotivated ("A small, cold, and worse fire"), and that he cannot have a good time without them. Ultimately, his desire is for them to be happy, to dance even when they're dead, a metaphor for the enduring legacy of friendship.

Line by Line Meaning

Que sont devenus mes amis ?
What has happened to my friends?

Réfugiés dans des femmes?
Have they sought refuge in women?

Oh! Que je les envie
Oh! How envious I am of them

Dans leurs nuits, une flamme.
In their nights, a flame.

Peut-être sont-ils mal pris ?
Perhaps they are in trouble?

Des démons à leurs trousses
Demons on their heels

Ou en chaude compagnie
Or in hot company

Pas mal cotée en bourse.
Quite highly valued in the stock market.

Peut-être sont-ils heureux ?
Perhaps they are happy?

Sans même me le dire
Without even telling me

Mais qu’est-ce qu’une soirée sans eux ?
But what is an evening without them?