At age 16, Distel became a professional jazz guitarist. Over his career he worked alongside Dizzy Gillespie and Tony Bennett and appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show in the late 1950s after establishing himself as a French crooner.
Sacha Distel had a much publicized relationship with actress Brigitte Bardot but in 1963 he married skier Francine Bréaud. He reputedly broke off the relationship with Bardot after discovering her with another man.
In the 1960s, he composed 'La Belle Vie', a tune that made its way across the Atlantic as 'The Good Life', and most famously performed by Tony Bennett. French lyrics were added in the 1970s and it became Distel's signature tune. During the 1960s, he had his own variety show on French television.
During the 1970s, he became popular outside France, and once hosted the Miss World contest in London. In this decade, he spent more time in the UK than in France. Considered a Gallic heart throb in Britain he was a regular on British TV
Distel remained reasonably popular in France in the 1980s and 1990s, including a new show named after his song 'La Belle Vie'.
In 2001, Distel had a part as lawyer Billy Flynn in the London production of the musical Chicago. He did have an ambition to make a musical about the life of Maurice Chevalier, but this remained unfulfilled at the time of his death.
Sacha Distel died on 22 July 2004 near St Tropez,after a long battle with cancer.
His name was used in Peter Sarstedt's song "Where Do You Go To My Lovely".
Et que ça dure
Sacha Distel Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Que ton cœur soit toujours près du mien
Et que le soleil
Brille toujours pareil
Et puis, et puis qu′ ça dure
Que le jour ne s' perde jamais la nuit
Que la nuit retrouve toujours son lit
Soient aussi les tiennes
Et puis, et puis qu′ ça dure
Que la rose éclose en un matin
Ait le temps de donner son parfum
Que les hivers
Soient aussi beaux que les printemps
Et comme hier
Que demain, en m' réveillant
Ton sourire me dise bonjour
Et puis qu' ça dure longtemps, oh oui
Et puis qu′ ça dure toujours
Et puis qu′ ça dure longtemps, oh oui
Et puis qu' ça dure toujours
Longtemps, longtemps
Comme nos vingt ans
Toujours
Comme notre amour
The song Et que ça dure by Sacha Distel is a romantic ballad that expresses the desire for a lasting and unbreakable love. The lyrics convey the wish to never let go of each other's hand, to keep their hearts close together, and for the sun to always shine in their lives. The singer also hopes that the day never loses its way into the night, that they can share their joys and sorrows equally, and that the rose can bloom and spread its fragrance before it withers away.
The singer wishes for the winters to be as beautiful as spring and for every day to be like the day before, with his lover's smile greeting him in the morning. The song expresses the desire for love to last a lifetime and for their love to never fade away.
Overall, the lyrics present a romantic and optimistic view of love, aspiring to build a lifelong connection with the person they love.
Line by Line Meaning
Que ta main ne quitte jamais ma main
May your hand never leave my hand
Que ton cœur soit toujours près du mien
May your heart always be close to mine
Et que le soleil
And may the sun
Brille toujours pareil
Always shine the same
Et puis, et puis qu′ ça dure
And then, and then, may it last
Que le jour ne s' perde jamais la nuit
May the day never get lost in the night
Que la nuit retrouve toujours son lit
May the night always find its bed
Que mes joies, mes peines
May my joys, my sorrows
Soient aussi les tiennes
Be yours as well
Et puis, et puis qu′ ça dure
And then, and then, may it last
Que la rose éclose en un matin
May the rose bloom in one morning
Ait le temps de donner son parfum
Have time to give its fragrance
Que les hivers
May the winters
Soient aussi beaux que les printemps
Be as beautiful as the springs
Et comme hier
And like yesterday
Que demain, en m' réveillant
May tomorrow, when I wake up
Ton sourire me dise bonjour
Your smile says hello to me
Et puis qu' ça dure longtemps, oh oui
And then may it last long, yes
Et puis qu′ ça dure toujours
And then may it last forever
Longtemps, longtemps
Long, long
Comme nos vingt ans
Like our twenties
Toujours
Always
Comme notre amour
Like our love
Writer(s): Eddie Barclay, Philippe Gerard, René Rouzaud
Contributed by Sophie C. Suggest a correction in the comments below.