Salvatore, Knight Adamo, simply known as Adamo (born 1 November 1943, in Co… Read Full Bio ↴Salvatore, Knight Adamo, simply known as Adamo (born 1 November 1943, in Comiso, Sicily, Italy) is a Belgian – Italian composer and singer of ballads, mainly in French, but also in other languages such as German, Italian and Spanish. He had commercial success during the 1960s and 1970s, mostly in Europe and Latin America, but also in Japan and the United States. Now he lives in Belgium. He is of Sicilian/Italian ancestry.

Adamo is one of the most commercially successful singers in Europe. Adamo has sold over 80 million copies of his albums worldwide. He is currently living in Belgium though he has lived in France with his family. His hits include "Tombe la Neige", "Vous permettez, Monsieur?" and "Inch'Allah", all from the sixties.

Adamo's early influences were the poetry of Victor Hugo, the music of French crooners such as Jacques Prévert or Georges Brassens, and the Italian canzonette. He started singing and composing his own songs from an early age. His debut was in a Radio Luxembourg competition, where he participated as singer and composer of the song "Si j'osais" ("If I dared") winning the competition's final held in Paris, in 14 February 1960.

Adamo's first hit was "Sans toi, ma mie", in 1963, from his debut album 63/64. He followed this with a series of hits, "Tombe la neige" ("The snow falls"), "Vous permettez, Monsieur?" ("May I, Sir"), "La Nuit" ("The Night") (1964), "Dolce Paola" ("Sweet Paola"), "Les Filles du bord de mer" ("The girls at the beach"), "Mes mains sur tes hanches" ("My hands on your hips") (1965), "Ton Nom" ("Your Name"), "Une meche de cheveux" ("Lock of golden hair") (1966), "Une larme aux nuages" ("A tear to the clouds"), "Inch'Allah" (1967), "L'amour te ressemble" ("Love resembles you"), "F... comme femme" ("F... like woman") (1968), "A demain sur la lune" ("See you tomorrow on the moon"), "Petit bonheur" ("Small happiness") (1969), "Va mon bateau" ("My boat goes"), "Les belles dames" ("Beautiful ladies") (1970), "J'avais oublié que les roses sont roses" ("I had forgotten that the roses are pink") (1971), "C'est ma vie" ("It's my life") (1975). Other notable songs included "Manuel", "Si Tu Etais", "Les Collines De Rabiah", "J'Te Lache Plus", "Mourir Dans Tes Bras", and "Ce George(s)".

The self-penned "Petit bonheur" sold over one million copies by April 1970, and was awarded a gold disc.

Amália Rodrigues recorded "Inch'Allah" in French. Adamo briefly attempted movie acting when he was cast in the film Les Arnaud (1967), which starred Bourvil.

He has recorded in many languages and, besides France and Belgium, had hits in Italy, the Netherlands, Germany, Spain, Portugal, Turkey and also in Japan, where he toured repeatedly. Adamo has had hits and toured also in Latin America. In Chile, the audience awarded him an appreciation prize known as the "Antorcha" (Gold and Silver Torch) at the "Festival de Viña del Mar" held yearly in the "Quinta Vergara", at the seaside resort of Viña del Mar, where he once had to sing in three different, sold-out venues in the same night.

In the 1980s, Adamo's career faltered, as the style of his music was no longer fashionable. Since the 1990s, however, and on the crest of a nostalgia wave, Adamo has successfully resumed composing, issuing records and touring, starting with a full season at the Casino de Paris venue in April 1990. Adamo has sold over 100 million copies of recordings worldwide.

Albums

* 1992 Rêveur de fond
* 1994 C’est ma vie (compilation Live)
* 1995 La vie comme elle passe
* 1998 Regards
* 2001 Par les temps qui courent
* 2002 Les mots de l’âme (compilation)
* 2003 Zanzibar
* 2004 Un soir au Zanzibar (CD/DVD compilation Live)
* 2007 La part de l'ange

Il Y a Juste Un an
Salvatore Adamo Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

J'espère,
J'ai mis mon complet vert
Celui que je portais quand je t'ai rencontrée
Il y a juste un an

J'attends,
J'ai mis un col bien blanc
Un col immaculé comme le fut notre amour

Il y a juste un an

Ce soir, ce soir
Je n'ai rien mis de noir
J'ai mis un peu de toi
Dans le coeur d'un bouquet
J'ai mis un feu de joie
Au coeur de mon amour pour toi
J'ai mis la nuit brune à tes yeux
Et la Seine à ton pas
Et Paris à ta voix

Tu vois,
Tu vois comme j'y crois
Qu'adviendra-t-il de moi
Si tu ne savais pas
Qu'il y a juste un an

Il pleut, mais mon ciel est tout de bleu
Tu me reconnaîtras,
Il pleut la même pluie
Qu'il y a juste un an

Bonsoir, bonsoir
C'est bon de te revoir
Je veux crier ma joie,
Danser à mes amours
Le souvenir de toi
Ne s'éteindra qu'au petit jour
Alors,
La nuit quittera tes yeux
Et la Seine t'emportera

Et Paris se taira
Car, tu ne viendras pas

Overall Meaning

In Salvatore Adamo’s Il Y A Juste Un An, the singer prepares for a meeting with a past lover who he has not seen in one year. He wears a green suit which he wore when he first met her, hoping that it will bring back memories of their love. He also wears a white collar, as immaculate as their love was a year ago. He reveals that he has placed a piece of her in his heart alongside a bouquet of flowers and a fire of joy, and that he has attributed the Seine River and the city of Paris to her.

He expresses his optimism and certainty in their meeting, saying that she will recognize him even when it is raining heavily, just like it was on the day they last met. As the rain subsides and he realizes that his lover is not coming, he expresses his disappointment that the memories of her will remain in his heart until daybreak.

The song describes a love that was once strong, but seems to have faded away over time. The singer's longing for his past love, expressed through his carefully chosen attire and his attempt to recreate the past through a bouquet of flowers and a fire of joy speaks volumes about the intensity of his feelings towards her. However, despite his hope and faith in their reunion, his lover does not show up, leaving him devastated and lost.

Line by Line Meaning

J'espère,
I hope,

J'ai mis mon complet vert
I put on my green suit

Celui que je portais quand je t'ai rencontrée
The one I wore when I met you

Il y a juste un an
Just one year ago

J'attends,
I'm waiting,

J'ai mis un col bien blanc
I put on a very white collar

Un col immaculé comme le fut notre amour
A clean collar like our love was

Il y a juste un an
Just one year ago

Ce soir, ce soir
Tonight, tonight

Je n'ai rien mis de noir
I didn't wear anything black

J'ai mis un peu de toi
I put a little bit of you