After acting school he was discovered by Jean Cocteau and appeared in a wartime production of Les parents terribles ("The Terrible Parents"). His first feature film came in 1946 with his role in Les portes de la nuit ("The Doors of the Night"). He later went on to perform in 80 films including The Pianist (1998).
In 1965 he began a second career as a singer, with the help of Simone Signoret and her husband Yves Montand. Reggiani became one of the most acclaimed performers of French "Chanson" ("song") and although he was in his 40s, his bad-boy image made him popular with both young and older listeners. His best known songs include "Les loups sont entres dans Paris" ("The Wolves Have Entered Paris") and "La femme qui est dans mon lit." ("The Woman Who Is In My Bed").
In later life he became a painter and gave a number of exhibitions of his artwork.
Serge Reggiani died of a heart attack at the age of 82, one day after the death of another well known French singer Sacha Distel. He is interred in the Cimetière du Montparnasse.
Raymond joue-moi du jazz
Serge Reggiani Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Trois mômes sur le tapin
Mon bar: Le petit joint
En Suisse un peu de bien
Tranquille
En cas de conjoncture
On f'sait de faux billets
Nos femmes et nos voitures
Le style
Et puis un p'tit hold-up
Une banque dans une ZUP
Sans vouloir faire des maths
Cinq cent petites patates anciennes
Ma bagnole tombe en panne
Je prends vingt ans d'cabane
Moins deux pour bonne conduite
Ca fait quand meme dix-huit
A Fresnes
Raymond, joue-moi du jazz
C'est bon entre deux phrases
Vas-y
Jazzy
Le petit joint
J'ai failli pas trouver
Dis, maintenant
Ca s'appelle «white and blue»
Incompréhensible
Et toi, la môme en jean
Sers-moi un autre Gin!
Merci, Josy
Vous auriez connu Raymond!
Monsieur Raymond, élégant
Des bagues à tous les doigts
Des vraies, des fausses.
Il jouait pas, il rayait le piano
Dis, un séducteur, des cheveux... ailes de corbeau
Plaqués sur les tempes
Un jour, c'est sa femme qui l'a plaqué
Maintenant, il veut plus parler, mais
Entendez-le jouer...
Enfin, je sors intact
Et j'arrive comme une fleur
Au restau de Mado
Pour rel'ver mes compteurs
Tu vois.
Je contacte avec tact
Une belle femme, haut de gamme
Mais avant que j'fasse gaffe
Elle me retourne une baffe
A moi!
Mado, c'est un MacDo
Les frangines sont speakerines
Putain, j'ai plus la main
Je reconnais plus rien
J'me mine
J'fais des visites, j'hésite
On me conseille Marseille
Mais y a des aléas
J'aimerais mieux aller à
L'usine
(Je plaisante)
Raymond joue-moi du jazz
C'est bon entre deux phrases
Vas-y
Jazzy
(La banque dans la ZUP,
c'est devenu un musée d'art moderne
Un scandale! )
Et toi la môme en jean
Sers-moi encore un gin!
Mais si, merci
Maintenant il répond plus mais...
Quand il avait des bagues à tous les doigts
Il avait des blagues à tous les mots.
Des blagues et sa femme lui disait:
«Tu m'achètes jamais rien!». Il répondait:
«Et qu'est-ce que tu as à vendre? Hein?»
Raymond? Il répond plus
Il est comme le passé. Il est cassé.
Je m'en fous.
Paris: je mets une croix.
Marseille: idem
Je vais essayer Ajaccio.
La Corse, j'ai ouï-dire que c'était tranquille.
Tranquille, tranquille, la Corse.
The lyrics to Serge Reggiani's "Raymond joue-moi du jazz" paint a vivid picture of a life filled with crime, friendship, and nostalgia. The song describes a group of friends living on the edge, struggling to make ends meet with their illicit activities. Despite the risks and consequences of their actions, they find moments of solace and joy in music, specifically jazz, which serves as a form of escape and connection in their turbulent lives.
The singer recounts Raymond's past experiences, detailing a life of deception and daring heists, culminating in a lengthy prison sentence. Raymond's charm and elegance are described through his stylish appearance, skillful piano playing, and witty banter. However, the song also hints at the loneliness and regrets that accompany a life of crime, as Raymond's relationships deteriorate and he becomes a shadow of his former self.
The mention of Raymond's failed marriage and his diminished communication skills suggest a sense of loss and isolation, as he retreats into music as a form of expression. The lyrics juxtapose moments of nostalgia and longing for the past with the harsh realities of the present, as the singer navigates a world that has changed beyond recognition.
As the song progresses, Raymond's absence becomes more pronounced, signaling a finality to his story and the singer's acceptance of the past. The journey from Paris to Marseille to eventually setting sights on Ajaccio in Corsica reflects a sense of seeking peace and tranquility amidst the chaos of life. The repeated refrain of "Raymond joue-moi du jazz" serves as a reminder of the enduring power of music to soothe the soul and provide a semblance of comfort in troubled times.
Line by Line Meaning
On vivait de presque rien
We lived off almost nothing
Trois mômes sur le tapin
Three kids on the street
Mon bar: Le petit joint
My bar: The small joint
En Suisse un peu de bien
Some wealth in Switzerland
Tranquille
Calm
En cas de conjoncture
In case of economic downturn
On f'sait de faux billets
We made fake money
Nos femmes et nos voitures
Our women and our cars
Etaient bien maquillées:
Were well dressed up
Le style
The style
Et puis un p'tit hold-up
And then a little heist
Une banque dans une ZUP
A bank in a housing project
Sans vouloir faire des maths
Without wanting to do the math
Cinq cent petites patates anciennes
Five hundred old potatoes
Ma bagnole tombe en panne
My car breaks down
Je prends vingt ans d'cabane
I get twenty years in the slammer
Moins deux pour bonne conduite
Minus two for good behavior
Ca fait quand meme dix-huit
That still makes eighteen
A Fresnes
In Fresnes prison
Raymond, joue-moi du jazz
Raymond, play me some jazz
C'est bon entre deux phrases
It's good between two sentences
Vas-y
Go ahead
Jazzy
Jazzy
Le petit joint
The small joint
J'ai failli pas trouver
I almost didn't find
Dis, maintenant
Tell me, now
Ca s'appelle «white and blue»
That's called 'white and blue'
Incompréhensible
Incomprehensible
Et toi, la môme en jean
And you, the girl in jeans
Sers-moi un autre Gin!
Serve me another gin
Merci, Josy
Thank you, Josy
Vous auriez connu Raymond!
You would have known Raymond!
Monsieur Raymond, élégant
Mister Raymond, elegant
Des bagues à tous les doigts
Rings on every finger
Des vraies, des fausses.
Some real, some fake
Il jouait pas, il rayait le piano
He didn't play, he scratched the piano
Dis, un séducteur, des cheveux... ailes de corbeau
Tell me, a seducer, hair... crow's wings
Plaqués sur les tempes
Plastered against the temples
Un jour, c'est sa femme qui l'a plaqué
One day, it's his wife who left him
Maintenant, il veut plus parler, mais
Now, he doesn't want to talk anymore, but
Entendez-le jouer...
Hear him play...
Enfin, je sors intact
Finally, I come out unscathed
Et j'arrive comme une fleur
And I arrive as if nothing happened
Au restau de Mado
At Mado's restaurant
Pour rel'ver mes compteurs
To fix my meters
Tu vois.
You see.
Je contacte avec tact
I contact tactfully
Une belle femme, haut de gamme
A high-class beautiful woman
Mais avant que j'fasse gaffe
But before I knew it
Elle me retourne une baffe
She slaps me
A moi!
Me!
Mado, c'est un MacDo
Mado's is a MacDo
Les frangines sont speakerines
The sisters are announcers
Putain, j'ai plus la main
Damn, I don't have the touch anymore
Je reconnais plus rien
I don't recognize anything anymore
J'me mine
I'm getting down
J'fais des visites, j'hésite
I visit, I hesitate
On me conseille Marseille
They recommend Marseille to me
Mais y a des aléas
But there are risks
J'aimerais mieux aller à
I'd rather go to
L'usine
The factory
Raymond joue-moi du jazz
Raymond, play me some jazz
C'est bon entre deux phrases
It's good between two sentences
Vas-y
Go ahead
Jazzy
Jazzy
La banque dans la ZUP,
The bank in the housing project,
c'est devenu un musée d'art moderne
has become a modern art museum
Un scandale!
A scandal!
Et toi la môme en jean
And you, the girl in jeans
Sers-moi encore un gin!
Serve me another gin!
Mais si, merci
Yes, thank you
Maintenant il répond plus mais...
Now he doesn't respond anymore but...
Quand il avait des bagues à tous les doigts
When he had rings on every finger
Il avait des blagues à tous les mots.
He had jokes for every word.
Des blagues et sa femme lui disait:
Jokes and his wife would say to him:
«Tu m'achètes jamais rien!». Il répondait:
'You never buy me anything!'. He would respond:
«Et qu'est-ce que tu as à vendre? Hein?»
'And what do you have to sell? Huh?'
Raymond? Il répond plus
Raymond? He doesn't respond anymore
Il est comme le passé. Il est cassé.
He is like the past. He is broken.
Je m'en fous.
I don't care.
Paris: je mets une croix.
Paris: I cross it off.
Marseille: idem
Marseille: the same
Je vais essayer Ajaccio.
I'll try Ajaccio.
La Corse, j'ai ouï-dire que c'était tranquille.
I heard that Corsica was calm.
Tranquille, tranquille, la Corse.
Calm, calm, Corsica.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: Dabadie Jean-loup, Bernard Raymond
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind