In… Read Full Bio ↴Thomas Fersen is a French singer-composer born in 1963 in Paris.
In his youth, he joined a punk band, before playing the piano in cafés-théatre. His first album in 1993 brought him an immediate success.
Fersen is a poet, who enjoys playing with language -he writes his lyrics exclusively in french-, using words, rhymes, symbols and images of vegetal or animal world. He tells strange and funny stories, impressions and dreams of casual life. His smoker's deep voice gives a particular tone to his songs. His musical style varies from one album to another (rock, folk, jazz and blues..).
He is one of the first who joined the Tot Ou tard/WM France label.
La baston
Thomas Fersen Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Elle prend du plomb dans sa cervelle
Comme les autres volatiles
Elle se fait empailler en ville
Elle cherche la baston
Encore la baston
Toujours la baston
Planquez-vous,
Les coups pleuvent de partout !
Trois cent lignes pour demain
Dix coups de règle sur les mains,
On va lui couper les ailes
Elle sera comme les autres, pareille.
Elle cherche la baston
Encore la baston
Toujours la baston
Dès qu'ils peuvent
Planquez-vous,
Les coups pleuvent de partout !
On va lui couper sa langue !
On va lui briser son cou !
On va lui clouer son bec !
Au piquet et les mains sur la tête !
Elle cherche la baston
Encore la baston
Toujours la baston
Dès qu'ils peuvent
Planquez-vous,
Les coups pleuvent de partout !
The lyrics of Thomas Fersen's song "La baston" talk about a small bird that is constantly getting into fights with other birds. The first two lines of the song describe the bird being "collée" (glued or stuck) and "prend du plomb dans sa cervelle" (taking lead in her brain), which refers to the bird being stuffed or mounted for display like other birds in the city. The bird's violent behavior is emphasized through the repetition of the line "Elle cherche la baston" (she's looking for a fight), and the warning to "Planquez-vous, les coups pleuvent de partout!" (Watch out, blows are coming from all directions!) suggests that the bird's fighting is intense and may even include other creatures.
In the final stanza of the song, there is a shift in tone as the lyrics describe how authorities and society attempt to punish and control the bird's behavior. The lines "On va lui couper sa langue ! On va lui briser son cou ! On va lui clouer son bec ! Au piquet et les mains sur la tête !" (We'll cut off her tongue! We'll break her neck! We'll nail her beak! At the stake and hands on the head!) show how extreme the measures are in trying to stop the bird's aggressive tendencies. The song ultimately speaks to the idea of conformity and the pressure to conform to societal norms, even if it means suppressing one's natural instincts and behaviors.
Line by Line Meaning
Elle est collée la p'tite hirondelle
The little swallow is stuck
Elle prend du plomb dans sa cervelle
She's got lead in her head
Comme les autres volatiles
Like the other birds
Elle se fait empailler en ville
She's being stuffed in the city
Elle cherche la baston
She's looking for a fight
Encore la baston
Always a fight
Toujours la baston
Forever fighting
Dès qu'ils peuvent
Whenever they can
Planquez-vous,
Hide,
Les coups pleuvent de partout !
Blows are raining from everywhere!
Trois cent lignes pour demain
Three hundred lines for tomorrow
Dix coups de règle sur les mains,
Ten hits with the ruler on the hands,
On va lui couper les ailes
We're going to clip her wings
Elle sera comme les autres, pareille.
She'll be like the others, the same.
On va lui couper sa langue !
We're going to cut her tongue!
On va lui briser son cou !
We're going to break her neck!
On va lui clouer son bec !
We're going to nail her beak shut!
Au piquet et les mains sur la tête !
At the post with hands on head!
Contributed by Colton I. Suggest a correction in the comments below.