Paris in July #1: Allo Paris

Bonjour, mes amis! As you may or may not know, this month I'll be participating in Paris in July. I'm behind on my reading (already), but I also promised to post some French music. Today, I'm posting my absolute favorite song in French: "Allo Paris" by the now-deceased Mano Solo. Below, you'll find the music video, the lyrics in French, and an English translation done by yours truly.



Les Paroles en Français

Allo Paris, il est si tard
Le doigts collés au combiné
Je relance encore avec l'espoir de te parler
J'ai beau savoir que ça me fout le cafard
Je peux pas m'empêcher, m'empêcher d'y croire
La nuit sonne ses derniers coups
J'irai jusqu'au bout

J'aurais voulu quelque chose de bien
J'aurais voulu que tu me dises viens

Et là debout sur le trottoir comme chaque soir
Je te raconte l'histoire
Des larmes de rue dans les bars qui puent,
Les regards moisis et les corps meurtris
Allo Paris, tout est fini et putain je suis fatigué

J'aurais voulu quelque chose de bien
J'aurais voulu que tu me dises viens

Allo Paris, tout est fini
Tu m'as tout pris même l'envie
Tu ne te souviens plus de rien
Tu oublies un peu plus chaque matin
Et ta mémoire coule le long des trottoirs
En noyant mon désir dérisoire

J'aurais voulu quelque chose de bien
J'aurais voulu que tu me dises viens

Allo Paris, tout et fini, tout est foutu
J'aurais voulu, j'aurais voulu

J'aurais voulu quelque chose de bien
J'aurais voulu que tu me dises viens

The Lyrics in English

Hello Paris, it's so late
The fingers cling to the phone
I relapse again with the hope of talking to you
I know very well that that makes me depressed
I can't stop myself, stop myself from believing
The night rings your final blows
I will go until the end

I would've wanted something good
I would've wanted you to tell me to come

And standing there on the pavement like every night
I tell the story to you
Of tears in the street in the bars that stink
The moldy looks and the bruised corpses
Hello Paris, everything's finished and fuck I'm tired

I would've wanted something good
I would've wanted you to tell me to come

Hello Paris, everything's finished
You took my desire from me all the same
You don't remember anything else
You forget a little more each morning
And your memory flows the length of the sidewalk
Drowning my derisory desire

I would've wanted something good
I would've wanted you to tell me to come

Hello Paris, everything's finished, everything's fucked up
I would've wanted, I would've wanted

I would've wanted something good
I would've wanted you to tell me to come
____________

Personally, I think the lyrics are much better in French than in English.

-Gabe