Jacques Prevert was something of a phenomenon. A bestselling poet!!! He infused everyday experience and language with a poetic spirit. An astonishingly original perception with a deceptively child like quality- that’s what his poems are.
He put the coffee
In the cup
He put the milk
In the cup of coffee
He put the sugar
In the milky coffee
With the little spoon
He stirred
He drank the milky coffee
And he put down the cup
Without a word to me
He lit
A cigarette
He made rings
With the smoke
He put the ash
In the ashtray
Without a word to me
Without a glance at me
He stood up
He put
His hat on his head
He put
His raincoat on
Because it was raining
And he left
In the rain
Without a word
Without a glance at me
And as for me
I clasped
My head in my hand
And I wept.
The original in French is a “phonetic dream”.
Talking of rain, my mind wanders to a poem by Arthur Rimbaud, which goes:“ Il pleure dans mon coeur…Il pleut doucement sur la ville.”[There is weeping in my heart…Its raining gently on the city.]
It’s a hot and humid afternoon. I sit naked in my room. Listening to Ustad Rashid Khan singing “Raag Malhar” and I realize that sometimes a voice can do what an air conditioner can’t. I switch off the fan.
Trivia: Jacques Prevert is also the man who gave us “ Les Feuilles Mortes”, the famous song of the 40’s. Composed by Joseph Kosma, its a perennial favorite with singers around the world. An English version of the song was sung by Nat King Cole called the “ Autumn Leaves”. The lyrics of the English version is quite mediocre compared to the French one by Prevert.
The falling leaves drift by the window
The autumn leaves of red and gold
I see your lips the summer kisses
The sun burned hand I used to hold
Since you went away the days grow long
And soon I’ll hear old winter’s song
But I miss you most of all my darling
When autumn leaves start to fall.
Compare this with the above lyric.
C'est une chanson qui nous ressemble,
Toi qui m'aimais, moi qui t'aimais.
Nous vivions tous les deux ensemble,
Toi qui m'aimais, moi qui t'aimais.
Mais la vie sépare ceux qui s'aiment,
Tout doucement sans faire de bruit.
Et la mer efface sur le sable,
Les pas des amants désunis.
(It's a song that resembles us.
You who loved me and I loved you
And we lived together,
You who loved me, I who loved you.
But life separates those who love,
Gently, without making a sound,
And the sea erases from the sand-
The footsteps of separated lovers.)
And this is merely the refrain. The whole song is a sheer delight to read.
Oh! je voudrais tant que tu te souviennes,
Des jours heureux où nous étions amis,
En ce temps-là, la vie était plus belle,
Et le soleil plus brûlant qu'aujourd'hui.
Les feuilles mortes se ramassent à la pelle,
Tu vois, je n'ai pas oublié.
Les feuilles mortes se ramassent à la pelle,
Les souvenirs et les regrets aussi.
Et le vent du Nord les emporte,
Dans la nuit froide de l'oubli.
Tu vois, je n'ai pas oublié
La chanson que tu me chantais...
(Oh! I really hope you remember
Those happy days when we were friends.
In those times life was more beautiful
And the sun brighter than today's.
The dead leaves gather on the rake.
You see, I have not forgotten...
The dead leaves gather on the rake,
As do the memories and the regrets,
And the north wind carries them
Into the oblivion of the cold night.
You see, I have not forgetten
The song that you used to sing to me.)
Refrain
C'est une chanson qui nous ressemble,
Toi qui m'aimais, moi qui t'aimais.
Nous vivions tous les deux ensemble,
Toi qui m'aimais, moi qui t'aimais.
Mais la vie sépare ceux qui s'aiment,
Tout doucement sans faire de bruit.
Et la mer efface sur le sable,
Les pas des amants désunis.
(It's a song that resembles us.
You, you loved me and I loved you
And we lived together,
You who loved me, I who loved you.
But life separates those who love,
Gently, without making a sound,
And the sea erases from the sand-
The footsteps of separated lovers.)
Les feuilles mortes se ramassent à la pelle,
Les souvenirs et les regrets aussi
Mais mon amour silencieux et fidèle
Sourit toujours et remercie la vie.
Je t'aimais tant, tu étais si jolie.
Comment veux-tu que je t'oublie ?
En ce temps-là, la vie était plus belle
Et le soleil plus brûlant qu'aujourd'hui.
Tu étais ma plus douce amie
Mais je n'ai que faire des regrets
Et la chanson que tu chantais,
Toujours, toujours je l'entendrai !
(The dead leaves gather on the rake
As do the memories and the regrets
But my love, quiet and loyal,
Always smiles and is grateful for life.
I loved you so much, you were so beautiful.
How can you expect me to forget you?
In those times, life was more beautiful
And the sun brighter than today's.
You were my kindest friend
But I only created regrets
And the song that you used to sing,
I hear it always, always...)
There is a great rendition of the song by Andrea Brocelli.
This tune[melody] has been plagiarized by a Hindi music composer called Sapan Chakrabarty[ an assistant to music director Rahul Dev Burman] for the film “Zameer”[1976] which starred Amitabh Bachchan and Saira Banu. Sahir Ludhianvi wrote the lyric.
“Tum bhi chalo hum bhi chalen
Chalti rahe zindagi
Na zameen manzil na aasmaan
Zindagi hai zindagi…..”
Sung by Kishore Kumar, it was quite a hit in the 70’s. Worth hearing!
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