Nature Boy / L’existence
A melody of enchanting beauty, little text, and a message of disarming simplicity: a man has traveled very far, and as his only wisdom, he brings back these words: "The greatest thing you'll ever learn is just to love and be loved in return.”
I couldn’t find an elegant, poetic way in French that stayed close to the English text while respecting the melody; so I looked for an equivalent to the lesson of wisdom in the original song which would be just as beautiful, precious and unpretentious. I needed to find a few words that could say: “If there is only one thing that you must remember, that must guide you, it is this. » The life lesson in French has become an exhortation to « jour après jour, embrasser l’existence »/“day after day, embrace existence”, even if it seems like an uncertain drift, even though its meaning escapes us.
Nature Boy
Written by
Eden Ahbez
There was a boy / A very strange enchanted boy / They say he wandered very far / Very far / Over land and sea / A little shy and sad of eye / But very wise was he
And then one day / A magic day he passed my way / And while we spoke of many things / Fools and kings / This he said to me
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"The greatest thing you'll ever learn / Is just to love and be loved in return”
"The greatest thing you'll ever learn / Is just to love and be loved in return”
L’existence
French kiss by
François Godin
Rester gracieux / Envers et contre tout, gracieux / Se laisser dériver, léger / Passager / Prisonnier du temps / Embarquement involontaire / Débarcadère absent
Et faire au mieux / Toujours au mieux faute de mieux / Où vont les vagues, où va le vent / Poudroiement / Folle écume du temps
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Tout suit son cours, rien n’a de sens / Jour après jour, embrasser l’existence
Tout suit son cours, rien n’a de sens / Jour après jour, embrasser l’existence
Existence
Translation of the
French adaptation
Remain graceful / Against all odds, graceful / Let yourself drift, lightly / Passenger / Prisoner of time / Prisoner on a boat / No land in sight
And do your best / Always do your best for lack of anything better / Where do the waves go, where does the wind go / Shimmering dust / Crazy foam of time
Everything follows its course, nothing makes sense / Day after day, embrace existence
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Everything follows its course, nothing makes sense / Day after day, embrace existence
The voice/piano demos of the French versions were recorded for the strict purpose of presenting my adaptation work. No broadcasting or public sharing on social networks, media or any other platform is authorized.
Any recording or public presentation by third parties of the songs in their French version is subject to my authorization as well as that of the rights holders of the original song.
