Charles Trenet
Paie tes dettes lyrics with English translation
- Language
- French
- Level
- Intermediate
- Released
- 1956
- Genre
- French Pop, Tradicional
- Length
- 2:49
Il était couvert de dettes
He was buried in debts
De la tête aux pieds.
From head to toe.
Chez lui, venaient faire la quête
At his place, his creditors would come
Tous ses créanciers
All of them to collect
Et pour fuir ces personnages
And to escape these figures
Qui le torturaient, Un jour, sans faire de tapage
Who tortured him, one day, without a sound
Il partit pour la forêt.
He left for the forest.
Au pied d'un arbre, il s'endormit
At the foot of a tree, he fell asleep
Et, pendant qu'il rêvait, Un oiseau tout en haut de lui, Sur une branche, lui chantait:"Paye tes dettes, paye tes dettes, une, deux.
And, while he dreamed, a bird high above him, On a branch, sang to him: "Pay your debts, pay your debts, one, two.
Paye tes dettes, paye tes dettes, mon vieux.
Pay your debts, pay your debts, my old friend.
Paye tes dettes, paye tes dettes.
Pay your debts, pay your debts.
C'est mieux
It's better
Ou sans çaÇa n'ira pas."Il se dit dans son sommeil:"C'est la voix d'ma conscience
Or else it won't work."He says to himself in his sleep:"It's the voice of my conscience
Qui m'poursuit, qui me surveille.
That chases me, that watches over me.
Je vais à mon réveil
I wake up
Rembourser tous ces amis
To pay back all those friends
Qui m'ont fait confiance.
Who trusted me.
Non plus jamais, je me l'dis, Je n'veux de crédit.""Paye tes dettes, paye tes dettes!" disait"Paye tes dettes, paye tes dettes!" l'oiseau."Paye tes dettes, paye tes dettes."Allez! Il y fût, fût tout de go.
Never again, I tell myself, I don't want credit."Pay your debts, pay your debts!" said"Pay your debts, pay your debts!" the bird."Pay your debts, pay your debts."Come on! He was there, right away.
Quel souv'nir, quelle belle journée
What a memory, what a beautiful day
Quand il régla tout (Tout!)C'qu'il devait d'puis des années
When he settled everything (Everything!) That he owed for years
Jusqu'au dernier sou.
Until the very last penny.
Il s'défit même de sa ch'mise.
He even shrugged off his shirt.
On peut s'passer d'ça!...
We can do without that!...
Dans les bois, soufflait la brise.
In the woods, the breeze blew.
Tout joyeux, il y r'tourna.
All cheerful, he returned there.
Sous le même arbre, il s'étendit.
Under the same tree, he lay down.
Alors, le même oiseau
Then, the same bird
Vint s'poser là, tout près de lui, En répétant d'un air idiot:"Paye tes dettes, paye tes dettes, une, deux.
Came to rest there, right by him, Repeating in a silly tone: "Pay your debts, pay your debts, one, two.
Paye tes dettes, paye tes dettes, mon vieux.
Pay your debts, pay your debts, my old friend.
Paye tes dettes, paye tes dettes.
Pay your debts, pay your debts.
C'est mieux
It's better
Ou sans çaÇa n'ira pas."Dans l'instant même, il comprit
Or else, it won't work. "In that very moment, he understood
Que la voix d'sa conscience
Let the voice of his conscience
N'était autre qu'un volatile
Was nothing but a bird
Absurde et obstinéQui répétait le même cri
Absurd and stubborn, who kept repeating the same cry
Depuis sa naissance, Sans savoir ce qu'il disait.
Since its birth, Without knowing what it was saying.
Quelle destinée!"Paye tes dettes, paye tes dettes!" disait"Paye tes dettes, paye tes dettes!" l'oiseau."Paye tes dettes, paye tes dettes."Assez, Ou je vais te fracasser! Et c'est ce qu'il fit, A l'oiseau, le cou il tordit
What a fate! "Pay your debts, pay your debts!" said "Pay your debts, pay your debts!" the bird. "Pay your debts, pay your debts." Enough, or I will smash you! And that's what he did, he twisted the bird's neck.
Et le lendemain, dans tous les magasins
And the next day, in all the stores
Et auprès de tous ses copains...
And among all her friends...
Il fit des dettes, fit des dettes, une, deux.
He got into debt, got into debt, one, two.
Il fit des dettes.
He got into debt.
Ah! C'est mieux
Ah! It's better.
Puis un soir, devenu vieux, Très vieux, Il mourut
Then one evening, grown old, Very old, He died.
Couvert de dettes.
Covered in debts.
Lyrics powered by www.musixmatch.com
Key vocabulary
- absurde
- absurdB1
- brise
- breezeB1
- ch'mise
- dressB1
- faire
- doB1
- fût
- wasB1
- quête
- questB1
- sou
- pennyB1
- deux
- twoB2
- dit
- saidB2
- rembourser
- to repayB2
About this song
Charles Trenet was a French singer-songwriter associated with French chanson, active for more than 60 years. He wrote both music and lyrics for nearly 1,000 songs, including “La Mer,” and collaborated with musicians Michel Emer and Léo Chauliac.