La Valse à Mille Temps by Jacques Brel

Album: La Valse à Mille Temps (1959)

License This Song

lyrics

artistfacts

Songfacts®:

The title of this song may be translated as "To Waltz To Thousand Times" or some such; an uncharacteristically light-hearted composition for Brel, it is probably best described as a Parisian love song. It is also a parody, of "Musetta's Waltz," its most notable feature being that it starts off very slowly but soon accelerates to such a degree that considerable verbal gymnastics are required.
When Brel was filmed recording this in 1959 - in an era before music videos - some clever camera work gave him the appearance of riding on a carousel. "Carousel" is in fact its English translation for the musical Jacques Brel Is Alive And Well And Living In Paris, but the original is far superior, even for non-French speakers.
According to one Brel fan, he wrote "La Valse à Mille Temp" while traveling by car between Tangiers and Casablanca. >>>
Suggestion credit:
Alexander Baron - London, England, for above 3

Comments: 1

Dave from Auckland, New ZealandThe title translates to "The waltz at [a] thousand time", meaning "the waltz played at a tempo of 1000 bpm (beats per minute)". That would be very fast. In fact the songs starts at about 90 bpm and ends at about 250. The title is also a complex pun. It can be read as "played a thousand times". This is suggested by the opening lyric which translates "the first time", then later "the second time" and "the third time", and then at a thousand time(s) "offers lovers only 333 times the time ...". The title can also be read as "in 1000 time" which would refer to the musical meter, a waltz normally being "in 3 time" (three beats to the bar). The lyric is actually riddled with puns. At times he sings what sounds like "a vingt temps" (at 20 time) but is actually "a vingt ans" (at 20 years). At 100 time he sings both forms ("a cent temps" and "a cent ans"). At 1000 time he also sings "une valse a mis l'temps" which sounds similar to "a waltz in 1000 time" but means "a waltz has the time ...".

see more comments

More Songfacts:

Louie LouieThe Kingsmen

"Louie Louie" was first recorded in 1955 by an R&B singer named Richard Berry, and his lyrics are easy to understand. When The Kingsmen recorded the hit version, their lyrics were indecipherable.

All Around The WorldLisa Stansfield

"All Around The World" by Lisa Stansfield has a sultry spoken intro inspired by Barry White. He was honored by the homage, and in 1992 joined Stansfield to record a duet version of the song.

Love Grows (Where My Rosemary Goes)Edison Lighthouse

The love is growing in the '70s hit "Love Grows (Where My Rosemary Goes)" because rosemary is the name of an herb.

Bangla DeshGeorge Harrison

George Harrison's 1971 song "Bangla Desh" was the first major charity single. It was part of a concert held to bring relief to the people of Bangladesh, who were fighting for independence and suffering from a famine.