Avant toi – Bilingual Lyrics French/English

• By: Calogero
• Album: Les feux d’artifice

Lyrics & Translation

Discover the emotional depth of "Avant toi" by Calogero, a song that beautifully articulates the transformative power of love. Through its heartfelt lyrics and melodic composition, the song offers a poignant exploration of life's journey before and after finding a soulmate, making it a special piece for anyone seeking to understand the profound impact of connection.

[English]

It's

Whole days bending under a burden

Never light, always bowing the back

Before you

Before you let me tell you it's

Dragging your feet, barely existing

Despairing that something will happen

Before you

Before you let me tell you

Before you, what was it?

If not a preamble

A long road to Calvary

Then everything changes

Before you, it was nothing

Or so little that my body

Before you, remembers

Having felt dead

It's

Struggling, singing in the desert

For whom were all these verses, all these tunes?

Before you

Before you let me tell you

Before you, what was it?

A rehearsal

Of tired words and gestures

Then the explosion

Before you, it was nothing

Or so little that my arms

Had never embraced

Only emptiness and cold

Before you, what was it?

If not a preamble

A long road to Calvary

Then everything changes

Before you, it was nothing

Or so little that my body

Before you, remembers

Having felt dead

Before you, what was it?

Just a huge stage

Much too vast for me

And then everything dances

Before you, it was nothing

Or so little that my life

Began the morning

Of the day I saw you

...

[French]

C'est

Des jours entiers ployer sous un fardeau

Jamais léger, toujours courber le dos

Avant toi

Avant toi laisse-moi te dire que c'est

Traîner des pieds, c'est exister à peine

Désespérer que quelque chose advienne

Avant toi

Avant toi laisse-moi te dire

Avant toi c'était quoi

Sinon un préambule

Un long chemin de croix

Puis tout bascule

Avant toi c'était rien

Ou si peu que mon corps

Avant toi, se souvient

De s'être senti mort

C'est

Se démener, chanter dans le désert

Pour qui c'était tous ces vers, tous ces airs?

Avant toi

Avant toi laisse-moi te dire

Avant toi c'était quoi

Une répétition

De mots de gestes las

Puis l'explosion

Avant toi c'était rien

Ou si peu que mes bras

N'avaient jamais étreint

Que du vide et du froid

Avant toi c'était quoi

Sinon un préambule

Un long chemin de croix

Puis tout bascule

Avant toi c'était rien

Ou si peu que mon corps

Avant toi, se souvient

De s'être senti mort

Avant toi c'était quoi

Juste une scène immense

Bien trop vaste pour moi

Et puis tout danse

Avant toi c'était rien

Ou si peu que ma vie

Commença le matin

Du jour où je te vis

Key Vocabulary

Vocabulary	Meanings
jour /ʒuʁ/ A1	noun - day
fardeau /faʁ.do/ B2	noun - burden
léger /le.ʒe/ A2	adjective - light
exister /ɛɡ.zis.te/ B1	verb - to exist
désespérer /dez.ɛs.pe.ʁe/ B2	verb - to despair
chemin /ʃə.mɛ̃/ A2	noun - path
corps /kɔʁ/ B1	noun - body
mort /mɔʁ/ B1	adjective - dead
danser /dɑ̃.se/ A2	verb - to dance
scène /sɛn/ B1	noun - scene
immense /i.mɑ̃s/ B2	adjective - immense
vaste /vast/ B2	adjective - vast
répétition /ʁe.pe.ti.sjɔ̃/ B1	noun - repetition
explosion /ɛk.sploz.jɔ̃/ B2	noun - explosion

Key Grammar Structures

• Des jours entiers ployer sous un fardeau

  ➔ Infinitive after preposition 'sous'

  ➔ The phrase "sous un fardeau" means "under a burden." The verb "ployer" (to bend) is in the infinitive form because it follows the preposition "sous".

• Jamais léger, toujours courber le dos

  ➔ Infinitive with implication of a repeated action

  ➔ "Courber le dos" (to bend the back) in the infinitive suggests a habitual or repeated action. It implies a continuous state of bending over.

• Avant toi laisse-moi te dire que c'est

  ➔ Subjunctive mood implied (though not directly used) - "laisse-moi te dire"

  ➔ "Laisse-moi te dire" (let me tell you) uses the imperative form of "laisser" (to let) to grant permission. Although not explicit subjunctive, the phrase often introduces something of importance or a subjective opinion, where subjunctive is sometimes used depending on the subsequent clause.

• Sinon un préambule

  ➔ Use of 'sinon' to present an alternative

  ➔ "Sinon" introduces an alternative if the previous statement is not true. Here, it suggests that if the time before "toi" wasn't "rien" (nothing) or very little, then it was simply a preamble.

• Un long chemin de croix

  ➔ Use of a metaphor - 'chemin de croix'

  ➔ "Chemin de croix" (Way of the Cross) is a metaphor for a long and difficult period of suffering. It's a reference to the Stations of the Cross in Christianity.

• Puis tout bascule

  ➔ Intransitive use of 'basculer'

  ➔ "Basculer" usually means "to tip over" or "to tilt." In this sentence, it's used intransitively, meaning "everything changes suddenly." The subject is "tout" (everything) and the verb implies a sudden, dramatic shift.

• Que du vide et du froid

  ➔ Use of 'ne...que' structure in a negative context (implied 'il n'y avait')

  ➔ The phrase implies "Il n'y avait que du vide et du froid" (There was only emptiness and cold). The structure "ne...que" means "only" and it emphasizes the limited experience of the subject before meeting the person.

• Et puis tout danse

  ➔ Intransitive use of 'danser'

  ➔ "Danser" usually means "to dance." Here, it is used intransitively to mean "everything is vibrant, full of life, harmonious". Similar to "tout bascule", "tout danse" implies a sudden, positive change.

• Du jour où je te vis

  ➔ Passé simple used to emphasize a single, completed action in the past

  ➔ The verb "vis" is the passé simple form of "voir" (to see). The passé simple is a literary past tense that emphasizes a single, completed action, often marking a significant event. Here, it underscores the precise moment the speaker first saw the person, marking the turning point in their life.