Joe Le Taxi – Bilingual Lyrics French/English

• By: Vanessa Paradis

Lyrics & Translation

Step into the vibrant world of 1980s Paris with Vanessa Paradis's iconic song 'Joe le Taxi.' This timeless French pop track, with its infectious rhythm and charming vocals, offers a delightful way to immerse yourself in the French language and culture, exploring themes of city life, dreams, and Latin beats.

[English]

Sitting in Barbesse

...

Welcome to Joe's place

...

Joe the taxi, he doesn't go everywhere

He doesn't work on soda

His yellow saxophone

Knows all the streets by heart

All the little bars

All the dark corners

And the Seine

And its shining bridges

In his little car

Music at Joe's

It's the rumba

Old rock and mambo

...

Joe the taxi

It's his life

Rhum and mambo

Traffic jam

That's how he is

Rum and mambo

Joe, Joe, Joe

In his car (Joe, Joe, Joe)

The music at Joe's echoes (Joe, Joe, Joe)

It's the rumba (Joe, Joe, Joe)

Old rock mambo style (Joe, Joe, Joe)

Go ahead, Joe (Joe, Joe, Joe)

Come on, Joe (Joe, Joe, Joe)

Go for it, Joe (Joe, Joe, Joe)

Into the night towards the Amazon (Joe, Joe, Joe)

Joe the taxi

And Xavier Cugat

Joe the taxi

And Yma Sumac

Joe, Joe, Joe

(Joe, Joe, Joe)

(Joe, Joe, Joe)

(Joe, Joe, Joe)

...

Joe the taxi

It's his life

Rhum and mambo

Traffic jam

Joe the taxi

And the Mariachis

Joe the taxi (Joe, Joe, Joe)

And the cha-cha-chi (Joe, Joe, Joe)

Joe the taxi (Joe, Joe, Joe)

And the cha-cha-chi (Joe, Joe, Joe)

Go ahead, Joe (Joe, Joe, Joe)

Come on, Joe (Joe, Joe, Joe)

Into the night towards the Amazon (Joe, Joe, Joe)

Joe the taxi (Joe, Joe, Joe)

And the cha-cha-chi (Joe, Joe, Joe)

Joe the taxi (Joe, Joe, Joe)

...

[French]

Barbesse

Bienvenue chez Joe

Joe le taxi, il va pas partout

Il marche pas au soda

Son saxo jaune

Connaît toutes les rues par cœur

Tous les petits bars

Tous les coins noirs

Et la Seine

Et ses ponts qui brillent

Dans sa caisse

La musique à Joe

C'est la rumba

Le vieux rock au mambo

Joe le taxi

C'est sa vie

Le rhum au mambo

Embouteillage

Il est comme ça

Rhum et mambo

Joe, Joe, Joe

Dans sa caisse (Joe, Joe, Joe)

La musique à Joe résonne (Joe, Joe, Joe)

C'est la rumba (Joe, Joe, Joe)

Le vieux rock au mambo bidon (Joe, Joe, Joe)

Vas-y Joe (Joe, Joe, Joe)

Vas-y Joe (Joe, Joe, Joe)

Vas-y fonce (Joe, Joe, Joe)

Dans la nuit vers l'Amazone (Joe, Joe, Joe)

Joe le taxi

Et Xavier Cugat

Joe le taxi

Et Yma Sumac

Joe, Joe, Joe

(Joe, Joe, Joe)

(Joe, Joe, Joe)

(Joe, Joe, Joe)

Joe le taxi

C'est sa vie

Le rhum au mambo

Embouteillage

Joe le taxi

Et les Mariachis

Joe le taxi (Joe, Joe, Joe)

Et le cha-cha-chi (Joe, Joe, Joe)

Joe le taxi (Joe, Joe, Joe)

Et le cha-cha-chi (Joe, Joe, Joe)

Vas-y Joe (Joe, Joe, Joe)

Vas-y fonce (Joe, Joe, Joe)

Dans la nuit vers l'Amazone (Joe, Joe, Joe)

Joe le taxi (Joe, Joe, Joe)

Et le cha-cha-chi (Joe, Joe, Joe)

Joe le taxi (Joe, Joe, Joe)

Key Vocabulary

Vocabulary	Meanings
taxi /ˈtæksi/ A1	noun - a car that carries passengers for a fare
musique /my.zik/ A1	noun - music
rue /ʁy/ A1	noun - street
vie /vi/ A1	noun - life
rhum /ʁœm/ A2	noun - rum (a type of alcoholic drink)
mambo /ˈmæm.boʊ/ B1	noun - a type of dance and music
embouteillage /ɑ̃.bu.te.jaʒ/ B2	noun - traffic jam
bar /bɑːr/ A2	noun - a place where drinks are served
pont /pɔ̃/ A2	noun - bridge
noir /nwaʁ/ B1	adjective - black
briller /bʁi.je/ B1	verb - to shine
marcher /maʁ.ʃe/ B1	verb - to walk
jaune /ʒon/ A2	adjective - yellow
petit /pə.ti/ A1	adjective - small
vieux /vjø/ B1	adjective - old

Key Grammar Structures

• Joe le taxi, il va pas partout

  ➔ Use of pronoun 'il' for emphasis/clarification

  ➔ While grammatically correct to say 'Joe le taxi va pas partout', the inclusion of 'il' after the subject makes it more conversational and emphasizes that it's *Joe* who doesn't go everywhere. The structure is a bit colloquial.

• Il marche pas au soda

  ➔ Preposition 'au' implying mode of transportation/fuel ('powered by' literally)

  ➔ The phrase 'marcher au' when used with a fuel or energy source, means something similar to 'powered by'. Here, it means 'He isn't powered by soda', meaning he doesn't like or depend on soda.

• Son saxo jaune Connaît toutes les rues par cœur

  ➔ Inversion of subject and verb for stylistic effect (poetic/emphatic)

  ➔ The normal word order would be 'Son saxo jaune connaît toutes les rues par cœur'. The inversion makes it sound more lyrical. 'His yellow saxophone knows all the streets by heart.'

• Dans sa caisse La musique à Joe

  ➔ Ellipsis (omission of verb) - Implied 'il y a' or 'est'. Possession using 'à'

  ➔ This line is shortened for poetic effect. It means, roughly, 'In his car, there is Joe's music' or 'In his car, the music belongs to Joe'. 'La musique de Joe' is also possible but 'la musique à Joe' is more common in some contexts.

• Vas-y fonce Dans la nuit vers l'Amazone

  ➔ Imperative mood combined with prepositional phrase indicating direction.

  ➔ 'Vas-y' is a shortened form of 'Y aller', meaning 'Go'. 'Fonce' is the imperative of 'foncer', meaning 'charge' or 'go fast'. 'Vers l'Amazone' indicates direction: 'towards the Amazon'.

• Embouteillage Il est comme ça

  ➔ Use of ellipsis to create a casual tone. 'Il est comme ça' is an idiom.

  ➔ 'Embouteillage' means traffic jam. A complete sentence might be 'Il y a un embouteillage'. 'Il est comme ça' translates to 'He is like that', meaning that's his personality, that is Joe is laidback / does not care