Sunday, August 15, 2010

Ben l'oncle Soul, and how he took over my Sunday.

Hello, blogsphere. I had a different entry planned for today, but then, well, my earth was shattered and I regrettably had to deviate from plan. I was scrolling along my Facebook newsfeed and noticed a link from a cavalier gentleman with impeccable taste, L.L. Innocently, TRUSTINGLY, unaware of what was about to happen, I clicked on it… and was launched irrevocably into a dire obsession. Ben l’oncle Soul, a French musician inspired mainly by Motown (with a touch of Soul and the slightest hint of old-school Reggae) has quite the stock of Youtube videos posted by fans but damnably few songs available for download on iTunes. He used to go by ‘Oncle Ben’ (Uncle Ben) but had to switch to his current stage name because of copyright issues with the premade rice dinner people. His beats are smooth- almost as smooth as his voice- and his lyrics hearken back to the Motown classics and Edith Piaf. Below is a link to Ben l’oncle Soul’s remake of Pink Martini’s ‘Sympathique’. He infused the old-school lyrics with a tight undercurrent of Marvin Gaye-esque class. This stuff is catchy, and almost as addictive as Nutella. Be warned.
Do you dare?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m3dHy6uCgls&feature=related
Also, for those interested, here’s my translation of the lyrics. See what a four-year degree in French gets you?
Ma chambre a la forme d'une cage
My bedroom’s like a cage
Le soleil passe son bras par la fenêtre
The sun moves his arms by the window
Les chasseurs ma porte
The bellboys by my door
Comme les p'tits soldats
Like little soldiers
Qui veulent me prendre
Who want to drag me away

Je ne veux pas travailler
I don’t want to work
Je ne veux pas déjeuner
I don’t want to eat lunch
Je veux seulement l'oublier
I just want to forget
Et puis je fume
And so I smoke.

Déjà j'ai connu le parfum de l'amour
I’ve already known the scent of love
Un million de roses n'embaumerait pas autant
A million roses don’t smell as sweet
Maintenant une seule fleur dans mes entourages
But now the only flower in my entourage
Me rend malade
Is making me sick

Je ne veux pas travailler
I don’t want to work
Je ne veux pas déjeuner
I don’t want to eat lunch
Je veux seulement l'oublier
I just want to forget
Et puis je fume
And so I smoke.

Je ne suis pas fière de sa
I’m not proud of that
vie qui veut me tuer
life that wants to kill me
C'est magnifique être Sympathique
It’s great to be nice
Mais je ne le connais jamais
But I’d never know it.

Je ne veux pas travailler
I don’t want to work
Je ne veux pas déjeuner
I don’t want to eat lunch
Je veux seulement l'oublier
I just want to forget
Et puis je fume
And so I smoke.

Je ne suis pas fière de sa
I’m not proud of that
vie qui veut me tuer
life that wants to kill me
C'est magnifique être Sympathique
It’s great to be nice
Mais je ne le connais jamais
But I’d never know it.

Je ne veux pas travailler
I don’t want to work
Je ne veux pas déjeuner
I don’t want to eat lunch
Je veux seulement l'oublier
I just want to forget
Et puis je fume
And so I smoke.

2 comments:

  1. mais il est superbe! jaime bien la chanson. merci cherie pour la recc. je pense que cetter chanson va devenir notre anthem pour la semaine prochaine?

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  2. mdr, en fait, j'ai peur que tu aies raison, mon amie.

    ReplyDelete