French
Mistral Gagnant
A m'asseoir sur un banc cinq minutes avec toi
Et regarder les gens tant qu'y en a
Te parler du bon temps qu'est mort ou qui r'viendra
En serrant dans ma main tes p'tits doigts
Puis donner à bouffer à des pigeons idiots
Leur filer des coups d' pieds pour de faux
Et entendre ton rire qui lézarde les murs
Qui sait surtout guérir mes blessures
Te raconter un peu comment j'étais mino
Les bonbecs fabuleux qu'on piquait chez l' marchand
Car-en-sac et Minto, caramel à un franc
Et les mistrals gagnants
A r'marcher sous la pluie cinq minutes avec toi
Et regarder la vie tant qu'y en a
Te raconter la Terre en te bouffant des yeux
Te parler de ta mère un p'tit peu
Et sauter dans les flaques pour la faire râler
Bousiller nos godasses et s' marrer
Et entendre ton rire comme on entend la mer
S'arrêter, r'partir en arrière
Te raconter surtout les carambars d'antan et les cocos bohères
Et les vrais roudoudous qui nous coupaient les lèvres
Et nous niquaient les dents
Et les mistrals gagnants
A m'asseoir sur un banc cinq minutes avec toi
Et regarder le soleil qui s'en va
Te parler du bon temps qu'est mort et je m'en fou
Te dire que les méchants c'est pas nous
Que si moi je suis barge, ce n'est que de tes yeux
Car ils ont l'avantage d'être deux
Et entendre ton rire s'envoler aussi haut
Que s'envolent les cris des oiseaux
Te raconter enfin qu'il faut aimer la vie
Et l'aimer même si le temps est assassin
Et emporte avec lui les rires des enfants
Et les mistrals gagnants
Et les mistrals gagnants
English
Mistral Gagnant
To sit on a bench with you, for 5 minutes,
And look at the people (passing), if any, (lit.: as many as there are)
To talk to you about the good times that are gone, or (that) will come back,
Squeezing your small fingers in my hand
Then feed the stupid pigeons
Pretend at kicking them
and hear your laughter crawling the walls (could mean: tearing apart the walls, but I think 'crawling' is what is meant)
[Your laughter] that, most of all, knows how to cure my injuries
To tell you a bit about how I was (mino?? anyone who can help here?)
Those fabulous sweets that we stole at the shop (marchand=shopkeeper)
Car-en-sac, Mints, one-franc-a-piece caramels (These are all particular kinds of sweets)
While the mistrals are swelling (Don't know if I express myself correctly here. The mistral is a hot southern wind, well known and a bit feared by farmers in certain regions in France)
To walk in the rain again with you, for 5 minutes
And look at life, as much as there is (I think 'life' here means people being busy on the streets, just as in the first stanza)
To tell you about the (whole) world, while devouring you with my eyes (lit.: eating)
To talk a bit about your mother
And jump in the puddles to make her grumble
To muddy our shoos, and not care about it
And to hear your laughter, as one hears the sea
To stop, and start again backwards
To tell you, most of all, the (carambars?) of yore and the (cocos bohères?) (I don't know these words, but considering the context, these must be sweets too, 'carambar' = bar of caramel, 'cocos' = coconut candy?)
and the real roudoudous that cut our lips ('roudoudou' is a lolly inside a shell)
and marred our teeth
While the mistrals swell
To sit on a bench with you, for 5 minutes,
And look at the setting sun
To talk to you about the good times, that died, and I don't care
[To] tell you that we're not the bad guys
That if I seem (lit.: am) mad, it is only about your eyes
Because they have the advantage of not being alone (lit.: of being two)
And to hear your laughter fly away as high
As the bird's cries do
To tell you at last that one (maybe 'we' is what is meant) must love life
And love it even if Time is a murderer
who takes away with him the children's laughs
While the mistrals swell
While the mistrals swell