Jacques Brel : ‘il Neige Sur Liege’

Jacques Brel, born in 1929, was a multitalented artist, working as a poet, composer, actor and director in his lifetime. However, he is best known for his work as a singer; his meditative and melancholic songs were, and still are, highly popular in the French speaking world, meaning that his albums have sold 25 million copies worldwide. This makes him the 4th most famous Belgian singer of all time. In this song ‘Il neige sur Liège’, Brel contemplates the cold and gloomy winter scene which hangs over the Belgian town of Liège. The slow pace of the melody and the use of repetition within the lyrics makes it a fairly easy song to follow.

 

Lyrics

French:

Il neige, il neige sur Liège
Et la neige sur Liège pour neiger met des gants
Il neige, il neige sur Liège
Croissant noir de la Meuse sur le front d’un clown blanc
Il est brisé le cri
Des heures et des oiseaux
Des enfants à cerceaux
Et du noir et du gris
Il neige, il neige sur Liège
Que le fleuve traverse sans bruit

Il neige, il neige sur Liège
Et tant tourne la neige entre le ciel et Liège
Qu’on ne sait plus s’il neige, s’il neige sur Liège
Ou si c’est Liège qui neige vers le ciel
Et la neige marie
Les amants débutants
Les amants promenant
Sur le carré blanchi
Il neige il neige sur Liège
Que le fleuve transporte sans bruit

Ce soir, ce soir il neige, sur mes rêves et sur Liège
Que le fleuve transperce sans bruit

English:

Snow falls, snow falls on Liège
And the snow on Liège
In order to fall, puts on gloves
Snow falls, snow falls on Liège
Black crescent of the Meuse
on the forehead of a white clown.
It is broken, the cry
Of hours and birds,
Of children with hoops
And of black and grey.

Snow falls, snow falls on Liège
So that the river flows through silently.
Snow falls, snow falls on Liège
And so turns the snow
between the sky and Liège,
That one knows anymore if snow falls,
If snow falls on Liège
Or if it is Liège
which snows towards the sky
And the snow weds
Débutant lovers
Lovers who walk
On the whitened square
Snow falls, snow falls on Liège
That the river transports without a sound

Tonight, tonight it snows on my dreams and on Liège
That the river pierces without a sound.