Francis was the final single released off Coeur de Pirate’s eponymous debut album. It’s a beautiful song of encouragement for Béatrice’s best friend. Here are the lyrics, English translation, explanation of vocabulary, and an analysis of the song.
The song Francis was written by Coeur de Pirate for her best friend. When asked in an interview who the Francis in the song was, Coeur de Pirate said:
“Francis is my best friend. He is one of the best people on Earth and he is single.”
Read the full interview (in French) here.
So this is a song that Coeur de Pirate wrote to encourage her friend Francis. More analysis of the song, plus a breakdown of the vocabulary after the lyrics and translation below.
| French | English |
|---|---|
| [Couplet 1] | [Verse 1] |
| Francis tu as tant de choses à dire | Francis you have so much to say |
| Mais le tout reste enfermé | But everything remains locked inside |
| Et quand tu ne sais plus quoi dire | And when you don't know what to say anymore |
| Tu te mets à pleurer | You start to cry |
| Mais ça ton public le voit pas | But your public doesn't see this part |
| Tu l'incites à rêver | You invite them to dream |
| Pendant que toi tu le regardes | While you watch |
| [Couplet 2] | [Verse 2] |
| Francis les mots restent bien coincés | Francis the words stay trapped inside |
| Devant cette fille qui ne demande | When faced with this girl who asked for nothing |
| Pas mieux que de se faire aimer | But to be loved |
| Mais toi tu ne sais pas comment t'y prendre | But you, you don't know how to go about it |
| Ta gorge se resserre et ton cœur bat de plus belle | Your throat tightens and your heart beats faster |
| Alors que tes yeux sont sur elle | When your eyes are on her |
| [Refrain] | [Chorus] |
| Mais moi je ne t'oublierai pas | But me, I won't forget you |
| Et je compte sur toi | And I'm counting on you |
| Pour venir en aide | To help |
| À ceux qui ressentent pour toi | Those who feel for you |
| Ce que tu écris dans | What you write in |
| Ces chansons pour elle | Those songs about her |
| [Couplet 3] | [Verse 3] |
| Francis je m'en vais bientôt | Francis, I'm leaving soon |
| Et je pense très très fort à toi | And I think about you all the time |
| Pendant que mes doigts au piano | When my fingers are on the piano |
| Jouent tout ce que je te dois | Playing everything that I owe you |
| Et rappelle-toi que tu peux | And reminding you that you can |
| Avoir le monde à tes pieds | Have the world at your feet |
| Si tu te laisses pas abattre | If you don't let yourself be defeated by |
| Par ceux qui te laissent de côté | Those who cast your aside |
| [Refrain x2] | [Chorus x2] |
| Mais moi je ne t'oublierai pas | But me, I won't forget you |
| Et je compte sur toi | And I'm counting on you |
| Pour venir en aide | To help |
| À ceux qui ressentent pour toi | Those who feel for you |
| Ce que tu écris dans | What you write in |
| Ces chansons pour elle | Those songs about her |
Vocabulary in “Francis”
This song is about the singer (Coeur de Pirate/Béatrice Martin) encouraging her best friend Francis, who appears to be a struggling writer or artist of some kind. There are a couple mentions of words being trapped within him, so I think he’s a writer, poet, or lyricist.
tant de choses: lots of (many) things
enfermé: locked, or in this context “locked in” or “kept inside”
coincé: trapped
You could also translate the line “les mots restent bien coincés” as “the words don’t come” but it literally translates to “the words stay trapped.
pas mieux que: only
The line “cette fille qui ne demande pas mieux que de se faire aimer” is an example of the French using the negative “ne pas” to mean something other than “not.” “Pas mieux que” literally means “not better than” – so you can see how this means “only” (i.e. “the girl wants no better than to be loved = the girl only wants to be loved).
comment t’y prendre: how to go about it
je compte sur toi: I have great faith in you OR I’m counting on you
In the context of this song, the meaning is probably a mixture of both. Béatrice is saying that she is counting on Francis to help the people who “feel about you the way that you feel about her.”
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