Édith Piaf - Tu Es Partout (1941)

Born in Paris, France, in 1915, this artist was a French singer and cultural icon who became a worldwide star in the 1930s and ‘40s. Named after the British World War I nurse, Edith Cavell, she was abandoned by her parents at a young age and lived with her paternal grandmother in her grandmother’s brothel. Her big break came when she was discovered singing in the streets by a cabaret owner, Louis Leplée. Nicknaming her “la môme piaf,” or, “the little sparrow,” Piaf would later be a suspect when Leplée was murdered. She stood only four feet eight inches tall, claimed to be a part of the French Resistance while entertaining German Nazis at a nightclub in occupied France, and helped targeted individuals escape from Nazi persecution.

This song was released in 1941 for the movie Montmartre-sur-Seine and more recently appeared in Saving Private Ryan. It has been said that if she had been born as a black woman in the United States, she would have sung the blues. Her lyrics almost always surrounded her difficult upbringing and therefore represented a sad and lonely feeling. Below, an English translation of the lyrics to her song has been included to emphasize that her music was most definitely the blues.



Édith Piaf - Tu Es Partout (1941)

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Lyrics:

French Lyrics	English Lyrics
Nous nous aimions bien tendrement Comme s'aiment tous les amants Et puis un jour tu m'as quittee Depuis je suis desesperee Je te vois partout dans le ciel Je te vois partout sur la terre Tu es ma joie et mon soleil Ma nuit, mes jours, mes aubes claires Tu es partout car tu es dans mon coeur Tu es partout car tu es mon bonheur Toutes les choses qui sont autour de moi Meme la vie ne represente que toi Des fois je reve que je suis dans tes bras Et qu'a l'oreille tu me parles tout bas Tu dis des choses qui font fermer les yeux Et moi je trouve ca merveilleux Peut-etre un jour tu reviendras Je sais que mon coeur t'attendras Tu ne pourras pas oublier Les jours que nous avons passes Mes yeux te cherchent sans arret Ecoute bien mon coeur t'appelle Nous pourrons si bien nous aimer Tu verras la vie sera belle	We loved each other tenderly We loved like all lovers Then one day you left me Ever since, I’ve been desperate I see you everywhere in the sky I see you everywhere on the earth You are my joy and my sun My nights, my days, my clear dawns You are everywhere because you are in my heart You are everywhere because you are my happiness Everything that is around me Even life does not represent you Sometimes I dream that I am in your arms And you speak softly in my ears You say things that make me close my eyes And I find that marvelous Maybe one day you’ll return I know that my heart waits for you You cannot forget The past days we spent together My eyes never stop searching for you Listen well, my heart calls for you We can love each other again And you’ll see: life would be beautiful