Je m'voyais déjà [English translation]

At eighteen I left my province

Determined to seize my life

With a light heart and a thin baggage

I was certain to conquer Paris

At the most elegant tailor I had this blue suit made

This blue suit of the latest fashion

The photos, the songs and the orchestrations

My savings were worth it

I could see myself at the top of the billboard

Ten times the size of anyone else my name was on display

I could see myself being adored and rich

Signing my photos to the fans who were jostling

I was the greatest of the great fantasists

Making a hit so big that people were cheering me on their feet

I could see myself looking for the one in my list

The one who could hang around my neck in the evening as a favor

My features have aged, of course, under my makeup

But the voice is there, the gesture is precise and I have resiliene

My heart has become a little bitter with age

But I have ideas, I know my job and I still believe

Just under my feet to feel the stage

To see the audience sitting in front of me, my heart starts to pound

I didn't get any help, I didn't get a chance

But deep down I'm sure I've got talent

This blue suit, I've been wearing it for thirty years

And my songs only make me laugh

I give private lessons, I go door to door

To survive I do anything

I only knew easy successes

The night trains and the soldiers' girls

The shabby guarantees, the suitcases to carry

The little furnished rooms and the meager meals

I already saw myself in photography

On the arm of a star in the winter snow, in the summer sun

I could see myself telling my life story

With a disillusioned look to beginners eager for advice

I calmly opened the evenings of premiere

A thousand telegrams from all over Paris that scare us so much

And dying of stage fright in front of this audience

Entered the stage under the ovations and the projectors

I tried everything to get out of the shadows

I sang love, I did comedy and fantasy

If everything went wrong for me, if I'm in the shadows

It's not my fault but the public's who didn't understand

They never gave me a chance

Others have succeeded with a little voice but a lot of money

I was too pure or too far ahead

But one day I'll show them that I have talent

• Artist:Charles Aznavour