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Wim's favourite song lyrics

(Actually, I'm a song lover musically first, but these beautiful lyrics blend so well with the wonderful melodies)

NUAGES
(Musique: Django Reinhardt - Paroles: Jacques Larue, 1941)
(Wim's favourite version is sung by : Yves Montand)

Lentement dans le soir
le train s'en va
Sur le quai, son mouchoir
s'enfuit déjà
Dans la glace comme un songe
Le mur gris de sa maison
Sous le jour qui s'allonge
S'estompe à l'horizon
Un nuage s'étire
sur son toit bleu
En passant il semble dire
un triste adieu;
Et tout ce que j'aimais
lorsque le train vire
dans un flot de fumée
s'efface à jamais...

YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT LOVE IS
(Music: Gene De Paul - Lyrics: Don Raye)
(Wim's favourite version is sung by : John Martyn)

You don't know what love is
‘Til you’ve learned the meaning of the blues
Until you’ve loved a love you've had to lose
You don't know what love is

You don't know how lips hurt
Until you've kissed and had to pay the cost
Until you've flipped your heart and you have lost
You don't know what love is

Do you know how lost I've been
At the thought of reminiscing
And how lips that taste of tears
Lose their taste for kissing

You don't know how hearts burn
For love that cannot live yet never dies
Until you've faced each dawn with sleepless eyes
You don't know what love is

IT'S MAGIC
(Words by Sammy Cahn, Music by Jule Styne, 1948)
(Wim's favourite version is sung by : Abbey Lincoln)

You smile, the song begins;
You speak, and I hear violins
It's magic.

The stars desert the skies,
and rush to nestle in your eyes
It's magic.

Without a golden wand or mystic charms,
Fantastic things begin when I am in your arms.

When we walk hand-in-hand,
The world becomes a wonderland
It's magic.

How else can I explain
those raindrops when there is no rain?
It's magic.

Why do I tell myself these things that happen are all really true?
When, in my heart, I know the magic is my love for you.

THE NIGHT WE CALLED IT A DAY
(Written by - M. Dennis / T. Adair)

There was a moon out in space
But a cloud drifted over its face
You kissed me and went on your way
The night we called it a day

I heard the song of the spheres
Like a minor lament in my ears
I hadn't the heart left to pray
The night we called it a day

Soft through the dark
The hoot of an owl in the sky
Sad though his song
No bluer was he than I

The moon went down, stars were gone
But the sun didn't rise with the dawn
There wasn't a thing left to say
The night we called it a day

I KEEP GOIN' BACK TO JOE'S
(Written by - Jack Segal / Marvin Fisher)
(Wim's favourite version is sung by : Curtis Stigers)

I keep goin' back to Joe's,
to that table in the corner,
sippin' wine and staring at the door.

Our old waiter knows we're through,
still he sets a place for you
everything the way it was before.

I keep goin' back to Joe's,
but the man who plays piano
never plays your favorite melody.

Joe keeps busy at the bar,
never asks me where you are;
he was there when you walked out on me.

Now i pray you'll walk back in,
and you'll say, "what fools we've been",
and we'll celebrate a happy new beginning.

Chances are you'll never show,
but you know just where to find me,
every night until it's time to go.

Just in case you miss me too,
I'll be there to welcome you.
That's why I keep going back to Joe's.

YOU ARE TOO BEAUTIFUL
(Music: Richard Rodgers - Lyrics: Lorenz Hart)
(Wim's favourite version is sung by : Curtis Stigers)

You are too beautiful,
My dear, to be true
And I am a fool for beauty
Fooled by a feeling that, because
I had found you,
I could have bound you too

You are too beautiful
for one man alone
For one lucky fool to be with
When there are other men
With eyes of their own to see you with

Love does not stand sharing
Not if one cares
Have you been comparing
My every kiss with theirs

If, on the other hand,
I’m faithful to you
It’s not through a sense of duty
You are too beautiful
And I am a fool for beauty

You are too beautiful
And I am a fool for you

ARRIVEDERCI
(Music : Umberto Bindi - Lyrics: Giorgio Calabrese)
(Wim's favourite version is sung by : Nicola Arigliano)

Arrivederci
dammi la mano e sorridi
senza piangere

Arrivederci
per una volta ancora
è bello fingere

Abbiamo sfidato l'amore
quasi per gioco
ed ora fingiam di lasciarci
soltanto per poco

Arrivederci
Esco dalla tua vita
salutiamoci

Arrivederci
questo sarà un addio
ma non pensiamoci

Con una stretta di mano
da buoni amici sinceri
ci sorridiamo per dire
arrivederci...

ALL THE THINGS YOU ARE
(Written by - J.Kern/O.Hammerstein)
(Wim's favourite version is sung by : Curtis Stigers)

(Verse)
Time and again I've longed for adventure,
Something to make my heart beat the faster.
What did I long for? I never really knew.

Finding your love I've found my adventure,
Touching your hand, my heart beats the faster,
All that I want in all of this world is you...

(Chorus)
You are the promised kiss of springtime
That makes the lonely winter seem long.
You are the breathless hush of evening
That trembles on the brink of a lovely song.

You are the angel glow
that lights a star,
The dearest things I know
are what you are.

Some day my happy arms will hold you,
And some day I'll know that moment divine,
When all the things you are, are mine...

NEVER, NEVER, NEVER...
(Music written by Tony Renis. English lyrics by Norman Newell)
(Original Italian lyrics, as "Grande, grande, grande", by Alberto Testa & Fabio Testa)
(Original performer : Mina)

I'd like to run away from you,
but if you never found me, I would die
I'd like to break the chains you put around me,
but I know I never will
You stay away and all I do
is wonder why the hell I wait for you
But when did common sense prevail for lovers
when we know it never will

Impossible to live with you,
but I know, I could never live without you
For whatever you do
I never, never, never want to be
in love with anyone but you

You never treat me like you should,
so what's the good of loving as I do?
Although you always laugh at love,
nothing else would be good enough for you

Impossible to live with you,
but I know, I could never live without you
For whatever you do
I never, never, never want to be
in love with anyone but you

You make me laugh, you make me cry,
You make me live, you make me die, for you
You make me sing, you make me sad,
You make me glad, you make me mad, for you

I love you, hate you, love you, hate you
But I'll want you till the world stops turning
For whatever you do
I never, never, never want to be
in love with anyone but you

EU SEI QUE VOU TE AMAR
(Music: Antonio Carlos Jobim - Lyrics: Vinícius de Moraes)

Eu sei que vou te amar
Por toda a minha vida eu vou te amar
Em cada despedida eu vou te amar
Desesperadamente eu sei que vou te amar

E cada verso meu será
Pra te dizer que eu sei que vou te amar
Por toda a minha vida

Eu sei que vou chorar
A cada ausência tua eu vou chorar
Mas cada volta tua há de apagar
O que esta ausência tua me causou

Eu sei que vou sofrer
A eterna desventura de viver
A espera de viver ao lado teu
Por toda a minha vida

IT AMAZES ME
(Written by Cy Coleman & Carolyn Leigh)

My height : just average
my weight : just average
and my IQ is
what you'd estimate: just average.
But evidently he does not agree
Consequently, if I seem at see ...

It amazes me,
it simply amazes me
What he sees in me
dazzles me,
dazes me

That I've learned to clip my wings
and soften my ways;
these are ordinary things
unworthy of praise
Yet he praises me,
just knowing I'd try for him.
When so many would,
if they could,
die for him.
I'm the one who's worldly-wise
and nothing much phases me,
but to see me in his eyes:
it just amazes me!

ALWAYS
(Written by Irving Berlin, 1925)

I'll be loving you, always
With a love that's true, always
When the things you've planned
Need a helping hand,
I will understand, always, always.

Days may not be fair, always
That's when I'll be there, always
Not for just an hour,
Not for just a day,
Not for just a year,
But always.

Dreams will all come true,
Growing old with you
And time will fly
Caring each day more,
Than the day before
Till Spring rolls by
Then when the Springtime has gone,
Then will my love linger on.

I'll be loving you, always
With a love that's true, always
When the things you've planned
Need a helping hand,
I will understand, always, always.
Days may not be fair, always
That's when I'll be there, always
Not for just an hour,
Not for just a day,
Not for just a year,
But always!

WILD IS THE WIND
(Written by Dimitri Tiomkin & Ned Washington, 1956)
(Wim's favourite versions are sung by : Helen Merrill, Shirley Horn, George Michael)

Love me, love me,
Say you do
Let me fly away
With you
For my love is like
The wind
And wild is the wind

Give me more
Than one caress
Satisfy this
Hungriness
Let the wind blow
Through your heart
For wild is the wind

You
Touch me
I hear the sound
Of mandolins
You
Kiss me
With your kiss
My life begins
You're Spring to me
All things To me
You're Life itself

Like a leaf clings
To a tree,
Oh my darling,
Cling to me
For we're creatures
Of the wind
And wild is the wind
So wild is the wind
(Wild is
My love for you...)

BEING ALIVE
(Music and Lyrics by Stephen Sondheim,
originally from the 1970 Broadway musical "Company")
(Wim's favourite version is sung by : Tony Bennett)

Someone to hold me too close
Someone to hurt me too deep
Someone to sit in my chair
And ruin my sleep
And make me aware
Of being alive, being alive...

Someone to need me too much
Someone to know me too well
Someone to pull me up short
And put me through hell
And give me support
For being alive...

Make me alive, make me alive!
Make me confused
Mock me with praise
Let me be used
Vary my days
For alone is alone,
Not alive!

Someone to crowd me with love
Someone to force me to care
Someone to make me come through
I'll always be there
As frightened as you
To help us survive
Being alive, being alive!

Someone I have to let in
Someone whose feelings I spare
Someone who, like it or not,
Will want me to share
A little, a lot
Of being alive, being alive!

Make me alive, make me alive
Make me confused
Mock me with praise
Let me be used
Vary my days
For alone is alone, not alive!

HECHA A LA MEDIDA
(Written by Felipe Gil)
(Wim's favourite version is sung by : Mayte Martín)

Estás hecha a la medida de mis besos
Hecha a la medida de mis manos
Y de mis sueños
Parece que te hicieron
Exacta a la medida de mi ser

Estás hecha a la medida de mis noches
Hecha a la medida de mi cuerpo
Y de mi alma
Parece que te hicieron
Exacta a la medida de mi ser

Ayer
Yo no creía en nada ni en nadie
Mas hoy, mi corazón
Ha vuelto a levantarse
Y sé que más allá
De todas las estrellas
Alguien te hizo para mí

... sólo para mí

I'LL LOOK AROUND
(Written by - George Cory / Douglass Cross)
(Wim's favourite version is sung by : Madeleine Peyroux)

I'll look around
Until I've found
Someone who laughs like you

I know somewhere
Spring must fill the air
With sweetness just as rare
As the flower
That you gave me to wear

I'll look around
And when I've found
Someone who laughs like you
I'll know this love
I'm dreaming of
Won't be the old love
I always knew...

SHE THINKS I STILL CARE...
(Written by - D.L. Lipscomb - S. Duffy)

Just because I asked a friend about her,
just because I spoke her name somewhere,
Just because I dialled her number by mistake today,
she thinks I still care.

Just because I haunt the same old places,
where the memory of her lingers everywhere,
Just because I'm not the happy guy I used to be,
she thinks I still care.

Oh, if she's happy thinkin' I still need her,
then let that silly notion bring her cheer,
Oh, how could she ever be so foolish,
and where would she get such an idea?

Just because I asked a friend about her,
just because I spoke her name somewhere,
Just because I saw her, then went all to pieces,
she thinks I still care...

She thinks I still care...

BODY AND SOUL
(Written by - Johnny Green, Ed Heyman, Ed Sour, Frank Eyton)

My heart is sad and lonely
For you I sigh, for you, dear only
Why haven't you seen it?
I'm all for you,
Body and soul

I spend my days in longing
And wondering why
It's me you're wronging
I tell you I mean it:
I'm all for you,
Body and soul

I can't believe it
It's hard to conceive it
That you'ld turn away romance
Are you pretending?
It looks like the ending
Unless I could have one more chance
To prove, Dear,

My life's a wreck you're making
You know I'm yours for just the taking
I'd gladly surrender
Myself to you,
Body and soul!

AVEC LE TEMPS...
(Ecrite par Léo Ferré)

Avec le temps...
avec le temps, va, tout s'en va
on oublie le visage
et l'on oublie la voix
le cœur, quand ça bat plus, c'est pas la peine d'aller
chercher plus loin, faut laisser faire et c'est très bien

Avec le temps...
avec le temps, va, tout s'en va
l'autre qu'on adorait, qu'on cherchait sous la pluie
l'autre qu'on devinait au détour d'un regard
entre les mots, entre les lignes et sous le fard
d'un serment maquillé qui s'en va faire sa nuit
Avec le temps tout s'évanouit

Avec le temps...
avec le temps, va, tout s'en va
même les plus chouettes souvenirs ça t'as une de ces gueules
à la galerie j'farfouille dans les rayons d'la mort
le samedi soir quand la tendresse s'en va toute seule

Avec le temps...
avec le temps, va, tout s'en va
l'autre à qui l'on croyait pour un rhume, pour un rien
l'autre à qui l'on donnait du vent et des bijoux
pour qui l'on eût vendu son âme pour quelques sous
devant quoi l'on se traînait comme traînent les chiens
avec le temps, va, tout va bien

Avec le temps...
avec le temps, va, tout s'en va
on oublie les passions et l'on oublie les voix
qui vous disaient tout bas les mots des pauvres gens
ne rentre pas trop tard, surtout ne prends pas froid

Avec le temps...
avec le temps, va, tout s'en va
et l'on se sent blanchi comme un cheval fourbu
et l'on se sent glacé dans un lit de hasard
et l'on se sent tout seul peut-être mais peinard
et l'on se sent floué par les années perdues
- alors vraiment - avec le temps... on n'aime plus...

YELLOW TRIANGLE
(Song of Christy Moore)

Black triangle, pink triangle, green triangle,
red triangle, blue triangle, lilac triangle,
And they wore
the yellow triangle.

When first they came for the criminals,
I did not speak
Then they began to take the Jews,
When they fetched the people who were
members of trade unions,
I did not speak.
They took away the Bible students,
Rounded up the homosexuals,
Then they gathered up the immigrants
and the gypsies.
I did not speak.
Eventually they came for me
And there was no one left to speak.

ZOTTE MORGEN
(Zjef Vanuytsel)

De nacht sluipt weg, de lucht verbleekt,
de schimmen vluchten zwijgend
En aan de verre horizon
begint de zon te stijgen
En daar trekt uit de nevel op,
de klaarte van de dageraad
Met in z'n schoot geborgen
De zotte morgen

De stad ontwaakt, de eerste trein
breekt door de stilte en op zijn
signaal begint de wilde dans der dwazen
De mens kruipt uit z'n ledikant,
denkt aan z'n werk en met z'n krant
ijlt hij nog half slaperig door de straten
De wereld herneemt z'n zotte zorgen
Het ritme van de zotte morgen

Nu kleurt de einder rood en valt
de kou zacht door de ramen
De stilte vlucht voor al 't lawaai
dat opstijgt uit de straten
En daar is dan de morgen weer,
een schaterlach en elke keer
verdrijft hij zonder schromen
de nacht, de dromen

De stad wordt wild en auto's razen
door z'n poorten en de laatste
rust wordt uit z'n schuilhoek gedreven
Vogels vluchten vol verdriet
uit zijn torens want hun lied
wordt nu door niemand meer begrepen
Mensen lopen naast elkaar
Een verre groet, een stil gebaar
want alles wordt nu door de tijd gemeten
De wereld herneemt z'n zotte zorgen
Het ritme van de zotte morgen

Maar 't land zelf slaapt z'n roes nog uit,
diep onder 't loof verscholen
Hier komt geen mens of geen geluid
d' oneindige rust verstoren
Terwijl de stad nu raast en schreeuwt,
de morgen zijn bevelen geeft,
wordt hier bij 't ochtendgloren
de dag geboren
En ook de kinderen en de dwazen
blijven tussen de rozen slapen,
ver en veilig geborgen
voor het ritme van de zotte morgen
de zotte morgen...

SECRET HEART
(Written by Ron Sexsmith)
(Wim's favourite version is sung by : Curtis Stigers)

Secret heart
What are you made of?
What are you so afraid of?
Could it be three simple words?
Or the fear of being overheard?
What's wrong?
Let her in on your secret, heart

Secret heart
Why so mysterious?
Why so sacred, why so serious?
Maybe you're just acting tough
Maybe you're just not man enough
What's wrong?
Let her in on your secret, heart

This very secret you're trying to conceal
Is the very same one you're dying to reveal
Go tell her how you feel

Secret heart
Come out and share it
This loneliness, few can bear it
Could it have something to do with
Admitting that you just can't go through it
alone?
Let her in on your secret
What's wrong?
Let her in on your secret, heart...

A HOUSE IS NOT A HOME
(Music: Burt Bacharach / Lyrics: Hal David)
(Wim's favourite version is sung by : Rita Reys)

A chair is still a chair
Even though there’s no-one sitting there
But a chair is not a house
And a house is not a home
When there’s no-one there to hold you tight
And no-one there you can kiss goodnight

A room is still a room
Even though there’s nothing there but gloom
But a room is not a house
And a house is not a home
When the two of us are far apart
And one of us has a broken heart

Now and then I call your name
And suddenly your face appears
But it’s just a crazy game
When it ends, it ends in tears

Darling, have a heart
Don’t let one mistake keep us apart
I’m not meant to live alone
Turn this house into a home
When I climb the stairs
And turn the key
Oh, please be there
Still in love with me...

BUT BEAUTIFUL...
(Song written by : Jimmy Van Heusen, Johnny Burke)
(Wim's favourite version is sung by : Shirley Horn)

Love is funny, or it`s sad,
Or it`s quiet, or it`s mad.
It`s a good thing, or it`s bad,
But beautiful...

Beautiful to take a chance
And if you fall, you fall,
And I`m thinking,
I wouldn`t mind at all.

Love is tearful, or it`s gay,
It`s a problem, or it`s play.
It`s a heartache either way,
But beautiful...

And I`m thinking, if you were mine,
I`d never let you go.
And that would be but beautiful,
I know!

ALGUIEN ME DIJO UN DIA...
(Written by Adan Pedroso)

Alguien me dijo un día con mucha sinceridad,
el amor toca la puerta solo una vez, nada más
Y si bien no lo aprovechas
por siempre solo estarás
Alguien me dijo un día que el amor era verdad...
Alguien me dijo un día que el amor existía
el amor existía, alguien me dijo un día

Alguien me dijo un día con certeza y claridad,
que si es pura la semilla, fuerte el arbol crecerá
y aun si arrecia la tormenta firme premanecera
no hay herida aunque profunda
que el amor no sanará (repeat chorus, red part)

Alguien me dijo un día lejano a la hipocrecía,
que como un hombre en el mundo
vivir sin amor podría
como sino por amor, puede un hombre pisar tierra
seamos todos felices y que se acabe la guerra (repeat chorus)

Alguien me dijo un día que al final después de amar
viviran bien los que estilen
sembrarle a la vida un beso
a un lado dolor y engaño
se haga el amor, se haga el verso...
Alguien me dijo un buen dia que es salud vivir por eso...

WHERE DO YOU START
(Music: Johnny Mandel / Lyrics: Alan & Marilyn Bergman)
(Wim's favourite version is sung by : Tony Bennett)

Where do you start?
How do you separate the present from the past?
How do you deal with all the things you thought would last,
That didn't last?
With bits of memories scattered here and there,
I look around and don't know where to start.

Which books are yours?
Which tapes and dreams belong to you and which are mine?
Our lives are tangled like the branches of a vine,
That intertwine.
So many habits that we'll have to break.
And yesterdays we'll have to take apart.

One day there'll be a song or something in the air again
To catch me by surprise and you'll be there again,
a moment in
what might have been.

Where do you start?
Do you allow yourself a little time to cry...
Or do you close your eyes and kiss it all goodbye?
I guess you try.
And though I don't know where and don't know when
I'll find myself in love again.
I promise there will always be
A little place no-one will see,
A tiny part deep in my heart
That stays in love
With you...

LA VALSE DES LILAS
(Musique: Michel Legrand & Eddie Barclay, 1955)
(Paroles en français : Eddie Marnay)
(English version = "Once Upon a Summertime", lyrics by Johnny Mercer)

On ne peut pas vivre ainsi que tu le fais
D'un souvenir qui n'est plus qu'un regret
Sans un ami et sans autre secret
Qu'un peu de larmes.
Pour ces quelques pages de mélancolie
Tu as fermé le livre de ta vie
Et tu as cru que tout était fini...

... Mais tous les lilas,
Tous les lilas de mai
N'en finiront,
N'en finiront jamais
De faire la fête au cœur des gens
qui s'aiment, s'aiment, s'aiment.
Tant que tournera,
Que tournera le temps
Jusqu'au dernier,
Jusqu'au dernier printemps
Le ciel aura,
Le ciel aura vingt ans
Les amoureux en auront tout autant...

Si tu vois les jours se perdre au fond des nuits,
Les souvenirs abandonner ta vie,
C'est qu'ils ne peuvent rien contre l'oubli...

... Mais tous les lilas,
Tous les lilas de mai
N'en finiront,
N'en finiront jamais
De faire la fête au cœur des gens
qui s'aiment, s'aiment, s'aiment.
Tant que tournera,
Que tournera le temps
Jusqu'au dernier,
Jusqu'au dernier printemps
Le ciel aura,
Le ciel aura vingt ans
Les amoureux en auront tout autant...

ESTATE  (Summer)

(Written by: Brighenti - Bruno Martino)

Estate
Sei calda come i baci che ho perduto
Sei piena di un amore che è passato
Che il cuore mio vorrebbe cancellar

Odio l'estate
Il sole che ogni giorno ci scaldava
Che splendidi tramonti dipingeva
Adesso brucia solo con furor

Tornerà un altro inverno
Cadranno mille petali di rose
La neve coprirà tutte le cose
E forse un po' di pace tornerà...

Odio l'estate
Che ha dato il suo profumo ad ogni fiore
L' estate che ha creato il nostro amore
Per farmi poi morire di dolor

Odio l'estate ...

HERE 'S TO LIFE
(Lyrics by Phyllis Molinary, Music by Artie Butler)
(Original & best version by Shirley Horn) (title song of her Grammy Award winning album)

No complaints and no regrets
I still believe in chasing dreams and placing bets
And I have learned that all you give is all you get
So give it all you've got

I had my share, I drank my fill
And even though I'm satisfied, I'm hungry still
To see what's down another road, beyond a hill
And do it all again

So here's to life
And every joy it brings
Here's to life
To dreamers and their dreams...

Funny how the time just flies
How love can go from warm hello's to sad goodbyes
And leave you with the memories you've memorized
To keep your winters warm

But there's no yes in yesterday
And who knows what tomorrow brings, or takes away
As long as I'm still in the game, I want to play
For laughs, for life, for love

So here's to life
And every joy it brings
Here's to life
To dreamers and their dreams

May all your storms be weathered
And all that's good get better
Here's to life
Here's to love
Here's to you

YOU MUST BELIEVE IN SPRING
(Music by Michel Legrand / Lyrics by Alan & Marilyn Bergman)
(Wim's favourite version is sung by : Tony Bennett)

When lonely feelings chill
The meadows of your mind,
Just think if winter comes,
Can spring be far behind?

Beneath the deepest snows,
The secret of a rose
Is merely that it knows
You must believe in spring

Just as a tree is sure
Its leaves will reappear
It knows its emptiness
Is just the time of year

The frozen mountains dreams
Of April's melting streams
How crystal clear it seems
You must believe in spring

You must believe in love
And trust it's on its way
Just as the sleeping rose
Awaits the kiss of May

So, in a world of snow
Of things that come and go,
Where what you think you know,
You can't be certain of,
You must believe in spring and love