Les Divas du Dancing - Translation

Love love this song.



I was a BIG fan of the slower (and arguably sexier), 80s original by Philippe Cataldo but this sultry dance version by Kate Ryan is great too.


Les Divas du Dancing - Lyrics by Philippe Cataldo

Danse
Va tanguer sur le parquet ciré
Les violons ça fait rêver
Les yeux dans les yeux fais les tourner
et fais-toi désirer
Toi qui connais si bien le cœur des femmes
Tous les mots qui les enflamment
Elles qui le temps d'un tango se damnent
Frémissantes et parfumées
Toi, tu sais où les trouver

Dance
Go careening on the waxed parquet flooring
The violins, they make us dream
Eyes meeting eyes, make them spin
And make yourself desired
You who know so well the heart of women
All the words that enflame them
They who in the moment of a tango are damned
Shivering and perfumed
You, you know where to find them

{Refrain:}
Les divas du dancing
Les divas du dancing
Les cinglées du mambo
Celles qu'on ne verra jamais dans les discos
Les fanas du saxo
Les fêlées du paso
Celles qui pensent encore au temps du Mikado
Les divas du dancing
Les divas du dancing

Chorus:
The dancing divas
The dancing divas
The mambo crazed
The women one would never see in the discos
The saxo fans (short for saxophone)
Those mad about paso
Those who still think about the age of the Mikado
The dancing divas
The dancing divas

Danse,
Entends-tu leur désir murmurer
Le bando ça fait rêver
Fais les mourir le temps d'un baiser
Sans l'ombre d'un palmier
Toi qui fais brûler la chair des femmes
Sans jamais donner ton âme
A celles qui sous ton regard se pâment
Frémissantes et parfumées
Toi tu sais où les trouver

Dance,
Can you hear their desire murmuring
The bando makes one dream
Make them die in the moment of a kiss,
Without the shade of a palm tree
You, who can make the flesh of women burn
Without ever giving up your soul
To those who beneath your gaze, swoon
Shivering and perfumed
You, you know where to find them

Les divas du dancing
Les divas du dancing
Corps sérés cœurs glacés
Elles gardent de toi un peu de gomina
Sur le bout de leurs doigts
Quand elles ont caressé
Cette nuque bleue qu'elles aiment embrasser
Les divas du dancing
Les divas du dancing

The dancing divas
The dancing divas
Bodies close, hearts frozen
They'd keep from you a little gomina (hair gel)
At the tip of their fingers
Once they have caressed
This blue nape that they so love to kiss
The dancing divas
The dancing divas

Sans jamais donner ton âme
Sans jamais verser de larmes

Without ever giving your soul
Without ever shedding tears


I preferred hearing Philippe's version of this song because he seemed to sing it to another man.
And my interpretation of the song was that he was reproachful of this other man. The original is not a light hearted song, it has a sexy quality but it is ironic with a touch of fatalism. While he recognised and raved about the other man's exploits, he was also expressing his bitterness and reminding the man that he had no heart. So I took it as meaning that he must have been familiar enough with the man to understand his behaviours and his cold, unfeeling approach to relationships. Overall then, I saw this song as a jaded gay man's expression of jealousy as he watched his ex-lover dance with women.

I'm sure there are many interpretations but that was mine. Complex? Yes.