L'Encre de tes yeux

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"L'Encre de tes yeux"
Francis Cabrel, in 2009
Song by Francis Cabrel
from the album Fragile [fr]
ReleasedMay 1980
StudioStudio Condorcet de Toulouse
GenreChanson, Variety, Folk-pop, Romance
Length3:07
LabelCBS Records
SongwriterFrancis Cabrel
Fragile [fr] chronology
"La Dame de Haute-Savoie [fr]" "L'Encre de tes yeux" "De l'autre côté de toi"
Francis Cabrel - L'encre de tes yeux on YouTube

"L'Encre de tes yeux" is a song by singer-songwriter Francis Cabrel, released as a single from the second track of his 1980 album Fragile [fr].[1] The single sold more than 400,000 copies,[2] and the album sold over one million copies, one of the biggest successes of his career and of French chanson.

History

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The song is a sentimental and poetic ballad with romantic lyrics, inspired by Bob Dylan's 1962 American folk-pop song "Don't Think Twice, It's All Right"[3] about an impossible romantic relationship. A singer from Lot-et-Garonne accompanies Cabrel on acoustic guitar and tells the woman and muse he loves that all his songs are inspired by her smile and the ink of her eyes: "Everything I've written, it's your smile that dictated it... Everything I've written, I drew from the ink of your eyes..."[4][5]

Although Francis Cabrel has taken great care to protect his private life,[6] Fabien Lecœuvre [fr] speculates that this declaration of love is addressed to his wife and muse Mariette Cabrel (to whom he had dedicated three years earlier, at the time of his marriage, his song Petite Marie [fr] from 1977, as well as "Je l'aime à mourir" from 1979).[7] A few years later, in 1980, Francis Cabrel's singing career was in full swing; he was constantly invited to concerts or media appearances, which distanced him from his wife.

Recorded at the Studio Condorcet in Toulouse, this 1980 summer hit was included on the album Fragile [fr], along with another of his major hits, La Dame de Haute-Savoie [fr] which also reflects a certain weariness with his artistic life and the consequences of his sudden fame.[8]

The album cover photo, taken by Jean-Baptiste Mondino, is in black and white[7] and shows Francis Cabrel with his hair blowing in the wind.

The song "L'Encre de tes yeux" was also translated and recorded in Spanish by Francis Cabrel under the title "Todo aquello que escribí" (Everything I've written), achieving some success in Latin America.[7][9]

Chart

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Ranking (1980) Highest
position
 France (IFOP)[10] 5

Covers

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This song has been covered by Yves Duteil (on the album Les plus belles chansons françaises, 1996), Les Enfoirés (in a duo with Patrick Bruel and Céline Dion[11] on the album La Soirée des Enfoirés [fr], 1996), Juliette Gréco (on the album Ils chantent Francis Cabrel, 1998), Patrick Fiori (accompanied by 500 chorus members, 2005), and Chico & the Gypsies (2016).

References

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  1. ^ "L'encre de tes yeux by Francis Cabrel". secondhandsongs.com (in French). Retrieved 1 January 2025.
  2. ^ Ventes de 1980
  3. ^ Bob Dylan - Don't Think Twice, It's All Right on YouTube
  4. ^ "L'encre de tes yeux". www.franciscabrel.com (in French). Retrieved 1 January 2025.
  5. ^ ""L'Encre de tes yeux" de Francis Cabrel, ou l'auteur et sa muse". www.francetvinfo.fr (in French). Retrieved 1 January 2025.
  6. ^ Marc Fourny (30 April 2015). "Francis Cabrel embarrassé sur sa vie privée". Le Point (in French).
  7. ^ a b c Fabien Lecœuvre (2015). "L'Encre de tes yeux". Le petit Lecœuvre illustré. Dictionnaire. Histoire des chansons de A à Z (in French). Éditions du Rocher. p. 201-202.
  8. ^ "Francis Cabrel : les dessous de la chanson "La dame de Haute-Savoie"". Nostalgie (in French). 22 November 2019.
  9. ^ Francis Cabrel - Todo Aquello Que Escribi (version espagnole on YouTube
  10. ^ Click on the year 1980 et the date July 12
  11. ^ "Enfoiréthèque : L'encre de tes yeux". www.enfoires.fr (in French). Retrieved 1 January 2025.
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