Goie\' dag grand Jacques !
You walk alone on the Ostend beach.
A beaten dog sky speaks to you flemish
with the taste of an old childhood flavour...
A herd of wild clouds fight the storm
that dwells in your soul ...
Tearing the skin of an unfinished poem .
A wet manuscript that you offer me...
Words written from over there ,
thrown up on a rebel guitar ...
What are you looking for,buddy ?
killing memory to make it fall
into oblivion ?
And pay all the whores of Amsterdam
for a little warmth...
But are you cold grand Jacques ?
This evil wind claws at your chest ...
You who sings of love
that doesn\'t last but must burn ,
without cursing that damn smoke
that after love will lead you to hell...
Grand Jacques ,your magic
is to lay rainbows on boredom ...
Your dreams dying in the sunset
on the lagoon of a Marquise island...
grand Jacques !
Its me : Jeff ! Your friend of misfortune !
You know ,the next time you come back ,
perhaps never and once ...
We\'ll have a beer and a belgian fry
on the seawall with the seagulls !
And we\'ll laugh like before ,
from the days when we had genius...
---------------------------
To Jacques Brel .
Belgian singer and song writer .
( 1929 - 1978 )