I’m sure you’ve all seen this commercial by now.
I learned this song when I was in 3rd grade choir. It’s so peppy. But do you know what it means? My sister and I were wondering that so we looked it up. This is what we found.
- Alouette, gentille Alouette
- Lark, nice lark
- Alouette, je te plumerai
- Lark, I shall pluck you
- Je te plumerai la tête
- I shall pluck your head
- (Je te plumerai la tête)
- (I shall pluck your head)
- Et la tête
- And your head
- (Et la tête)
- (And your head)
- Alouette
- Lark
- (Alouette)
- (Lark)
- O-o-o-oh
- Alouette, gentille Alouette
- Alouette, je te plumerai
- Je te plumerai le bec
- I shall pluck your beak
- (Je te plumerai le bec)
- Et le bec
- (Et le bec)
- Et la tête
- (Et la tête)
- Alouette
- (Alouette)
- O-o-o-oh
The song continues in this fashion, with the italicized phrase (a part of the bird) in each verse being substituted with a new one, with the previous items being recited at the end:
-
- Et le cou
- And your neck
- Et le dos
- And your back
- Et les ailes
- And your wings
- Et les pattes
- And your feet
- Et la queue
- And your tail
- La Conclusion
- The Ending
O-o-o-o-oh
- Alouette, gentille Alouette
- Lark, nice lark
- Alouette, je te plumerai
- Lark, I shall pluck you
Naturally, the literal English translation does not match up well with the meter of the song, so a slightly less literal (but more singable) version would be:
- Little skylark, lovely little skylark
- Little lark, I’ll pluck your feathers off
- I’ll pluck the feathers off your head
- I’ll pluck the feathers off your head
- Off your head – off your head
- Little lark, little lark
- O-o-o-o-oh
And adding:
- Off your beak
- Off your neck
- Off your back
- Off your wings
- Off your feet
- Off your tail
Not exactly what you’d think huh! I guess it’s true that all things sound better in French. Just thought this was funny. Still trying to figure out what the song has to do with the Target commercial!
