Le tango stupéfiant [English translation]

After three whole weeks

of unadulterated bliss,

my lover I was so proud of

dumped me on a bleak morning.

To soothe my sorrowful soul

I suddenly decided

to shoot up with morphine

or sniff some snow.

Now all these things ain't cheap,

so to escape my dark fate:

I smoked some eucalyptus,

and now I'm drifting away,

smoking like a locomotive.

A stony grin on my lips,

I smoked some eucalyptus.

Since then my tortured soul

knew nothing but terrible days;

Desire street was blocked

by the rubble of our great love.

I could have, with an affectionate hand,

cut up the traitor to tiny bits,

glued him together again1

and cut him all over again.

But I just loved the brute too much.

So, to avoid hurting him:

I sniffed some naphtaline,

hair crazed, eyes messed-up2.

I started stuffing

whole balls into my nostrils.

I sniffed some naphtaline.

Sweet Mother of God, what did I do?

The result is astounding3

Instead of lifting one off my shoulders,

that put a weight on my stomach.

I had to take some charcoal4

that turned my tongue all black.

What was I poor wretch to do?

I tried another release.

The worst is, I really got into the groove

and once you're in the groove it ain't groovy anymore5

I shoot up with bleach

to forget about the one I love.

I grab the syringe

and I even drink some,

and then I feel ten feet tall !

I shoot up with bleach

I shoot up with bleach.

1. with a popular strong glue of the era2. the adjectives inversion is intentional3. another pun on "stupéfiant" as in the title4. here again, of some famous brand of the era5. lit. "and it's too bad when you got into the habit" but the sentence is just made to sound funny

• Artist:Marie Dubas