Story Behind The Song
According to a well-founded historical research, the Fulani come from ancient Egypt and have been walking huge regions of Africa ever since, tending their long-horned cattle. Their mysterious way of life, while practically the same for thousands of years,
Song Description
The song was inspired by the Fulani people (Peuls, in French), walking with their cattle on the fringe of an increasing desert. It celebrates the beauty and the courage of the Fulani woman.
| Song Length |
5:04 |
Genre |
World - World Beat, World - African |
| Tempo |
Medium Slow (91 - 110) |
Lead Vocal |
Female Vocal |
| Mood |
Serene, Sociable |
Subject |
Girls, Women, Desert |
| Language |
French |
Era |
2000 and later |
Lyrics
TALATÉ (Hear Ye!)
Talé, taléma (Once upon a time...)
Petite graine africaine (Little African seed)
caroube au goût sucré (sweet-tasting caroub)
tu grandis dans la terre (you're growing in the earth)
un ventre-calebasse (of a calabash-belly)
à l'ombre des palétuviers-papiers (in the shadow of the paper-mangrove)
et des guerres... oubliées (and of forgotten wars)
Talé, taléma
Enfant Han d'Azaouac (First born of the Azaouac tribe)
Tes yeux ne s'ouvrent pas (Your eyes don't care for)
aux abords des marchés (the public marketplace)
il te faut la savane (you need the savannah)
fournaise à l'infini (furnace without an end)
pour voir et du doigt toucher l'arrondi (to see and with your finger touch the curve)
d'un monde... apprivoisé (of a tamed world)
Djillé... (Djillé = this young woman's name)
jeune femme nomade (nomad young woman)
le cercle des chanteurs (the singers' circle)
célèbre ta beauté (celebrates your beauty)
tes dents comme lait frais (your teeth like fresh milk)
ton plus joli collier (are your prettiest necklace)
Djillé, ooohé, Djillé
Et le vent de très loin (and the wind from far away)
apporte ton odeur (carries your scent)
c'est l'odeur de la pluie (it's the smell of the rain)
des premiers jours de mai... (in the first days of May)
Talaté
Talé, taléma
Ancien rêve d'Afrique (Africa's ancient dream)
aux longues cornes blanches (of the long white horns)
la terre ne garde pas (the earth doesn't keep)
l'empreinte de tes pas (any trace of your footprints)
Mais la corde tendue de votre intimité (but the tight string of your closeness)
redessine le visage, Djillé (is redrawing the face, Djillé)
le visage du monde (the face of the world)
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