SONG OF THE DAY
“Foux du FaFa” – Flight of the Conchords (Flight of the Conchords, Sub Pop, 2008). Written by Jemaine Clement and Bret McKenzie.
INTERESTING FACTS (from wikipedia)
– This is FOTC’s debut full-length studio, and also serves as the soundtrack for the 1st season of their show on HBO.
– The visuals that accompany this song are in the style of a 1960s Scopitone music video.
– This song appears in “Girlfriends,” the eighth episode of the first season of the show, which first aired in the United States on Sunday, August 5, 2007.
MY TAKE
This song came out right around the time I was learning French for graduate school. I loved it so much because it was making fun of learning a language and I could certainly relate! Finally, I could see the humor in my situation, I could see how silly it was to learn vocabulary for places at school, school supplies and grocery shopping before learning actually useful phrases in a language. I have taken Chinese, Latin, Italian, French and Spanish now, and the romance languages always start out teaching the silliest vocabulary. Clothing, body parts, grocery shopping, etc. Nothing that would help you travel or research or speak conversationally [you know, USEFUL knowledge].
Incidentally, the song actually helped me learn some French vocabulary, believe it or not. And in a quick and humorous and easy way! If they just taught the lyrics to this song in school, students could have beginner’s French down in a flash!
THE LYRICS
Jemaine: Je voudrais un croissant [I would like a croissant]
J: Je suis enchanté [I am enchanted]
J: Où est le bibliothèque? [Where is the library?]
J: Voila mon passport [Here is my passport]
J: Ah, Gérard Depardieu
J: Baguette
Bret and Jemaine: Onh honh honh
Bret: Baguette! Onh honh honh [laughter à la Maurice Chevalier]
B: Ba Ba ba-ba Bow!
All: Foux de fa fa
Foux de fa fa fa fa-ah
Foux de fa fa
Ah ee ah
Foux de fa fa
Foux de fa fa fa fa-ah
Foux de fa fa
Ah ee ah
B: Et maintenant le voyage à la supermarché! [And now the trip to the supermarket!]
B: Pamplemousse [Grapefruit]
B: Ananas [Pineapple]
B: Jus d’orange [Orange juice]
B: Boeuf [Beef]
B: Soup du jour [Soup of the day]
B: Camembert
B: Jacques Cousteau
B: Baguette!
J: Bonjour [Hello]
Felicia: Bonjour [Hello]
J: Bonjour [Hello]
F: Bonjour, monsieur [Hello, mister]
J: Bonjour, mon petit bureau de change [Hello, my little money changer]
Lisa: Ca va? [How are you?]
B: Ca va. {I’m fine.]
B: Ca va? [How are you?]
L: Ca va. [I’m fine.]
B: Voila – le conversation dans le parc. [There it is – the conversation in the park.]
F: Ou est le livre? [Where is the book?]
J: En la bibliothque. [At the library.]
F: Et le musique dance? [And the dance music?]
J: En la discothèque. [At the discotheque.]
F: En la discothèque [At the discotheque.]
J: C’est ci, baby! [That’s it, baby!]
J: Un, deux, un deux trois quatre [One, two, one two three four]
B: Ba ba ba-ba bow!
All: Foux de fa fa
Foux de fa fa fa fa-ah
Foux de fa fa
Ah ee ah
Foux de fa fa
Foux de fa fa fa fa-ah
Foux de fa fa
Ah ee ah
F: Ou est le piscine? [Where is the swimming pool?]
J: Pardon moi? [Pardon me?]
F: Ou est le piscine? [Where is the swimming pool?]
J: Uh…
F: Splish splash
J: Uh…
F: Eh…
J: Je ne comprends pas. [I don’t understand/]
F: Parlez-vous le français? [Do you speak French?]
J: Eh?
F: Parlez-vous le français? [Do you speak French?]
J: Uh…non. [Uh…no.]
F: Hmmm.
All: Foux de fa fa
Foux de fa fa fa fa-ah
Foux de fa fa
Ah ee ah
Foux de fa fa
Foux de fa fa fa fa-ah
Foux de fa fa
Ah ee ah
Ba ba ba-ba bow!