The song lyrics were written by the band Van Halen, as they were asked to write a song for the 1979 movie "Over the Edge" starring Matt Dillon. The movie (and the lyrics, although more obliquely) are about bored, rebellious youth with nothing better to do than get into trouble. If you see the movie, these lyrics will make more sense. It's a great movie if you grew up in the 70s/80s you'll definitely remember some of these characters from your own life. Fun fact, after writing the song, Van Halen decided not to let the movie use it.
It was a teenage wedding, and the old folks wished them well
You could see that Pierre did truly love the mademoiselle
And now the young monsieur and madame have rung the chapel bell
"C'est la vie", say the old folks, it goes to show you never can tell
They furnished off an apartment with a two room Roebuck sale
The coolerator was crammed with TV dinners and ginger ale
But when Pierre found work, the little money comin' worked out well
"C'est la vie", say the old folks, it goes to show you never can tell
They had a hi-fi phono, boy, did they let it blast
Seven hundred little records, all rock, rhythm and jazz
But when the sun went down, the rapid tempo of the music fell
"C'est la vie", say the old folks, it goes to show you never can tell
They bought a souped-up jitney, 'twas a cherry red '53
They drove it down to Orleans to celebrate the anniversary
It was there that Pierre was married to the lovely mademoiselle
"C'est la vie", say the old folks, it goes to show you never can tell
You could see that Pierre did truly love the mademoiselle
And now the young monsieur and madame have rung the chapel bell
"C'est la vie", say the old folks, it goes to show you never can tell
They furnished off an apartment with a two room Roebuck sale
The coolerator was crammed with TV dinners and ginger ale
But when Pierre found work, the little money comin' worked out well
"C'est la vie", say the old folks, it goes to show you never can tell
They had a hi-fi phono, boy, did they let it blast
Seven hundred little records, all rock, rhythm and jazz
But when the sun went down, the rapid tempo of the music fell
"C'est la vie", say the old folks, it goes to show you never can tell
They bought a souped-up jitney, 'twas a cherry red '53
They drove it down to Orleans to celebrate the anniversary
It was there that Pierre was married to the lovely mademoiselle
"C'est la vie", say the old folks, it goes to show you never can tell
Add your thoughts
Log in now to tell us what you think this song means.
Don’t have an account? Create an account with SongMeanings to post comments, submit lyrics, and more. It’s super easy, we promise!
More Featured Meanings
Light Up The Sky
Van Halen
Van Halen
The Night We Met
Lord Huron
Lord Huron
This is a hauntingly beautiful song about introspection, specifically about looking back at a relationship that started bad and ended so poorly, that the narrator wants to go back to the very beginning and tell himself to not even travel down that road. I believe that the relationship started poorly because of the lines:
"Take me back to the night we met:When the night was full of terrors: And your eyes were filled with tears: When you had not touched me yet"
So, the first night was not a great start, but the narrator pursued the relationship and eventually both overcame the rough start to fall in love with each other:
"I had all and then most of you"
Like many relationships that turn sour, it was not a quick decline, but a gradual one where the narrator and their partner fall out of love and gradually grow apart
"Some and now none of you"
Losing someone who was once everything in your world, who you could confide in, tell your secrets to, share all the most intimate parts of your life, to being strangers with that person is probably one of the most painful experiences a person can go through. So Painful, the narrator wants to go back in time and tell himself to not even pursue the relationship.
This was the perfect song for "13 Reasons Why"
Cajun Girl
Little Feat
Little Feat
Overall about difficult moments of disappointment and vulnerability. Having hope and longing, while remaining optimistic for the future. Encourages the belief that with each new morning there is a chance for things to improve.
The chorus offers a glimmer of optimism and a chance at a resolution and redemption in the future.
Captures the rollercoaster of emotions of feeling lost while loving someone who is not there for you, feeling let down and abandoned while waiting for a lover. Lost with no direction, "Now I'm up in the air with the rain in my hair, Nowhere to go, I can go anywhere"
The bridge shows signs of longing and a plea for companionship. The Lyrics express a desire for authentic connection and the importance of Loving someone just as they are. "Just in passing, I'm not asking. That you be anyone but you”
Just A Little Lovin'
Dusty Springfield
Dusty Springfield
I don't think it's necessarily about sex. It's about wanting to start the day with some love and affection. Maybe a warm cuddle. I'm not alone in interpreting it that way! For example:
"'Just a Little Lovin’ is a timeless country song originally recorded by Eddy Arnold in 1954. The song, written by Eddie Miller and Jimmy Campbell, explores the delicate nuances of love and showcases Arnold’s emotive vocals. It delves into the universal theme of love and how even the smallest gesture of affection can have a profound impact on our lives." https://oldtimemusic.com/the-meaning-behind-the-song-just-a-little-lovin-by-eddy-arnold/
Punchline
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran sings about missing his former partner and learning important life lessons in the process on “Punchline.” This track tells a story of battling to get rid of emotions for a former lover, whom he now realized might not have loved him the same way. He’s now caught between accepting that fact and learning life lessons from it and going back to beg her for another chance.
To add to the last comment... it is about a teenage wedding that actually lasted. "C'est la vie" is a french expression that translated in english means "that's life" sometimes it works out and sometimes it doesn't hence you never can tell.
i loved it when mia and vincent danced to this song in pulp fiction! Tarantino always know what music goes best with the movies. KICK ASS.
This is about a teenage couple getting married and staying together. Many of Berry's songs are written from the perspective of young people. This was one of the new batch of hits Berry produced after being released from his 1962-63 prison incarceration. Berry invented a new word for the lyrics: "Coolerator." It means "refrigerator."
@kmk_natasha Chuck Berry did not invent the word "Coolerator." How ridiculous. A Coolerator was once popular brand of refrigerator, made by The Coolerator Company of Duluth, MN. The Coolerator Company began in 1908 as the Duluth Show Case Company. In 1945, the Coolerator Company again began to manufacture refrigerators and freezers. In 1946, the first electrical refrigerators were made... LONG before this song was written or released.<br />
@kmk_natasha My parents had a Coolerator brand "Ice Box" from the middle 1930s until 1951 when it was replaced with an electric Nash Kelvinator (sp?) refrigerator. I remember a card being placed in the kitchen window facing the ally when Ice was needed. A truck from Citizen's Ice driving along the alley would stop and deliver more ice. Water from the melting ice in the ice box would flow via a hose through the kitchen floor to a bucket in the basement directly below the ice box.
I think that none has so far realized that the song is actually about a DEAD COUPLE!!! This can be argued by the sharp contrast between the verbs in the simple past (was... wished... could... fournished... and so on) and the present of the lines
And NOW the young monsieur and madame HAVE RUNG the chapel bell, "C'est la vie", SAY the old folks, it GOES to show you never can tell.
So, the chapel bell is not ringing on their marriage (it would be "and THEN the young Monsieur and Madame RUNG the hapel bell" or the similar) but on their funeral!!! It is way the old folks NOW say "C'est la vie!", now when something bad is happened, because, do not forget!, the expression "C'est la vie" always expresses complaint about something bad but unvoidable.
Guys, that's Chuck Berry, that's Rock'n'Roll!! Irony and double sense are always there! A banal love song about a couple wiho has an happy life is out of place here!
Even more tragical here is that the youg couple dies on their anniversary, while driving back with a brand new car to the place where they got married, a year after... Call no man happy 'till he dies!
Exactly! I thought the same thing, which made me very sad, and I wanted to see if I was the only one who caught that. Another clue is that is says "Pierre loved MADEMOISELLE" calling the girl MADEMOISELLE at the wedding but "And now the young monsieur and MADAME have rung..." - meaning that they were already married when the bell rung, and it was a different event from the wedding. Very ironic and sad song about a happy young couple that started off a great life and died on their anniversary on the way to the place where they first met.
I'm so glad to hear this, Maxl! When I told my friends my explanation of the song, some thought I was a fool… I hope our interpretation will do justice to Chuck's genius! <br /> <br /> All the best, my friend!
You don't have funerals at a chapel, dumass. Chapels are for weddings. A funeral is held at a funeral home or a church. There are so many holes inn that theory it does't even seem like its worth pointing out them all. Especially as they rung the chapel bell is in the first verse, not the las. Not to mention that the wedding is in the past, they have now been married for a year.
MANY holes?! "Funeral chapel" is a common expression, and in any case the song is all based on double entendres... even if you are right, dear Lollipop, what I said is exactly that the song in ambiguous and thus you can have a funeral in a chapel... As regards the second objection, I do not see the point... Hugs, my friend!
@paolobeatles I do not believe there is enough evidence for your interpretation, though it is an interesting one. Berry wrote this song shortly after being imprisoned for transporting a minor over state lines for immoral purposes. The song has more to do with being in love and being married while not doing things the way the previous generation (the old folks) would do them. Instead of being a dull married couple in a house with a sensible car and children, the couple live in an apartment, play Rock and Roll records, and drive a souped up car. Still, although they are eschewing the values of their parents and grandparents, a year later, they're still very much in love.
As mentioned, this song is about a teenage couple that managed to stay together, against the odds. The oldsters who observe this, having expected it to fall apart quickly, are surprised and say "huh, that's life, you never can tell".
This song probably had personal meaning to Chuck Berry. In 1959, he was arrested and imprisoned on trumped up charges of violating the "Mann Act", related to a sexual relationship he allegedly had with an underage girl. This song was written while Berry was in prison.
And no, this song is not about a young couple who have died, as one comment would have it. The use of past tense in the song is just the perspective chosen by the songwriter, nothing more.
@rkpetersen Finally! Someone understands what the song is actually about! Taking the year it was written into account, the song has a lot more to do with the new generation and the burgeoning counterculture than anything else. They did not die. MANY songs are written in past tense!
Pulp Fiction rules.
I really like the Chcuk Berry songs with the one driving rhythm, this is one of those.
great song. Chuck Berry was so 'cool' back in the days, f'real.
Damn... I am not a big english speaker but it seems so obvious:
"But when the sun went down, the rapid tempo of the music fell..."
They had almost everything but no "fun" in the night, dear kids...
@nikolawfe Excuse me??? Young people have plenty of 'fun' in the night. I don't know what the custom is where you're from. Here, at night time, you turn the music down, slow it down, the day is over....it's NIGHT TIME, duh, they aren't jitterbugging around, or off to the races, or painting the living room.
Chuck Berry wrote it and it's been played and played but still has life in it. One thing it says is that not much surprises old people.