The Fifty // Sixty lyrics, translation, theme, explanation, and interpretation thread
 

I thought that a lot of people would benefit from easily being able to access the literary analysis that many of us have done, and though this is all buried in the Fifty // Sixty thread, it's easier to find things at the top. I'm going to continue work on these things, and any contributions are welcome. Note that this thread should not be for discussing the single, but rather the aspects of the lyrics instead.

I'd especially welcome help with the starred lines, I don't quite understand what relevance they have. Additionally, why is the song title Fifty // Sixty so important? Where the fifties and sixties the duration of the relationship?

Also, note that any interpretations made in this are from the point of view of this song.

I'm still trying to improve everything here, but if you must grab it and post it somewhere else, please make sure that you always give credit where credit is due. Those who worked so hard to help are:

Cindy
espire
mAfqA
Deepwaters
Toc De Mac
RMJ
(if I've forgotten you, let me know!)


Fifty // Sixty lyrics, transcribed by Cindy and anonymous

Pretty sixteen,
Belle héroïne des sixties,
Tu te dandines,
T'es divine,
Quand tu danses,
Dans les yeux d'Andy...

Adieu bebop,
Plus au top,
C'est le pop-art,
Qui te sape,
À la trappe,
Pop-corn et hula hoop...

Rêve de gloire et de fortune,
Chic en Chanel, amour et toujours glamour,
Aux expos tu poses et t'exposes,
À 400ASA tu oses toutes les poses...

Fifty sixty,
Né en cinquante,
Sexy soixante,
Si excitante,
S’extasie
Candide elle croit, tout ce qu’Andy,
Qu'Andy dit d'elle,
Qu’elle est la plus belle
De toutes les modeles...

Comme une icône,
Sous le Nikon tu tournes,
La tête au velvet et Nico
Te voudrais, loin de Lou Reed
À East Village
On est tous jeune
Emmene moi, taxi jaune
La d'où vient la légende

Rêve de gloire et de fortune,
Chic en Chanel, amour sera toujours glamour,
Je te regarde en polaroid,
Tu sais le temps n'a pas pris une ride

Fifty sixty,
Né en cinquante,
Sexy soixante,
Si excitante,
S’extasie
Candide elle croit, tout ce qu'on dit
Ce qu'on dit d'elle
Qu’elle est la plus belle
De tout les modeles...

Le flower power est mort sur le dance floor
L'electro, le pop n'existe pas encore
Avec l'age de rocker, on a changé d'époque
Le rock roule en roller, la pop est en cloque

Le flower power est mort de sa belle mort
New wave et techno n'existent pas encore
Vas-y joue le ton dernier role, n'est plus la modele
Mais tu danses encore dans les yeux d'Andy

Fifty sixty,
Né en cinquante,
Sexy soixante,
Si excitante,
S’extasie
Candide elle croit, tout ce qu'on dit
Ce qu'on dit d'elle
Qu’elle est la plus belle
(La plus belle)

Fifty sixty,
Né en cinquante,
Sexy soixante,
Si excitante,
S’extasie
Candide elle croit, tout ce qu'on dit
Ce qu'on dit d'elle
Qu’elle est la plus belle
de tous les modeles...


Fifty // Sixty, translated by espire, with help from Toc De Mac and RMJ

Pretty Sixteen
Beauty of the sixties
The way you move, you're divine
When you dance
In Andy's eyes

Goodbye bebop,
On the top,
It's pop-art,
That runs you down,
To the trap,
Popcorn and hula hoops

Dream of glory and fortune,
Chic in Chanel, love is always glamourous,
For exposures you pose and expose yourself,
In 400ASA you dare every pose...

Fifty sixty
Born in the fifties
Sexy sixty
So excited
She's in ecstasy
Foolishly she believes all that Andy
That Andy tells her
That she's the most beautiful
Of all the models...

Like an icon,
You turn by the Nikon
The head on the velvet and Nico
Wants you far away from Lou Reed
In East Village, New York
We're all young
Take me with you, yellow taxi
To the place of your legend

Dream of fame and fortune,
Chic in Chanel, love will always be glamourous,
I look you in polaroid,
You know that time hasn't changed a thing

Fifty sixty
Born in the fifties
Sexy sixty
So excited
She's in ecstasy
Foolishly she believes all that we say
What we say about her,
That she's the most beautiful
Of all the models...

Flower power died on the dance floor
Electronic and punk exist no more
With the age of rock, time was changed
Rock rolls on rollers, pop's been knocked

Flower power died a good death
New wave and techno exist no more
Go play your last role, no longer the model
Yet you still dance in Andy's eyes

Fifty sixty
Born in the fifties
Sexy sixty
So excited
She's in ecstasy
Foolishly she believes all that we say
What we say about her,
That she's the most beautiful
(The most beautiful)

Fifty sixty
Born in the fifties
Sexy sixty
So excited
She's in ecstasy
Foolishly she believes, all that we say
What we say about her,
That she's the most beautiful
Of all the models...


Fifty // Sixty's theme, by mAfqA, Deepwaters, and espire

This song is about Andy Warhol, an artist in film, photography, and many other aspects, and his relationship with Edith "Edie" Sedgwick. She was featured in many of Andy's short films, and he called her his "superstar." They were often seen together. Edie Sedgwick was born in 1943, which would make her sixteen years old in 1959. A movie called "Factory Girl" was made, portraying the relationship between the two. It shows how Andy Warhol promised to make her a star, her rise to fame, and her eventual descent into obscurity.

:confused:

I feel that we shouldn't cause any upset for any Mylene fans here as they can be very over protective. Well atleast until we truly know the facts.
I'm just trying to help you out espire.;)
Anyway Alizée is showing us her true artistic talent in this song, it's quite ingenious of her, so STFU to all the naysayers!

*eats his words*

So this song is a way for Alizee to express her displeasure with Mylene Farmer? Thought they were tight, hmmm little do we know. Guess there was alot of friction there and maybe jealousy between the two

I bet it all stems from that "baby farmer" tag Alizee couldn't escape from so what better way to escape from it than to drop Mylene Farmer from the team.

Mylene and Alizee had a bit of a falling out and the song is the result. This is sad and very enlightening. Thanks Espire! you the man! :) It all makes perfect sense now

This is typical of mentor and student...it happens people. What we got here is a little catfight between two women, lol

Thanks for the info guys :)

You know, I think it's worth pointing out that "Andy" may also serve as a potential reference to Laurent. Mylène and Alizée weren't the only two in the "JBG" team.

:o I overlooked that small detail, well I believe your analysis is correct.

That's kind of circular. It's assuming the song really is about Mylene and Alizee, which may seem obvious to us but could be a case of interpretation bias. It's based on an assumption. Take that away and the whole meaning changes.

Besides, according to another rumor Alizee doesn't want to sing songs filled with double meanings anymore, so a cigar could just be a cigar and a song about Edie Sedgwick could just be a song about Edie Sedgwick. It wouldn't be the first. As Kozmo on MFI pointed out, "it joins the likes of Velvet Underground, Edie Brickell and the New Bohemians, and The Cult with tribute songs about her."

Not that I think you're necessarily wrong, I dunno. It just seems strange to justify a conclusion reached by the interpretation of a song with that same interpretation.

You're right that it doesn't HAVE TO be about Alizée's and Mylene's relationship, but imo there are too many parallels that can be drawn between the lyrics and Alizée for it to be just a coincidence. The way the text is written makes it seem very intentional.

That's very true. I was about to ask if we were assuming a little too much.

PS: I feel like I'm nitpicking, but I just want the lyrics to be as correct as possible. If the line "né en cinquante" is referring to Edie, then "né" should have one more "e" on the end. :)

well guys wait for it to be releaseed then interpret it as you like
if you wait you will have more info

If Mylene did neglect Lili then I am pretty pissed off. I don't know if it is true that she did this, but if she did then Mylene will not get any money or respect from me.

Can you imaging how Lili felt? Get to the top, and then your mentor leaves you hanging out to dry. I know how I would feel, and I don't like the idea of Lili going through that.

Do you think this is why Lili took such a long break? Because she was waiting to see if Mylene had anything new for her. When she didn't Lili packed up and left to do her own album with her husband and a new record company. This would have pushed the release back, and could explain why it was 2006 before we got a letter from her discussing the new album.

I'm not sure I'd agree that this song is anti-Mylène. There's another interpretation. 16 years old was just too young to be propelled to stardom like that. She never got a chance to have a normal adolescence. Her meteoric career made her drop out of school and break up with at least one boyfriend. Whether Mylène dropped the ball on her or not, during that partnership Alizée was completely dependent on her, and not in control of her own career. (But then, at 16-18, who is?)

Edie Sedgwick died before she was 30. She was victimized by Warhol, by Bob Dylan, and by the whole star machine. But mostly by her own immaturity.

Alizée, by dropping out for four years to gain some basic life experience, has made sure she can now resume her career as an adult rather than a child. She won't suffer the fate of Sedgwick, or of Marilyn Monroe or Judy Garland or Janis Joplin. She was always strong, but now I sense that she's stronger than ever.

She dropped out in order to grow up, and perhaps in order to let her contract with Mylène, Laurent, and Polydor expire so that she could legally go in a new musical direction. And maybe because Mylène dropped her, but we don't know that, and even if it's true, it was still the right thing for her to do.

Good points Deepwaters. Don't get me wrong guys, I definitly see the parallels to Lili's life in the lyrics, I just wonder how much they're supposed to be what the song is all "about". I mean Edie is still the subject, it's a bit of a stretch to say "ah hah, this is exactly what must have happened to Alizée too" just because their stories resonate.

I agree completely and mentioned this to Moe today in seperate conversation. I think parallels between Alizée and Edie are intentional but that doesn't mean we should read too much of Edie's life/experience into Alizée's. As Mylène knows, a certain amount of ambiguity is a key ingredient a lot of good art. By certain parallels being obvious while others being not-so-obvious or even false, the listener is made more curious, more involved, and more intrigued by what layers of meaning may lie containted within. In that way, it also generates a lot of interest and is therefor good marketing as well ;) Anyway, that's my view on the matter.

Yup, that gives people something to talk about. Things like "she's an adult now and she understands everything", which is mine. :o

I am glad some feel this song isn't Lili talking about her mistreatment by Mylene. It makes me feel better. I will wait until Lili comments on her current relationship with Mylene before I get pissed off at Mylene. I am glad Lili is out on her own now though. It is giving her the ability to develope into her on style.

There's good points here from everyone but it's only speculation that Mylene Farmer screwed Alizée over like Andy Wahol did to Edie Sedgewick. I agree with Tye though and if it is true I hate the thought of it.:(

I don't know if anyone here remembers reading this some time ago on Le'Nid d'Alizée. Alizée had phoned in to a TV show to wish some new singer the best of luck and give them some advice. In her words she said " just don't put all your faith in to showbuissness ". Or was it music bussness? I forget, but those words have been haunting me ever since although I've tried to keep an open mind.

Nevertheless whatever has happened in the past is in the past and I'm sure Alizée has the strength and character to put the negativity behind her and concentrate on the positive aspects of her life and career. That's probably why she took so much time out anyway. :wink:

Alizée is grounded, she has a strong personality a good family and friends that love and take care of her. She's also a fighter she's a Leo like a lion.
If this song is anything to do with Mylene and it has double meanings then it's Alizée's way of hitting back. She's showing everyone {artistically mind you} that she's back with attitude so nobody better get in her way!

Yea don't forget the Corsican philosophy of "Vendetta"....you don't wanna piss off Alizee. I guess Mylene crossed that line and this song is retribution

:rolleyes: I think sometimes... we just try too hard... :p

While it's fun to speculate, I wouldn't put too much stock into any rumors until we've heard either the whole song, or (if it's still inconclusive) from Alizee herself. At this point, I'm inclined to think that the song is just a song. Alizee and Farmer could still be on good terms with one another, and it's simply that Alizee has struck out on her own now that she's an adult. However, if the song is a parallel for bad blood between the two, then I'm sure the details will come out in a subsequent interview in the near future. Gossip sells just as well as art these days, for better or for worse.
Just my 2 cents.
-B

Are you guys ready to POWER BALLAD?!

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I would take the song at face value. It is what it is. :) Then again I love this quote from Hunter Thompson.

"The music business (the biz) is a cruel and shallow money trench, a long plastic hallway where thieves and pimps run free, and good men die like dogs. There's also a negative side." :cool:

HT

http://i107.photobucket.com/albums/m.../thicons-1.png

Nice clip Snatcher42. :D

http://i107.photobucket.com/albums/m...84/small-1.gif

Interesting. Not sure if Alizée wanted talk about her relationship with Mylene in this song but to me the comparasion seems to fit and Mylene DID neglect Alizée during the MCE era... anways going to watch the movie "The Factory Girl" :)

When you say that Mylene DID neglect her, do you care to elaborate? I don't know much about it, and if you could tell me a little bit of the details of how much Mylene neglected Lili I would be appreciative.

My translation of the song (well, the refrain has some influence from the older clip translation. Didn't see any need to change that part really):




Fifty Sixty



Pretty sixteen,
Belle héroïne des sixties,
Tu te dandines,
T'es divine,
Quand tu danses,
Dans les yeux d'Andy...

Adieu bebop,
Plus au top,
C'est le pop-art,
Qui te sape,
À la trappe,
Pop-corn et hula hoop...

Rêve de gloire et de fortune,
Chic en Chanel, amour et toujours glamour,
Aux expos tu poses et t'exposes,
À 400ASA tu oses toutes les poses...

Fifty sixty,
Né en cinquante,
Sexy soixante,
Si excitante,
S’extasie
Candide elle croit, tout ce qu’Andy,
Qu'Andy dit d'elle,
Qu’elle est la plus belle
De toutes les modeles




Pretty sixteen,
Beautiful heroine of the sixties,
You hip-swaying,
You are divine,
When you dance,
In the eyes of Andy...

Goodbye bebop,
On the top,
It's pop-art,
That runs you down,
To the trap,
Pop-corn and hula hoop...

Dream of glory and fortune,
Chic in Chanel, love and always glamour,
At exhibitions you pose and expose youself,
To 400ASA you dare all the poses...

Fifty sixty,
Born in the fifties,
Sexy sixties,
So excited,
On ecstasy,
Foolishly she believes, all that Andy,
That Andy tells to her,
That she's the most beautiful
Of all the models

well, the fact that MCE wasn't as successful as Gourmandises shows it. Anything Mylene touches would be a hit and a success, however this wasn't the case with MCE which means something must have gone wrong (Mylene preparing her own solo album, she probably focused on her own work more than Alizée's). Also how Mylene made a lot of money off Alizée and she kinda neglected her after since she got what she wanted.

Alizée had a meteoric rise as a result of Mylene's tutelage (as well as her own talent). Who knows what happened after. We have heard opinions that the record company told her to pause, and opinions that she had a falling out with Mylene. We also know that concert ticket sales were not as great as had been hoped (Imagine how she must have felt when the crowds were different and less than she expected). Perhaps there was a sense that the energy was waning, and that she needed to go in another direction. Perhaps Jeremys introduction caused a loss of focus. Perhaps Mylene could read the writing on the wall (if there was writing on the wall). Perhaps Alizée wanted to express herself in a way that Mylene would not condone. Who knows the actual reasons for the pause (possibly all of the above contributed)?
</O:p
The bottom line is that she is now clear to pursue her own direction. If she feels somehow slighted by anyone (and I would be amazed if she didn’t), it will likely come out in time. Meanwhile, I can’t wait for the album.

If she did neglect Lili after she got some money from her then that is very sad. I hope Lili explains why she split from Mylene, not that I am complaining, because I think it is a good thing.

RMJ, thanks for posting your translation, I like the way you wrote "runs you down." I'll stick that in mine (and feel free to use my elements in yours).

Is it possible that the song is refering to her elationship with Jeremy and that maybe it isn't going so good? I am sure Jeremy said all kinds of encouraging and sweet things when they first met, and then after he got her and a kid he started neglecting her and treating her bad? Kind of like how Andy got what he wanted and then neglected Edie.

I know that it would be hard for her to write a song like that considering he is a part of the team, but maybe she didn't let him know what she was referencing.

This is just creative thought.

dude you guys need to stop jumping to conclusions and assuming all this "negligence" on the part of mylene farmer. first of all lili didn't write the lyrics and second of all, i've seen factory girl and i don't see much resemblance in edie with lili. edie was a troubled girl before she met warhol and warhol was known for replacing his "superstars" all the time. he's famous for saying everyone gets their 15 min. of fame and i don't think that was mylene's mentality with lili. i can't imagine that the song is actually a representation of lili's feelings toward her former producer(s), at most maybe the songwriters are the ones trying to stir things up. but why can't a song be just a song, a tribute to edie instead of a double meaning of mylene's screwover of lili? i think we've been too conditioned by mylene's lyrics and their double meanings but guys mylene's not involved in lili's stuff anymore! maybe a song is just a song.


my prediction:

in every song that's released, we will somehow find references to some tabloid-like issues with things that we speculate could have happened behind closed doors....oooh...i can see it sooooo coming...

Okay, know what everybody? If you'd like to rewrite the paragraph of how the song relates to Alizée's relationship with MF, I will put it up there. I understand your point, and I was rather biased as I wrote it, but I'm not gonna change it unless somebody gives me a replacement or we get any new ideas.

Things are heating up haha :cool:

Um...can we at least wait till we've all listened to the whole song before we start coming to blows about what the song means? :)

I think it is fun to speculate. I am only posting creative thoughts to stir up conversation and keep things fresh. I am not trying to jump to conclusions, because I know this is purely fun speculation.

i am completely lost to Alizée...

Yea mmm well there isn't much logic in why would Alizée choose to sing a tribute song about some deceased american actress as her come back song, especially after all that has happened in her life and the hiatus she's been taken. So now she just comes back to the music scene with a song with a totally random topic as the mark of her comeback... I don't know guys, don't really make sense to me, there must be a reason why she had chosen that song specifically, and I doubt it's the song writters who are telling her to sing it since we all pretty much know that this time she is in control of everything... just my two cents :p

Well, the story of Edie Sedgwick apparently became quite hot last year (e.g., Factory Girl starring Sienna Miller and various other things like her biography and etc.)
http://www.associatedcontent.com/art...ers_meaty.html

It wouldn't be the first time she sang about a movie she liked, right? ;)

I think people might be getting hung up on the idea that it has to be autobiographical and all that. Maybe there's just enough to get you wondering (which would be in keeping with her previous work). If the goal is to stimulate multi-page discussions about the lyrics, then the songwriters will have succeeded. (Not that I know the lyrics, but would we be having an analogous discussion for, say, Lorie's Parti Pour Zouker?)