“Je t’aime…moi non plus” (Meaning: I love you…me neither/neither do I) is the single most famous song of French singer Serge Gainsbourg (1928-1991). Gainsbourg wrote the song in 1967 and initially sang it with Brigitte Bardot. In 1969, Gainsbourg recorded the song with Jane Birkin. Gainsbourg and Birkin’s version of the song was a huge success. The song is known for being controversial with racy and suggestive lyrics.
Je t’aime…moi non plus
Je t’aime…moi non plus song background
Many English speakers around the world simply refer to Je t’aime…moi non plus as the “Je t’aime song“ or the “I love you song”. The song contains off color lyrics and indecent innuendos coupled with heavy breathing and panting. Due to this perceived risqué eroticism, the song was banned in a number of European countries and most notably by the BBC in the United Kingdom.
Je t’aime…moi non plus – French & English Lyrics
Je t’aime, je t’aime
Oh oui, je t’aime
Moi non plus
Oh, mon amour
Comme la vague irrésolue
Je vais, je vais et je viens
Entre tes reins
Je vais et je viens
Entre tes reins
Et je me retiens
I love you, I love
Oh yes, I love you
Me neither
Oh, my love
Like the undecided wave
I’m going, I’m going and I’m coming
Inside you
I’m going and I’m coming
Inside you
And I hold back
Je t’aime, je t’aime
Oh oui, je t’aime
Moi non plus
Oh, mon amour
Tu es la vague, moi l’île nue
Tu vas, tu vas et tu viens
Entre mes reins
Tu vas et tu viens
Entre mes reins
Et je te rejoins
I ove you, I love you
Oh yes, I love you
Me neither
Oh, my love
You’re the wave, me the naked island
You’re going, you’re going and you’re coming
Inside me
You’re going and you’re coming
inside me
And I join you
Je t’aime, je t’aime
Oh oui, je t’aime
Moi non plus
Oh, mon amour
Comme la vague irrésolue
Je vais, je vais et je viens
Entre tes reins
Je vais et je viens
Entre tes reins
Et je me retiens
I love you, I love you
Oh yes, I love you
Me neither
Oh, my love
Like the undecided wave
I’m going, I’m going and I’m coming
Inside you
I’m going and I’m coming
Inside you
And I hold back
Tu vas, tu vas et tu viens
Entre mes reins
Tu vas et tu viens
Entre mes reins
Et je te rejoins
Je t’aime, je t’aime
Oh oui, je t’aime
Moi non plus
You’re going, you’re going and you’re coming
Inside me
You’re going and you’re coming
Inside me
And I join you
I love you, I love you
Oh yes, I love you
Me neither
Oh, mon amour
L’amour physique est sans issue
Je vais, je vais et je viens
Entre tes reins
Je vais et je viens
Je me retiens
Non, maintenant viens
Oh, my love
Physical love is a dead end
I’m going, I’m going and I’m coming
Inside you
I’m going and I’m coming
I’m holding back
No, come now
Lyrics Analysis
Serge Gainsbourg and Jane Birkin sing the song together, alternating lines and verses. Basically, they sing about making love, with references to “going and coming”, holding back and Birkin singing, “Non, maintenant viens” (No, come now) at the end of the song.
Je t’aime, je t’aime
The lines, “Je t’aime, je t’aime“ translate to “I love you, I love you”.
Oh oui, je t’aime
The line translates to “Oh yes, I love you”. In addition to “oui”, this lesson covers many more ways to say yes in French.
Moi non plus
The line “moi non plus” translates to “me neither”. In conversational French, when somebody makes a comment in the negation, for example, “Je n’aime pas le fromage” (I don’t like cheese), the other person can respond with this phrase, “moi non plus” (me neither or neither do I).
Moi non plus is the opposite of “moi aussi“, which translates to “so am I”, “so do I” and “me too”. If somebody says something in the affirmative, for example “J’aime la glace” (I like ice cream), the other person can say “moi aussi” (so do I).
Oh, mon amour
This line translates to “Oh, my love”. The French language is very rich in terms of endearment.
Comme la vague irrésolue
This line translates to “Like the undecided wave”. The adjective irrésolue has multiple translations including dithering (which means undecided), irresolute and unresolved.
We believe the vague irrésolue is a metaphor for Gainsbourg where his ability to continue is undecided and questionable.
Je vais, je vais et je viens
This line translates to “I’m going, I’m going and I’m coming”. Je vais is the first-person singular form of aller (to go). Je viens is the first-person singular form of venir (to come).
Entre tes reins
Many translations of the song’s lyrics translate this line as “Inside you”. The preposition entre means between. The word rein translates to both kidney and lower back.
Et je me retiens
This line translates to “and I hold (myself) back”. The verb retenir means to hold back. The me (to myself) makes the verb reflexive.
Tu es la vague, moi l’île nue
This line translates to “You’re the wave, me the naked island”. Birkin sings this line, referring to Gainsbourg as a “wave” crashing on her, a metaphoric bare island.
Tu vas, tu vas et tu viens
This line translates to “You’re going, you’re going and you’re coming”. Here, Birkin is repeating the same lines Gainsbourg sang in the first verse but in the second-person singular (tu) form.
Et je te rejoins
This line translates to “and I join you”. The verb rejoindre can translate to “to join” or “to meet”. In essence, Birkin is singing that that is an activity that she’s doing together with Gainsbourg.
L’amour physique est sans issue
This line translates to “physical love is a dead end”. This line alludes to the topic of sex as purely physical act. The song was widely criticized for promoting the taboo of physical sex without love.
The song ends with Birkin singing “no, come now”. This line leaves very little to the imagination of the listener in that she’s telling Gainsbourg to now have his climax.
Discover more
- La Décadance (Serge Gainsbourg and Jane Birkin)
- La vie en rose (Edith Piaf)
- Non, je ne regrette rien (Edith Piaf)
- Sous le ciel de Paris (Edith Piaf)
- Ne me quitte pas (Jacques Brel)
- Le Port d’Amsterdam (Jacques Brel)
- La Bohème (Charles Aznavour)
- C’est si bon (Yves Montand)
- Les Feuilles Mortes (Yves Montand)
- La mer (charles Trenet)
