# Rock songs with non-English lyrics? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** music\ **Created:** [January 31, 2003, 4:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rock-songs-with-non-english-lyrics/151804 "2003-01-31T04:16:06Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Sam\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Sam\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_Stone)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2003, 6:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rock-songs-with-non-english-lyrics/151804/21 "2003-01-31T06:52:57Z")
**Warren Zevon** since an entire song, _Laissez-Moi Tranquille_, in French on “My Ride’s Here”. ---
**Author:** ![Sam\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Sam\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_Stone)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2003, 6:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rock-songs-with-non-english-lyrics/151804/22 "2003-01-31T06:55:28Z")
‘since’? Er, ‘Sings’. ---
**Author:** ![Junior\_Spaceman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/eb8c5e/32.png) [@Junior\_Spaceman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Junior_Spaceman)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2003, 7:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rock-songs-with-non-english-lyrics/151804/23 "2003-01-31T07:01:29Z")
**Rush** threw in some French in their great track _Circumstances_ “_Plus Ca Change …_” (OK, I can’t remember what the whole line is, but Geddy helpfully follows it with “The more that things change, the more they stay the same”, which I think is the translation). Half of **Leonard Cohen** ’s song _The Patriot_ is in French (actually, it’s a cover - I’m trying to find whether the original is all French, or all English, or a combination). Now that I think about it, in a live version of _Bird On A Wire_, he also begins it off with some French. Something about Canadians, I guess 😉 ---
**Author:** ![greenphan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/c37758/32.png) [@greenphan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/greenphan)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2003, 7:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rock-songs-with-non-english-lyrics/151804/24 "2003-01-31T07:22:16Z")
The Talking Head’s “Pyscho Killer” has a couple of lines of French during the chorus. ---
**Author:** ![Kamino\_Neko](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kamino_neko/32/34_2.png) [@Kamino\_Neko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kamino_Neko)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2003, 8:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rock-songs-with-non-english-lyrics/151804/25 "2003-01-31T08:46:09Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Polycarp \* > **The execrable but often played on oldies stations “Sukiyaki” by Kyu Sakamoto was allegedly in Japanese** Kyu Sakamoto is Japanese and the song was popular in Japan (Under its original title Ue o Muite Arukoo (I look up when I walk)) before it was in the US, so…I suspect it’s indeed in Japanese. And if you include bands/singers from non-English-speaking nations, you’ll find a lot of non-English rock. I’ve got a number of Japanese rock songs (and a much, much larger number of Japanese pop songs) hanging around - while a large proportion have some English lyrics, and a handful are completely in English, 99% are at least mostly in Japanese. Sadly, save for Sukiyaki, Japanese popular music doesn’t make much headway over here, so I’m not sure most of it counts, for this question. ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Bas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9dc877/32.png) [@Mr.Bas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Bas)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2003, 11:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rock-songs-with-non-english-lyrics/151804/26 "2003-01-31T11:14:12Z")
The pixies have some songs in Spanish. Ofcourse, Rammstein sings in German, but I think it’s better to exclude foreign bands who sing in their native language… Mmm… It’s pretty hard. I can think of a few, but those probably don’t even qualify as songs: …And You Will Know Us By The Trail Of Dead - Life is Elsewhere (Japanese, I think) Tool - Die Eier von Satan (German) Tool - Message for Harry Manback (Italian) Bad Religion has a Germanified version of Punk Rock Song… That’s all I can think of for now. ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Blue\_Sky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d26b3c/32.png) [@Mr.Blue\_Sky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Blue_Sky)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2003, 12:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rock-songs-with-non-english-lyrics/151804/27 "2003-01-31T12:28:42Z")
Billy Joel’s “C’etait Toi (you were the one)” has a load of French in it. Rick Springfield’s “Don’t Talk to Strangers” also has a French verse. ---
**Author:** ![Desmostylus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/c57346/32.png) [@Desmostylus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Desmostylus)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2003, 12:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rock-songs-with-non-english-lyrics/151804/28 "2003-01-31T12:45:18Z")
And speaking of gibberish foreign language, does anyone know what Plastic Bertrand’s “Ca plane pour moi” means? ---
**Author:** ![gex\_gex](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/94ad74/32.png) [@gex\_gex](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gex_gex)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2003, 1:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rock-songs-with-non-english-lyrics/151804/29 "2003-01-31T13:36:26Z")
In R.E.M.'s _Talk About The Passion_, Michael Stipe sings “combien du temps?” French for “how much time?” ---
**Author:** ![mogiaw](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d78d45/32.png) [@mogiaw](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mogiaw)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2003, 2:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rock-songs-with-non-english-lyrics/151804/30 "2003-01-31T14:10:54Z")
Do you mean by rockers who usually sing in english? Otherwise there are lots of bands around the world that sing rock songs in their native languages. Noir Desire (french), Rammstein (as mentioned in another post, german), Brainstorm (latvian), Stereototal (though not strictly rock sing in several languages french, german, and turkish i think), Mano Negra (spanish), to name but a few. ---
**Author:** ![Tapioca\_Dextrin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Tapioca\_Dextrin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tapioca_Dextrin)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2003, 2:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rock-songs-with-non-english-lyrics/151804/31 "2003-01-31T14:34:00Z")
The Sugarcubes sometimes sung in Icelandic Hún á heima í húsinu þarna þar heim fyrir utan Grabblar í mold með fingrunum Og munninum, hún er fimm ára (No, I have no idea what that means) ---
**Author:** ![Dryga\_Yes](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/838e76/32.png) [@Dryga\_Yes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dryga_Yes)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2003, 2:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rock-songs-with-non-english-lyrics/151804/32 "2003-01-31T14:37:52Z")
SUPER FURRY ANIMALS! They usually include one or two songs in Welsh on their albums, and one album – _Mwng_ – was sung entirely in welsh. ---
**Author:** ![gallows\_fodder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/8c91f0/32.png) [@gallows\_fodder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gallows_fodder)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2003, 2:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rock-songs-with-non-english-lyrics/151804/33 "2003-01-31T14:48:39Z")
Billy Idol sang “Les Yeux Sans Visage” (eyes without a face). ---
**Author:** ![elfkin477](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a9a28c/32.png) [@elfkin477](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elfkin477)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2003, 4:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rock-songs-with-non-english-lyrics/151804/34 "2003-01-31T16:03:27Z")
Spanish: “What comes around” by Ill Nino “Caress me down” by Sublime “Spanish eyes” by Madonna Then there are artists who often sing in English, though it’s not their native language, while sprinkling in some non-english words, like Ricky Martin and Ace Of Base (although in Ace of Base’s case I think they have some lyrics in French, and they’re Swedish.) ---
**Author:** ![astorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2003, 4:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rock-songs-with-non-english-lyrics/151804/35 "2003-01-31T16:06:21Z")
At the end of Roxy Music’s “Song for Europe,” Bryan Ferry re-sings most of the English lyrics in French: “Tous ces moments de l’echantement, Qui ne reviendront jamais. Et aujourd-hui pour nous, pour nous il n’y a rien A partager sauve le passe.” ---
**Author:** ![Rubystreak](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e5b9ba/32.png) [@Rubystreak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rubystreak)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2003, 4:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rock-songs-with-non-english-lyrics/151804/36 "2003-01-31T16:09:50Z")
Domo Arigato, Mr. Roboto–STYX That’s Amore–Dean Martin The album Sean-Nos Nua by Sinead O’Connor has several songs in Gaelic ---
**Author:** ![skot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b782af/32.png) [@skot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/skot)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2003, 5:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rock-songs-with-non-english-lyrics/151804/37 "2003-01-31T17:05:56Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by dogchow \* > **There’s there 1 really stupid band called Rammtein that had a song called Du Hast. It was all in German** And the reason **Rammstein** is “stupid” would be? Certainly not because they sing in their _native tongue_, German… ---
**Author:** ![roadrunner70](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e19b73/32.png) [@roadrunner70](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/roadrunner70)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2003, 5:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rock-songs-with-non-english-lyrics/151804/38 "2003-01-31T17:11:17Z")
Well, Buh-wheat say dat Rammtein is O-tay. ---
**Author:** ![skot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b782af/32.png) [@skot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/skot)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2003, 5:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rock-songs-with-non-english-lyrics/151804/39 "2003-01-31T17:22:16Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by superbee \* > \*\*Well, Buh-wheat say dat Rammtein is O-tay. \*\* true dat. ---
**Author:** ![Duke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e8c25b/32.png) [@Duke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duke)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2003, 5:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rock-songs-with-non-english-lyrics/151804/40 "2003-01-31T17:26:43Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Dryga\_Yes \* > \*\*SUPER FURRY ANIMALS! > > They usually include one or two songs in Welsh on their albums, and one album – _Mwng_ – was sung entirely in welsh. \*\* Gorky’s Zygotic Munci, Welsh colleagues of the Furries, also have sung often in Welsh. Even the third part of their moniker is Welsh (for “monkey,” of course). [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rock-songs-with-non-english-lyrics/151804.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rock-songs-with-non-english-lyrics/151804.md?page=3)