la boheme

aznavour/kretzmer/plante

Let me tell of a time
when the world was in rhyme with the sound of our laughter
Montmartre shone above
for forbidden hours of hunger and of love
Unaware in our youth of the sobering truth
of the years that came after
We laughed at other men for we were heroes then
and heaven smiled above

La boheme, la boheme
Oh hungry you, oh hungry me
La boheme, la boheme
See the old world that could not see

All those innocent hearts
who imagined their arts could be casually mastered
I miss them every one
for the sands of time have run away for each and all
But it seems that our dreams were impossible schemes
that could never have lasted
for when we walked at last the great parade had passed
and spring had lost its way

La boheme, la boheme
Someone to care, someone to mind
La boheme, la boheme
We were in love and love is blind

Now and then I return
and the memories burn with a bittersweet aching
I climb the same old stairs
but no-one longer cares
and there's no-one left to great
in the streets where we walked and the bars where we talked
of a world we were making
I stand upon that hill until I drink my fill
and leave it all behind

La boheme, la boheme
Moments of joy, moments of pain
La boheme, la boheme
Nothing can bring them back again