Skills of Summer

I Will Not Fall" during the famous scene where Keanu Reeves learns how to surf in the Point Break¹ movie, does it ring any bells? Nope? Well, I would not be surprised if you'd never heard of that great band from San Francisco called Wire Train. They may have toured Europe intensively in the late 1980's and released several albums, sadly, they never made it to the mainstream public as is far-too-often the case with many talented artists. I was fortunate to get to know them and am left with fond memories of good times together, great gigs, and their music left intact — for after all these years, even though all memories fade with time, the magic still works whenever I hear those chiselled guitar riffs and timeless melodies. This French version of the "Skills Of Summer"² has also been written by vocalist Kevin Hunter (foreground, right) who has lived several years in France. It is not an acurate translation of the original lyrics, but it definitely adds a poetic touch to the song. Talking about foreign languages, incidentally Anders Rundblad, the bassplayer (foreground, left) is Swedish — he loves cats and... Johnny Hallyday³. Oops!

Ey@el

L'adresse de l'été

There's a elevator here
Pocket for the rain
Taking all our hearts
Across this river
And back again.
Making all our crosses
Clear of all our skeletons

I can still remember when
God was first you took on Sunday
She said
She said
Burning candles all around her bed
She said
She said
The end of May
We will begin again

It's the skill of summer
It's the new parade
In another season it's the work of faith
Between our harnesses
And harmony
It's the skill of summer
It's the work of faith

We can burn the billboards advertising lite our lies
We can bury ourselves in each others eyes
We can hide our hearts
Hide our hopes and hide our dreams

I can still remember when
God was first you took on Sunday
She said
She said
Burning candles all around her bed
She said
She said
The end of May
We will begin again

It's the skill of summer
It's the new parade
In another season it's the work of faith
Between our harnesses
And harmony
It's the skill of summer
It's the work of faith

Endnotes

1. "I Will Not Fall", Wire Train (1991)
2. "Skills Of Summer", Wire Train (1985)
3. ^ Johnny Hallyday is an icon in the French-speaking world since the beginning of his career, he has been called “the French Elvis”.

Original text by KEVIN HUNTER
© La Pensine Mutine. All rights reserved. Reproduction prohibited.

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