Music Monday: Waterloo by ABBA (French Version)

[Updated May 7, 2025]

Now playing on my French song playlist:

Title: Waterloo
Songwriters: Benny Andersson, Björn Ulvaeus, Stig Anderson, and Alain Boublil
Performed by ABBA

Lyrics I like:

À Waterloo, Napoléon a dû se rendre
Et moi
Je crois que mon destin
Prend aujourd’hui le même chemin
Les livres d’histoire et la vie
Racontent la même comédie
Waterloo, tu est vainqueur et je perds la guerre

Translation:

At Waterloo, Napoleon had to surrender
And me
I believe my destiny
Takes the same path today
History books and life
Tell the same comedy
Waterloo, you are the victor and I lose the war

🎶

music & lyrics | all rights reserved

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I love how the song uses, as an analogy for love, the Battle of Waterloo, which marked the end of the Napoleonic Wars in a battle fought near Brussels, Belgium on June 18, 1815. The singer professes their love as a defeat in a way that means they’ve surrendered to the object of their affection.

I grew up listening to ABBA since my mother was a big fan and she owned all of their LPs, but I only recently learned of the French version of “Waterloo.” ABBA also recorded versions in their native Swedish, as well as in English and German. The English version won the 1974 Eurovision Song Contest and is featured in the musical, MAMMA MIA!, as well as the musical movie adaptations. When it came to San Francisco in 2001, it made me laugh and sing out loud!

Here I go again

I got to experience it again when it returned to the Orpheum Theatre as part of the musical’s 25th Anniversary Tour.

High school musical

My younger daughter, Mia, was part of her high school’s stage crew for their recent MAMMA MIA! production. As Mia’s mamma, I happily contributed several blouses, dresses, and ruanas, which were used as costumes by the cast (see photo below):

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Until next Music Monday, have a good week ahead. ☀️

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Thank You for the Music… and for reading Bonjour: A Francophile Blog!