17. Paris Poem by Arthur Smith

PARIS POEM: Written & read by Arthur Smith.

Rearrangement of Gabriel Gay Re’s Dolly Op56: Berceuse by David Barratt. Accordion - Gary Schreiner

City of Light? The most romantic place on earth? The greatest architectural wonder created by man? 

Possibly, but Paris is not everyone’s cup of cafe au lait.. 

Richard Wagner said of it: “I do not believe in any other revolution save that which begins with the burning down of Paris”. Renound historian Dominic Sandbrook is also not a fan: `”The most overrated city on earth awash in dog excrement, where you often see people urinating in the streets. I had the worst bout of food poisoning in my life in Paris.”

But Arthur Smith loves Paris. It is for him a place of transformation. This is what he wrote about the poem written for and about the city:

ARTHUR SMITH: 

In the summer of 1975 I got dumped by a woman I was in love with. In September I went to Paris as part of my degree. I was an English assistant in a school there and while I had the most brilliant time roaming the great city, there were moments where my heart break returned. I wrote the poem sitting in the Place des Vosges one afternoon and found that writing it helped me finally overcome my sadness. I’ll forward you the chapter I wrote about it in my autobiography. Rainy here…. Arturo 

PARIS POEM

So here we are in Paris in spring

The lovers all love and the clochards all sing

But every morning through the 8 o’clock blue

The postman comes with nothing from you

There is

         The Boulevard St Michelle

             The Rue St Dennis

                   The Champs Elysées

But no you.

So I dip my croissant in my café au lait

I open the window and I call in the day

But in spite of the Seine, the birds, and the sun

It’s no fun in Paris buying garlic for one

There is

        The Rue de La Huchette

                The Louvres (shut on Tuesdays)

                   The Tour St Jacques

But no you

Then I heave myself on the Clignancourt line

And the busker there he sings so fine

That I’m lost in the world of the Metro-men

Til I see you’re not there and it hurts again

There is

         The Boulevard St Germain

             The Musée des beaux-arts (also shut on Tuesdays)

                   The marchée aux puces

But no you

I ain’t gonna live in Paris no more

Get the 9.57 from the Gare Du Nord

But whenever, wherever, the train may go

You won’t be there to kiss me hello

There’ll be

           France

                England

                      America

                             Every place

All of them, without you.Now I’ve drained my last glass and summoned the waiter

I’m back here in Paris and it’s thirty years later

But I know when I’ve walked up the Avenue Kleber

I’ll open the door – and you will be there!

There is

The champ de Mars

The Trocadero

La rue Lauriston

Le tout Paris

All of them

All of them

All of them with you