“And the rain falls gently on the town” is the English translation of a verse by Arthur Rimbaud (“il pleut doucement sur la ville“) that Jim Morrison included in a not very popular song of his, “The Hill Dwellers”. When one reads Morrison’s lyrics, it is noticeable that Rimbaud immensely influenced one of the most poetic singers in the history of American music (“The Chrystal Ship” was obviously influenced by Rimbaud’s Le bateau ivre, for instance).
Today, it rained for the first time in the fall season in Durham. Every time it rains, two songs come to my mind: The Beatles’ “Rain” and “The Hill Dwellers”. Since I already dedicated a post to “Rain”, today I wanted to pay homage to one of my favorite bands, The Doors as “the rain falls gently on the town. and over the heads of all of us”…
Il pleure dans mon coeur
Comme il pleut sur la ville ;
Quelle est cette langueur
Qui pénètre mon coeur ?
Ô bruit doux de la pluie
Par terre et sur les toits !
Pour un coeur qui s’ennuie,
Ô le chant de la pluie !
Il pleure sans raison
Dans ce coeur qui s’écoeure.
Quoi ! nulle trahison ?…
Ce deuil est sans raison.
C’est bien la pire peine
De ne savoir pourquoi
Sans amour et sans haine
Mon coeur a tant de peine ! — Paul Verlaine
Yes, Eileen! This poem is beautiful and Rimbaud’s verse is precisely its epigraph, which seems to refer to the difficult relationship he had with Rimbaud.
Oh poets, poets, always creating some poetic trouble all around 😉 …