Chansons

Three very familiar songs usually sung in French have been called to my attention in the last couple of days:

1. During a peculiar movie caught on cable the other day, schoolchildren sing "Dominique." (The particular scene takes place during the mid-60s in Paris, so that would still have been a fairly current song.)

2. U.S News and World Report describes Karl Rove at a dinner party singing "Alouette" by way of illustrating his lighter side. "Lighter side" is their term, but I can't read it without thinking of the late Dave Berg's regular strips in Mad. (I won't link to the story because a fee is required.)

3. A kid I saw in a drug store today, probably 7 or 8, was trying to sing "Frere Jacques." He sang:

Para yaka, para yaka
Deja vu, deja vu
I am glad to meet you
I am glad to meet you
A-a-men
A-a-men

Weird. Little kids know the phrase "deja vu"?