Strike Lyrics in English by Serge Gainsbourg
Délétère translates to "deleterious" or "harmful." It's a sophisticated and somewhat formal word that isn't commonly found in everyday conversation or pop songs, making it stand out.
In the context of Serge Gainsbourg's lyrics, he uses it to describe love: "Hélas l'amour est délétère" (Alas, love is deleterious). This choice of word immediately conveys a sense of danger and toxicity associated with love, aligning with Gainsbourg's often cynical and provocative style. It's a powerful and memorable descriptor for the destructive side of passion.
Gainsbourg spends 'Strike' boasting about a career of conquests, and it curdles fast. He opens by claiming every kind of woman there is, 'Des british aux niakouées jusqu'aux filles de Perse' [from the British to the niakouées to the girls of Persia], then admits 'Hélas l'amour est délétère' [alas, love is harmful], 'Comme l'éther et les popers' [like ether or poppers], putting romance right next to the drugs he's clearly also had plenty of. The English 'Strike, strike, strike' that interrupts every verse works less like a hook and more like a boxing bell, counting rounds he keeps losing.
By the second verse he's already retreating, 'De mon buncœur j'ai abaissé la herse, sarrasine' [from my heart I lowered the portcullis, Saracen], settling for 'À la solitude aujourd'hui je m'exerce' [today I'm practicing solitude]. After running through blondes, brunettes and redheads, he considers just paying for it, 'L'amour en allongeant quelques sesterces' [love, by handing over a few sesterces], then closes on Jane, gin, and a joke that lands harder than it sounds: 'Empoisonné tel le roi de Perse Artaxerxès' [poisoned like the Persian king Artaxerxes]. It's the usual Gainsbourg move, burying a genuinely bad night in enough history and slang that the punchline sneaks up on you.
