Tu t'laisses aller

"Tu t'laisses aller" is a song written in 1960 by Armenian-French artist Charles Aznavour.

History

For the first time it was released as a single in 1960 by Barclay Records. In 1974 a new edition was re-released as a single.
The husband drinks alcohol to have the strength to tell his wife everything he thinks about her. He says the worst possible things to her, but then he adds, that a little effort and a smiling face, and things could be just as before. In the end he calls her: "Come close to me. Let yourself go".
It was a no. 1 hit in France in 1960, a best-selling record in Belgium in 1960, and returned to the charts in 1962.
In Jean-Luc Godard's film A Woman Is a Woman, the song plays on a jukebox during a tense encounter between Anna Karina and Jean-Paul Belmondo.
In 1995 Aznavour recorded a version of "Tu t'laisses aller" in duet with Liza Minnelli.

Adaptations

German: "Du läßt dich geh'n", written by Ernst Bader
German: "Alkohol", a new interpretation of "Du läßt dich geh'n" by Abwärts
English: "You've Let Yourself Go", written by Marcel Stellman
English: "You've Let Yourself Go", adaptation by Fred Ebb for Liza with a Z
Dutch: "Mijn ideaal", written by Jip Feldman, song by Corry Brokken

Cover versions