Έχω στενάχωρη καρδιά (Βλαχοπούλου) tr. by Dack (Eng idioms by Halitsky)

Έχω στενάχωρη καρδιά ???
Στίχοι: Γιάννης Δαλιανίδης
Μουσική: Μίμης Πλέσσας
http://www.stixoi.info/stixoi.php?in...s&song_id=3726
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zVbEoZCV1uw
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PxY4DHoPNNk (film version)

Έχω στενάχωρη καρδιά

Απόψε ήρθα για να πιω
λιγάκι παραπάνω.
Τέτοια που είναι η ζωή
τέτοια κι εγώ της κάνω.

Έχω στενάχωρη καρδιά,
σεκλέτια δε χωρούνε
και οι χαρές που καρτερώ
μη σώσουνε και’ ρθούνε.

Είναι βαρύ το βάσανο
του πόνου ανάθεμά το.
Φέρτε χαρμάνικο ποτό
να παν οι πίκρες κάτω.

Έχω στενάχωρη καρδιά...

My Heart Is Sad

Tonight I came to drink -
a little bit more.
When life treats me bad,
I treat it bad right back.

I have a heart that's uneasy
with sorrows it can't hold,
but the joys I'm waiting for
don't care if they come or not.

The pain from all this misery
is heavy, damn it.
Mix me something sweet,
to make the bitterness go down.

Nope!

Her heart is NOT sad!

My Heart Is Sad Tonight I came to drink - a little bit more. When life treats me bad, I treat it bad right back. I have a heart that's uneasy with sorrows it can't hold, but the joys I'm waiting for don't care if they come or not. The pain from all this misery is heavy, damn it. Mix me something sweet, to make the bitterness go down.

I've got a small-space heart I treat it back like this. (by drinking a couple of drinks) I've got a small-space heart sorrows don't fit in there, and about the joys I'm waiting for fill my glass with blend drink, to swallow my bitterness

Thank you Amethystos - but one question.

Is it true that her heart is "small-space" only because she has not yet found a man?

If so, then wouldn't it be OK to translate the title as:

"I've Got a Shrunken Heart" (in other words, her heart has "shrunk" from the absence of men in her life)

(Note: English verb is shrink, adjective form "shrunken". Like "sunken" from "sink" in the phrase "sunken treasure".

Originally Posted by David Halitsky

Thank you Amethystos - but one question.

Is it true that her heart is "small-space" only because she has not yet found a man?

If so, then wouldn't it be OK to translate the title as:

"I've Got a Shrunken Heart" (in other words, her heart has "shrunk" from the absence of men in her life)

(Note: English verb is shrink, adjective form "shrunken". Like "sunken" from "sink" in the phrase "sunken treasure".

Who said about a broken heart?
Who said about a missing man/ person?

These lyrics describe difficulties, agony; things which the person who speaks denies to fit in his heart and thus goes for a drink or two to forget about them. It's so simple!

And no it's small-space,

στενός (Narrow) + χώρος (space)= στενόχωρος or στενάχωρος

You wrote:

"These lyrics describe difficulties, agony; things which the person who speaks denies to fit in his heart and thus goes for a drink or two to forget about them. It's so simple! "

Yes, of course, it's PERFECTLY simple for YOU!! And now that you've explained it, it's perfectly simple for me too! (heh heh heh)

But now I have to think about the translation again, because the "right" translation will get that particular thought across - that she has no room in her heart for sorrows, so she drinks to forget them (to make them go away.)

OK - Amethystos and Duffy - I think we should go with Amethystos' latest version, with three minor changes.

1) "small-space" isn't English at all, but "small-scale" is, and has just about the right meaning, so I think it should be:

"I've got a small-scale heart" (it even kind of sounds good, don't you think?)

2) remember that English MUST have subjects for verbs, so if we go with Amethystos and use:

"about the joys I'm waiting for" instead of "but the joys I'm waiting for"

then we must say:

"and about the joys I'm waiting for -
they don't care if they come or not".

3) "blend drink" is not English; we could say "blended drink", but it's not idiomatic English. Personally, I think the best bet is:

"Pour me a blended cocktail
to mask the bitterness I swallow."

Anyway, these are just my opinions - I think this translation is basically finished. Readers can choose their own favorite versions for themselves.