The meaning of the lyrics of the song "Once upon a time, there lived by the sea..." (Jili-byili na more) the performer of the song "Vladimir Vysotsky"

Lived-were on the sea -

It means they sailed,

Kept the course right, obeyed the helm.

Entered harbors -

Whether from the left or the right -

Two beautiful liners, vessels, ships:

Snow-white-bodied,

Like a white swan,

In a fabulous-classic plan, -

And the other - he sailed to the tropics

In a black tuxedo -

A lord - a transatlantic liner.

Oh, if only it occurred to him,

That for a long time already in love,

To every port, under a black wing,

A swift white Madonna rushes to him!

Shedding tears of fuel

Into valuable fuel

And always hoping in secret,

That maybe to Africa

He won't leave on schedule

This clueless liner.

Oh, if only it crossed his mind,

That for a long time already in love,

To come to him under a black wing,

The white Madonna is late!

Ships, even late ones,

Should not have corrosion,

Should not have wrinkles along their snow-white wings,

And blue streaks

Near the waterline,

And when the left side of the tuxedo is rotten.

He grieved without memory

In the dock, in a quiet backwater,

Angry and extremely annoyed,

Rusty and disheveled

And abandoned by the crew,

A liner in proud solitude.

And she was incredibly lucky:

To the tango of the musical salon

She came to him under a black wing -

And the white Madonna stood beside him!

Жили-были на море -

Это значит плавали,

Курс держали правильный, слушались руля.

Заходили в гавани -

Слева ли, справа ли -

Два красивых лайнера, судна, корабля:

Белоснежнотелая,

Словно лебедь белая,

В сказочно-классическом плане, -

И другой - он в тропики

Плавал в черном смокинге -

Лорд - трансатлантический лайнер.

Ах, если б ему в голову пришло,

Что в каждый порт уже давно влюбленно,

Спешит к нему под черное крыло

Стремительная белая мадонна!

Слезы льет горючие

В ценное горючее

И всегда надеется в тайне,

Что, быть может, в Африку

Не уйдет по графику

Этот недогадливый лайнер.

Ах, если б ему в голову взбрело,

Что в каждый порт уже давно влюбленно

Прийти к нему под черное крыло

Опаздывает белая мадонна!

Кораблям и поздняя

Не к лицу коррозия,

Не к лицу морщины вдоль белоснежных крыл,

И подтеки синие

Возле ватерлинии,

И когда на смокинге левый борт подгнил.

Горевал без памяти

В доке, в тихой заводи,

Зол и раздосадован крайне,

Ржавый и взъерошенный

И командой брошенный,

В гордом одиночестве лайнер.

А ей невероятно повезло:

Под танго музыкального салона

Пришла к нему под черное крыло -

И встала рядом белая мадонна!

Vladimir Vysotsky's song "Жили-были на море" (Once Upon a Time at Sea) is not so much about ships as it is about a relationship between two people, veiled in the metaphor of a sea voyage.

The two liners, white and black, represent a man and a woman. The white liner, "like a white swan," is associated with femininity, purity, and devotion. It embodies a woman in love, following the object of her passion ("to every port") under the "black wing" of her beloved.

The black liner, the "transatlantic lord," symbolizes the man. He is stately, elegant ("in a black tuxedo"), but perhaps somewhat self-absorbed and inattentive to the feelings of the "white Madonna." He travels the world ("sailed to the tropics"), oblivious to the longing and devotion that follow him.

The song emphasizes the contrast between the ardent love of the "white Madonna," ready for anything for the sake of her "lord," and his cold detachment. She "sheds burning tears," is late for their rendezvous, hopefully awaiting him in every port. He, the "unperceptive liner," is completely unaware of her feelings.

Time passes, and the ships grow old. "Late corrosion," "wrinkles along the snow-white wings" are metaphors for fading, loss of former beauty and opportunity. The "black liner" ends up in a deplorable state: "rusty and disheveled," "abandoned by the crew." Perhaps this is a metaphor for the disappointment, life's collapse, and loneliness that befell the hero.

And only at this moment, when the "black liner" has lost everything, the "white Madonna" appears beside him. She comes to him "to the tango of the music salon," symbolizing forgiveness, compassion, and a willingness to share his fate.

The ending of the song remains open. It is unknown whether the heroes will find happiness after so many years of separation and misunderstanding. However, the very fact of their meeting, the merging of "black" and "white," gives hope that even in the most difficult relationships it is possible to find a path towards each other.