Rammstein Liese lyrics with English translation

Liese is a german female name. But yes it’s also oldschool. It’s often used in Old german fairy tales, the girl who looks after the geese is very often called “Gänse-Liese” It is a short form from Elisabeth, which was a popular name in the past. I would see this song as a story from old times, also because nowadays noone uses a scythe. 😉

@ramm stein: no “liebe Liese” does not mean gentle love. “liebe” is more like “dear” and Liese is just her name (see above)

@Thuthut: i think this is just meant like, women taste sweet. ;), it would have suited better if they used plum, because in german plum also stands for female genitalia.

Wouldnt Leibe Leise
mean “Gentle Love”
Because I beleive that Leise does mean Gentle.
and it would also be ironic that the boy in this song is singing “Gentle Love” to the girl he is forcing to have relations with him.

i just want to ask one question, Liese is the girl’s name right? is that a popular german name? also its pronounced “Leezuh” more or less, right?

Whats meant with “und sie wird nach Birne schmecken”? why pear??

So, my mother tongue is german 🙂

“angesteckt” means just infected or contaminated.

and in fact there is nor childish language in this song, it’s just a little bit old school (ancient) and poetic. Some would never speak like this in the every day life, but Rammstein sometimes use this way of speaking in their songs.

I got a new interpretation on the sentence: “hat er die Liese angesteckt”
Angestecken might mean something like ”connect to”. “Ein gesteck” is the same as a “connection”, as connecting a cable.
So it probably means that he is penetration her. Thus the song might be about necrophilia, if Liese is dead after his former “waving” with the scythe. Perhaps that’s a form af his final “subduing” her.

The whole song is sung as to children: “Da kommt Jakob angerannt” is somewhat a childish grammar, as well as saying “der Jakob”, as a noun.

By the way, the melody, including the whistle accompaniment, is identical to Roter Sand’s, so it gives an interesting different angle of what may be one situation; when Roter Sand is sung from the view of an adult who fought over his lover and Liese – from a view of some twisted affection.

(again)
One might think about the sentence “Are you friendly not to my”, not as “poetic” but as someone speaking in bad grammar, as to a little child.
I could be a part of his “subduing her”.

Neither English, nor German, is my mother’s tongue (in fact it’s Swedish), but I’ve tried to do a translation of my own (using a very old German-Swedish dictionary and the faint memory from my school years).
From this Swedish translation I made one to English.

“Sunday at the field by Ammer
(Ammer is a lake, but might also denote a fruit or a bird)
The good Liese watches over the geese
Then comes Jacob a-running
Holding a scythe in the hand

With this he waves there and again
Little Liese under skirt and girdle (I’m not really sure how, in fact, Jakob is “waving”. Perhaps he waves in front of her face first, then cuts off her cloths, and then cuts her)
Ha wants to taste her, wants to subdue her
And the scoundrel meanwhile begins to sing:

Dear Liese, forget about the geese
I want to taste your skin
Rusty from blood is scythe
Are you friendly not to me
(I can’t fully appreciate this last sentence – but perhaps Jacob is trying to make Liese feel ashamed about making the scythe “dirty”)

Jakob may then lick little Liese
And she is going to have the flavour of a pear
Small fluff will be standing straight
And they hurry to the field of wheat

In the golden river, well hidden
He has stuck Liese down/up
(perhaps with the scythe?)
Holds her tightly wrapped until evening (with his arms or whatever, but probably with his arms)
And has sung to the child: (note the switch in tempus from present to past)

…
“

“bist Du freundlich nicht zu mir” is just an old poetic way to say “if you are not nice to me”

Liebe Liese, lass die Gänse,
ich will von deiner Haut probieren
Vom Blute rostig ist die Sense,
bist du freundlich nicht zu mir

Oh Dear Liese, leave the geese,
I want to taste of your skin.
Blood will turn the Sickle rusty,
if you are not nice to me.

Also, this song is an alternative version of “Roter Sand”

Also, “bist du freundlich nicht zu mir” is a question. “Are you not friendly to me?”

Just to touch up Micha’s translation:

On a Sunday in the meadows,
Liese sheppards Geese,
Thats when Jakob comes up running,
holding a sickle in his hand

He nudges it now and then
beneath little Lieses skirt and korsett
He wants to taste her, wants to force her,
and the boy will sing…

Dear Liese, let the geese be,
I want to have the taste of your skin
Blood has turned this Sickle rusty,
You aren’t friendly to me

Jakob’s allowed to lick little Liese
and she will taste just like a pear
As the hairs stand on their skin,
they hurry off to the wheat field.

In fields of gold, well hidden
he has infected Liese
He holds her tightly into the evening, embracing her
and sang to the child:

Dear Liese, let the geese be,
I want to have the taste of your skin
Blood has turned this Sickle rusty,
You aren’t friendly to me

Dear Liese, let the geese be,
I want to have the taste of your skin
Blood has turned this Sickle rusty,
You aren’t friendly to me

Alternate Translation… (Key difference: I think by “Angesteckt” he means make a cut on an artery like you would an animal whos blood you have to drain, he then embraces and holds her until later evening).

——–

On a Sunday in the meadows,
Liese sheppards over geese,
Thats when Jakob comes up running,
holds a sickle in his hand

This he nudges now and then
beneath little Lieses skirt and korsett
He wants to try her, wants to force her,
and the boy will sing…

Oh Dear Liese, leave the geese,
I want to taste of your skin.
Blood has turned Sickle rusty,
are you friendly? Not to me.

Jakob’s allowed to lick little Liese
and she will taste just like a pear
As the hairs stand on their skin,
they hurry off to the wheat field.

In fields of gold, well hidden
he has opened (cut) Liese up
He holds her tight till late evening
and sang into the child:

Oh Dear Liese, leave the geese,
I want to taste of your skin.
Blood has turned Sickle rusty,
are you friendly? Not to me.

Oh Dear Liese, leave the geese,
I want to taste of your skin.
Blood has turned Sickle rusty,
are you friendly? Not to me.

1) Goldflut must be seen in relation to Weizenfeld because wheatfields are golden. It’s not a a metaphor for the womb.
2) ““-chen” is the diminutive suffix” – Right, but not a metaphor for her genitalia. It is just meant as belittlement.