Serge Gainsbourg
In the latter half of the 20th century, chanson française took another turn with the emergence of Serge Gainsbourg, remembered not only for his music and inventive but occasionally scandalous lyrics, but his audacious sense of self. His rise to become a French cultural icon paralleled the evolution of French culture from the process of rebuilding from the ravages of war through protests against historical traditions and the advent of pan-European cooperation. Starting out as a painter and pianist in his young adulthood, Gainsbourg went on to release sixteen albums showcasing a wide range of musical influences, write hundreds of songs for himself and other performers, act in, and direct several films. He remained in the public eye for four decades as much for his romantic life as for his creative work.
Maison Gainsbourg, Paris, France. Image credit: Denis-Paul L (@denispaulpipoll) - Profile - Tripadvisor
Childhood experiences shaped Gainsbourg’s musical gifts and his disregard for prevailing norms. His musical roots stemmed from his parents, Joseph and Olga Ginsburg, a professional pianist and a singer, respectively, who had left the Russian Empire after the Revolution. The Ginsburgs settled in Paris where their twins Lucien and Liliane were born in 1928. Being Jewish, the family was forced to wear yellow stars under Nazi occupation and temporarily moved to Limoges in the Free Zone during World War II. After the war, the family returned to Paris and Lucien enrolled in art school. He then earned his living as a cabaret pianist and as a music and art teacher in a suburban school for Jewish orphans, where he learned of more war atrocities. Lucien eventually decided to change his name to Serge Gainsbourg to honor his Jewish roots and as a nod to the English painter Thomas Gainsborough.
While serving as accompanist to singer Michèle Arnaud at a club called the Milord l’Arsouille, Gainsbourg was given his own show by the club director, Francis Claude, and was eventually ‘discovered’ by talent agent Jacques Canetti. Gainsbourg began to perform in other clubs and released his first album in 1958. The following year, he recorded his second album and was cast in the film Voulez-vous dansez avec moi? starring Brigitte Bardot. A single from his score for the 1960 film L’Eau à la bouche achieved commercial success and Gainsbourg would go on to write numerous songs for Arnaud, Bardot, and other singers as well as composing scores for film.
Serge Gainsbourg in 1981. Image credit: Claude Truong-Ngoc / Wikimedia Commons - cc-by-sa-3.0
The classical melodies from Gainsbourg’s childhood inspired several of his own compositions even as he experimented with pop, jazz, African, and other musical influences. One consistent theme to Gainsbourg’s work was his lyrical prowess – telling stories, adapting lines of published poetry, and using double entendre and wordplay to add notes of complexity to his songs. In 1965, French singer France Gall won the Eurovision Song Contest with “Poupée de cire, poupée de son” written by Gainsbourg. The two collaborated on several other hits including the controversial “Les sucettes”, which foreshadowed Gainsbourg’s work to come. His double entendres, song topics, and variations paralleled the sexual liberation and protest movements of the Sixties, appealing to some audiences and scandalizing others.
Twice-married and divorced by 1966, Gainsbourg had an affair with then-married Bardot in 1967 and wrote several songs for her, including “Je t’aime. . . moi non plus” which they recorded together but did not release. The following year, he met English actress Jane Birkin while they were filming Slogan, beginning a romantic and professional relationship that would endure nearly a dozen years. Their rendition of “Je t’aime. . . moi non plus” was released in early 1969, topping charts despite being banned in multiple countries for its suggestive nature. Rather than continuing in the same musical vein, Gainsbourg’s subsequent albums moved away from pop into concept albums such as Histoire de Melody Nelson, self-referential satire in Rock Around the Bunker, and reggae-influenced records. Gainsbourg recorded the latter in Jamaica and the Bahamas in collaboration with Jamaican musicians Sly and Robbie and members of Bob Marley and the Wailers. His 1979 adaptation of the French national anthem in a reggae style infuriated members of the French government and military, yet Aux armes et cætera, the album which included the song, went platinum.
During the 1980s, Gainsbourg maintained a relationship with Caroline Paulus, a French model and singer known as Bambou, while continuing to court controversy through his music, films, and actions. Yet his health began to fail, exacerbated by years of heavy drinking and smoking. In March 1991, Serge Gainsbourg died of a heart attack at the age of 62. His grave in Montparnasse cemetery in Paris draws visitors from around the world, and was recently supplemented by the opening of Maison Gainsbourg at his home in the 7th arrondissement last fall. A labor of love by his daughter Charlotte, the site maintains Gainsbourg’s furnishings and belongings to give a sense of how he lived and what he cherished.
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Clearly, the music of Serge Gainsbourg defies categorization. His prolific output for others as well as himself showed that his creativity was endless, inspired by his experiences, musical knowledge, and wide-ranging interests. Not only did several of his albums achieve gold and platinum status, he received several Victoires de la Musique awards. Click below to listen to the leadoff track from the 1969 album Jane Birkin/Serge Gainsbourg.
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