The French = Weird As Hell

Serge Gainsbourg
Album: Histoire de Melody Nelson
Melody

Imagine for a moment that you're a beautiful and talented singer, one of the world's most recognizable celebrities.  Now imagine that you're appearing on a popular French talk show to advertise your latest album.  Now imagine that Serge Gainsbourg is sitting adjacent to you on the obligatory leather talk show club chairs.  Now watch this.  Yikes.  What an oily motherfucker.  I love that after he makes his ridiculous -- and I'm quite certain completely phony -- apology the crowd erupts in spontaneous applause.

The reason for this odd behavior?  Well, first of all Gainsbourg was one of the strangest dudes in popular music in the 60s and 70s, as unlikely a star as you can possibly imagine.  He was also a chronic alcoholic, notorious for bizarre but oddly fascinating displays of public inappropriateness.  And second of all, the Jerry-Lewis-loving French are weird as hell.  Not like Norwegians.  Norwegians are awesome.

In some circles, Gainsbourg is considered one of the most influential pop musicians ever.  His songs are highly sexual, full of mischievous word play and double-entendres, and the music itself betrays many different influences, ranging from jazz to synth pop.  "Melody" is from his greatest work, L'Histoire de Melody Nelson, a concept album about an encounter between an older man and a 16 year old girl.

Also, if the tune seems at all familiar to you, take a moment to listen to this.  Influential indeed.

Oh, one last thing.  In 1984 he wrote and recorded a song called "Lemon Incest" with his then 12 year old daughter, Charlotte.  (Yes, that Charlotte Gainsbourg.)  Gah.  Sooooo creepy.