Jane Birkin/Serge Gainsbourg
| Jane Birkin/Serge Gainsbourg | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Studio album by Jane Birkin and Serge Gainsbourg | ||||
| Released | June 1969 | |||
| Recorded | 12, 19 November & 16, 17, 18 December 1968 Fontana studios, London; "L'anamour" and "69 année érotique" 12 November 1968 Chappell Studios, London; "Manon" January 1968 La Gaieté Studio, Paris | |||
| Genre | Pop, orchestral pop,[1] chanson, psychedelic pop, baroque pop | |||
| Length | 31:18 | |||
| Label | Fontana | |||
| Producer | Jean-Claude Desmarty | |||
| Serge Gainsbourg chronology | ||||
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Jane Birkin/Serge Gainsbourg (also known as Je t'aime... moi non plus[2]) is an album featuring duets and solo performances by Serge Gainsbourg and his then lover, Jane Birkin. It was released in 1969 and included the worldwide hit "Je t'aime... moi non plus", which achieved notoriety for its salacious lyrics with a backing of ecstatic female moaning, culminating in an apparent orgasm at the song's finale.)
This album was reissued for the first time in the US on Light in the Attic Records on August 24, 2010. The reissued version includes "Chanson de Slogan" as the 12 track.
Critical reception
| Professional ratings | |
|---|---|
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |   [1] |
| Pitchfork Media | (8.8/10)[3] |
| PopMatters | (8/10)[4] |
Allmusic noted that the album includes "kitsch masterpieces like "69 Annee Erotique" and Jane Birkin and Serge Gainsbourg's chart-topping "Je t'aime... moi non plus," in a procession of jazzy instrumentals accompanied by Gainsbourg's throaty, Gitanes-coated vocals and the pertly sexy interpolations of his [Gainsbourg's] stunning wife."[1] D.M. Edwards of PopMatters stated: "The arrangements by Arthur Greenslade are excellent and there are plenty of glimpses of the experimentation which would be a feature of Gainsbourg’s music," further describing the album as "sophisticated, timeless pop music."[4]
Track listing
Words and music by Serge Gainsbourg
- "Je t'aime... moi non plus" (4:23) vocals by Jane Birkin and Serge Gainsbourg
- "L'anamour" (2:17) vocals by Serge Gainsbourg
- "Orang-outan" (2:28) vocals by Jane Birkin
- "Sous le soleil exactement" (2:52) vocals by Serge Gainsbourg
- "18-39" (2:39) vocals by Jane Birkin
- "69 année érotique" (3:21) vocals by Jane Birkin and Serge Gainsbourg
- "Jane B" (3:09) vocals by Jane Birkin
- "Elisa" (2:31) Serge Gainsbourg
- "Le canari est sur le balcon" (2:20) vocals by Jane Birkin
- "Les sucettes" (2:37) vocals by Serge Gainsbourg
- "Manon" (2:41) vocals by Serge Gainsbourg
Notes
Some editions of this album included "Chanson de Slogan" instead of "Je t'aime moi non plus".
Arranged and conducted by Arthur Greenslade
Photography by Jean D'Hugues
Notes on songs
- "Je t'aime moi non plus" - the music was originally created for the Jacques Poitrenaud film Carré de Dames Pour un As (1966) and developed in Édouard Luntz's 1966 film Les Coeurs Verts. It was recorded as a duet with Brigitte Bardot on 10 December 1967 at Studio Hoche, Paris.
- "L'anamour" - was originally created for Françoise Hardy in November 1968 for her album Now.
- "Sous le soleil exactement" - originally created for Anna Karina for the French TV ORTF telefilm first broadcast on 13 January 1967.
- "Jane B" - lyrics influenced by Vladimir Nabokov's text from Lolita and the music inspired by Prélude No. 4 in E minor (Opus 28) by Frédéric Chopin.
- "Elisa" - music first created for the film L'Horizon (1967). The music was by Serge Gainsbourg and Michel Colombier; lyrics by Serge Gainsbourg.
- "Le canari est sur le balcon" - music first created for the Édouard Luntz film Les Coeurs Verts (1966) as "My Green Heart". The music was reused as "Help Camionneur" for Jane Birkin's debut album, Di doo dah (1973).