Monsieur Gainsbourg: Revisited

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The mystique of Serge Gainsbourg still hangs in the air, like smoke from a Gitane, and 15 years after his death, the self proclaimed "cabbage-headed sex maniac" still exerts a phenomenal amount of charisma and influence over the pop world. Prime example – Verve Forecast's timely tribute, Monsieur Gainsbourg: Revisited. It's a tribute album with a twist, though, as all of the songs have been meticulously translated into English, many for the first time. The sheer variety of the contributors here should give some indication of the universal influence the man still holds. From Jarvis Cocker to Marianne Faithfull, Michael Stipe to Marc Almond, Franz Ferdinand to Cat Power – the lineup is nearly as diverse as the man's career was and, duly, the material covered here comes from nearly every corner of Gainsbourg's catalog. Unlike many collections of his work, Revisited doesn't dwell on his infamously racy selections (although there is the requisite "Je T'Aime Moi Non Plus" appearance, à la Cat Power and Karen Elson, and trip-hop's own "dirty old man" Tricky lays the musk on pretty thick for his sweaty take on "Goodbye Emmanuelle.") Instead, the focus is more heavily on Gainsbourg's introspective, melancholy side (Michael Stipe's refreshing and impressively sincere reading of "L'Hotel Particullier" is a standout in that arena, as is Carla Bruni's "Those Little Things"). Alongside the melancholy, there is a good amount of just plain fun to be had as well. Faultline, Brian Molko, and Françoise Hardy's "Requiem for a Jerk" and Gonzales, Feist, and Dani's "Boomerang 2005" bring self-conscious chuckles and booty-shaking, respectively, into the mix, while the Rakes and Kills selections bring on the bravado. In a situation where any number of factors could have sent this project careening down the wrong tracks, Verve Forecast managed to wrangle it all in and offer a tribute that is reverent, representational, serious, and fun, all at the same time.
by J. Scott McClintock