Reviews (page 2 of 9)
Songs 7 minutes long piss me off, but not as much as men singing about 14 year old girls. Other than that i absolutely hate it.
I feel like a pretty 18-year-old and a perv is whispering in my ear at closing time.
de franse fluisteraar slaat toe, gaat blijkbaar ook over pedofilie. krijgt wel 2 sterren want het is goed doordacht maar wat de kaulo.
Well hello little fella what the fuck are you doing on this list?
No strong feelings, it sounds nice but extremely french for better and worse Edit: I do not know French, some background reading and ew
This is so 70's with the music and spoken word and reminds me of cheesy 70's porn movies with slightly better music. Considering the subject of this album, I don't think I'm too far off.
Musics great really enjoyable, vocals come across a bit silly so loud in the mix
The music was good, something that would sound good in the background or to just chill to. I'm just not a big fan of these sort of talking vocals that he had.
What have we here?! Things just got ridiculously cool and edgy. Seductive, lustful… it sounds illicit. The music is genius. Just want to listen over and over again. I wish I knew what he was saying / singing. I was taken by this music I’d never heard before, I had to learn more. Had no idea how influential Gainsborough was, but I can understand why. And when I read about the concept of this masterpiece, I was so proud that I got it (the gist anyway) just based on the music. As it sounds, it’s about an illicit lust and obsession. Absolutely incredible piece of music. This is one of those records I’d never have heard but for this project.
I love some of SG’s music. And he’s kind of a creepy dude. This isn’t his creepiest album but there’s a definite creep factor.
This French porn music is pretty good.
Some of the music is ok, but the vocals made me want to apply for a restraining order. I'm glad I didn't understand what he was saying.
I have no idea as to why I loved this but I was completely obsessed with this album - I listened to it 5/6 times. It made me feel as though I was in a 70's film - I later found out that was the purpose but I could see France back then and a love story between two people in all its retroness.
The topic of this album was absolutely disgusting, and one cant even make an argument that this was of its time
sexy and French, slow and full of bass, maybe too sexy. very enjoyable
Backing music is pretty good. Vocals are not great but tolerable. Theme of this "concept album" is creepy as fuck.
🚨 NONCE ALERT!!! 🚨
I do like this.
Very odd. Nice guitar bits.
I get the appeal. Not the subject matter which is all too prevalent in modern society and not that it was a comfortable conversation when this was released. Unfortunately, the Lolita story is recast here as a middle aged man who becomes enamored with a 14 year old named Melody Nelson who he subsequently spends time In Melody ( I shit you not that is the title of the song “En Melody”) and then, wracked with guilt cries to the gods to save him but miss-shoots his invocation of the gods - as Melody dies in a plane crash when the autopilot fails. What is interesting is this concept album successfully and interestingly merges Serge’s creepy and pathetic spoken word style vocals into a bed of noir rock with blasts of orchestral music. The effect is stunning as this relatively short record passes rapidly and despite both the vocal approach and the fact that Serge was a piece of shit, is remarkable overall. I can see the impact later, particularly with a band like Portishead who was clearly inspired/influenced by this album as was likely Lou Reed who recorded with Herbie Flowers using a similar bass effect for Walk On The Wild Side. Serge really was out there as an artist but is better remembered after his death because apparently he was an ass in real life. No crime to be a dick so no deductions. 4/5
I'd heard of this through the 1001 subreddit, hadn't been looking forward to it. The core premises of the album/story are repellent - but I don't think art should never depict or be about immoral/criminal behaviour - rather, I'm here to judge whether the art presents a comprehensive or even adequate picture, and does the artwork (as distinct from the artist) judge the male protagonist or more or less side with him. I'm not fluent in French but I can read some, and I have access to translations. The album presents a monstrous egotist - 'Melody Nelson' is here only in the name, said in girly voice by Birkin - no dialogue between two individuals, no storyline accounting for her hypothesized interest, his interest seems only to be in her youth, inexperience, virginity. (The cargo cult idea is offensive in itself, and a weak gloss on the 'convenient' death of the 'soiled' girl/woman.) Is all this monstrosity targeted by the artwork or indulged? The softly spoken Gainsbourg voice brings us into intimacy (confessional?) with the man, some say it's creepy but I don't read that as textual intention. The music for L'hotel particulier shows no hesitation or distaste, I would say it treats tenderly the man's fantasy. It seems clear to me that the artwork has no analysis of this man's desire to control/possess a girl/woman, it indulges that desire. Nonetheless, if I imagine this album with all vocals removed, the music would be very interesting - I can imagine it being influential for Portishead or whoever else. I could listen to such a remix - although it would always have the association of having initially been generated to support Gainsbourg's fantasy tale, it would feel severable, particularly for third party new listeners. Anyway, the idea of the music being interesting (if the vocals were somehow removed or ignored) of course doesn't make the album okay. Sometimes I might call an album with both good and bad aspects Mix of Good and Bad. But this is one of those albums where the badness is fundamental, it's intrinsic to the project of the album and the experience of it as it actually is, so I'll say it's Bad, 1/10.
Sophisti-pop of the ‘70s variety, incorporating jazz, funk and rock into a pleasingly Continental sort of vibe, elevated by French baritone murmurings. Of course rich French sounds are evocative of sex…too bad that it turns out he’s murmuring about sex with a 14 year old girl. It doesn’t detract from this record’s nearly perfect application as your next dinner party’s soundtrack. Add wine and candlelight, and hopefully adults, who knows where la nuit could go?
Good sounding music but disgusting story to the album
Um, what? "Its narrative follows an illicit romance which develops between the middle-aged narrator and fourteen-year-old girl Melody Nelson, portrayed on the album and its cover art by Gainsbourg's then-partner Jane Birkin." Gross. No, thank you. Thank God (for my sake) it's in French, I guess? The strings in the first track remind me of some of Beck's stuff. Googling the connection, I landed on the Wikipedia page for Sea Change: "The album's sound, particularly on the song 'Paper Tiger', was partially inspired by that of Serge Gainsbourg's album Histoire de Melody Nelson (1971)." This music is actually pretty cool at times. But the subject matter disgusts me. It's disturbing that in 1971 not only could something like this get made, but also that it would become a hit worldwide. And reading more about Gainsbourg, it's disturbing that he was such a big star not all that long ago.
I can’t support the French
seksikästä ranskalaista meininkiä
I hate French and everything to do with French. I’ve said it before. This is special though. Too bad they didn’t want to sell records and de use to do an English version. I hear Lovage in this so that would tell me that this music fell onto or into the right ears. Maybe it didn’t and they have no idea who this guy is. I don’t know I don’t care that much I’m moving on. This was painful to listen to because of the French mumbo jumbo but alas, I listened through it. Bravo
kind of like the french scott walker. pretty groovy/orchestral
About what you'd think. Shower after.
3 (for the music) -1 (for everything else) I don't know how to say it but I just gave The Police a lower score than the french pedo album...
So bad and creepy
french. seductive. mellow. chill.
Not for me.
Rate: 8/10.
Best Track - "Cargo Culte"
Yeah idk. The music was pretty cool but I don’t think I want to listen to a French guy whispering his love for a 14 year old girl into my ears again…
3.9/5 - Went from "what the fuque is this" to "magnifique." Pretty cool stuff.
The coolest of music. 3.5/5
kinda killer
What a terrible include. We've got a decent enough selection of jazzy, orchestral rock with a narrator describing the grooming, rape, and death of a minor. There are more tasteful ways to discuss subject matters like loss of innocence or the 'forbidden fruit'. I get that this was 50 years ago, but we don't need to continue highlighting this shit, especially with how gross and self indulgent this album feels. Give me the ability to give an album a 0.
Way too many people enjoy a story about an ultra wealthy man raping a 14 year old.
Schnulzig, unnötig. 2
French rambling over okayish tracks that are all called melody
An album about a French nonce. Not good.
nonce
that's some album art this is the guy that wrote 'poupee de cire, poupee de son' which won eurovision for luxembourg anyways, what are we even getting into here well, it's something
That was the worst concept album ever!!! I wish I didn’t read the Wikipedia article about this album.
This was very interesting and I enjoyed it. Sets a mood for being in 60s Paris. He is very talented. Sure I have heard some of his music on French movie soundtracks.
Hey gang, I don't speak French, but the creepy-sounding breathy guy is definitely not singing about anything we've all agreed as a society is morally wrong, right?
I loved the sound of this album. The vocals reminded me of Ken Nordine's Word Jazz. I decided to look at what this album was about (since I don't speak French). This album is about seducing a 14 year old girl, and taking her virginity... No, just No! Fucking creep!!! What you write about has consequences, and this is just fucking wrong.
2 words: Phenomenal album So a well deserved: 5/5
I wasn't at all familiar with the artist or even the genre, which I assume to be something like French Beatnik. It's essentially poetry read in French to jazzy music. It's not bad. But it isn't compelling to me either. I could tell it was a biographical story about Melody Nelson, and it didn't appear to end well. None of the significance of the story was apparent, nor was the artistry of the poetry. If you understand French, maybe it's brilliant. But it's lost on me. It's not hideous to listen to, but I won't be listening again.
i lurv the vibes of this one too <3333
Okay so. This album is... Uncomfortable, to say the least. The music is well played and that's all I'll say nice about it. The story of the album is an "illicit romance" (it feels wrong to use an innocuous term like romance, Wikipedia) between a middle aged man and a 14 year old girl. Not a fan, and I didn't finish the album. I couldn't tell if the album is intended to be controversial and uncomfortable (i.e. Lolita), or if Gainsbourg actually was a creep and in support of the subject matter. After learning a bit about the man, I have decided that both are true. I don't recommend.
Good music, crazy concept
To everyone reading this: if you don't want to listen to this pedophile, How about listening to this modest selection of other variété française ? - Charles Aznavour - Emmenez-moi - Georges Brassens - Les passantes - Joe Dassin - Dans les yeux d'émilie - Françoise Hardy - Le temps de l'amour - Jacques Dutronc - Fais pas ci, fais pas ça - Bruno Pelletier - Le temps des cathédrales - Maxime le Forestier - San Francisco - France Gall - Poupée de cire, poupée de son - Hugues Aufray - Santiano - Jacques Brel - Amsterdam - Edith Piaf - Milord - Nino Ferrer - Le sud - Daniel Balavoine - Tous les cris les S.O.S. (don't hesitate to skip songs if bored, i wanted to try to cover the genre's main figures/songs instead of suggesting one album) (other famous songs which aren't classic singer-songwriter stuff:) - Les Rita Mitsouko - Marcia Baïla - Partenaire particulier - Partenaire particulier - Manau - La tribu de Dana - Salut c'est cool - Les fleurs If you want to go explore old french music more in depth but don't wanna listen to vile people or lyrics, i recommend you avoid gainsbourg, claude françois, jean-luc lahaye, and maybe michel sardou as well as noir désir.
Not any good at all to my taste
Werde ich vmtl nie wieder an machen, aber cool das mal gehört zu habe und ist ganz nice - ist seiner Zeit weit voraus mMn
The music was incredibly interesting, fluttering between languid and pretty and sounding like a deeply intense movie soundtrack. Tough to pin down to a genre, but fun and engaging throughout. I understand that the sung-talked French is advancing a narrative, but for the most part, as a non-speaker, it just baffled me.
Pedophile music for pedophiles
Negative ghost rider the pattern is full
There is no scenario where I would enjoy this. Don’t care how French I could be, it’s not good.
oh coisa RUIM gemedeira da prra vsfffff esse bicho é aquele do meme das crianças fumando e bebendo? HOMEM DOENTE
Creepy. 1/5. Doesn’t even sing
- I'm going to go ahead and call out some puffery by hipsterism for this one. It's hard to say who heard what at the time that this was released but I hear a lot of Stax soul in this one so I'm inclined to dispute who was influencing who. As for how mportant this record was, I don't know. What was the context? Was this made in the vein of the plethora of records at the time that were like "Burle Ives sings Ezra Pound"? Those things were pretty common in popular music and they were all weird ..... In that context, the subject matter would be way out there, edgy even. Who was this for? Not the American market, clearly; it's in FRENCH! So no, fuck this record. This is edgelord shit before there was a the term "edgelord". 2.5 for the studio / production work rounded down because it's pretentious even before hipsters got ahold of it ....... Thank the stars it was short. -
This had been on my list to listen to for a while. I had recently gotten into 70’s French pop like Veronique Sanson and was looking for more like that. I knew the name Serge Gainsbourg and the cover made me think it had female vocals so I stored it away to listen to later. When this popped up as today’s album I was excited. The music was fantastic! I recognized the first track from a Beck song. But instead of female vocals I got Serge talking over a groovy melody. Okay, fine. Again, the music had me bobbing my head. There was a weird approximation of sex, I think. Okay, I guess. Overall I enjoyed it a lot. I looked up the album on Wikipedia. What the fuck dude? Why?
Wow this was not an easy one, there’s the elephant slap bang in the middle of the room, and to be honest didn’t want to listen at the beginning. Same as never wanted or watched the stated classic film of the book Lolita. Whether it is just a story etc etc or not. But damn the music is good, this is obviously so influential and ahead of its time musically. Helps that I can’t really understand what’s being said, only having very basic French from high school level. Without wiki it would be 4 star for the music about some obsession about someone called Melody ( dodgy cover aside) but I do know, men in power lusting and more about 14 yr olds, story or not is just not something I want to read/hear - don’t want to think about the man’s “issue” - so sorry but can’t do more that 2 star because of that.
Torn on this one - reading the Wikipedia, and being familiar with some of the artists this album has inspired, this is clearly an important and influential record. And the music is pretty great, its a unique vibe, and even though I don't understand what Serge is saying (because I don't speak french), it adds to the vibe. But then you read the Wikipedia and get the story details, and yuck.
this is fucking disgusting, i don't wanna listen to his fuck ass spoken word poetry. the second song pisses me off the way they making her say her name all breathy and sexy. with the limited french I know, he's calling her a delicious CHILD. sonically pretty alright but why did people let this become famous ugh. all that for her to just die (in a plane crash??? thats lazy writing too like why did he survive the crash) at the end so she can forever be that little girl that he fucked. they had sex sounds of the girl in one of the songs and thats so disturbing
Sure. It is an interesting concept album but describing it as 'Lolita-esque' was not a selling point.
Strange album. "En Melody" was really weird. I didn't mind the songs in French, but not an album I would add to my collection. "Cargo Culte" went on for way too long.
🤮
I like this but it was just OK and only mildly interesting. Some cool sounds but pretty middle of the road overall.
This is complicated. The record is so very cool. The theme is so ugly. The lyrics are in French, so I can ignore the theme. And French people are weird anyway. And I've always had a huge crush on Jane Birkin. But still, she's 15. And what's up with the cargo cult? And that bass...
665/1001 2026.07.24 🌕🌕🌑🌑🌑
Pedophile the album
I read the summary of this album before listening to it. I don't know if that was a good idea because it has certainly tainted my view, although I guess I would have understood the album if it was in English anyway. But hahaha, oh wow, how was this ever acceptable? And why was this chosen for the list? Even if it is Gainsbourg's best album musically, maybe one of his albums which isn't sympathetic to the views of paedophiles might be better? Or even, maybe, we should not include him on this list? I personally think paedophilia should be a barrier to entry. I suppose its entry on the list does mark a kind of absolute moral low point against which we can judge all others. Anyway, how is the music? If I didn't know what this was about, I would think it was pretty cool at times, especially the ultra laid-back opener Melody and L'hotel Particulier with its almost AMSR whispered vocals, although En Melody, with its grating laughter and feverish guitars is a trial to listen to. Unlike other reviewers, I try to avoid giving ratings to the artists instead of the art in my project (see the low ratings that Michael Jackson often gets - great art, bad artist), but where the art is an album where the moral is "it's OK for a 55-year-old to rape a 14-year-old, actually" I don't think I can give it more than 1 star, even if it does have some chill music on it.
Pedophilia was just as illegal and repugnant in 1971 as it is today so this album wasn't just a product of its time. So here we have a rich, middle age, Rolls Royce driving pedophile taking advantage of an underage girl and it's all being celebrated on an album? If that aspect of the concept wasn't bad enough, the victim is then killed in a plane crash and we're supposed to feel sorry for this a**hole because the victim is gone and that's all the rapist can think about? They probably play this in the White House to celebrate all of the pedophiles they are hell bent on protecting. I hate everything about the concept of this album. I hate the artist for even considering such a concept and then the conceit for actually putting the album out. I hate the author for choosing this album for any edition of his book. A score of zero would too high.
This was a nice discovery. A bit weird, a bit repetitive, but fits well in this project.
Good stuff.
I enjoyed the orchestral arrangements. Don't speak French so can't comment on the lyrics. Spoken word can be hit or miss for me. I didn't mind this.
Ah, non
(3/7) sounds kind of like French
Sexy French poetry over rock beats. Would probably be more appreciated if I spoke a lick of French.
Ramstein but without the industrial sound, distorted metal guitars and heaviness, with the lyrics sung in French. I was a bit surprised by how much I enjoyed this strange record.....
1/5
Bone jaw
Pleasant enough - atmospheric music - not something that particularly engaged me though
Smooth and French.
Never been so happy to not speak French.
imagine my surprise, vibing to Serge, when I read my friends reviews and realised it's a paedo album. Ah, c'est Francoise.
oui oui parle le français avec moi didn’t enjoy just being spoken to in the first track but the rest is fun. oh no wait i also do not enjoy those noises on en melody. overall surprisingly enjoyable for an album about fucking a 14/15 year old girl who then dies in a plane crash. ahhh, the 70s.
I decided to skip the pedo album
bit of a french crooning
#385 Un album français tellement français que j'en suis devenu français. Il est entièrement consacré à une fille nommée Melody Nelson et ne dure que 28 minutes. Le morceau d'ouverture, « Melody », a vraiment attiré mon attention ; c'est très réussi. J'ai lu à quel point cet album est influent, notamment auprès de nombreux artistes que j'apprécie ; toutefois, j'ai aussi pris connaissance de cette histoire aux allures de « Lolita » — c'est peut-être une bonne chose que ce soit sa femme qui figure sur la pochette et qui incarne Melody sur le disque. Heard before? ❌ Would I revisit? ✅ Listen before you die? ✅ Fave track(s): Melody Rating: 8/10 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
This album is a concept album about a presumably older, affluent guy getting intimate with a teenager(Americans will know this story pretty well because of the current president). I will still listen, because I once wrote in a Michael Jackson review that an artist's personal transgressions are not important to judging the quality of the music. However, here the transgression seems to be the music itself. The instrumentals are okay ish, especially on the opener, but the vocals are really fucking creepy. Of course, this is because the dude decided to write an album about, ahem, getting intimate with a teenager. And why is the sixth track a bunch of random laughing? The whole thing is an ick, and I don't give a shit how "high-art" or funny or "shock value" or whatever this is supposed to be. I'M FIFTEEN for Christ's sake! An album about abusing and permanently traumatizing people the same age as me is not something I want in my life. This album needs to join its creator in hell. The one star I will give it is entirely for the first track's backing music. This album is ranked #35 of 37 albums for 1971. Other 1971 albums rated by me: Led Zeppelin IV(1/37)-5 Who's Next(5/37)-5 Sticky Fingers(6/37)-4 Pearl(7/37)-5 L. A. Woman(8/37)-3 Maggot Brain(9/37)-4 Imagine(14/37)-4 Fela Kuti Live!(15/37)-4 Nilsson Schmilsson(16/37)-4 Coat of Many Colors(18/37)-5 At Fillmore East(19/37)-4 Surf's Up(22/37)-4 Every Picture Tells A Story(25/37)-4 Songs of Love and Hate(29/38)-5 Tago Mago(33/37)-4
Kinda weird
At least Lolita had subtext
I enjoyed ths vibe until i checked the lyrics.
Just... No. Or, should I say... "Non".
Европейский блюз, со всякими вливаниями и мелодическим говорением.
Love the concept, but the music is not up to it. That said, it was interesting. ★★★
Histoire de Melody Nelson is one of those albums where it’s impossible to separate the music from the story it tells. The relationship between the narrator and Melody is intentionally uncomfortable, and the age gap and power imbalance are central to that. I’ve seen a lot of people describe the album as depicting statutory rape, but I don’t think that’s legally accurate in its historical context. Melody is described as “15 summers and 14 autumns”, indicating that she’s 15 years old. France’s age of consent is 15 today, and for much of Serge Gainsbourg’s early life it was even lower. That doesn’t make the relationship morally unproblematic, nor does it mean listeners have to be comfortable with it. It simply means there’s an important distinction between making an ethical criticism and making a legal one. Musically, though, this album is outstanding. The arrangements are beautiful, the bass playing is superb, and its influence on later artists is easy to hear. One of my favourite albums, Beck’s Sea Change, borrows heavily from the sonic world that Melody Nelson created, and listening to this record made those connections obvious. It’s not supposed to be comfortable listening. It’s provocative, unsettling and deliberately transgressive. Whether you admire it or reject it on those grounds is a personal decision, but its musical influence and craftsmanship are undeniable.
While I found some of the music on Histoire de Melody Nelson genuinely interesting, I couldn't follow the French lyrics.
Kinda great: strings, guitar grooves, it’s a different sound
Singer hits 14 yr old girl in his Rolls and falls in love in this 28min conceptiona album in spoken word French …great back read, first track is 7min banger
Wasn’t vibing with the music and the lore behind the artist himself was just the cherry on top. Yeah, no.
Didn’t HATE it but it doesn’t really do a lot for me. THEN i learned it’s quite literally about statutory rape? With no (as far as i can tell) context or message other than “this is a story about statutory rape”? Yeah, this thing fucking sucks. Why is he just whispering the lyrics(?) like he’s telling a secret? OH I BET I KNOW. The instrumentals are nothing special either. Sometimes i think the author of this list is way off the mark and this is definitely that.
A little too “Parisian Leonard Cohen”-y for me but, nevertheless, some beautiful compositions nestled throughout here.
Sanaakaan en ymmärtänyt.
Korvaani kuiskuteltiin levyllisen verran suloisesti ranskaa, ei oikein lähtenyt. ⭐️⭐️
Melody Nelson
When I saw this come up I was like oh man I don't want to listen to this again but now I see I previously gave it 4 stars. Sometimes a language barrier is a good thing it seems.
Hard pass.
Can you be MeToo'd for listening to an album? My French is too basic to understand what's being said. But the one thing I know about Serge Gainsbourg is, while he was considered a louche bon vivant back in 1971, these days we'd call him a creep. To wit: 1) The 1,001 book describes this as a "gloriously seedy concept album exploring the author's fascination with the unattainable teen heroine." 2) There's topless Jane Birkin on the cover made to look like an apple-cheeked child, clutching her doll. 3) The album is supposedly from the POV of Gainsbourg's even skeevier alter-ego, "Gainsbarre." However you wanna dress this up, it's problematic. And it's not as if the album compensates for that. While "En Melody" is pretty great musically, especially the bass, Gainsbourg does the same shtick in every song. Can I get a version without him?
There’s plenty of ‘Melody’ in this album, and actually I think it’s quite special, especially for its time. Three stars…
Love the music but I guess the lyrics are a bit gross
Cant remember the girls name for the life of me
I don't speak French, so not sure what it was all about z but sounded like a musical about Melody Nelson.
fuck this and why does the fucking french not only accept this stuff but encourage it?
Gross
A concept album with perhaps the weirdest, arguably least attractive, plot of all time. We start with what I can only assume is a playful attempt at minimalist rock. If all the songs are as sparse as this one, I'm throwing hands. But it's a cool sound. Decidedly more bizarre is Serge Gainsbourg's intense, ASMR-esque spoken vocal. And the album's plot, too – which Wikipedia describes as "Lolita-esque" and "pseudo-autobiographical". Those two descriptors don't exactly paint a positive image of this Gainsbourg fella. Great strings, though, and the instruments really build to a crescendo at the end (with drums and bass carrying the brunt of the song's weight). I dearly hope for some singing, or else full commitment to an instrumental, in later tracks. I got what I wished for! Ballade de Melody Nelson is really good. Two interacting vocals (the additional one courtesy of Jane Birkin), and they're both singing this time. Pretty well, in fact. The combo of soft drumming and lilting, mysterious strings really brings the whole piece together. Valse de Melody and Ah Melody, the following two tracks, flash by very quickly. The latter is strong – acoustic guitar and French horns are added to the mix. Sort of a meandering tune, like something you might hear characters from The Godfather listening to on the radio as they slit their comrade's throat. I was going to give this a 3 or 4, but then the song En Melody shows up. Until this point in the album you can feasibly delude yourself that Gainsbourg's proposed concept is just tongue-and-cheek, just a little personal joke that he gave in an interview about the album. The record isn't really a celebration of pedophilia, right? ...Right? Then En Melody arrives, consisting of three minutes of sex vocalisations backed by an upbeat, energetic instrumental. After this point I kind of checked out. Cargo culte (you forgot the second capital C, Spotify) flashes by without a second glance. Some amazing instrumentals in the last piece, but the listener isn't paying much heed at this point. And then, good riddance, the album is finished. A shame that this Gainsbourg bloke had to "experiment" with lyrical themes – otherwise this might've genuinely been great. 2/5 Key tracks: Ballade de Melody Nelson, Ah Melody
Een album over het feit dat je een 14 jarig meisje wil ontmaagden. Ik zie het Suzan en Freek niet doen in ieder geval. Ome Serge had er minder moeite mee. Zolang het fictie is en het gemaakt is als een soort van kunstvorm vind ik dat het moet kunnen. Zie ook het boek Lolita, of het minder bekende maar ook goed geschreven Muidhond. Als kunst niet meer mag choqueren wordt het wel heel saai allemaal. Ondertussen zit ome Serge me in m'n oor te fluisteren en brommen alsof 'ie ook mij wil ontmaagden. Het is een beetje bijzonder allemaal. Maar het is wel, zoals de jeugd zou zeggen, een vibe. De Franse Nick Cave. Maar waar Nick Cave het liefst 2 uur lang verteld, beperkt Serge zich tot een minuutje of 28. Het stomme is dat ik meneer Gainsbourgh niet kan verstaan (als ik mee-lees kom ik verder dan verwacht, thanks havo pretpakket) en Nick Cave wel, maar Gainsbourg houdt m'n aandacht wel beter vast. Track 6 vind ik wat minder met dat gegiebel, maar het hoort bij het verhaal gok ik. Tering wat maken die aanzwellende strijkers, het koortje, de bas, de drums en die gitaar het af en toe wel dik zeg. De sfeer druipt er vanaf en het is een super cleane opname, dat maakt het ook wel fijn. Bovendien lees ik in de Wiki dat de beste man vijf pakjes per dag wegrookte. Dan ben je een hele grote speler. Alle gekheid op een kankerstokje, dit is een regelrechte 5. Dit kun je met recht een album wat je een keer gehoord moet hebben noemen.
Now I know where Beck got Paper Tiger from
I don't know French so I can't comment on the lyrics or subject matter but the instrumentals are quite good at least Fav tracks: En Melody, Melody
Why do I feel as if he's specifically trying to fuck me. Having read the background of the album and the concept behind it, it makes sense that the singer is a brilliant mix of seductive yet sleazy. I can't say it's bad. I can't say I enjoyed it either.
Why are we celebrating an album about statutory rape? Do better.
Sexy French man whispering in my ear made me feel a little dirty. Then I went to Wikipedia and found out why
let’s hear it for his guitarist, but what a tiresome asshole.
Pedophile music, no thanks.
What in the world am I listening to lol?! After looking this album up…I feel a little uncomfortable with what he is singing about. If I were to separate the story from the actual musical sound, the arrangement of instruments and spoken word/French vocals sound really unique and interesting to hear. But….yeah, I can’t get into the intention here.
Slow talking over some down tempo beats that occasionally speed up for 10 seconds.
This might be the most French thing I’ve ever experienced, and the fact it’s sung in French isn’t the most French thing about it. But let’s address the elephants in the room first. Gainsbourg is a hugely questionable man and the concept of this album is absolutely problematic. Idle fantasy or not it’s uneasy listening But let’s not lose the thread, musically this is genuinely an important album. Either directly sampled like on David Holmes brilliant ‘Don’t die just yet’ or as a clear template for the music of air, portishead or pulp. Choppy guitar, drums nearly on the point of collapse, bass at once funky and angular and grand string arrangements which often stray into the unsettling. Genuinely impressive stuff So to summarise problematic man narrates the plot of a 70’ sex ‘comedy’ over some of the coolest music you’ll hear
girl idk i liked it
didn’t like the guys voice took me out of it
some really nice grooves here but then i read what the album was about and felt really weird about it. lolita is a great novel and too many people just take it the wrong way. was a 3 and dropped it down to a 2 due to its weird ass subject matter.
So on first listen, I thought: ok, this is in French so I won't understand the lyrics, I'll just treat the vocals as another instrument and see how I like it. And the album sounds really good — I love the jazzy, laid back guitar playing and the moody ambience of the whole thing. The singer's voice is really rich and has a languorous quality that suits the vibe of the instrumentals perfectly. And the album is short and sweet, not overstaying its welcome. Then I looked it up on Wikipedia and found out that the lyrics basically tell a story about a middle-aged man falling in love with and sleeping with a 14 year old girl, who then dies in a plane crash, leaving him heartbroken. Yuck I can't tell if the lyrics are meant to be deliberately subversive and would have been shocking to the audience at the time it came out, or if this is a classic case of pedo shit being weirdly normalised back in the day and the singer genuinely thinking this nonsense is romantic. The whole thing definitely grossed me out and retrospectively affects my overall enjoyment of the album, but I have to concede I liked the music a lot purely on sound. All that makes this kind of tricky to give a rating to. I'm gonna go down the middle and stick with a 3
Need to try later
2 The story the album tells is pretty disturbing but considering he was both a 70s rockstar AND French, he should probably be praised for his restraint rather than criticised for it. The music is pretty good on the first and last tracks but ruined by the mic-in-mouth vocals, and the shorter track in-between, while the vocal are less annoying, are a lot less interesting musically. In terms of the lyrics, on the one hand a lot of other artists have done worse in real life, but Elvis or Jimmy Page never wrote a whole album about it. And it seems like Gainsbrough was uncomfortably interested in these themes, which makes it difficult to give the benefit of the doubt - especially since the whole presentation (the cover, his girlfriends schoolgirl-voice lines, etc.) seem to want to lean into the shock value.
Nja... Inte helt övertygad. Fastnade inte hos mig och temat är en irritation och avsmak. Den här vidriga sexualiseringen av barn. Jag blir så trött och Frankrike har verkligen satt i system just detta. Jag tycker det är äckligt och jag uppskattar inte heller att man gör musik av det. Det gör att jag tror att Serge Gainsbourg var pedofil.
So after seeing the problematic album art, I read the equally problematic Wiki, and debated not listening as to not add to the streaming total. But I figured I'd at least listen to the first track. Nope, still just ick all over.
Arrangements are ahead of its time. Sound so up to date in 2026
Zou bisou bisou is that you?
The instrumental element of this record is incredible, but a concept album about a middle aged bloke running over and then fucking a 14 year old girl is abhorrent.
I was not previously familiar with the artist or album. As one would guess from the title, this is in French. The instrumentation is pretty good, albeit minimal. While I don't really care much that I don't understand the lyrics, I'm not a fan of the spoken word vocal style. I won't come back to this one.
fav songs: ah melody stylish, cinematic, hypnotic 70/100
Can't put aside that this is an album sexualizing a 14 year old.
Unique sound and it confirms a lot of what we all think about the French
3.5⭐️/5 06.09.2026
French, yet cool
kind of a good idea. make some cool music and then just talk over it. france rocks man
I don’t think the music is that interesting or distinctive or impressive for a 1971 Pop-adjacent album, I don’t like Serge Gainsbourg’s voice at all (probably like Jane Birkin’s even less, especially when she’s being called in to scream and moan into the mic) and if I understood French, I’d probably like the concept and words even less too. Too long even at 28 minutes.
Ugh, what was that? Apparantly a story about pedophilia, musically accompanied by 70s soft-erotic music with half-spoken lyrics. Not for me.
2/5
Probably way more interesting when you understand the story, but now it sounds like a pervert Frenchman and some overdramatic music
It's pretty gross for a middle-aged man to write a "pseudo-autobiographical" album about seducing a 15-year-old girl. The instrumental aspects of the music are actually pretty interesting and cool, but they are so entwined with the creepy subject matter. And the breathy narration only makes it worse. No thanks.
Un album tres différente, l'homme qui parle dans mon oreille est un peut tros bruyant. Je ne sais pas ce que je pense a ces doux chuchotements... Parfois, la musique resemble a un livre d'audio.. Les instruments sonnent très bien, mais j'aurais juste souhaité pouvoir les entendais mieux... 6.5 baguettes / 10 baguettes
So the music isn't bad. I was leaning towards a 2, maybe a 3. That being said, I can't in good conscience praise in any way a work that sensationalizes statutory rape, so into the ones it goes. Even without the subject matter I'd find it a hard sell to put into the 1001 albums I would need to hear before I die; it's more beat poetry than anything else and I'd honestly rather listen to Mike Myer's Whoah, Man from So I Married an Axe Murderer.
I REALLY hope this is not the only french language album on the list.
Geweldige conceptplaat van de goat in de Franse muziek
pff wel is cool ma saaai 2.5
Even though I don't understand the vocals they are quite annoying and the music does very little for me. 1 star or F+.
Man I wish I didn't read into this album after listening to it. I really enjoyed the album's vibes - like a sleazy French James Bond soundtrack. I try to judge these based solely on the music, but finding out about the artist and the "story" of the album does leave an ick in my mouth that is hard to ignore. It can lose a star for the creepy lyrics though. P.S Everyone who voted 1 solely based on Gainsbourg's character better have also given 1 star to Led Zeppelin, Bowie, and every other old school rocker known for sleeping with their groupies.
Most unexpected banger ever. The opening track is so cool. A drummer that needs no more than a kick and a snare, and maybe a hat. Beautiful buzz rolls and ghost notes, and a swing that begs to be sampled (turns out it was - collab between Massive Attack, Nellee Hooper, Portishead - how cool is that?) The rest of the album is a mix of slow French sophistry and the more upbeat stuff. Adding to my playlist
You're kidding me with this, right?
For the music I would have rated this a 4 or 5, but the annoying laughing and sex noises would knock it to a 4 maybe 3. Finding out what it's actually about makes it a 1.
I liked the sound of thr music, but knowing the subject matter and hearing the sultry tone of it all, it was hard to enjoy it totally! 2.75
The concept and the album cover were better than the actual music.
Thankfully I don’t understand the lyrics - so I was just left with the songs which are great
Lyrically Serge Gainsbourg is deliberately sparking controversy. He is a man in his mid-40s singing a series of love songs about a fictional 14 year old girl from Sunderland. Comparisons to Lolita spring to mind but the direct inspiration was his 24 year old wife Jane Birkin who is pictured on the album artwork holding a teddy bear. Presenting fictionalised versions of Jane and himself with a heightened age gap is there to (in my opinion) give a sensationalist edge to a series of poetic love songs directed towards someone from a different generation. I’m kind of indifferent to this device but can see why it would wind some people up, as that was the intention. I can’t speak French though, so none of this had any bearing on my enjoyment of the album which can be summed up like this: the way Serge’s vibey rock instrumentals mix with the luscious, cinematic strings and his softly spoken, narrative heavy, mostly spoken vocals totally works on me.
Today’s album has confounded me a little. I can’t speak French so can’t tell if this is a satirical “Lolita” tale or something much more uncomfortable (the internet suggests the latter). What I do know though is that the music sounds very modern for 1971, has influenced a lot of things I love, and is seductive instrumentally. Going with a dodgy 4 for this one.
Well, that was weird.
Non. It's clearly a sonic poem, but since it's in French, it will be lost on a considerable chunk of music consumers, especially those looking for enlightenment or narrative engagement in their listening selections. Waste of time for most people, thus a wholly inappropriate inclusion on this list.
French. some good guitar
Rounding up from 2.5. Better than I expected from the description.
Non!
I don’t care if this is influential. It’s about pedophilia. It’s not “art” or “edgy” or “thought provoking.” It’s gross and creepy and predatory.
It was pleasant enough, but not really engaging for me.
If this was an instrumental only album it would be a 4. Knowing what the story is about, kicks it right down to a 1.
Oli hyvälaatuinen levy soundien puolesta. Musiikillisesti ihan menettelevä, muttei iskenyt kunnolla. 3/5.
This one is really unfortunate. If I hadnt read the description of what the album is about, I might have rated it a 3 or even a 4. But with that knowledge all the whispered lyrics, the woman laughing, just the whole thing becomes so creepy.
I like the instrumentation, esp the guitars and bass. The addition of an orchestra was fun. Is this a rock opera? The story of Melody Nelson It threw me off how short some of the songs were It was a very cool album. The subject matter however is very cringe. Low key glad I only understand basic French
French, smooth. Theme seemed to be about seducing a woman?
????? okay???? boring french mumbling.
Gainsbourg is in full force for this album that has his typical style. You either like it or not. I think it's all right.
det instrumentala är sååå bra, hade älskat om det var utan sång, särkilt då jag stör mig på hans sätt att viska fram någon form av snack-sång
This one is pretty bad. The theme of the 'concept album' is fairly horrifying and doesn't seem to have the kind of critique found in Lolita. The vocals are largely spoken with a little singing every now and then. They aren't particularly engaging to me. I can see why the music was influential and why it influenced groups like Air and Portishead, but frankly they take the ideas here and use them to better effect. Also, the more interesting moments are overwhelmed by the moments where the music pulls back to not particularly interesting repetitive background music for equally uninteresting spoken word monologues. There are really some deeply tedious moments on this album. Ultimately, the back up band is fairly talented, but is wasted. This album is 28 minutes long, but it frankly feels much longer.
incredibly cool how this album's sweaty, nicotine-stained fingerprints are all over so much music i live - trip-hop, post-rock, Tindersticks, Pulp, things which feel so genuinely sui generis, can be traced back so cleanly to one French pervert. there's a real balance here between things loose and jammy and very exacting arrangements that keep the orchestrated moments feeling like they could fall out from under you at any moment do not begrudge anyone wanting to keep away from this due to its lyrical content, but i do think that feeling of vertigo, and the lecherousness that people seem to think is an accident or just French - those are intentional! that's not to say Gainsbourg can't find something romantic in all this, conceived as it was in partial tribute to his young wife, but it's certainly provocative and uncomfortable-making by design. mileage will vary, as it will with anything. personally, i think this is far too musically electrifying and morally muddy to write off. if you want to listen to something truly disgusting that hates women and lusts after young girls over music of absolutely no consequence, there are three new Drake records that just came out waiting for you!
Some songs are so disturbing!!!
Recognised it was probably the bloke who did je taime, it's very much in the same vein. The spoken word singing left me feeling uneasy. And look at that, it's about an older man pursuing a 14 year old girl! Feels like a bit of a wrangun does Serge. Musically it feels a bit movie soundtracky, the right music for a classic french film probably but not something I'd ever want to actively listen to.
I thought this album was a bit indulgent, and I hate the plot. Scandalous for the sake of it. Can hear the influence on later bands though, I kept thinking I was listening to Portishead. Not a highlight of the list but I believe it is very influential.
Musically pretty good largely. But apparently the content is sketchy, fortunately my comprehension of french is not high enough for it to matter. 2.5
nicht gut, aber irgendwie seltsamerweise nicht scheiße. 1.5 sterne
Let's just call it two stars and leave it at that
Yuck
I'm bringing sexy Frenchie back. Serge for whatever reason deciding to have Melody Nelson be fourteen...when album cover image and voice of Melody, Jane Birkin, was 25 at the time. "Fucking Gainsbourg, that creep can roll, man." "Yeah, but he's a pervert, Dude. No, he's a sex offender. With a record. He served 6 months in Chino for exposing himself to a fourteen year old."
Groovy but French
Okay. The album that spawned 1000 stereotypes about French men.
Enjoyed this, good grooves throughout
Mkay a deep sexy french voice doing its thing with a solid instrumental including an orchestra, no idea what he’s saying but i heard ecstacy so maybe its meant to actually be sexy? Seems to be a love story revolving around the titular Melody Nelson. Can’t give it full points due to the language barrier but i was surprised how much i liked this. Standouts are Melody, Ballade de Melody Nelson, en Melody and Cargo Culte.
Disgusting
Helt sinnsykt bra! Hører mange har hentet inspirasjon herifra! Dette treffer 10/10! Dødsfett! Veldig forut sin tid også!
pop francés experimental
Another rapey album. I won’t even listen to this. Stop promoting albums about rape.
The music is fine but the abrupt loud GIGGLING plummeted my tolerance of this album. It was already on thin ice with the grating and excessive French muttering. Do people actually just sit and listen to this? It could work in a movie but as an album this suuuucks. Edit: oh my god I just read the Wikipedia page, I didn’t know it could get worse. The album is about a pedophile.
Pleasant but slight, lots of cool jazzy jams while Serge mutters "Melodee Nelsohn" over and over
Difficult one this, as the music is excellent but the subject matter is loathsome. I don't think it should be entirely off-limits, but for me the question is: do I trust Gainsbourg with the subject matter? And the answer has to be no. I don't think he is condoning the narrator as the narrator is clearly a fool, even before he meets Melody - foolish enough to be dangerously distracted by the statuette on his own car. But Gainsbourg enjoyed being provocative. He seemed to think it is OK to offer this underage sleaze as a tease. I'm going to dock it a star for that. Some people will deduct a lot more than one star, and some people will have more reason to. I absolutely understand that. Is it one of the 1001 best albums ever made? Yes, I'm pretty sure it is. Should everyone be expected to listen to it? No
70’s Rock ⭐️Cargo Culte
2.5 Music warrants a higher rating. Struggling with the story
I liked the music well enough but the premise is no good. 1
Muy bonito y tal pero parece una nana para dormir.
Very cute! I would love to give this one 3.5 stars.
I actually really enjoyed this album. I enjoyed the laid-back feel to it and that tight 70's production.
Interesting to listen to, but thematically disgusting
This was great. I don’t think it’s possible for Serge Gainsbourg to make an album that doesn’t sound a little bit dirty. Real grimy bass lines and his great nonchalant delivery. Just a really fun record.
Music was ok but the spoken word stuff?
Alright man
i'm really torn over this one. the sound is great, the spoken word approach fits perfectly over these instrumentals and i especially enjoyed the first and last tracks, both of which feel almost like proto-trip hop? but like, after reading up on what the concept of the album is....... hmm. it's probably a good thing i don't speak french? i'm giving it a 4 on the strength of everything else, but i feel like i need to take a shower now.
So French
81/100. The central narrative of this album is undeniably uncomfortable. Serge Gainsbourg builds the record around the story of a middle aged man pursuing a fifteen year old girl, and when that is paired with his real life reputation for provocative and often troubling behavior, it makes the listening experience difficult. At the same time, the musical execution is incredible, which is what makes the album so frustrating and complicated. The arrangements are rich and cinematic, full of orchestral pop, funk and psychedelic influences. I have honestly been conflicted about giving the record such a high rating because of those themes. I honestly cannot see myself revisiting it again.
I kind of hate how much I like this album.
Pas fin, immonde il est dégoutant et ses paroles le sont tout autant.
Det er sgu godt nok liderligt, hva'
*15 Måske en provocateur - måske en kunstner. Måske bare endnu en fransk intellektuel/kulturelite-type der skal lade være med at være så vammel.
Føj
Lyder urimeligt godt, men jeg tror ikke, at jeg helt følger konceptet her Jeg skal ikke kloge mig på det franske sprog, så jeg holder mig til den lille wiki-box ovenover, og det lyder sgu lidt sus Lidt kedeligt, lidt lækkert, lidt underligt koncept, meget fransk, meget lidt replay value for mig 2.4
Det er SÅ gennemført 70’er og FRANSK. Det er måske pga af en svaghed for det frankofile og intellektuelle 60’er miljø som han voksede ud af, men jeg lader tvivlen komme ham til gode om hvorvidt han kun provokerede og italesætte tabuer i hans ret hidsige persona-konstruktion og forholder mig til det kunstneriske. Tror ikke jeg har hørt noget som det før, og det er ment som et kompliment, og musikalsk og kunstnerisk er jeg ret vild med det, men kan alligevel ikke helt se de det mesterværk som andre ser - måske er det fordi jeg ikke kan fransk; måske er det trods alt Gainsbourgs eftermæle der trækker skygger…
I never understood the "artistic" point of pedophilia. This lolita-esque text left me unimpressed and kinda disturbed.
This is kinda sick. Often sounds so ahead of its time. So effortlessly cool. Sounds like the Nouvelle Vague. Was this a film soundtrack or something? I don't really care it was fun. Fave Tracks: Melody, Ballad de Melody Nelson, L'hotel particulier (BOF "Melody Nelson") 4.4/5
Not for me. 1/5
1/10 not my thing
Very cool and cool French pop
I don’t speak French, but the Wikipedia descriptions indicated that this is a pedophile’s dream concept album. No thank you. I don’t care if it’s great musically, we need to shut this shit DOWN! And don’t give me your Lolita argument. At least Nabokov knew Hubert Humbert was a monster. Did not listen beyond the first 2 tracks (which played before I read the description), but I know enough to give this a single star. Glorifying rape deserves negative stars, but that is not an option.
Love Jane Birkin but this isn't my thing.
Well... this album is, the least to say, interesting. And I have enjoyed some parts. I don't find very appealing the strong sexual components on Gainsbourg's music, which have become a part of his persona, but surely the way this album dives between a storytelling and cinematic experience is quite a risk that is pretty well delivered in the record. His voice in contrast with Jane Birkin's in this album really fits quite well and accompanies the story which, aside from being scandalous, I just find it as a provocation, so I don't care much about this aspect of the album. The songs are pretty well delivered and the different sections give this album a very fluid sound. Is it something magnificent? I wouldn't say so, but surely it is a very interesting album, mainly in the way it feels like a whole in a very literary sense. So, surprisingly, I've liked this one.
If I spoke French it probably would have hit better
As it is, standing on it's own and not knowing any French, it's a pretty groovy and chill 4 star album. I recognized something in here from Beck's Sea Change album which I did enjoy and saw that Beck and many others were inspired by this. Yeah the story behind it from what I read in wikipedia is creepy for sure but I enjoyed the sound of this album not knowing any of that ahead of time.
Musically, this is 4 stars. And as long as I don't think about the concept album's plot, it stays 4 stars. Since it's in French and I remember very little of the 1 semester of French I took in college, it's easy to ignore. But man, regardless of how "different" the 70s, French culture, and 70s French culture may have been, that concept album plot is creepy as hell. Knocked down a point for that. 3 stars.
When you call an album 'Lolita-esque', there's a fine line you have to walk on. You can certainly bring to light the shocking, dangerous, and horrifying aspect of pedophilia, as it is sadly a part of humanity's darker facets. But you can't glorify it. You can't be fascinated or enamored by it. Lolita is written in a way where you're grossed out and obviously have to treat the protagonist as an irredeemable piece of shit. While there are some lecherous guitar jams in here, there's a strange... romanticizing of the relationship between Melody and the Rolls Royce driver. So no. I don't think this is Lolita-esque. It's just creepy.
If only Serge would keep his mouth shut and let the music jam along... He talks some wrong musings over it that could have easily been lampshaded by making the main character the same age or something. But no. Make it explicit, why don't you. The guy was a menace.
“one of the greatest French-language albums in popular music” is an extended story about pedophilia. Great. Music isn’t awful, but that doesn’t matter. The French deserve to be invaded again
Yeah this guys gotta go to Hell.
Well this is horrible. Musically great and clearly influential - I spotted bits that were sampled by Portishead. But this is not about, as Wikipedia describes it, an 'illicit romance'. It's about a middle-aged man grooming and raping a child. It can get in the fucking bin.
Review before reading Wikipedia: I couldn’t really follow the narrative with Gainsbourg’s free-associating provocateur lyrics, but the production is excellent, especially the bass overture and the vocal arrangements on the last track. 3.5 stars. Upon further reading: ok the narrative is bad bad bad. I don’t really understand the unqualified praise for the album. Musically it’s beautiful but lyrically it’s very disturbing. Perhaps some nuance is lost in translation, but again, I think Gainsbourg enjoyed being provocative. It makes it hard to give a simple rating, which can obscure the fine distinction between what’s “enjoyable” versus “historically significant” versus “I like the music but the album is fucked up.”
My favorite Gainsbourg album. Due mainly to the fact that I’m a sucker for a concept pieces but also because of that simple bass line you hear throughout. That compared with the noodling of an overdriven guitar creates a sexy backdrop to a story I can only make inferences about due to my limited understanding of the French language. Even though he gets freaky throughout Serge sticks to his 60s crooner style which I appreciate. To top it all off, it has a fantastic crescendo to finish. Good shit! Edit: I didn’t realize the concept was a romance between Gainsbourg and a 15 year old. I was thinking the woman with the doll was a bit strange but didn’t read into it until after my listen/rating. Dammit Serge!!!
Favorite Track: Cargo Culte
Not sure how an album about pedophilia can make it to a list of albums you must hear before you die. And inevitably, of course, it is an album by a French artist. The music was tolerable, but the low mutterings and whispers in French we’re almost unintelligible
Extremely problematic theme aside, the music and flow of this album was great. Not something I'd be all over, but very listenable. Clearly artistic, but jesus, what the fuck.
80
Never listened to Serge before and really drawn in by it
I don't speak French so this really missed the mark for me. Had I listened to this and did not know that it was an experimental album about a middle age man meeting and then seducing a 14 year old French GIRL then maybe I would have liked it more. Or even with that if I understood French perhaps what he is saying is done so artfully that I could appreciate the music of it all. Instead it is just a guy talking over music that is ok with one portion of what I presume to be an adolescent girl laughing but in a way that sounds close to orgasming, which is not really interesting to listen to. I am not someone who does not appreciate difficult/ controversial/ illegal whatever subject matter. Nor am I someone who believes in subjecting music to some kind or moral standard or someone who cannot listen to music made by someone who is now today "canceled." So if this were better made I might like it. As it is I did not understand the words and that coupled with the subject matter made this a middling album.
This was alright. The music was decent, but the French people whispering over it were just a little off-putting. Three stars.
The music and instrumentals are pretty great - the opening track had to have been sampled by Beck if I heard it right. But the singing and then leaning about the guy himself did nothing for me.
Ik kan geen frans maar zat gelijk in het album. De orkestrale arrangementen van Jean-Claude Vannier trekken je er gelijk in. De bas is heeft geeft een fijne gekke groovy basis en gitaar is ook wel aardig. Productioneel is het er goed een goed gemixt wat voelt als een cinematisch album op deze manier. Na wat research lees je waar het album over gaat en dat maakt het toch een beetje lastig. Omdat je geen frans begrijpt is het ook moeilijk om de intonaties van bepaalde vertellingen te horen. Maar een ontmaagding van een 14 jarig meisjes in een hotel door een man van middelbare leeftijd is wel moeilijk te verteren in welke (literaire)context dan ook. Los van de inhoud van het verhaal hoor je wel dat de muziek meebeweegt met een dramatisch slot akkoord waar het einde muzikaal goed samenkomt. Muziekaal en qua verhaal structuur denk ik wel dat het 5 sterren is maar ik voel toch een ongemak tijdens het luisteren en niet op een poëtische manier dat het schuurt maar dat ik er liever niet naar luister. Ook het gebrek aan franse taalkennis kan ik heet moeilijk in ene bepaalt perspectief zien. Ik snap wel dat album op veel muziekanten een grote invloed heeft gehad.
Ik vind dat bij bepaalde stukken van het album de songs niet heel sterk afgemixt zijn, zeker het eerste nummer hoor je dat sterk, Gainsbourg fluistert maar zijn mic staat hard aan waardoor de muziek ver op de achtergrond zakt. Muzikaal gezien vind ik ‘ t wel aardig, je verstaat verder geen zak van de tekst maar af en toe kun je er wel uit opmaken dat het gaat om een soort muze ofzo, iedere keer wanneer de naam Melody voorbij komt. T gefluister wordt af en toe een beetje irritant, maar tegelijkertijd maakt het t ook wel weer filmisch. Ik denk dat ik het een 2,4 ga geven en dus ga afronden naar beneden.
Listening session: may 5th, while chilling at home Listened to before: no Thoughts: I wanted to give this a 3/5 based on the music (which I felt pretty neutral about) but then I learned that this album sexualizes an underage girl….. Favourite track: Melody
Yeah, not listening to this one out of principles. There's the argument that the music itself was highly influential and perhaps it was but once you know the concept of the plot you feel dirty for giving it any sort of praise. Are there more worse "sounding" records? Obviously but yeah this is difficult to recommend overall.
This is the 36th album I've gotten off this list and the first not from the anglosphere which speaks a bit to some of the flaws of this type of list-making. I can see why the music is extremely innovative, but listening to it made me feel like I need to disinfect myself.
pretty weird stuff. Lounge singery stuff from a French guy. Some instrumental songs and some vocals. Common theme (from my wife) is that some of these might be ok if significantly shorter. Overall, hard to listen to and get through, just a 1 star rating
I enjoyed this more than I expected. The story is creepy, though. Musically very interesting, but narratively questionable
Really? Minus 47stars
If my friends asked me what I was listening to, how would they react when I told them "It's a French concept album about a guy who sleeps with a fourteen-year-old girl that he hit with his car?" The album is very pleasant sounding, but as is the risk with such an album, an awful concept can ruin the whole thing. The actual music itself is rather nice, but "En Melody" spoils any enjoyment of the album. "Cargo culte" at least acknowledges the eponymous cargo cults, which I think are interesting. But that's all this one has going for it.
Музично це просто сууууупер стиль. Я дуже кайфонув від альбому. А потім пішов почитати, про що співали/розповідали, і тут дізлайк. Я дуже не люблю всі ці заборонені кріпові лав-сторі чоловіків до дівчат-підлітків ні в літературі, ні в фільмах, ні в музиці. Виходить, що менше знаєш - ставиш вищу оцінку. Поставлю 4 виключно через дуже гарну, можливо, навіть видатну, музичну частину.
Класний і дуже стильний альбом. Тверда четвірка. Взагалі дискографія Гензбурга доволі цікава, а ще він вплинув на створення мого улюбленого альбому АМ tranquility based hotel and casino.
Mel-uh-dee: a trip of three steps down the palate to tap, a bike, the spirit of ecstasy. Mel. Uh. Dee. The night is plain, easily hiding those wishing to be hidden. They travel far, thundering down quiet roads. I feel I know her, but sometimes my arms bend back. Pure colours, melting clouds. It has stopped raining.
Oof. I wish I didn’t know what this was about.
Thankfully I read reviews before pressing play. Did not listen due to heinous lyrics.
A good break from the British finally. OK album tho
Musically: 4 Lyrically: -10 gazillion
Reallllly interesting album, this. On the one hand, you have a pretty compelling musical style that was hugely influential and still holds up. And on the other hand, you have what appears to be a celebration of pedophilia. And maybe you could get away with that kind off thing in the 70s, but right now..... that's not gonna fly, boss. My issue here is that I don't speak French. So I can't really tell if he's pulling a Nabokov and trying to show us how insane the narrator is, or if he's just straight up romanticizing having sex with a 14 year old. For all the things that don't have to do with the main themes of this album - I'd give it a 4. For the themes, again, because I can't properly evaluate this myself, I'd give it a 2. That leaves us with an average of - THREE STARS
ignorance is bliss? i don't know that much french
No one should be made to listen to this ever. What is wrong with people that they think this is ok?
eh. also. aged poorly. Even though this exact stuff was happening with Jimmy Page and Steven Tyler and such.
Gross. Among the more cancelable records on this list. If you don’t speak French (and even if you do… maybe especially if you do) I’m not sure this should be required listening.
It’s French which is cool but the essence of it being an early 70’s pysch rock album really drags this down for me
This album is probably like the experience of meeting a mysterious French guy, like sweet until you actually get to know him, and then he's just weird and a bit pretentious.
instrumentals are nice. vocals are weird. the waltz was the best song. also glad it was only 28 minutes. i appreciate this list having something other than english and american music. but i didn't actually love this album. 2 or 3/5. i'll do 3 as props for expanding outside the anglosphere.
I suppose this would have been better as a concept album when I could understand the lyrics to get the concept. Reading about the story makes the guy a pedophile/groomer going after a teenager. Not really a fan of the music or the concept. 2/5
De uitdrukking 'Enfant terrible' lijkt voor Serge Gainsbourg uitgevonden. Provocateur, etterbak, kettingroker, clown, perverseling, vies mannetje, charmeur, versierder. En altijd onvoorspelbaar. De man die Frankrijk op stang joeg met een hilarische reggae-versie van het volkslied ('Aux armes et caetera'), en internationaal moraalridders shockeerde met het best wel obscene hijgnummer 'Je t'aime moi non plus'. Zijn partner-in-crime Jane Birkin geeft ook hier acte de présence, als de Melody Nelson uit de titel. Als we de nogal vage teksten mogen geloven is zij een vroegrijpe roodharige deerne van 14 à 15 jaar, een ideaal onderwerp voor beroepsviezerik Gainsbourg. Waarna ze met een vrachtvliegtuig neerstort in Nieuw-Guinea, of zoiets. Het gaat allemaal weer nergens over, Gainsbourg zingzegt met zijn vertrouwde luie toontje over best aardig gecomponeerde en gearrangeerde nummers, waarop zelfs James Bond-gitarist Vic Flick meespeelt(!). Fransen vinden zo'n klier als Gainsbourg geweldig, ik houd wat reserves, maar al met al is dit mafklap-album toch best goed uitgevoerd. De muziek beklijft, de sfeer is uniek en het krijgt dus allemaal het voordeel van de twijfel deze keer.
Ik was wat huiverig voor dit album. Mij was verteld dat Serge de man achter Je t'aime moi non plus is. Nou ben ik niet zo gevoelig voor zogenaamd ontwrichtende muziek. Maar muziek krijgt van mij hiervoor ook zeker geen waardering. Toch moet ik bekennen dat in dit geval het zoeken naar anti-kudo's samengaat met muzikale aandacht. Dat ik afknap op het Franse gewauwel van meneer zal mensen die mij kennen niet zo verbazen. Maar muzikaal klinkt het verrassend prettig en vrij origineel. Ik moet zeggen: toch weer een aanvulling aan het einde van de lijst.
Een Nabokov/Lolita-achtig verhaal van een vies mannetje in het Frans gesproken/gezongen/gefluisterd door een vies mannetje. Althans zo klinkt Serge, die we natuurlijk beter kennen van het hijgnummer "je t'aime moi non plus". Ik luister het met extra interesse omdat ik probeer wat Frans te verstaan. Verder vind ik Lolita een aanrader qua boek, dus dat zijn allemaal van die kleine dingetjes die meehelpen in het eindoordeel. Qua muziek gaan we duidelijk terug naar de 70s. Het mag een beetje zweven of psychedelisch rocken, heeft regelmatig een funky basslijntje. Wat strijkers voor de sfeer erbij. Ik kan dit erg goed aanhoren. Om mijn Frans te oefenen zou ik het nog een keer willen luisteren, maar gewoon voor de muziek zou ik het ook prima nog een keer op kunnen zetten. Geinig plaatje, quatre étoiles!
почему педофилии в этом списке больше, чем женщин
At first I had no idea what he was singing about, and I was mostly just taking in the music because it sounded pretty chill. Then I read the reviews and found out it’s basically a pseudo Lolita type concept album, and my first reaction was, what the fuck. The difference for me is that with something like Eminem, the whole point is shock value. It’s so over the top that it feels like an obvious alter ego doing the worst possible version of itself. This feels a lot more grounded, which makes it hit differently, and not in a good way. In today’s climate, this probably has not aged well at all. That said, the music itself still sounds good. But once you know what’s going on, it definitely changes the feel of the album. So I can’t go much higher than a 2.
# Playlist Track - Melody # Notes - I enjoyed the orchestra! The opening really reminds me of Beck's "Sea Change". - The tail end of the album is kind of a downer. It loses steam on the second half and it's a bit boring on the end.
Serge Gainsbourg is one of France's biggest music exports, although I think by now Daft Punk might have crossed that threshold for future generations because the subject matter would be canceled today !!!!!!!!! Putting the obvious aside, Histoire de Melody Nelson is considered Gainsbourg's magnum opus. It's such a short record at around 28 minutes and yet I feel like I can't fully speak about the story or songwriting because it's French and I don't speak it, but the instrumentation (and especially) the bass drive the motion of the album incredibly well. Like, the bass is fantastic. It feels so loose, and at times feels like a car crash is about to happen and you just have to take it in. For a pop record (kind of hard to boil this down to one genre but I mean, he IS the popular french musician guy of the mid 20th century), this is pretty well done. The worst parts of the album are coincidentally, the two icky songs that aren't pretty good to begin with. Not like I can understand what it was about when I was listening to it, but I also though it was instrumentally the weaker parts of the album clocking in at like 3 minutes of a 28 minute record. 10%! Yeah that's math bet you didn't expect that you wanker.
Let's write songs about fucking kids and call it art. Disgusting
Thanks, I hate it. So grossed out that I had to stop listening midway through track 2
The feel of this album should be the soundtrack of a 1970s film.
Subject matter indefensible: I'm glad I don't know French. Maybe it approaches the psychosexual complexity of Nabokov? Seems unlikely. Musically excellent, but the sexy spoken word stuff can't overcome later decades of parody. The electric guitar is fantastic. All this talent, resting on such gross foundations.
Some cool loungey sleazy psychedelic stuff going on musically, but more than ruined by being a concept album about hitting a child with your car then fucking her. Guys just had these fantasies out loud in the 70s huh? Great representative of France here, the laid back, chilled out, black turtle neck wearing pedo rapist.
creepy
Album cool. Des instrumentaux très puissants et une voix française apaisante pour bien s'accorder. Je réécouterais ça.
Sonically, not too bad. I don't know much French so lyrically this did nothing for me (though I am aware of it's controversial story). I can't say much about this. It was fine.
I see what he’s going for. And I see the influence on trip hop. 1971 is an early period for concept albums, and making it spoken word is a different use of the medium- basically storytelling with a light musical background. It’s creative. Points for that. I don’t think it’s super great or would recommend it, but probably one of those “important” albums with an outsized influence. And, it’s short ⭐️⭐️⭐️
очень вовремя я Бунина начала - можно одновременно слушать про французов соблазняющих малолеток и про русских! симметрия! даже безотносительно содержания, что-то я большего от классической французской музыки жду, что это за реп опять…
Did I miss something? Entirely unimpressed. 1/5
4/10
So French it should come with a garlic necklace, a cigarette, questionable morals and a shrug. The music and production are fantastic. However, I didn't need to look up the lyrics to know it's definitely questionable - especially knowing about Gainsbourg (hint: it's pedobait). Anyway, luckily I can't speak French so I can just jam along to the music. Best Tracks: Melody; L'hotel particulier; En Melody
Moody, in a very stereotypically French way. I don't love the fact that the whole album conveys a relationship between a middle-aged man and a 14 year old girl... but thankfully I don't speak French so I couldn't fully immerse myself in the lyrics
Just love the irreverence of Gainsbourg. The mix of cinematic jazz stylings and loungey singer songwriter works great on this record. 4 stars