He was born Lucien Ginzburg in Paris, France, the son of Jewish Russian parents who fled to France after the 1917 Bolshevik uprising. His childhood was profoundly affected by the occupation of France by Nazi Germany, during which he and his family, as Jews, were forced to wear the yellow star and eventually flee from Paris. He had a daughter, Charlotte Gainsbourg, with English singer and actress Jane Birkin; and a son, Lulu, with his last partner, Bambou (Caroline Von Paulus, who is related to Friedrich Paulus). Before he was 30 years old, Lucien Ginsburg was a disillusioned painter but earned his living as a piano player in bars. Daughter Charlotte would later become an actress and singer.
His early songs were influenced by Boris Vian and were largely in the vein of "old-fashioned" chanson. Very early, however, Gainsbourg began to move beyond this and experiment with a succession of different musical styles: jazz early on, English pop in the 60's, reggae in the 70's, even hip-hop in the 80's.
Success began to arrive when, in 1965, his song "Poupée de cire, poupée de son" was the Luxembourg entry in the Eurovision Song Contest. Performed by French teen singer France Gall, it won the grand prize. (The song was covered in English as "A Lonely Singing Doll" by British teen idol Twinkle.) He arranged other Gall songs and LPs that were characteristic of the late 1960s psychedelic styles, among them Gall's '1968' album. Another of Serge's songs "Boum Bada Boum" was entered in by Monaco in the 1967 contest, sung by Minouche Barelli; It came 5th.
In 1969, he released what would become his most famous song in the English-speaking world, "Je t'aime... moi non plus", which featured simulated sounds of female orgasm. The song appeared that year on an LP, "Jane Birkin/Serge Gainsbourg". Originally recorded with Brigitte Bardot, it was released with future girlfriend Birkin when Bardot backed out. While Gainsbourg declared it the "ultimate love song," it was considered too "hot"; the song was censored in various countries, and in France, even the toned-down version was suppressed. Even the Vatican made a public statement citing the song as offensive. Its notoriety led it to reaching no. 1 in the UK singles chart. A long-standing rumor maintains that Gainsbourg and Birkin were actually having sex during the recording session (asked about it in an interview, Gainsbourg answered that if this was true, the song would have lasted longer than 4 minutes).
The seventies
His most influential work came near the start of the seventies with Histoire de Melody Nelson, released in 1971. This concept album, produced and arranged by Jean-Claude Vannier, tells the story of a Lolita-esque affair, with Gainsbourg as the narrator and Jane Birkin as the eponymous English heroine. It features prominent string arrangements and even a massed choir at its tragic climax. At the time, sales were poor, but the album has proven influential with artists such as Air, David Holmes and Beck.
In 1975, he released the album Rock Around the Bunker, a rock album written entirely on the subject of the Nazis. Gainsbourg used black humour, as he and his family suffered during World War II. While a child in Paris, Gainsbourg himself had worn the Yellow badge as the mark of a Jew.
The next year saw the release of another major work, L'Homme à la Tête de Chou (Cabbage-Head Man), featuring the new character Marilou and sumptuous orchestral themes.
In Jamaica in 1978 he recorded "Aux Armes et cetera," a reggae version of the French national anthem "La Marseillaise", with Robbie Shakespeare, Sly Dunbar and Rita Marley. This song earned him death threats from right-wing veterans of the Algerian War of Independence who were opposed to certain lyrics. Shortly afterwards, Gainsbourg bought the original manuscript of La Marseillaise. He was able to reply to his critics that his version was, in fact, closer to the original as the manuscript clearly shows the words "Aux armes et cætera..." for the chorus.
The next year saw him in the new look of Gainsbarre, officially introduced in the song "Ecce Homo."
Final years
In the 1980's, approaching the end of his life, Gainsbourg became a regular figure on French TV. His appearances seemed devoted to his controversial sense of humour and provocation. He would frequently show up drunk and unshaven on stage. Perhaps his most famous incident came when, on Michel Drucker's live Saturday evening show with the American singer Whitney Houston, he exclaimed, "I want to fuck her."
During this period he released Love On The Beat and his last studio album, You're Under Arrest, (which saw him adapt his style to the hip-hop genre), as well as two live recordings. His third and last Eurovision Song Contest entry came in 1990 with the French entry "White and Black Blues", sung by Joëlle Ursull. It came second in a tie with Ireland. His songs became increasingly eccentric in this period, ranging from the anti-drug "Les Enfants de la Chance" to the duet with his daughter Charlotte called "Lemon Incest (Un zeste de citron)." The title of the latter demonstrates Gainsbourg's love of puns (another example is "Bowie, Beau oui comme Bowie").
Discography :
1958 : Du Chant À La Une !
1959 : Serge Gainsbourg N°2
1961 : L'étonnant Serge Gainsbourg
1962 : Serge Gainsbourg N° 4
1963 : Gainsbourg Confidentiel
1964 : Gainsbourg Percussions
1968 : Initials B.B.
1968 : Bonnie And Clyde ( with Brigitte Bardot )
1969 : Jane Birkin-Serge Gainsbourg
1971 : Histoire de Melody Nelson ( with Jane Birkin )
1973 : Vu de l'extérieur
1975 : Rock around the bunker
1976 : L'Homme à tête de chou
1979 : Aux armes et cætera
1981 : Mauvaises Nouvelles Des Étoiles
1984 : Love on the Beat
1987 : You're Under Arrest
Ford Mustang
Serge Gainsbourg Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Et "bang", on embrasse les platanes
"Mus-" à gauche, "-Tang" à droite
Et à gauche, à droite
Un essuie-glace, un paquet "de Kool"
"Un badge" avec inscrit d'ssus "Keep Cool"
Une barre de chocolat
On se fait des "langues" en "Ford Mustang"
Et "bang", on embrasse les platanes
"Mus-" à gauche, "-Tang" à droite
Et à gauche, à droite
Une bouteille de "fluid makeup"
Un "flash", un "Browning" et un "pick-up"
Un recueil "d'Edgar Poe"
Un briquet "Zippo"
On se fait des "langues" en "Ford Mustang"
Et "bang", on embrasse les platanes
"Mus-" à gauche, "-Tang" à droite
Et à gauche, à droite
Un numéro de "Superman"
Un écrou de chez "Paco Rabanne"
Une photo "d'Marilyn"
Un tube "d'Aspirin"
On se fait des "langues" en "Ford Mustang"
Et "bang", on embrasse les platanes
"Mus-" à gauche, "-Tang" à droite
The song "Ford Mustang" by Serge Gainsbourg is about teenage rebellion and the freedom that comes with driving a Ford Mustang. The lyrics describe a group of friends driving around, enjoying life and everything it has to offer. They are carefree and living in the moment, speeding down the road with the wind blowing in their hair.
The chorus speaks about the dangers of this lifestyle, as they play with danger by embracing trees on the roadside. However, the group of friends is determined to continue living life to the fullest, regardless of the risks.
The rest of the song describes the items they have in the car, which include a variety of things like a "badge" that reads "Keep Cool", a "Browning" gun, and an "Aspirin" bottle. At the end of the day, the group simply wants to enjoy their time together and have fun, while exploring the world around them.
Overall, the song is about the joys of youth, rebellion, and self-discovery that come with the freedom of driving a Ford Mustang.
Line by Line Meaning
On se fait des "langues" en "Ford Mustang"
Driving around, flirting with each other in a Ford Mustang
Et "bang", on embrasse les platanes
Suddenly, we crash into the trees
"Mus-" à gauche, "-Tang" à droite
Driving in a zigzag formation
Et à gauche, à droite
We keep going left and right
Un essuie-glace, un paquet "de Kool"
Having a cigarette while using the windshield wiper
"Un badge" avec inscrit d'ssus "Keep Cool"
Wearing a badge that says to stay calm
Une barre de chocolat
Eating a chocolate bar
Un "Coca-Cola"
Drinking a Coca-Cola
Une bouteille de "fluid makeup"
Having a bottle of makeup remover
Un "flash", un "Browning" et un "pick-up"
Having a camera, gun, and truck
Un recueil "d'Edgar Poe"
Reading a book by Edgar Allan Poe
Un briquet "Zippo"
Lighting a cigarette with a Zippo lighter
Un numéro de "Superman"
Reading a Superman comic book
Un écrou de chez "Paco Rabanne"
Having a nut from a Paco Rabanne perfume bottle
Une photo "d'Marilyn"
Looking at a photo of Marilyn Monroe
Un tube "d'Aspirin"
Taking a tube of aspirin
Lyrics © MELODY NELSON PUBLISHING, WARNER CHAPPELL MUSIC FRANCE, RESERVOIR MEDIA MANAGEMENT INC
Written by: Serge Gainsbourg
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Elian
We're swapping spits / We're snorting lines [double entendre] (On s' fait des "lines")
In a Ford Mustang
And then, "Bang"
We're banging in [triple entendre]
To the plane trees / And then, "Bang," we're getting high ("embrasser les platanes = planer" [ French] (=to get high)
"Mus" to the left
"Tang" to the right
And to the left, to the right
A windshield wiper
A pack of Kool
A badge with the inscription
"Keep Cool"
A bar of
Chocolate
A Coca-Cola
We're swapping spits / We're snorting lines
In a Ford Mustang
And then, "Bang"
We're banging in
To the plane trees
"Mus" to the left
"Tang" to the right
And to the left, to the right
A bottle
Of make-up fluid
A flashgun
A Browning (automatic pistol)
A phonograph
A volume
Of Edgar A. Poe
And a plain brass ZIPPO
We're swapping spits / We're snorting lines
In a Ford Mustang
And then, "Bang"
We're banging in
To the plane trees
"Mus" to the left
"Tang" to the right
And to the left, to the right
An edition
Of Superman
A nut from
Paco
Rabanne
A pic of
Marilyn
A tube of aspirin
We're swapping spits / We're snorting lines
In a Ford Mustang
And then, "Bang"
We're banging in
To the plane trees
"Mus" to the left
"Tang" to the right
And to the left, to the right
@j.pintolobao8445
Comme est belle c’est musique du genio Gainsbourg!❤🇵🇹
@jean-claudecalise7470
Tu as envie de danser dessus ! Incroyable ! Génie.
@lyonnelmatthieuland6509
Dans ce titre, ainsi que dans "Bloody Jack" et "Comic strip" (1st version), les choeurs féminins/voix féminine est celle - à priori (voir si son nom apparaît sur les détails des titres)- de l'excellentissime chanteuse/choriste Madeline Bell. Elle fut la choriste et amie de Dusty Springfield (vous la voyez, à gauche, avec 2 autres choristes dans "I don't want to go on without you', de Dusty, pour la BBC, 1966). Elle fut aussi membre du top groupe Blue Mink (leur 'Melting pot' est un bijou) et Space. Elle a enregistré des titres pop assez intéressants, dans lesquels Dusty Springfield, alors grande star, se faisait un plaisir de chanter dans les choeurs des titres de sa choriste préférée....
@minitorus
Pas de monospace, ni clope électrique
Une Ford mustang, un Perfecto et un Zippo !
@thomasdupont7186
et de l'aspirine (important à avoir quand on est Serge).
@lillydornetti9362
Encroyable!!!
Vi adoro tantissimo 💞
Siete ETERNI ❤❤❤
@arkeoloji2003
Perfect
@JopiniStJopy
I have a Ford Mustang! Year 2000, green convertible. Keep kool!
@thomasdupont7186
Mais quel chef d'oeuvre.... Putain Serge....