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
Juif Et Dieu
Serge Gainsbourg Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Sais-tu que le Nazaréen
N'avait rien d'un Aryen
Et s'il est fils de Dieu comme vous dites
Alors
Dieu est Juif
Le Capital tu as lu de l'Israélite
Karl Marx un beau bouquin
Et le trio bolchevik la troïka des purs eh bien
Tous trois de race sémite
Je te le prouverai tout à l'heure
Dieu est Juif
Juif et Dieu
Grigori Ievseîetch Apfelbaum dit Zionoviev
Lev Borissovitch Rosenfeld dit Kamenev
Lev Davidovitch Bronstein dit Trotsky
Dieu est Juif
Juif et Dieu
Voici le temps de l'Antéchrist
La bombe à neutrons hein
Petite fille de papa Einstein
Encore un juif si tu vois ce que je veux dire petite
Dieu est Juif
Juif et Dieu
The lyrics of Serge Gainsbourg's song Juif Et Dieu (Jew and God) are a commentary on the intermingling of religion, ethnicity, politics, and power. The song is a satirical take on the idea that Jews are disproportionately influential and dominant in various spheres. The opening line, "Et si Dieu était juif ça t'inquiéterait petite" (And if God was a Jew, would it worry you, little one?), establishes the theme of the song, which is the intersection of Judaism with perceptions of power and prejudice.
Gainsbourg references various figures and ideas throughout the song, such as Jesus Christ, Karl Marx, the Bolshevik trio of Grigori Ievseîetch Apfelbaum (Zinoviev), Lev Borissovitch Rosenfeld (Kamenev), and Lev Davidovitch Bronstein (Trotsky), and the atomic bomb, all of which are associated with Jewishness in some way or another. The verse "Sais-tu que le Nazaréen / N'avait rien d'un Aryen / Et s'il est fils de Dieu comme vous dites / Alors / Dieu est Juif / Juif et Dieu" (Do you know that the Nazarene / Was not an Aryan / And if he is the son of God as you say / Then / God is a Jew / Jew and God) points out the irony that Jesus was not depicted in the way that he actually looked (as a Middle Eastern Jew), but was instead represented in Western (Aryan) iconography.
Gainsbourg's use of sarcasm and irony in the song brings attention to the fact that Jewish individuals have been subjected to discrimination and persecution based on their ethnicity and religion. By suggesting that God is Jewish, he is effectively turning the tables on those who have used religion to justify oppression and marginalization of Jews throughout history.
Line by Line Meaning
Et si Dieu était juif ça t'inquiéterait petite
If God were Jewish, would you be worried, my dear?
Sais-tu que le Nazaréen
N'avait rien d'un Aryen
Et s'il est fils de Dieu comme vous dites
Do you know that the Nazarene had nothing to do with Aryan race, and if he is the son of God as you say,
Alors
Dieu est Juif
Juif et Dieu
Then God is Jewish, a Jewish God
Le Capital tu as lu de l'Israélite
Karl Marx un beau bouquin
Et le trio bolchevik la troïka des purs eh bien
Tous trois de race sémite
Je te le prouverai tout à l'heure
You have read The Capital by a Jew, Karl Marx's beautiful book. And the Bolshevik trio, the pure troika? Well, all three were Semites. I will prove it to you later.
Grigori Ievseîetch Apfelbaum dit Zionoviev
Lev Borissovitch Rosenfeld dit Kamenev
Lev Davidovitch Bronstein dit Trotsky
Grigori Apfelbaum who's also known as Zinoviev, Lev Kamenev who's also known as Rosenfeld, and Lev Trotsky who's also known as Bronstein.
Dieu est Juif
Juif et Dieu
God is Jewish, a Jewish God
Voici le temps de l'Antéchrist
La bombe à neutrons hein
Petite fille de papa Einstein
Encore un juif si tu vois ce que je veux dire petite
Here comes the time of Antichrist. The neutron bomb, you know... A little girl of Daddy Einstein... Yet another Jew, if you see what I mean.
Dieu est Juif
Juif et Dieu
God is Jewish, a Jewish God
Lyrics © RESERVOIR MEDIA MANAGEMENT INC
Written by: Serge Gainsbourg
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
MathCecile
Superbe chanson
eddy moriau
Quel album! rien à jeter! Pochette sublime!
MrGleamMusic
Thank you for the subtitles. Ça me permet de partager à des amis ailleurs dans le monde.
eddy moriau
quelle belle chanson!
Sveta Kalisker
Trop bonne musique
crashbat
BIG UP LEON TROTSKY ET KARL MARX !!!!!
eddy moriau
quel album! Bien meilleur que le premier!
miller simon
J'ai toujours préféré mauvaise nouvelles des étoiles, il maîtrise mieux le style, il est plus profond dans son propos aussi.
Bon mis à pars Mickey mousse peut-être !
Sandrine Rousseau
For ever... mon maitre
stebubful
Gainsbourg utilise la conjonction et ,pas le verbe etre l'art subtil de la provocation !!
Merci Serge