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
L' Ami Caouette
Serge Gainsbourg Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Me fait la tête
Qu'a Caouette?
La petite Noé
Veut plus me parler
Qu'a Noé?
L'ami Cao
M'a mis k.o.
La petite Ramel
M'est infidèle
Qu'a Ramel?
Monsieur Hannibal
Me mine le moral
Qu'a Hannibal?
Mam'zelle Leçonlon
Me traite de con
Qu'a Leçonlon?
L'ami Caouette
Me fait la tête
Qu'a Caouette?
Mam'zelle Gibi
M'traite d'abruti
Qu'a Gibi?
L'ami Outchou
M'jette des cailloux
Qu'a Outchou?
Mam'zelle Binet
S'est débinée
(oh) qu'a Binet?
Le petit Member
Me jette des pierres
Qu'a Member?
Mam'zelle Lamar
De moi en a marre
Qu'a Lamar?
L'ami Caouette
Me fait la tête
Qu'a Caouette?
Mam'zelle Ramba
Veut plus que je la vois
Qu'a Ramba?
Monsieur Nasson
Me donne du bâton
Qu'a Nasson?
Mam'zelle Nassucre
Me traite de trou-duc
Qu'a Nassucre?
Serge Gainsbourg's "L'Ami Caouette" is a song about a series of unfortunate events happening to the singer, where he is confronted by different characters who give him a hard time. The song mainly consists of a back-and-forth between the singer, asking what each character's problem is, and then revealing their individual issues. The first character, "l'ami Caouette," is upset with him for some unknown reason. However, it is revealed that Caouette is angry because Noé, who seems to have a connection with the singer, no longer wants to speak with him. The singer then goes on to describe other characters and their issues, including a woman who insults him, someone who throws rocks at him, and another person who hits him with a stick, among others.
Through this song, Gainsbourg highlights the idea of people projecting their anger and frustrations onto others around them. Each character in the song has their own problems, yet they take it out on the singer in some way. Additionally, the use of repetition throughout the song serves to emphasize the cyclical nature of these conflicts, showing that they will likely continue repeating in the future.
Line by Line Meaning
L'ami Caouette
My friend Caouette
Me fait la tête
Is upset with me
Qu'a Caouette?
What's the matter with Caouette?
La petite Noé
The little Noé
Veut plus me parler
Doesn't want to talk to me anymore
Qu'a Noé?
What's the matter with Noé?
L'ami Cao
My friend Cao
M'a mis k.o.
Knocked me out
Qu'a Cao?
What's the matter with Cao?
La petite Ramel
The little Ramel
M'est infidèle
Is cheating on me
Qu'a Ramel?
What's the matter with Ramel?
Monsieur Hannibal
Mister Hannibal
Me mine le moral
Is bringing me down
Qu'a Hannibal?
What's the matter with Hannibal?
Mam'zelle Leçonlon
Miss Leçonlon
Me traite de con
Is calling me a fool
Qu'a Leçonlon?
What's the matter with Leçonlon?
Mam'zelle Gibi
Miss Gibi
M'traite d'abruti
Is calling me an idiot
Qu'a Gibi?
What's the matter with Gibi?
L'ami Outchou
My friend Outchou
M'jette des cailloux
Is throwing stones at me
Qu'a Outchou?
What's the matter with Outchou?
Mam'zelle Binet
Miss Binet
S'est débinée
Has disappeared
(oh) qu'a Binet?
Oh, what's the matter with Binet?
Le petit Member
The little Member
Me jette des pierres
Is throwing stones at me
Qu'a Member?
What's the matter with Member?
Mam'zelle Lamar
Miss Lamar
De moi en a marre
Is fed up with me
Qu'a Lamar?
What's the matter with Lamar?
Mam'zelle Ramba
Miss Ramba
Veut plus que je la vois
Doesn't want me to see her anymore
Qu'a Ramba?
What's the matter with Ramba?
Monsieur Nasson
Mister Nasson
Me donne du bâton
Is giving me a hard time
Qu'a Nasson?
What's the matter with Nasson?
Mam'zelle Nassucre
Miss Nassucre
Me traite de trou-duc
Is calling me an asshole
Qu'a Nassucre?
What's the matter with Nassucre?
Lyrics © RESERVOIR MEDIA MANAGEMENT INC
Written by: LUCIEN SERGE GAINSBOURG
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@murielabela7298
Superbe chanson de Serge de gainsbourg l ami cahuete fait la tête ca date mais tres bon
@corinnerougier7085
Bravo très bonne musique👍👍❤️❤️
@murielabela7298
J ♥ j ♥ 💕 j ♥ j avais 10 Anselme 1975 exquis signé Serge gainsburg fr2 tv2 📺 📺 📺 télé fr3 📺
@murielabela7298
Un tres grand compositeur monsieur sege gainsboug une élite provocant et très belle chanson années 1975
@LadyMercutia
I’m just here after FINALLY finding out what that song Ian Somerhalder was getting dressed to in “The Rules of Attraction.”
@yeahnah4303
lol me too Lady!
@didier.gerost.07
Serge était un génie , personne actuellement ne lui arrive à la cheville !!
@ipoudramm3050
C’est si vrai je suis totalement d’accord !! Serge dans mon coeur
@dominette5806
Si, Benjamin Biolay
@emilienowacki6935
Il disait que la chanson était un art mineur.... et aujourd’hui c’est vrai !!!!