Serge Gainsbourg (April 2, 1928 – March 2, 1991) was a French poet-songwrit… Read Full Bio ↴Serge Gainsbourg (April 2, 1928 – March 2, 1991) was a French poet-songwriter, singer, actor, novelist, painter and director. Gainsbourg's varied style and individuality made him difficult to categorize. Although famous in France for many years, he did not achieve his first No. 1 album until 1979, when he released Aux Armes et caetera more than twenty years after his music career had begun. But since the 1980s, his legacy has been firmly established.

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'amour à la papa
Serge Gainsbourg Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

L'amour à la papa
Dis-moi, dis-moi
Dis-moi ça ne m'intéresse pas
Ça fait déjà des mois
Des mois, des mois
Que j'attends autre chose de toi
Ça fait des mois qu'ça dure
J'me perds en conjectures

Que pourrais-je te dire
Te dire de lire
L'amour à la papa
À moi, à moi
Ça ne me fait ni chaud ni froid
Je suis le lierre
Tu es la pierre
Je prends racine autour de toi

Mais tu t'écailles
Quand je t'entaille
Tu es de pierre et je deviens de bois

L'amour à la papa
Dis-moi, dis-moi
Dis-moi ça ne m'intéresse pas
Ça fait déjà des mois
Des mois, des mois
Que j'attends autre chose de toi
Quatre-vingt-dix à l'ombre
De mon corps et tu sombres
Tu n'es pas une affaire
Tu ne peux faire
Qu'l'amour à la papa
Crois-moi, crois-moi
Y a trente-deux façons de faire ça

Si d'amertume
Je m'accoutume
Il est fort probable qu'un jour
En ayant marre
C'est à la gare
Que je t'enverrai toi et tes amours

L'amour à la papa
Dis-moi, dis-moi
Dis-moi ça ne m'intéresse pas
Ça fait déjà des mois
Des mois, des mois
Que j'attends autre chose de toi
À la gare maritime
Tu gagneras mon estime
En prenant la galère
Jusqu'à Cythère
Et là-bas écris-moi

Dis-moi, dis-moi
Si on fait l'amour à la papa!

Overall Meaning

The lyrics of "L'amour à la papa" by Serge Gainsbourg depict a love affair that has grown stagnant and unsatisfying. The singer longs for something more from their partner, but instead, they continue to engage in a lukewarm love that doesn't excite them. The phrase "l'amour à la papa" refers to love that is outdated, traditional, and lacks passion. The singer suggests that they have been waiting for change for months, but it has yet to come. They express frustration and disappointment with their partner's inability to provide them with the kind of love they crave.

The singer then paints a metaphorical picture of their relationship. They compare themselves to a lierre (ivy) plant that takes root around the partner, who is like a pierre (stone). However, they claim that the partner is becoming weathered and worn, while they remain vibrant and alive. They suggest that their love has caused the partner to "écailles" (flake away), while they have become "de bois" (made of wood), meaning they have become less vulnerable and more impervious to the disappointment.

The final stanza describes the singer's disillusionment with their partner and their desire to move on. They indicate that if things don't change, they will eventually send their partner and their "amours" (lovers) away, likely referencing a breakup. The singer then suggests that the only way their partner could potentially gain back their respect and love is by traveling across the sea to Cythère, the birthplace of Aphrodite, the goddess of love. There, the partner should write to the singer to declare whether they're ready to step up their "love game" or continue engaging in "l'amour à la papa."

Line by Line Meaning

L'amour à la papa
A traditional and conservative style of romance.

Dis-moi, dis-moi
Tell me, tell me.

Dis-moi ça ne m'intéresse pas
I am not interested in this way of loving.

Ça fait déjà des mois
It has been months.

Des mois, des mois
Many months have passed.

Que j'attends autre chose de toi
I have been waiting for you to change.

Ça fait des mois qu'ça dure
It has been lasting for months.

J'me perds en conjectures
I am lost in thoughts and speculation.

Que pourrais-je te dire
What could I say to you?

Te dire de lire
Tell you to read.

À moi, à moi
For me, for me.

Ça ne me fait ni chaud ni froid
It doesn't affect me at all.

Je suis le lierre
I am the ivy.

Tu es la pierre
You are the stone.

Je prends racine autour de toi
I grow roots around you.

Mais tu t'écailles
But you crack.

Quand je t'entaille
When I cut you.

Tu es de pierre et je deviens de bois
You are made of stone and I become wooden.

Quatre-vingt-dix à l'ombre
Ninety degrees in the shade.

De mon corps et tu sombres
You collapse from my body's heat.

Tu n'es pas une affaire
You are not a matter.

Tu ne peux faire
You cannot do anything.

Qu'l'amour à la papa
Other than love in a traditional and conservative way.

Crois-moi, crois-moi
Believe me, believe me.

Y a trente-deux façons de faire ça
There are thirty-two ways to do that.

Si d'amertume
If from bitterness.

Je m'accoutume
I get used to it.

Il est fort probable qu'un jour
It is most likely that one day.

En ayant marre
Being fed up.

C'est à la gare
It will be at the station.

Que je t'enverrai toi et tes amours
That I will send you and your loves away.

À la gare maritime
At the marina.

Tu gagneras mon estime
You will earn my respect.

En prenant la galère
By taking the galley.

Jusqu'à Cythère
To Cythera island.

Et là-bas écris-moi
And there, write to me.

Si on fait l'amour à la papa!
If we make love the old-fashioned way!

Lyrics © MELODY NELSON PUBLISHING, RESERVOIR MEDIA MANAGEMENT INC, WARNER CHAPPELL MUSIC FRANCE
Written by: Serge Gainsbourg

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind

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