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
Toi Mourir
Serge Gainsbourg Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Tabac savonnette
Miroir et papier cul
Toi mourir
Toi moi donner chapeau
Peigne en corozo
Médaille petit Jésus
Toi mourir
Torchon nid d'abeilles
Et caleçons fendus
Toi mourir
Toi moi donner très chic
Rasoir mécanique
Et collier de Prisu
Toi mourir
Toi moi donner canif
Et préservatifs
Mais moi pas roi Ubu
Toi mourir
Toi moi donner parole
Que rhum agricole
Ya bon bwana j'ai bu
Toi mourir
Toi pas donner fusils
Toi voir paradis
Moi ordonner tribu
Toi mourir
The lyrics of Serge Gainsbourg's song "Toi mourir" can be interpreted as a dark commentary on the power dynamics within a relationship. The repeated phrase "Toi mourir" ("You die") suggests a dominant position held by one person over another, with the implication that the person speaking has control over the other's life and death. The items listed in each stanza (such as a bowl, tobacco, soap, and toilet paper) can be understood as basic necessities that the dominant person has the power to give or withhold from the other. The items become more lavish and frivolous as the song progresses, with the inclusion of a hat, a razor, and a necklace, possibly indicating an increasing sense of entitlement and abuse of power.
The line "Mais moi pas roi Ubu" ("But I'm not King Ubu") is particularly noteworthy, as it implies that the singer is aware of the absurdity and cruelty of their behavior, yet is unwilling or unable to change it. The final stanza, in which the dominant person withholds weapons from the other while claiming to be able to order a tribe to kill, is particularly chilling, as it suggests a willingness to manipulate and control others for personal gain.
Overall, "Toi mourir" can be seen as a commentary on the ways in which power corrupts and relationships can become imbalanced and abusive.
Line by Line Meaning
Toi moi donner cuvette
You and I share a toilet bowl
Tabac savonnette
We use tobacco and soap
Miroir et papier cul
We have a mirror and toilet paper
Toi mourir
But you will die
Toi moi donner chapeau
You and I share a hat
Peigne en corozo
We have a comb made of corozo
Médaille petit Jésus
We have a small Jesus medal
Toi mourir
But you will die
Toi moi donner réveil
We share an alarm clock
Torchon nid d'abeilles
We have a kitchen towel made of honeycomb fabric
Et caleçons fendus
And split underwear
Toi mourir
But you will die
Toi moi donner très chic
We have very stylish things
Rasoir mécanique
We have a mechanical razor
Et collier de Prisu
And a necklace from Prisu
Toi mourir
But you will die
Toi moi donner canif
We share a pocket knife
Et préservatifs
And we have condoms
Mais moi pas roi Ubu
But I am not King Ubu
Toi mourir
But you will die
Toi moi donner parole
We share a word
Que rhum agricole
And agricultural rum
Ya bon bwana j'ai bu
Yes, bwana, I drank
Toi mourir
But you will die
Toi pas donner fusils
You don't have guns
Toi voir paradis
Instead, you can see paradise
Moi ordonner tribu
But I am the one who orders the tribe
Toi mourir
And you will die
Contributed by Brooklyn S. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Elian
on Ford Mustang
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