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33⅓ Main Series #87
Histoire de Melody Nelson
Outside his native France, the view of Serge Gainsbourg was once of a one-hit wonder lothario. This has been slowly replaced by an awareness of how talented and innovative a songwriter he was. Gainsbourg was an eclectic, protean figure; a Dadaist, poète maudit, Pop-Artist, libertine and anti-hero. An icon and iconoclast.
His masterpiece is arguably Histoire de Melody Nelson, an album suite combining many of his signature themes; sex, taboo, provocation, humour, exoticism and ultimately tragedy. Composed and arranged with the great Jean-Claude Vannier, its score of lush cinematic strings and proto-hip hop beats, combined with Serge's spoken-word poetry, has become remarkably influential across a vast musical spectrum; inspiring soundtracks, indie groups and electronic artists. In recent years, the album's reputation has grown from cult status to that of a modern classic with the likes of Beck, Portishead, Mike Patton, Air and Pulp paying tribute.
How did the son of Jewish Russian immigrants, hounded during the Nazi Occupation, rise to such notoriety and acclaim, being celebrated by President François Mitterand as "our Baudelaire, our Apollinaire"? How did the early chanson singer evolve into a musical visionary incorporating samples, breakbeats and dub into his music, decades ahead of the curve? And what are the roots and legacy of a concept album about a Rolls Royce, a red-haired Lolita muse, otherworldly mansions, plane crashes and Cargo Cults?
His masterpiece is arguably Histoire de Melody Nelson, an album suite combining many of his signature themes; sex, taboo, provocation, humour, exoticism and ultimately tragedy. Composed and arranged with the great Jean-Claude Vannier, its score of lush cinematic strings and proto-hip hop beats, combined with Serge's spoken-word poetry, has become remarkably influential across a vast musical spectrum; inspiring soundtracks, indie groups and electronic artists. In recent years, the album's reputation has grown from cult status to that of a modern classic with the likes of Beck, Portishead, Mike Patton, Air and Pulp paying tribute.
How did the son of Jewish Russian immigrants, hounded during the Nazi Occupation, rise to such notoriety and acclaim, being celebrated by President François Mitterand as "our Baudelaire, our Apollinaire"? How did the early chanson singer evolve into a musical visionary incorporating samples, breakbeats and dub into his music, decades ahead of the curve? And what are the roots and legacy of a concept album about a Rolls Royce, a red-haired Lolita muse, otherworldly mansions, plane crashes and Cargo Cults?
136 pages, Paperback
First published October 24, 2013
8 people are currently reading
221 people want to read
About the author
Darran Anderson
15 books71 followersDarran Anderson is an Irish nonfiction writer who lives in London. He is the author of ‘Inventory’ (Chatto & Windus/Farrar, Straus & Giroux) and 'Imaginary Cities' (Influx Press/University of Chicago Press).
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Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews
October 19, 2013
Darran Anderson's little study on one of the great albums that came out of Europe, "Histoire de Melody Nelson" is a superb study on Serge Gainsbourg and his masterpiece. First of all I am touched that both titles ("Gainsbourg" by Gilles Verlant & Serge Gainsbourg's short novel "Evguenie Sokolov) that i published are in the bibliography. So with the music and the books he's coming from a good place!
Anderson's book is very brief, but there's no wasted words. He has a deep understanding of Gainsbourg's work, and not only does he talk about the Melody Nelson album, but it is also a brief biography on the great artist. As in the Verlant biography, it is moving as well as terrifying to read about Gainsbourg's childhood running away from the Nazis. Over time I have read tales dealing with the Occupation, but the Gainsbourg narration is one that really makes me emotionally aware how horrible those times were. Almost unthinkable, yet it is these surroundings that probably inspired the greatness in Gainsbourg's songs and his very own iconic stance against authority.
The book also captures the flavor of Gainsbourg's love for literature and how that inspired him as well. Baudelaire, Jarry, Rimbaud, and the lasting influence of Boris Vian played a big role in how Gainsbourg looked at life and art. Anderson is a wonderful writer, and his smart, intelligent take on Gainsbourg is right on the button. Essential read for anyone who even has the slightest interest in the world of Serge, but also insightful in how bad things (occupation) can charge a shy figure into a warrior of sorts. This book along with Gilles Verlant (The granddad of Serge bios), Sylvie Simmons' English bio and Gainsbourg's "Evguenie Sokolov" we now have a great representation of the world of Gainsbourg in print.
Anderson's book is very brief, but there's no wasted words. He has a deep understanding of Gainsbourg's work, and not only does he talk about the Melody Nelson album, but it is also a brief biography on the great artist. As in the Verlant biography, it is moving as well as terrifying to read about Gainsbourg's childhood running away from the Nazis. Over time I have read tales dealing with the Occupation, but the Gainsbourg narration is one that really makes me emotionally aware how horrible those times were. Almost unthinkable, yet it is these surroundings that probably inspired the greatness in Gainsbourg's songs and his very own iconic stance against authority.
The book also captures the flavor of Gainsbourg's love for literature and how that inspired him as well. Baudelaire, Jarry, Rimbaud, and the lasting influence of Boris Vian played a big role in how Gainsbourg looked at life and art. Anderson is a wonderful writer, and his smart, intelligent take on Gainsbourg is right on the button. Essential read for anyone who even has the slightest interest in the world of Serge, but also insightful in how bad things (occupation) can charge a shy figure into a warrior of sorts. This book along with Gilles Verlant (The granddad of Serge bios), Sylvie Simmons' English bio and Gainsbourg's "Evguenie Sokolov" we now have a great representation of the world of Gainsbourg in print.
August 4, 2021
A fascinating journey full of discoveries of a part of our European culture I hitherto hardly paid attention to. To be read with the songs at hand!
June 3, 2014
I have maybe 20 volumes in this series of dedicated album appreciations. The series is appealing: small, short, cute books on a clearly identified theme, namely the titular album in question.
However, most have disappointed. Clearly the commission is harder than writers expect.
I'm comfortable giving this a frank one-star rating as other readers have apparently enjoyed it, so my differing view offers balance rather than a hatchet.
I'll begin by saying that I did learn one or two (relevant) things from it (and several more things that weren't at all); and as I'm fairly well-informed about Gainsbourg, having been an obsessive fan a dozen or so years ago, I infer that other readers less versed in Gainsbourg would get more out of it than I did about the singer and his record.
Why didn't I like it? In a nutshell, three things. One, most of the text is at best remotely relevant to the album, and often not at all. So one yawns: "get back to the point!" Two, his style is poor. Three, his text sorely needs the intervention of an editor even at the grammatical level; the sensitive reader (as Gainsbourg would have been, had he lived to read this) winces at least 3 or 4 times per page.
Here's my tip: skip this book, but buy the record. If you want to read about it, try Gilles Verlant's biography.
However, most have disappointed. Clearly the commission is harder than writers expect.
I'm comfortable giving this a frank one-star rating as other readers have apparently enjoyed it, so my differing view offers balance rather than a hatchet.
I'll begin by saying that I did learn one or two (relevant) things from it (and several more things that weren't at all); and as I'm fairly well-informed about Gainsbourg, having been an obsessive fan a dozen or so years ago, I infer that other readers less versed in Gainsbourg would get more out of it than I did about the singer and his record.
Why didn't I like it? In a nutshell, three things. One, most of the text is at best remotely relevant to the album, and often not at all. So one yawns: "get back to the point!" Two, his style is poor. Three, his text sorely needs the intervention of an editor even at the grammatical level; the sensitive reader (as Gainsbourg would have been, had he lived to read this) winces at least 3 or 4 times per page.
Here's my tip: skip this book, but buy the record. If you want to read about it, try Gilles Verlant's biography.
Read
August 31, 2014"Art. The second greatest of all the three letter words." There is plenty here about the album itself, of course (I'd never noticed that Melody was from Sunderland, of all places), but more so than a lot of 33 1/3 books I've read, this is also a potted biography of the artist - Serge Gainsbourg examined through the lens of his acknowledged classic. I only knew bits and pieces before, some of his great outrages - but not even the greatest (the astonishing reggae Marseillaise controversy). The love of Fantômas, the childhood hiding from the Nazis in the woods - it all makes perfect sense. Perhaps the album is less a lens than a hologram, containing all the information of the life.
(I know it's regrettably endemic these days, but the copy-editing here is worth noting as especially poor)
(I know it's regrettably endemic these days, but the copy-editing here is worth noting as especially poor)
June 7, 2019
I picked up this book for a friend who is a big Serge Gainsbourg fan, but wanted to read it before I gave it to him. I knew next to nothing about Serge before this book and never heard of the album, nor do I speak French, so I was very thankful for the author translating the song titles into English. If you're a big Serge Gainsbourg fan you probably already know everything in this book, but if you're like me, it was very interesting and made me listen to songs I hadn't heard before (unless randomly in Brian's car). I enjoyed the music and the brief biography, and will probably check out more of his work, including the songs he wrote for others.
November 1, 2024
This little book manages, in only 136 pages, to give us an in-depth analysis of the album in question, its genesis, creation, making and cultural impact, and its place in the work of Gainsbourg. It is also a concise biography and an exploration of his impact and significance as an artist and a character, and helped me understand a lot more about SG and his notorious Gainsbarre persona.
February 13, 2017
More a short biography of Gainsbourg than a specific analysis of the album. Fairly good, though.
June 18, 2018
Way better than it has any business being. If you’re even remotely interested in the subject matter, you won’t be disappointed.
July 24, 2021
This tiny book turned my appreciation for Gainsbourg into admiration.
August 18, 2022
Using the fabled 1971 album as a centrepiece of Gainsbourg's entire career, Darran Anderson lays out the case for Gainsbourg - aided on this particular work by the masterly Jean-Claude Vannier - as a true visionary so far ahead of his time that we are still in effect catching up. A provocateur, of course (and those calling for his head regarding Lemon Incest and the like should really ponder the difference between a provocateur and an apologist or practitioner - not at all the same thing), but also a restless composer looking to create texture and startling musical effects. The album itself is dreamlike and anxious rather than truly disturbing. You never believe for a minute that this is a sick man's actual action, although it may be his depraved fantasy. Is there a Melody and is she really underage? Of course not. It is a fiction, a starting point for an exploration of feelings, joy, hidden desires, transgressions, feeling around for the limits of darkness. It dives and swoons not as an accompaniment to what he is saying but as a counterpoint to what he is not saying. In the same way that murder ballads took the singers into the character of the murderer him or herself, here Gainsbourg takes us into this fantasy so that he can create an entire world and its soundscape, all existing in a short album (less than half an hour) covering a short timespan (a few hours).
February 12, 2014
A good number of the 33 1/3 books have a tendency to follow a pattern: The author dissects each track in detail and then concludes with the record's life lasting influence. Personally I don't mind this but I do like it when an author does it differently and Anderson does.
Here we get a detailed overview of Gainsbourg's life and how it affected Histoire de Melody Nelson, and trust me, I learnt a lot of things while reading this book. Yet there isn't an information overload so someone who is new to Gainsbourg won't feel daunted.
Here we get a detailed overview of Gainsbourg's life and how it affected Histoire de Melody Nelson, and trust me, I learnt a lot of things while reading this book. Yet there isn't an information overload so someone who is new to Gainsbourg won't feel daunted.
March 25, 2014
This is one of the latest books in the series, and it always amazes me how easily I can get wrapped up in a 120 page book. I think if I had a complaint here is that more time was devoted to the back story and the drama than the actual writing process of Serge...but I suppose that is what directly influenced the creation of this record. It's always nice to get some oddball quips from Mr. Gainsbourg.
March 12, 2014
One of my favorite volumes of the 33 1/3 series! Perfectly intertwines the albums with his life of badassery, crucial current events, like Jewish suppression in France during World War II, and how his lyricism compares to well known poet maudits. Even though it can be a dense read, at times, it's still hard to put down!
January 11, 2014
Some great context around this wonderful album - one of those ones that only seemed to find its right audience many years later.
January 13, 2016
Good background on Serge, but a little light on details of the album's songs and lyrics. A solid short intro to the man.
February 24, 2016
The book is fine, but sometimes i get the feeling that it's about anything BUT Melody Nelson. The book seems more like a short bio of Gainsbourgh than a potrait of the album.
September 19, 2016
Absolutely awesome...my favorites in the series are when they give an overall history of the artist, or some historical context for the record. This one does both.
Read
August 1, 2018This book is a compelling summary of XX century's French art. The associations between Gainsbourg's life and the chosen quotes are enriching and relevant. However, I wished Anderson followed this journey with dates, at least years. The chapters division is sometimes confusing and it's not clear to which point of Gainsbourg's life is he referring.
Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews