Couleur Cafe
Largely unknown in this country, Gainsbourg has become the toast of the rock underground in recent years, with hipsters ranging from Beck to the Bad Seeds readily dropping his name. The son of Russian Jewish immigrants, Gainsbourg dabbled as a painter and pianist in the mid-'50s while sipping Pernod in the seedy nightclubs and cafes of Pigalle. He finally found his true calling in 1958 at the age of 30 when he launched his recording career by delivering romantic and risqué monologues about the Bohemian arts scene with a distinctive voice best described as a mix of Lou Reed and Maurice Chevalier. Mercury Records has compiled two albums from Gainsbourg's early career, each presenting his French-language raps over very different musical backings. Du Jazz dans le Ravin collects jazz tracks released between 1958 and 1964. A fan of Monk, Miles, and Dizzy, Gainsbourg had great taste even if his own playing wasn't extraordinary. Coleur Cafe chronicles the same period, but it focuses on Gainsbourg's attempts to introduce France to various "ethnic musics," including Latin American rhythms and what today would be called Afro-pop. Tunes such as "Erotico Tico" and "New York USA" reek of novelty, but they're still better than most of what fellow world-beaters David Byrne and Paul Simon deliver. Sadly, Gainsbourg isn't around to enjoy his big comeback: He died of a heart attack in 1991. But he was consistent to the end. "For me provocation is oxygen," he said, and he caused an international scandal months before his death by voicing his explicit carnal desire for Whitney Houston on live TV. Let's see if Marilyn Manson can top that one.Jim Derogatis