Monday 31 January 2011

John Barry R.I.P.

It has been reported today that John Barry, one of the great film score composers of the 20th Century, has died.

We don't play much John Barry at L'Amour Electronique (his widescreen music is better suited to our sister night Tonight We Fly), but here are a few L'Amour related points of interest:
He also made great use of the synth on the awesome 'theme from The Persuaders' (1971).



His music will live on.

Saturday 29 January 2011

Girls in the Garage volume 12 (bonus)

Pssssst!  Remember I had an advance mp3 version of Girls in the Garage volume 12?  And remember there was one track that was included on the vinyl version but not listed on the sleeve (Les Emeraudes - see comments on the previous post).

Well, the mp3s had 2 more songs tagged onto the end, and these are they:
(the Annie Girardot has quite a violent fade on the end - but that's the way it is.)

16. Célia - Il n'y pas que toi
17. Annie Girardot - La femme faux cils
[Girls in the Garage volume 12 is released on Saperlipopette in Europe and Dionysus Records in the US. You can order it direct from them or from bompstore.com | clearspot.nl | shinybeast.nl]


Does anyone know anything about these 2 mystery tracks?

Friday 21 January 2011

L'Amour Electronique Samedi Soir + November setlist

Salut!  Our next L'Amour Electronique disco is this Saturday 22 January.
9pm - 3am at The West Hill in Brighton
entry is FREE all night

Join us for a late-night audio cocktail of 60s ye-ye, 80s synthpop, gallic freakbeat, plus many more things French and/or electronic.

We will be digging out a few choice Broadcast tracks in memory of Trish Keenan. Watch out also for songs from the ace new Girls In The Garage compilation, and lots of Francoise Hardy, whose birthday it was last Monday.

see you there!
xxx
ps. November's setlist is below



Here's the setlist from L’Amour Electronique on 27 November 2010.  We've not included mp3s again, as, like the previous month, there will hopefully be a special mix available soon.


Verity
Petula Clark – Les James Dean
Pavement – Decouvert de Soleil
Depeche Mode – Enjoy The Silence
Stereolab – Les Yper-Sound
Bob Lapointe - Diba Diba
April March – Magic Ass
France Gall – Laisse Tomber Les Filles
The Knife – Pass This On
Dominic
Jenny Rock – Au Go Go
Boy From Brazil – Le Claqueur De Doigts
Joanna – Hold-up Inusité
Serge Gainsbourg et Jean-Claude Brialy - C’est La Cristallisation Comme Dit Stendhal
Stereo Total – Comme Un Garçon
Antoine – Les Élucubrations d’Antoine
Jacques Dutronc – Et Moi, Et Moi, Et Moi
John & Jehn – 20L07
I Monster – Who Is She?
Les Charlots – St. Rock
Michel Polnareff – Computer’s Dream
Sarah
France Gall – Zoï Zoï
Brigitte Bardot – Le Diable Est Anglais
Liz Brady – Bas Les Pattes
Sylvie Vartan – Koibito Jidai
Chantal Goya – Une Écharpe, Une Rose
Charlotte Gainsbourg – AF607105
Sebastien Tellier – Divine
Vive La Fête – Maladie d’un Fon
Stereo Total – Alaska
Verity
Jacques Dutronc – Je Suis Content
Pete Shelley – Qu’est-ce Que C’est Que Ça
Serge Gainsbourg – Marilu
Baby Birkin – Orangutan
Mareva Galanter avec Jacno – Bang Bang
Françoise Hardy – Coment Te Dire Adieu
Brigitte Bardot – Tu Veux Ou Tu Veux Pas
Dauerfisch – Peter Thomas Kann Nicht Zählen
Michel Polnareff – Y’a Que Pas Pouvoir Qu’on Peut
Human League – (Keep Feeling) Fascination
Dominic
Telex – Moskow Diskow
Large Number – The Number People
Jean-Claude Vannier – Je M’apelle Geraldine (up-tempo version)
Françoise Hardy – Apprends Le Moi
Gillian Hills – Oublie
Chantal Goya – Laisse Moi
Eddy Mitchell – Baseball
Serge Gainsbourg – En Melody
David Bowie – Weeping Wall
Jacques Brel – Amsterdam
Adèle – Je Ne Veux Plus D’Accordéon
Sarah
Brigitte Bardot – Bubblegum
France Gall – Dis á Ton Capitaine
Les Roche Martin – Les Mains Dans Les Poches
Mick Harvey & Anita Lane – 69 Erotic Year
Future Bible Heroes – I’m A Vampire
Momus – Trust Me, I’m A Doctor
Patrick Wolf – Bluebell
The Associates – 24 Carat Love Affair
John Foxx – Underpass
Verity
New Order – 586
Lio – Banana Split
France Gall - C’est Air La
Françoise Hardy – Que Mal y a-t-il á ça
Marie Laforêt – Et Si Je T’aime
Serge Gainsbourg – Requiem Pour Un Con
Ray Davies (BBC Radiophonic Workshop) – Breezy Bounce
Crystal Castles feat. Robert Smith – Not In Love
Jean-Michel Jarre – Magnetic Fields pt.4
Neon Neon – Neon Theme
Dominic
Stereolab – John Cage Bubblegum
Spider & The Flies - Spider & The Flies
Les 5 Gentlemen – Si Tu Reviens Chez Moi
Jacqueline Taïeb – 7 Heures Du Matin
Cosette – L’Idéalisation
Silicon Teens – You Really Got Me
Soft Cell – What
Stone – C’est Ma Vie
Monty – Que Me Reste-t-il?
Messieurs R. De Bordeaux Et D.Beretta – Psychose
Jacques Brel – Les Filles et Les Chiens
Sarah
Christie Laume – Agathe Ou Christie
Electronicat – Frisco Bay
Dandi Wind – Balloon Factory
Les Georges Leningrad – Missing Gary
Dauerfisch – So Gut
Add N To (X) – Take Me To Your Leader
Bis – Action + Drama
Qunitron & Miss Pussycat – Love Is Like A Blob
Stereo Total – Komplex Mit Dem Sex
Verity
Jacques Dutronc – Les Cactus
Catherine Desmarets – Les Petites Croix
Heavenly – Nous Ne Sommes Pas Des Anges
Belle & Sebastian – Electronic Renaissance
Jean-Michel Jarre – Oxgene pt.4
Sandie Shaw – Toujour Un Coin
Dominic
Jocelyne – Nitty Gritty
Bazooka – Dada Dodo (version instrumental)
Jiri Bezant/Jiri Malasek – Erotica 2
Kraftwerk – Autobahn (single edit)
Die Dorau + Die Marinas – Fred Vom Jupiter
Virginie Rodin – Commando Spatial
Michel Polnareff – Time Will Tell
Michel Legrand – Digue Ding Ding
Claude François – Ma Petite Amie est De Retour
Fabienne Delsol – Ce Jour La
Sarah
Ladytron – Another Breakfast With You
Pulp – Separations
Giorgio Moroder – From Here To Eternity
Verity
Hot Butter – Popcorn
Katerine – Louxor J’Adore
Vanessa Paradis – Joe Le Taxi
Dominic
Eileen – Ce Bottes Sont Faites Pour Marcher
Chevette – We Can Dance Again
Brigitte Bardot – Harley Davidson
Sarah
The B-52s – Planet Clare
Qunitron & Miss Pussycat – Dream Captain

Monday 17 January 2011

Trish Keenan R.I.P.

We heard the truly sad news that Trish Keenan, singer in Broadcast, passed away last Friday.

We have been big fans of Broadcast and their beautiful and spooky psych/jazz/kraut analogue electronica since their earliest records. A bright star has gone out...









Thursday 13 January 2011

Girls in the Garage volume 12


Let’s face it: this French 60s lark is a bit of a niche market, so it’s always good news when a new compilation is unleashed for us fanatics to gobble up (especially when this particular fanatic only has 4 of the 14 tracks). What’s even better is that it has the Girls in the Garage seal of approval, and even more better-er are the rumours it was compiled by the elusive Sasha Monett, who gave us the essential Swinging Mademoiselle volumes 1 and 2. Yes, this latest G.i.t.G. could easily have been titled Swinging Mademoiselle volume 3. 11 years later and we finally have a formidable follow-up: tripleplusgood as we used to say in 1984.

Copies haven’t landed in the UK yet, but mine’s on its way from France – “14 charming French swinging ladies” on clear blue vinyl *drools*. Luckily I have a secret source who has sent me a preview mp3 version, here’s a blow-by-blow account:

Side 1
1. Les Chéries - Mai qui que quoi donc où (1967)
Typical femme pop: identical twins with sassy blonde pixie-cuts, add some cheesy Hammond, treble-y guitar jangle, a bit of brass, and that loose, bubbling French bass-style with a rapidly-descending scale every few bars, speed it up towards the end, and we’re on our way…

2. Evy - Une question qui se pose (1965)
This definitely pricked my ears up: Evy’s raunchy cover of ‘Questions I Can’t Answer’ by Joe Meek’s golden boy Heinz. I do love those RGM productions but this has got a hell of a lot more balls to it!

3. Tonia - Un petit rien (1966)
Who is Tonia? I have no idea. Belgian you say? All I know is she’s got those cute France Gall vocal-stylings down pat and some cool echo on her voice when she hits the refrain. There’s a very pleasant booming reverb sound to this whole recording, and my motto is: you can never have too much reverb!

4. Les Princesses - Oh! dis-moi (1966)
Ooh! Fuzz bass and, what I like to call, the Sesame Street 3-chord piano rhythm (see also Liz Brady’s ‘Bas Les Pattes’). Les Princesses were a girl group from French Guyana – dig those Rhythm & Blues.

5. Annie Markan - Raconte-moi (1966)
Annie was the ‘A’ in Les Gam’s, she went solo and gave us some soulful songs that, apparently, didn’t make her a star. This one reminds me of some of Petula Clark’s French releases. Which is a good thing.

6. Pascale & Suzie - Les rendez-vous Menier (1966)
Can you really sell chocolate bars with a garage-y dance-floor shaker like this? Menier seemed to think so: according to the sleeve notes it was released as a promotional record for their chocolate bars. Thankfully Pascal & Suzie (the ‘S’ in Les Gam’s) make it sound more like they’re going to the hip new beat-club in Paris. You must have heard of Le Menier. No?

7. Caroline - Mister a gogo (1967)
I ask myself: Do I really need a French version of David Bowie’s ‘The Laughing Gnome’? Probably not, it’s fun, but I’ve already found myself skipping onto side 2. It’s a strange inlcusion, especially as it was included as a bonus track on the CD version of SM vol 2. What could have been worse, though, would have been a French version of one of Bowie’s mime skits. I’ll let you think about that while you turn the record over…

Side Two
1. Christie Laume - Chic voilà le soleil (1968)
Yay! One of Christie’s only 16 songs that hasn’t already been comp’ed, I can’t think why, ‘cause this is ace! A really wonky pop number, hooked around a brilliantly odd piano and glockenspiel(?) motif, that shows off her “unique” singing style at it’s best.

2. Katty Line - Un petit peu d'amour (1969)
Katty Line covers Aussie mods The Easybeats: Maximum R&B en Français!

3. Jany L. - Le restaurant Chinois (1968)
I first heard about this rare mademoiselle on the superlative, but sadly defunct, Spiked Candy blog. I don’t think I’m alone in wondering why this has never found its way onto any French compilations until now. Our Jany likes eating in the Chinese restaurant because she get to use chopsticks instead of a fork. There’s a song in there somewhere: a driving, beat-style belter of a song with some deliciously clichéd oriental motifs on the xylophone. Casual racism? Perhaps they were more innocent times in 1968.

4. Marjorie Noël - Au temps des princes charmants (1967)
I swear this is a cover. No idea what, but it sounds very familiar. Marjorie looks too young to be doing grown up songs like this, but she holds herself well. The result: A big production with vibraphones, horns, a motown beat, and a vocal that stays just on the right side of sickly.

5. Clothilde - Le Boa (1967)
Every French yé-yé comp needs a Clothilde song, so here we are: another fantastique piece of everything-and-the-kitchen-sink production from the ace Germinal Tenas - baroque-fuzz-pop perfection.

6. Charlotte Walters - Fleurs de pavots bleus (1969)
A freaky-psychedelic slow burner, full of faux-Eastern mystique. Is this really what Les Fleurs de Pavots listen to when they’re down? Or is it just a sly, hippy-drippy piss-take?

7. Kathy - Ma moto (1973)
Another one to add to the ‘Girl on a Motorcycle’ genre (see BB’s ‘Harley Davidson’ and Dani’s ‘La Fille à la Moto’). A bit of a late-comer, but a welcome addition: early-70’s road-worthy rhythm and blues with some sexy Jean-Claude Vannier-style strings and breathy backing vocals. Oh and the sound of motorbikes revving up and roaring off into the horizon.


I think we deserve to hear a couple of songs after all that:
Evy - Une question qui se pose
Les Princesses - Oh! dis-moi
[Girls in the Garage volume 12 is released on Saperlipopette in Europe and Dionysus Records in the US. You can order it direct from them or from bompstore.com | clearspot.nl | shinybeast.nl]

Friday 7 January 2011

L'Amour à la Chaîne pt.3

Happy New Year!

Our first (proper) post of 2011 is the next step in the chain of love: The link is Marseille, where a certain Italian composer heard the 3-note police siren that inspired the stirring and monumental Je Changerais D'Avis...

Les 5 Gentlemen formed in Corsica as Les Ambitieux, but set up base in Marseille where they switched names and honed their Franco-R'n'B psych-garage sound. They also had a pop at the British pop charts releasing one single - Daytime: an English language cover of Dis-Nous Dylan - under the name of Darwin's Theory.  It bombed.  In 1966 they released their first ep for Riviera with a true freakbeat stomper as the lead track.

Cara-Lin, is a cover of a song originally written and recorded by the writer/producer team of Bob Feldman, Jerry Goldstein and Richard Gottehrer (aka FGG Productions) for their faux-Aussie garage band The Strangeloves.

Check out this freakout Scopitone of Les Gents performing under the arches at some crazy, drug-fuelled happening.


Other essentials by Les 5 Gentlemen include the acid-nightmare LSD 25 and piano-led belter Si Tu Reviens Chez Moi.




Les 5 Gentlemen - Cara-Lin
[buy Les 5 Gentlemen from Amazon.fr | discogs.com]


...................................................................
L'Amour à la Chaîne: what will be the next link in the chain? Leave your suggestions and reasons in the comments.
Jacques Dutronc - L'Amour à la Chaîne > Françoise Hardy - Je Changerais D'Avis > Les 5 Gentlemen – Cara-Lin > ?

Wednesday 5 January 2011

Mick Karn R.I.P.

Mick Karn, the man responsible for all those fluid-as-honey Japan bass-lines, died yesterday. Let's take a minute or two to enjoy one of his finest moments: