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CD
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BEC 5772226
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"Born in Saint John in 1827 or 2043 (depending on the inspiration of the moment), Brigitte Fontaine, besides the cult singer that everyone knows, is a writer. Actress, playwright, novelist and poet, she tries to reconcile opposites from the beginning of time until the end of time that will never take place. Because life starts now. And now. And now. Is she really here? No. She is, like all true poets, a unique inhabitant of an interior castle to which she occasionally invites visitors, through her books, records, and shows. Her repertoire... reveals its sensitivity in prosody constrained by rules of versification, and, conversely, in the vivid freedom and free verse of prose poems. Some say crazy, eccentric and disturbed. In truth, she bothers because her sensitivity and fragility refer to the extreme center of the human condition; the axis of the world, she said, "is all of us, since all world is the center of the world'" --Benoît Mouchart, author of Brigitte Fontaine, intérieur/extérieur (2008). Jacques Canetti Productions presents a reissue of Brigitte Fontaine's debut album, 13 chansons décadentes et fantasmagoriques, originally released in 1966. Orchestra arranged and conducted by Jimmy Walter. Recorded in March 1966 in Paris by André Touaty.
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LP
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BEC 5772795
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Jacques Canetti Productions presents Brigitte Fontaine's 1966 debut album 13 Chansons Décadentes et Fantasmagoriques, reissued on vinyl as part of a series of albums highlighting the work of French talent agent and producer Jacques Canetti. In his lifelong dedication to chanson, Canetti supported and developed the careers of a dizzying array of artists: Édith Piaf, Jacques Brel, Serge Gainsbourg, Boris Vian, Georges Brassens, Serge Reggiani, Léo Ferré, and Jeanne Moreau are among the most notable. The storied recording career of Brigitte Fontaine began on Disques Jacques Canetti with its release of 13 Chansons Décadentes et Fantasmagoriques in 1966. In a debut that signaled the arrival of an original talent, Fontaine's 13 original compositions blend with Jimmy Walter's orchestral arrangements to create a sound somewhat more akin to modern chanson than that of Fontaine's later output. Remastered from the original tapes. Housed in a gatefold jacket with original artwork.
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SV 043LP
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"Never one to settle on a single musical style, Brigitte Fontaine followed up her debut, Est?Folle, and her astonishing collaboration with The Art Ensemble of Chicago, Comme à la Radio, with the most eclectic release of her lengthy career, 1972's Brigitte Fontaine. It is telling that Fontaine chose an eponymous title for her third album, the sole release from her venerable '70s catalogue attributed to her alone. Here the actress-cum-singer has finally arrived. From the introspective opening track, simply named 'Brigitte,' seductive melodies perfectly hang above slithery bass lines and acoustic strumming. On 'Moi Aussi,' a sparse and trance-like duet with long-time collaborator Areski, Fontaine muses, 'They put me in a cage and after they told me 'You fly down.'' Brigitte Fontaine is an unmatched European art-pop masterpiece anchored by both vocal and lyrical dexterity?in many ways, Fontaine's most compelling work and an excellent entry point for those unfamiliar with this unique French icon."
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SV 042LP
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2021 repress. "Featuring Areski Belkacem and Art Ensemble of Chicago, Comme à la Radio is the sophomore album in Brigitte Fontaine's prolific career. While her debut, Brigitte Fontaine Est...Folle, is a unique take on French chanson, here the Art Ensemble provides the perfect setting for Fontaine's exploration of free-verse poetry. Often arrhythmic and spoken, her vocals command the same spontaneity and grace that her collaborators applied to their instruments. The album's eight-minute title track sets the tone: a sparse bass line keeps time as Fontaine dances around stabs of flute and trumpet. On 'Tanka II,' named for a form of concise Japanese poetry, Areski (who provides percussion throughout) plays hand-drums atop flurries of bass as Fontaine coos and whispers pensively, gradually uttering controversial phrases. 'L'Été L'Été' centers around a repeated motif with individual lines of high-pitched melody on a bed of muted horns. Each track is its own world, with Fontaine's incredible range, both in style and substance, acting as the glue between the immense talent involved. The overall effect is chilling, and it is no surprise that Comme à la Radio is often cited as Fontaine's best known work."
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CD
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SV 041CD
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"French poet and chameleonic vocalist Brigitte Fontaine's career spans over four decades. Only a few years before her 1968 debut, Brigitte Fontaine Est?Folle, she moved to Paris to become an actress and took her prodigiously mature voice into the studio. Rich in the drama she brought to theater, Fontaine synthesized chanson (French pop song) and world music, which eventually won her international acclaim as a performer and collaborator with a variety of artists from around the world (Art Ensemble of Chicago, Sonic Youth and Stereolab, to name just a few). On Est?Folle, Fontaine takes flight over conductor Jean Claude Vannier's brilliant arrangements. Vannier, best known for his work on Serge Gainsbourg's Histoire De Melody Nelson, is in fine form, using what would become his trademark stylings: lush strings, taut rhythms culled from across the globe and a healthy dose of whimsy. 'Il Pleut' swings from understatement to rapturous delight. 'Une Fois Mais Pas Deux' is an infectious pop song that could have been culled from a French New Wave soundtrack. Fontaine is adventurous and multi-dimensional with sophisticated lyrics, poignant melodies and enthralling delivery. Such artful handling of meter and rhyme (or lack thereof) is rare in pop song. Far from the era's yé-yé phenomenon, but never fully removed from its traditions, Est...Folle is an essential link in French pop music, exuberantly pushing the genre into more conceptual and experimental sounds."
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SV 041LP
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2021 repress; gatefold LP version. "French poet and chameleonic vocalist Brigitte Fontaine's career spans over four decades. Only a few years before her 1968 debut, Brigitte Fontaine Est?Folle, she moved to Paris to become an actress and took her prodigiously mature voice into the studio. Rich in the drama she brought to theater, Fontaine synthesized chanson (French pop song) and world music, which eventually won her international acclaim as a performer and collaborator with a variety of artists from around the world (Art Ensemble of Chicago, Sonic Youth and Stereolab, to name just a few). On Est?Folle, Fontaine takes flight over conductor Jean Claude Vannier's brilliant arrangements. Vannier, best known for his work on Serge Gainsbourg's Histoire De Melody Nelson, is in fine form, using what would become his trademark stylings: lush strings, taut rhythms culled from across the globe and a healthy dose of whimsy. 'Il Pleut' swings from understatement to rapturous delight. 'Une Fois Mais Pas Deux' is an infectious pop song that could have been culled from a French New Wave soundtrack. Fontaine is adventurous and multi-dimensional with sophisticated lyrics, poignant melodies and enthralling delivery. Such artful handling of meter and rhyme (or lack thereof) is rare in pop song. Far from the era's yé-yé phenomenon, but never fully removed from its traditions, Est...Folle is an essential link in French pop music, exuberantly pushing the genre into more conceptual and experimental sounds."
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SV 042CD
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"Featuring Areski Belkacem and Art Ensemble of Chicago, Comme à la Radio is the sophomore album in Brigitte Fontaine's prolific career. While her debut, Brigitte Fontaine Est...Folle, is a unique take on French chanson, here the Art Ensemble provides the perfect setting for Fontaine's exploration of free-verse poetry. Often arrhythmic and spoken, her vocals command the same spontaneity and grace that her collaborators applied to their instruments. The album's eight-minute title track sets the tone: a sparse bass line keeps time as Fontaine dances around stabs of flute and trumpet. On 'Tanka II,' named for a form of concise Japanese poetry, Areski (who provides percussion throughout) plays hand-drums atop flurries of bass as Fontaine coos and whispers pensively, gradually uttering controversial phrases. 'L'Été L'Été' centers around a repeated motif with individual lines of high-pitched melody on a bed of muted horns. Each track is its own world, with Fontaine's incredible range, both in style and substance, acting as the glue between the immense talent involved. The overall effect is chilling, and it is no surprise that Comme à la Radio is often cited as Fontaine's best known work."
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LABELS 32362CD
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New studio album, initial copies in slipcard packaging. "In 2004, Brigitte gathered a group of musician friends around her and began work on a new album entitled Rue Saint Louis en l'Ile. (The title is a reference to her home on the Ile Saint-Louis, the famous island which stands at a fork of the river Seine in central Paris). The list of guest stars on this new album included old musical accomplices such as Areski Belkacem and new acquaintances such as Mouss and Hakim (from the group Zebda). Meanwhile, electro-Argentinian outfit Gotan Project introduced a catchy tango edge to the title track. The album confirms Brigitte's status as an eccentric but much-loved diva."
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3CD
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VIR 3151CD
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"Longbox including 60 songs, rare tracks, one 32-page booklet, unissued photos... Including her tracks from her Saravah period!" A greatest hits package, elegantly designed in one of those sturdy long-boxes. Booklet is French-text only, unfortunately. Material is evenly broken up between her classic '70s Saravah period and her 90's/00's works for Virgin. Includes collaborations with Areski, Sonic Youth, Art Ensemble of Chicago and Archie Shepp. I don't think there's any exclusive or new tracks, more of a gift pack kind of thing.
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CD
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VIR 8451062
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Following her spectacular recording career for the Saravah label, ending with the unfindable Les églantines Sont Peut-être Formidables in 1977, Brigitte Fontaine appeared to leave the music business for a decade or so, to return w/ a string of albums on French Virgin in the '90s (including Genre Humain in 1995, Les Palaces in 1997, Le Nougat & Morceaux de Choix in 1999). For Les Palaces her long time partner Areski Belkacem produced, wrote all the music and provides percussion. A group of studio musicians (including Gong's Didier Malherbe) provide a modern digital pop context that is quite advanced compared to her classic work, but not impossible to deal with if you're willing to accept it. There's subtly d'n'b-influenced programming that isn't a million miles away from the sort of vibe created on Stereolab's Dots And Loops as well, and this is a nice contemporary addition to the Fontaine shelf.
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