Brigitte Fontaine is a one of the most precious treasure of French music, alongside with Brassens and Gainsbourg. There is so much to say on her career: she experimented almost all styles, from chanson, to jazz, pop, arab music and avantgarde, and always with her special touch, between genius and insanity, often radical, always moving. She worked with the best French artists, but also with Sonic Youth and Archie Stepp. To my mind, her style and her importance in music can be compared to the great Nico.
To learn more about her, I let you read the article of wikipedia which is very well done (who says I'm lazy?).
Some of my favorite songs, that just give a little taste of her talent:
I rarely write about electronic music because I know very little about it. Here, a little of Birdy Nam Nam.
Birdy Nam Nam - Manual For Successful Rioting
Here's the 7th volume of my home made best of French music. In this one, you'll find some golden gems of the 30s with some examples of Musette (Tony Murena), Buigine from Martinique (Orchestre Antillais d'Alexandre Stellio), and gypsy swing (Django Reinhardt & Stephan Grapelli). You'll find also a new wave hit (Taxi Girl), a rap song (ATK), and a song of the Master Brassens. For the fans of Yann Tiersen and his Amélie's score, I put a beautiful piece of Eric Satie, who is I think, his main influence. The rest is made up of nice songs of the 90's and the 00's, between chanson, pop and rock, with great singer-songwriters such as Alain Bashung, Mano Solo, Dominique A, Camille, and bands such as Zebda , Dionysos, la Tordue and Tue -Loup. And at last, an experimental cover of Prokovief'sThe Montagues and the Capulet by Ez3kiel and a punk favorite by Bérurier Noir. Enjoy :-)
tracklist
Discovering French Music volume 7
1. Alain Bashung – Noir de Monde (L’Imprudence , 2002)
2. Django Reinhardt & Stephane Grappelli- Honeysuckle Rose (1938)
3. Taxi Girl – Chercher le garçon (Cherchez le garçon, 1980)
4. Tony Murena – Passion (1942)
5. Dionysos – Song For Jedi (Western sous la neige, 2002)
6. Zebda – Mon Père M’a Dit (Le Bruit et l'Odeur, 1995)
7. Serge Gainsbourg – Variations Sur Marilou (L’Homme à la tête de chou, 1976)
8.Orchestre Antillais d’Alexandre Stellio – Mussieu Satan Faché (Au Bal Antillais: Franco-Creole Biguines from Martinique, 1929)
9. ATK – Tricher (Heptagone, 1998)
10. La Tordue – La rose et le réséda (Les choses de rien, 1995)
11. Camille – Ta Douleur (Le Fil, 2005)
12. Georges Brassens – Putain de toi (1954)
13. Dominique A – En Secret (Auguri, 2001)
14. Eric Satie- Gnossienne n°1 (1890)
15. Francoiz Breut- Si Tu Disais (vingt à trente mille jours, 2000)
16. Ez3kiel – The Montagues And The Capulets (Serge Prokovief, Battlefield, 2008)
17. Bérurier Noir – Fils De… (Carnaval des agités, recorded in the late 1980′s /, live released in 1995)
18. Brigitte Fontaine – Dommage que tu sois mort (Brigitte Fontaine est… folle !, 1968)
19. Mano Solo – Barbès-Clichy (Les Années sombres, 1995)
20. Tue-Loup – Le Lac De Fish (Le lac de fish, 2007)
21. La rue Kétanou - La rue Kétanou (2000, En attendant les caravanes)
Brigitte Fontaine is a one of the most precious treasure of French music, alongside with Brassens and Gainsbourg. There is so much to say on her career: she experimented almost all styles, from chanson, to jazz, pop, arab music and avantgarde, and always with her special touch, between genius and insanity, often radical, always moving. She worked with the best French artists, but also with Sonic Youth and Archie Stepp. To my mind, her style and her importance in music can be compared to the great Nico.
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