SERGE GAINSBOURG—En Studio Avec Serge Gainsbourg (Mercury, France), 3-CD

        This overstuffed 3-disc set complements a large book called Le Gainsbook which documents Serge Gainsbourg’s recording career (which began in 1958, through the artist’s death in 1991, though his last album was issued in 1987) through pictures and interviews. It’s kind of a career-spanning odds and sods collection, divided into three parts: 1) studio alternates and leftovers; 2) Gainsbourg’s songs as performed by other, mostly female, performers; 3) excerpts from Gainsbourg’s many film soundtracks. There really is no English-language equivalent of Serge, so I’m not going to suggest any. He was on the surface a bundle of contradictions. He was ready (some would say too ready) to adapt to any current trend in music, but he was in many ways a classicist (his songs and film scores often echoed classical and historic melodies) beyond time. He would indulge in cheap and exploitative headline-grabbing antics calculated to offend, and never stopped at that as he got older (the 1980’s brought his infamous crude proposition of Whitney Houston on live TV in France and his cringe-worthy track “Lemon Incest,” recorded with his daughter, also available in a music video that has to be seen to be believed), but he was at the same time a soft-spoken, sensitive, misunderstood artist-type. His trademark vocal style can seem tossed-off and lazy, but his timing is impeccable and has an ability to float subtly around and over a beat worthy of the best jazz or bossa nova players/singers.

     Disc one travels through his early small-group jazz-flavored pieces with pianist/composer Alain Goraguer, through the 60’s beat and ye-ye material, with a stop at the original, unreleased-at-the-time version of “Je t’aime…” with Brigitte Bardot (the hit version featured Jane Birkin), and then into the 70’s and 80’s, where he’s still up to his bad-boy shenanigans with tracks like “SS In Uruguay” and “Sea Sex and Sun” but also working with Sly and Robbie in Jamaica.

     Disc two contains a few decades worth of various singers performing Gainsbourg songs, ranging from Marianne Faithfull to France Gall, from Francoise Hardy to Petula Clark, some in dated 70’s/80’s dance-pop styles.

     Disc three is an overview of his much-underrated film soundtrack work, some of which integrates vocals.

     Everyone should own classic Gainsbourg albums such as Gainsbourg Percussions or Histoire de Melody Nelson, but one can get a good overview of his large body of constantly changing work through this fascinating collection of leftovers and rarities.

En Studio Avec Serge Gainsbourg (Disc 1)
Serge Gainsbourg– Ronsard 58 (Maquette) 1:29
Serge Gainsbourg– Black Trombone (Avec Intro) 2:44
Serge Gainsbourg– Chez Les Yéyé (Prise Complète) 3:17
Serge Gainsbourg– Machins Choses (Version Instrumentale) 3:18
Serge Gainsbourg– Torrey Canyon (Mixage Giorgio Gomelsky) 2:40
Serge Gainsbourg Avec Brigitte Bardot– Je T’Aime Moi Non Plus (Mixage De L’Acetate Original) 4:39
Serge Gainsbourg– 69 Année Érotique (Version Instrumentale Avec Choeurs) 3:31
Serge Gainsbourg– Melody (Prise Complète) 9:28
Serge Gainsbourg– En Melody (Solo Violon Électrique Complet) 3:23
Serge Gainsbourg– Panpan Cucul (Version De Travail, Texte Alternatif) 3:25
Serge Gainsbourg– Tout Mou Tout Doux 4:18
Serge Gainsbourg– SS In Uruguay (Avec Intro) 2:30
Serge Gainsbourg– Comme Un Boomerang 2:38
Serge Gainsbourg– L’Ami Caouette (Prise De Voix Alternative) 3:26
Serge Gainsbourg– L’Homme À Tête De Chou (Version Instrumentale) 4:00
Serge Gainsbourg– Sea Sex And Sun (Extrait Des Prises Voix) 1:03
Serge Gainsbourg– Lola Rastaquouère (Version Instrumentale Complète) 11:59
Serge Gainsbourg– Ecce Homo (Texte Alternatif) 4:17

Les Interprètes (Disc 2)
Los Goragueros– Mambo Miam Miam 2:29
Nana Mouskouri– Les Yeux Pour Pleurer 3:11
Régine– Les P’Tits Papiers 2:08
Michèle Arnaud En Duo Avec Serge Gainsbourg– Les Papillons Noirs 2:50
Marianne Faithfull– Hier Ou Demain 2:39
Dominique Walter– Les Petis Boudins 2:02
France Gall– Bloody Jack 2:58
Claude François– Hip Hip Hip Hurrah 2:45
Zizi Jeanmaire– L’Oiseau De Paradis 2:08
Brigitte Bardot– Harley Davidson 2:29
Mireille Darc– Le Drapeau Noir 2:26
Françoise Hardy– Comment Te Dire Adieu (It Hurts To Say Goodbye) 2:24
Jane Birkin– Jane B 3:10
Juliette Gréco– Le Sixième Sens 2:25
Petula Clark– Flash-Back 3:45
Jane Birkin– Apocalysptick 2:38
Alain Chamfort– Lucette Et Lucie 4:38
Bijou (2)– Betty Jane Rose 2:46
Jacques Dutronc– J’Ai Déjà Donné 3:09
Alain Bashung– Volontaire 4:03
Jane Birkin– Rupture Au Miroir 3:19
Isabelle Adjani– Le Mal Intérieur 3:56
Charlotte Gainsbourg– Plus Doux Avec Moi 5:00
Bambou– Entre L’Âme Et L’Amour 3:27

Les Musiques De Films (Disc 3)
Du Film “L’Eau À La Bouche”
Serge Gainsbourg– L’Eau À La Bouche (Avec Intro) 2:30
Serge Gainsbourg– Milena (Inédit) 1:57
Du Film “Les Loups Dans La Bergerie”
Serge Gainsbourg– Les Loups Dans La Bergerie 1:24
De La Comédie Musicale “Anna”
Serge Gainsbourg– Photographes Et Religieuses 1:32
Serge Gainsbourg– Jerks En Cavalerie 2:55
Anna Karina– Roller Girl 2:23
Du Film “L’Horizon”
Serge Gainsbourg– Le Village À L’Aube 2:35
Du Film “Le Pacha”
Serge Gainsbourg– Requiem Pour Un Con (Version Instrumentale) 3:20
Du Film “Slogan”
Serge Gainsbourg– Evelyne 2:10
Du Film “Les Chemins De Katmandou”
Serge Gainsbourg– Les Chemins De Katmandou 3:14
Du Film “Je T’Aime Moi Non Plus”
Serge Gainsbourg– Je T’Aime Moi Non Plus (Instrumental) 3:19
Du Film “Madame Claude”
Jane Birkin– Yesterday Yes A Day 3:00
Serge Gainsbourg– First Class Ticket (Prise Alternative Inédite) 1:22
Serge Gainsbourg– Discophotèque (Rough Mix Inédit) 2:54
Du Film “Goodbye Emmanuelle”
Serge Gainsbourg Avec Jane Birkin– Goodbye Emmanuelle 3:18
Du Film “Melancoly Baby”
Serge Gainsbourg– Melancoly Suite 3:10
Du Film “Le Physique Et Le Figuré”
Serge Gainsbourg– Le Physique Et Le Figuré (Version Complète) 5:17
Du Film “Tenue De Soirée”
Serge Gainsbourg– Travelling 4:20

BILL SHUTE, originally published in 2019 in Ugly Things magazine note: covering a massive and eclectic set such as this in under 400 words for UT was a challenge. I threw out my first review of this because I felt that readers should get an overview of the man’s work rather than a play-by-play of what’s on this odds’n’sods collection. You’ll notice I kind of breeze through the specifics of what’s on the box-set because what unifies it all is the presence of SG, and I felt that had to be established
in the review. That’s why I front-loaded the review with
my own description of what I feel SG was about. I had a copy of the 1964 LP GAINSBOURG PERCUSSIONS
while a teenager (I just stumbled across it in a used record store and took the plunge), so I’ve been listening to his music for 40+ years. I first saw him in early 60’s sword and sandal films as a supporting actor on TV when I was a child, long before I had heard his music….or even knew that he did music. When PIL’s FLOWERS OF ROMANCE came out, which I loved and still love, it was VERY clear to me that Lydon owned a copy of GAINSBOURG PERCUSSIONS too, and played his copy as much as I’d played mine!

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My newest poetry book for 2023…only $6.95 and available internationally at your local Amazon platform

NEUTRAL by Bill Shute

KSE #420, 125 pages, 6″ x 9″ perfect bound, softcover

published 2 January 2023

available for immediate order from https://amzn.to/3IFS5Vs

A new book-length poem for 2023, and in some ways it is my most ambitious work (IMHO) since POINT LOMA PURPLE (2007).

four albums by the Florida band SAGE

Very excited to discover recently that FOUR of the lesser-known Illusion-label albums from Tampa, Florida, band SAGE have surfaced on You Tube, featured on the “ahones” YT channel, to whom I offer a million thanks. According to online sources, the band was around for decades, starting in the 1960s, and were a popular live band in Florida. They managed to issue SEVEN LP’s on the mysterious Mike Pinera-related ILLUSION label in the 1976-78 period. SAGE BY SAGE was the best known of these and was reissued on CD on the UK greymarket RADIOACTIVE label in 2006. That’s where I first heard the band and became an instant fan.

On the rare occasions where one of their albums surfaces, it sells for multiple hundreds of dollars. Of course, Illusion was not a traditional label. Often referred to as a “tax scam label,” Illusion released dozens of albums over a short time. Supposedly, Mike P himself referred to the label as a “tax write-off,” which explains why such a huge glut of product was issued in such a short time and why they weren’t promoted or marketed in the traditional ways, hence their rarity today. I have seen and even owned albums on other tax scam labels such as Guinness and Tiger Lily (and others), but I’ve never held an actual Illusion album in my hands (though I have a pirate repress LP of the album by THE FANZ). A musician in one of the bands that had albums (two) released on Illusion reported that “we were approached to do some recordings for an un-named millionaire. We were told these were tax write-offs, yet would receive actual copies of the records…. we DID get our copies.”

The band SAGE consisted of

Bass, Keyboards, Vocals – Hilda Williers
Drums, Percussion, Backing Vocals – Rodger Stephan
Lead Guitar, Bass, Vocals – Ray Williers
Lead Guitar, Slide Guitar, Vocals – John Cameron

Some of the albums are credited as being recorded at their own SAGE Studio, so it makes sense that if Illusion was looking for instant product to pump up their inventory to be written off, a working band with their own studio with multiple professionally recorded albums available for release RIGHT NOW would be the perfect group to work with Illusion. I hope that the band was able to sell their copies and hold on to multiple extras, and in that case, perhaps the deal worked out well for both artist and label/mysterious financier. Anecdotal evidence mentions Mike Pinera’s being a friend and supporter of the band, and there’s also a rumor (not true) that Duane Allman plays on a track on SAGE BY SAGE, but according to the daughter of a band member, Allman knew guitarist John Cameron and taught him some slide guitar techniques, which he put to use on that track and others.

I see SAGE’s albums described as Southern Rock, Rural Rock, “Classic Rock” (whatever that is), Psychedelic Rock, or “psych mixed with southern rock.” All of those tags fit to some extent, but take a look at the pic above of the band from the 70s: this music sounds like that picture looks. If anyone remembers the short-lived 1980s “Breeder” label which reissued rare early 70s albums by bands such as Short Cross, Magi, Ken Little, and Homer, I could see the SAGE albums fitting into that label’s release schedule.

SAGE BY SAGE is an album that gets better with each listen. The slide guitar and the harmony vocals and the vaguely trippy feel mixed with a rootsy vibe, while at the same time being music that would have satisfied the mid 70s club-goer used to “70s rock”, really put the band in a class of their own. I’ve been playing my Radioactive pirate reissue of SAGE BY SAGE for 15+ years now, regularly, so I’m happy to see these four lesser-known SAGE albums surface on You Tube.

The albums still missing in action are DON’T LOOK BACK and ROCK IT OUT. If they are online anywhere, please let me know.

It would be wonderful if a label such as Light In The Attic could contact any surviving group members or their families and try to do some kind of authorized and informed reissue of the albums. Presumably, more than what’s on the Illusion albums was recorded, and we can only hope that some tapes survive. Until then, please enjoy these newly surfaced albums, which I have not yet listened to more than once, so I can’t comment on them, except to say that if you like SAGE BY SAGE, you’ll like these too. I intend to have them on a lot while working in the coming weeks…

If you enjoy independent self-issued and small label 1970s albums, be sure to give these a listen…and if you’ve never heard SAGE BY SAGE, their best-known album, you can here it below:

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THE FOUR NEWLY SURFACE ‘SAGE’ ALBUMS ON ILLUSION RECORDS:

SAGE, ‘ROCKIN’ (Illusion Records CM 1099, circa 1978)

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SAGE, ‘SKYSCRAPER’ (Illusion Records CM 1048, circa 1977-1978)

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SAGE, ‘FREEPORT’ (Illusion Records CM 1046, circa 1977)

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SAGE, ‘SHADOWS OF THE NIGHT’ (Illusion Records CM 1050, circa 1977)

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HILDA WILLIERS of SAGE

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My newest poetry book for 2023…only $6.95 and available internationally at your local Amazon platform

NEUTRAL by Bill Shute

KSE #420, 125 pages, 6″ x 9″ perfect bound, softcover

published 2 January 2023

available for immediate order from https://amzn.to/3IFS5Vs

A new book-length poem for 2023, and in some ways it is my most ambitious work (IMHO) since POINT LOMA PURPLE (2007).

THE STORMSVILLE SHAKERS AND CIRCUS–One and One Is Two: Complete Recordings, 1965-1967 (RPM, UK) CD

UK R&B combo The Stormsville Shakers are probably best known for the two exciting albums they did in early 1965 backing American R&B great Larry Williams. However,
they released a number of 45’s in the UK, an EP in France, and in their later incarnation as Circus, even a single on the Chicago-based USA label! All of that, and a number of
unreleased studio and live tracks, can be found on this 27-track CD, complemented
by exhaustive liner notes from group leader Phillip Goodhand-Tait.

The Stormsville Shakers were a very active live band, which winds up being a strong point in their recordings, as they play with authority and basically have a “live in the studio” sound. Fans of the earlier recordings of Cliff Bennett and the Rebel Rousers or Chris Farlowe and the Thunderbirds or Zoot Money’s Big Roll Band will find a lot to like here. Except for a French-language ballad, it’s all pure and dynamic British R&B, sometimes with a twist of bluebeat, sometimes leaning more toward soul (there’s usually two saxophones to beef up the sound). Phillip Goodhand-Tait is a soulful vocalist, reminding me of Mike Harrison’s work with the VIP’s, and on
the live tracks recorded in France, he handles James Brown. and Bobby Bland material
quite convincingly…and these tracks give us a taste of what their set at the Flamingo
might have been like.

Their later incarnation as Circus (represented here by 8 tracks) moved more into progressive territory, featuring the occasional French horn or flute or harpsichord or bird sound-effects, but fortunately the band seemed to realize what their strengths were, and there’s usually a soulful or bluesy base to the performances.

For the fan of British R&B-soul, this is a strong collection and a valuable body of work.
It deserves a place alongside your Cliff Bennett or Zoot Money or VIP’s albums, and thanks to RPM for bringing together the band’s complete recordings…a strong set indeed!

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I’m Gonna Put Some Hurt on You (Parlophone R 5448, 1966)
It’s a Lie (Parlophone R 5448, 1966)
No Problem (Parlophone R 5498, 1966)
What More Do You Want (Parlophone R 5498, 1966)
The Society for the Protection of Love (Odeon MEO 148, 1966)
Gettin’ Ready (Odeon MEO 148, 1966)
L’Amour Se Lisait Dans Ses Yeux (Odeon MEO 148, 1966)
Number One(Odeon MEO 148, 1966)
You Can’t Take Love (Parlophone R 5547, 1966)
C. Greasburger (Parlophone R 5547, 1966)
Long Live Love (rec. 5/18/65)
I’ll Do the Best I Can (rec. 5/18/65)
There You Go (rec. 6/23/65)
Do What You Wanna Do (rec. 6/23/65)
Where Were You on Our Wedding Day () One and One is Two ()
I Feel Good (Live) (rec. 2/20/66)
Have You Ever Had the Blues (Live) (rec. 2/20/66)
Turn on Your Love Light (Live) (rec. 2/20/66)
Gone are the Songs of Yesterday (Parlophone R 5633, 1967)
Sink or Swim (Parlophone R 5633, 1967)
Do You Dream (Parlophone R 5672, 1967)
House of Wood (Parlophone R 5672, 1967)
Yes is a Pleasant Country () Something to Write About ()
The Patience of a Fool () Who Will Love Her ()
(*) denotes previously unreleased track

Tracks 1-4, 11-19 performed by Phillip Goodhand-Tait and the Stormsville Shakers
Tracks 5-8 performed by The Stormsville Shakers
Tracks 9-10 performed by Phillip Goodhand-Tait
Tracks 20-27 performed by Circus

BILL SHUTE, originally published in 2015 in Ugly Things magazine

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Happy Lovin’ Time: Sunshine Pop From The Garpax Vaults (Big Beat, UK), CD

     Ace-Kent-Big Beat’s latest archival expedition through the massive vaults of workaholic producer Gary S. Paxton focuses on the 1965-68 period, mostly before Paxton’s move to Bakersfield. While previous comps have offered girl-group, hot-rod/surf, female R&B, and country-rock, this one features straight-ahead pop-rock material aimed at getting placed with the labels which had released Paxton’s productions in the past: Capitol, Decca, etc. Also featured are Canadian bands who came down to work at Paxton’s studio, which (much like Norman Petty’s studio in New Mexico) offered reasonable rates, a hands-on producer/engineer with a proven track record, and a unique vision.

     I’m not sure about the Sunshine Pop tag. Sure, there is a Curt Boettcher track here, and the track by The Four Freshmen might appeal to a Free Design fan, but most of the material here would be more reminiscent of the kind of recordings that The Knickerbockers or Nino Tempo or The Buckinghams were making in 66-67–rocking pop that was aimed at a major label sensibility. There are some psych moves here and there because that’s what was in the air, but Paxton’s unerring nose for potential hits meant he would never be producing Skip Spence or The 13th Floor Elevators. It’s as if you unearthed a box of unknown 45’s on a label like Tower or Coral. And while Paxton’s productions are multi-layered and professional, they are never slick or cloying. A lot is going on in these 45’s, small bits of business that shade and complement the sound, but they are not over-produced and they have room to breathe.

     As always, Paxton hired the best sidemen, from Clarence White to Jerry Scheff, and with the songwriting and production assistance of Kenny Johnson (of Ken and the Fourth Dimension fame), the Garpax operation produced a staggering number of great recordings in any number of genres. Artists such as Mary Saxton, Homogenized Dirt, The Black Box, and The Bogart Cult may not be well-remembered, but their recordings hold their own against what was on the charts at the time and reflect that special, slightly quirky magic that always radiates from Gary S. Paxton’s work. Be warned though, those looking for a psych or garage (or pure sunshine pop) comp will not find it here.

1. MAKE UP YOUR MIND – Augie Moreno
2. DANDELION WINE – The Whatt Four
3. THE THINKING ANIMAL – The New Wing
4. CHRISTINA, IN MY DREAMS – Curt Boettcher
5. HAPPY LOVIN’ TIME – The Black Box
6. OSTRICH PEOPLE – The Chocolate Tunnel
7. SHE LOVES ME – Dave Antrell
8. HOW MANY TIMES – Jim Gordon
9. GAMES – The Bogart Cult
10. BAD SIGN – The Jay Bees
11. AM I WASTIN’ MY TIME – Johnny Apollo
12. CLEAN UP YOUR OWN BACKYARD – The Bakersfield Poppy Pickers
13. NOWHERE TO GO – The Four Freshmen
14. IS IT LOVE – Willie & The Walkers
15. SAVIN’ (EVERYTHING FOR YOU GIRL) – The Lords
16. STAY – Curt Boettcher
17. YOU TAKE THINGS LIGHTLY BABE – Dave Antrell
18. THE HIGHLY SUCCESSFUL YOUNG RUPERT WHITE – The Privilege
19. IS IT BETTER TO LIVE OR TO DIE – Mary Saxton
20. DON’T PUT ME DOWN – The Lords
21. IT’S WRITTEN ALL OVER MY FACE – The Bakersfield Poppy Pickers
22. WHO DO YOU THINK YOU ARE – The Jay Bees
23. DIRT BENEATH MY FEET – Homogenized Dirt
24. I NEVER WANNA HURT YOU – Dave Antrell

BILL SHUTE, originally published in 2015 in Ugly Things magazine

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My newest poetry book for 2023…only $6.95 and available internationally at your local Amazon platform

NEUTRAL by Bill Shute

KSE #420, 125 pages, 6″ x 9″ perfect bound, softcover

published 2 January 2023

available for immediate order from https://amzn.to/3IFS5Vs

A new book-length poem for 2023, and in some ways it is my most ambitious work (IMHO) since POINT LOMA PURPLE (2007).

RECKLESS DECISION (1933)

clunky yet fascinating early 30’s exploitation patchwork

This feature, known as both PROTECT YOUR DAUGHTERS and RECKLESS DECISION (the latter is the title on my copy), features a frame story–shot on one small set-up with a static camera and actors talking in the manner of the padded footage in a Jerry Warren film such as ATTACK OF THE MAYAN MUMMY–and a core story from another film that takes up about 75% of the film.

Interestingly, the credits contain the names of some of the actors in the frame story as well as actors CUT from the frame story! And the actors in the main story, including well-known William Farnum, are NOT listed in the credits.

There’s not much sleaze here if that’s what you are looking for–this is even tamer than the sound version of ROAD TO RUIN. The credit for photographer Frank Zukor (aka Zucker) leads me to believe that the frame story may have been a NYC-based Bud Pollard production (Pollard is best-known today for his 1940’s Black-cast films and for being president of the Screen Directors’ Guild). Zukor shot Pollard’s VICTIM OF PERSECUTION and some Yiddish-language features. Perhaps some Yiddish film scholar can enlighten us about the origin of this film.

There’s undoubtedly an interesting story behind this strange patchwork feature (While we’re discussing exploitation films, I believe SEX MADNESS was also made by people who otherwise made Yiddish films). However, this film will be of interest ONLY to the serious student of exploitation films or odd patchwork features such as, say, GUN CARGO or CALL OF THE ROCKIES. It does need to be said, though, that watching a film like this will put the viewer in a woozy, off-kilter state of mind, as if you’ve been up for 48 hours straight or you’ve consumed half a bottle of Ny-Quil….patchwork films have a tendency to do that to the viewer.

Bill Shute, originally published elsewhere online in 2004, and I hope more information about the film has surfaced since then

Why not watch it yourself, if this link still works….

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

My newest poetry book for 2023…only $6.95 and available internationally at your local Amazon platform

NEUTRAL by Bill Shute

KSE #420, 125 pages, 6″ x 9″ perfect bound, softcover

published 2 January 2023

available for immediate order from https://amzn.to/3IFS5Vs

A new book-length poem for 2023, and in some ways it is my most ambitious work (IMHO) since POINT LOMA PURPLE (2007).