Monday, May 08, 2006
Je l'aime moins (not plus)
Before releasing Je T’Aime Moi Non Plus with Jane Birkin, and going to number one across Europe, Serge Gainsbourg recorded the song with Brigitte Bardot, with whom he had a brief affair. The first version is more randy, as reputed. Bardot gives the impression of being more demanding sexually than Birkin. Gainsbourg sounds intimidated, and she sounds like she is greedily taking what she wants. It's a lot less romantic than the Jane Birkin version, and less good I think. On Harley Davison, also by Serge Gainsbourg, Brigitte Bardot sounds too much like Lolo Ferrari . She gives an impression of aggression and selfishness in her sexuality, as projected through this music. She makes Gainsbourg sound like a drunk bit-player, trying to cope with shagging a porn star, whilst Birkin makes him a lover, and is a lover herself.
