Archive For The “Exotica” Category
“The godlike genius of Johnny Halliday” is not a phrase that is likely to be heard too often in these parts. Putting to one side the noodlings of Gong, whilst savouring the Breton phrasings of Alan Stivell, it has to be said that with the exception of the occasional chanteuse, France’s contribution to alternative music 
A genuine oddity, cello, vocals and well, echo, this is as singular as it gets. Arthur Russell was the visionary genius behind Sleeping Bag records, a label that found favour with the genre hopping iconoclasts of the eighties club scene by fusing disco with the avant garde. This is a very different proposition, having more 
Concocted by Serge Gainsbourg, the most exalted potentate of lust, this bizarre fantasy detailing a (the?) middle aged lothario’s affair with a teenager oozes priapic zeal, laced with a sense of humour that can only be described as goblinesque. Unusually for a concept album from this era the music has dated astonishingly well; produced and 
