Thursday, March 14, 2013

Zest


 Rated 14+ for mature themes that some might find offensive


Let's go to France. Vive la Liberte!

I mentioned Serge Gainsbourg back in 2011, and wrote on his love of puns. He used them extensively in his songs, very tongue-in-cheek.

In the mid '60s, a young lady by the name of France Gall sang a song by Gainsbourg named "Les Sucettes" ("Lollipops" in English).

The lyrics of the song cleverly mention oral sex. At one point, the singer states how Annie, the main character, can't wait to get that flavor down her throat. Very clever, no?

France Gall later said in an interview that she was too young to comprehend the meaning of the song. She thought it was just about a girl who liked lollipops rather than its double meaning. After learning what the song was about, she cut her ties with Mr. Gainsbourg and was in seclusion for months afterwards.

I'm surprised she wasn't more devastated after such a devious thing.

As time passed, Gainsbourg got stranger.

He wrote a piece called "Lemon Incest", which was too a pun on words. In French, the phrase un zeste de citron sounds a lot like incest de citron, thus "Lemon Incest" was born. In the music video, he's featured shirtless, with his daughter Charlotte next to him, wearing nothing but underwear and a shirt. She was twelve at the time, and is also sings on the track.

Serge Gainsbourg defended the piece, and denied allegations of an incestuous relationship with his daughter. Charlotte Gainsbourg also defended her decision to be on the track later on in her life.