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BEATS OF LOVE

22. Le Chat Du Café Des Artistes by Charlotte Gainsbourg 

AS THE government becomes more Francophobe by the day, in a typical contrarian act, I have subsumed myself in all things French. 

This is a song I was happy to just spin on the turntable repeatedly until Charlotte randomly appeared in a Dix Pour Cent episode I was watching (guilty pleasure), which I took as a cue to type this. However, I'm more eager to turn anyone who isn't already onto this song, than her fluffy cameo.  

Having already approximated Jean Claude Vannier’s orchestral arrangements on the 1999 album, SeaChange with Paper Tigers specifically quoting Melody Nelson, Beck was an obvious choice as producer. Collaborating by exploring the dark theme of her brain surgery, he selflessly cajoled understated but rich vocal performances out of the fragility. Here he turns her onto this song written and performed by French Canadian's Jean-Pierre Ferland and Michel Robidoux, which are the only lyrics that aren't his own on the album, and truly transforms it into a brooding masterpiece. A wonderful subversion of colourful symphony music.   

This interpretation is a little less haunting and melodic but much more stripped-down than the original. Its darker hues really capture the song's essence. Whether it's my own wrong-headed take on authenticity or not, she sounds more earnest when singing in French. More convincing. I'm more than happy to lose the sense of great story-telling to gain that woozy feeling well produced music evokes by bringing warm pictures into my mind. Music for me is a great simplifier and quite often the darkest songs let in the most light. 

After 1998's Mutations, this for me is Beck's greatest musical statement. It's a sweeping orchestral track that has aged magnificently and a track that more than justifies this inspired collaboration by recognizing that neither without the other could achieve sublimity. 

And achieve it, it does.