Every week, Arts: It’s What’s for Blog will present “From the Vault.” Each post will focus on a different classic artist. This week’s artist is Serge Gainsbourg. Listen to Arts & Entertainment writer Rajesh Srinivasan talk about Serge Gainsbourg’s Histoire de Melody Nelson on Houndbite.

Lucien Ginzburg, later and more commonly known as Serge Gainsbourg in households all around Europe, possessed an array of odd characteristics. He was a witty man who enjoyed satire and poetry. At the same time, Gainsbourg was also slovenly and perverted cad who, despite his unattractive appearance, would become France’s greatest playboy and marry one of the era’s most inarguably beautiful women, Jane Birkin. But above all this contradiction, he was a musical genius who would take Europe by storm with his deep, smoky voice, unique arrangements and controversial themes. Read the rest of this entry »

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