Serge et ses femmes

"Je suis petit voleur, grand faussaire, flambeur, vitriolé, dépressif, pessimiste forcené, fier, tracard, indélébile, maladroit, addict et violent".

Serge Gainsbourg. Les Inrockuptibles. 1988.

Left: France Gall - Right: Brigit BardotHis second wife: the wonderful Jane BirkinBirth of Charlotte His third wife: BambouSerge et Charlotte

Pictures from the magnificent book 'Serge Gainsbourg - Et Caetera'

Serge Gainsbourg (2 April 1928 – 2 March 1991) was a French poet, singer-songwriter, actor and director. Gainsbourg's varied musical style and individuality made him difficult to categorize. His legacy has been firmly established, and he is often regarded as one of the world's most influential musicians. He was born Lucien Ginsburg[3] in Paris, France, the son of Russian Jewish parents who fled to France after the 1917 Bolshevik uprising. His childhood was profoundly affected by the occupation of France by Nazi Germany, during which he and his family, as Jews, were forced to wear the yellow star and eventually flee Paris. Before he was 30 years old, Gainsbourg was a disillusioned painter but earned his living as a piano player in bars.

He had two children in the 1960's with his first wife: a daughter named Natacha and a son, Paul. His second daughter, actress Charlotte, was born to English singer and actress Jane Birkin; and his youngest son, Lucien (best known as Lulu), with his last partner, Bambou (Caroline von Paulus, who is related to Friedrich Paulus). Birkin states "Serge could only show love for his child if there was a camera there to record it. He was very shy." Birkin recollects the beginning of her affair with Gainsbourg , where he first took her to a nightclub, then to a transvestite club and afterwards to the Hilton, where he passed out in a drunken stupor. He confessed to Birkin that he had been scared of Bardot's breasts. Gainsbourg married Birkin when she was 19, he was 36. Birkin left Gainsbourg when pregnant with her third daughter Lou, by the film director Jacques Doillon, whom she later married.

Serge & Jane - Je t'aime moi non plus