The French ’70s hits

Many French pop aficionados are obsessed with the 1960s yé-yé generation. It’s true that there were a lot of great musicians then, like Georges Brassens, France Gall, and Jacques Dutronc. But great pop hits didn’t just end in 1970. Here are five good pop songs from the ’70s, the decade of the concept album and disco. Brigitte Fontaine was experimenting. Françoise Hardy was reinventing herself. And Patrick Juvet was wearing sequins and partying like a rock star.

Françoise Hardy – La Chanson d’O (1971)

After a string of hits in the ’60s, Hardy teamed up with Brazilian musician Tuca to make the album La Question. The two women wrote and arranged together, and the result of their collaboration is sparse and elegant. “La Chanson d’O” stands out for its abstract breathiness with stark bossa nova lines. It was a great direction for Françoise Hardy to take. Sadly, Tuca died in 1978 at the age of 34.

Philippe Lavil – Avec les filles je ne sais pas (1970)

Lavil’s second single is a catchy, goofy pop song. Thanks to Scopitone technology there’s a video to it with the handsome singer in a fawn velour suit hanging out on a cowskin rug next to women who sing almost-annoying backup. Philippe Lavil was born and raised in Martinique. He recorded his first hit, “À la califourchon,” while a business student in France.

Brigitte Fontaine and Areski Belkacem – Vous et nous (1977)

The ’70s were the era of the album. Fontaine and Belkacem had been working together on projects for almost a decade at this point, and they get far out on Vous et nous, with 29 tracks that run in length from ten seconds to almost seven minutes. Spoken word, Arab percussion, heavy Minimoog action thanks to Jean-Philippe Rykiel – no two songs are alike, but it all goes together. The title track is groundbreaking.

Patrick Juvet – Où sont les femmes (1977)

This huge disco hit by Swiss star Patrick Juvet was written during his heavy partying phase. Overindulgence was in style at the time, and Juvet had the means to really go for it. Prior to this he was making music more in a Marc Bolan vein, with hits like the thumping “Unisex.”

Serge Gainsbourg – Aux armes et caetera (1979)

Provocateur and French pop giant Gainsbourg stirred up controversy with this reworking of La Marseillaise. Recorded in Kingston with legendary reggae musician/producers Sly and Robbie, the song was a big hit and a nice change for Gainsbourg. It’s refreshing to hear him with rhythmic backup singers as opposed to the moaning duets he did with Jane Birkin and Brigitte Bardot, as sexy as they may be.

The ’70s saw Françoise Hardy and Serge Gainsbourg both collaborating with Latin and Caribbean musicians. The surreal Brigitte Fontaine continued to work with Areski Belkacem, who was of Algerian descent. Philippe Lavil, white but from Martinique, hit the scene with straightforward pop. And Patrick Juvet made some solid disco hits.