Wednesday 23 February 2011

Guy Beart - Futur*Fiction*Fantastique (1977)



This is a strange recent boot sale discovery - I was instantly attracted by the beautiful Moebius imagery adorning the gatefold sleeve. I had no clue as to what the music might sound like, but thought I'd give it a try for a pound. French chanson wouldn't normally be my cup of tea, but with its wibbly synth soundscapes and songs all about outer space, this one's a real curio.

I'd never heard of Guy Beart previously, but it turns out he was one France's most popular chanteur's for a number of years, so he's probably well known to some of the French speakers out there. Like many ignorant and poorly educated English folk, I do not speak any French and so am unable to understand anything that Guy is singing about, but it all sounds very interesting.

Tracklist:

01 Etoiles, Garde-A-Vous
02 Les Temps Etrangers
03 Les Enfants Sur La Lune
04 Alphabet
05 De La Lune, Qui Se Souvient
06 L'Avenir C'Etait Plus Beau Hier
07 Annees Lumiere
08 Les Collines D'Acier
09 Voyageur De Rayons
10 La Terrien
11 La Lune Est Verte

Get it HERE.

7 comments:

Holly said...

Hmm. His chanson stuff isn't for me, but this really does sound interesting. Thank you very much for sharing!

Anonymous said...

The first song's text was included in the French translation of Robert Heinlein's now famous book *Starship Troopers*, even though the translation was signed by one Michel Demuth, not Guy Béart.

Anonymous said...

PS The French version of *Starship Troopers* was called *Etoiles garde à vous* like the first song.

Michel said...

I was given the original vinyl version when I was 20 and know all the tracks by heart. Listening to Guy Beart again brings a host of great memories back. He is a fantastic poet, and well worth listening. Thanks you ever so much for putting up the download.
:)

Anonymous said...

Thank you! The sound of this album is something very very interesting.

Mr Tear said...

This is certainly one of the oddest albums I've posted here. Glad its finding some listeners.

Maïo said...

I'm french and I bought it too a few days ago in a garage sale. I don't like Béart much but I bought because of the Moebius cover and because and because this record is a WTF in Béart's discography: Guy Béart is a french singer who usually sings only with his guitar and he usually writes the music himself (and is often thought of as pretty boring !). But on this record he asked Roland Romanelli to write and play the music and this is where it gets interesting, as Romanelli is a piano player who did as much crap as he did great stuff. He has been Barbara's piano player until she died, but he also played in a french space disco band called... Space ! Their main hit was "Magic Fly", you've probably already heard it and if not, youtube it, it's so kitch it's fun !