Ainsi soit je...
Studio album by
Mylène Farmer
Released18 March 1988
StudioStudio Mega, Paris (France)
GenreSynthpop, baroque pop, darkwave
Length45:47
LabelPolydor
ProducerLaurent Boutonnat
Mylène Farmer chronology
Cendres de lune
(1986) 		Ainsi soit je...
(1988) 		En concert
(1989)
Alternative cover
Promotional edition - Europe
Singles from Ainsi soit je...
  1. "Sans contrefaçon"
    Released: 16 October 1987
  2. "Ainsi soit je..."
    Released: 4 March 1988
  3. "Pourvu qu'elles soient douces"
    Released: 12 September 1988
  4. "Sans logique"
    Released: 20 February 1989

Ainsi soit je... (a play on ainsi soit-il, which can mean either "so be it" or "amen") is the second album by Mylène Farmer, released on March 18, 1988.[1][2] It contains the hit singles "Sans contrefaçon", "Pourvu qu'elles soient douces" and "Sans logique". Generally well received by critics, it was very successful and remains to date the second best-selling album of the singer.

Background

After the success of the album Cendres de lune and the hits "Sans contrefaçon" and "Ainsi soit je...", Farmer had no problem releasing a second album that would be well received by the public, enabling her to consolidate her growing popularity, thus preventing her from slipping back into anonymity. The album took from five to six months to be finished.[3] It was recorded at studio Mega, Avenue Maréchal-Maunoury, in Paris (XVIe arrondissement) under the leadership of Thierry Rogen, a renowned sound engineer who had already worked in particular with Michel Sardou.[4]

The cover of the album shows Farmer turned sideways, accompanied by the puppet used in the music video for "Sans contrefaçon". The photographs of the booklet were made by Elsa Trillat.

The album was released in April 1988 and met great success, both critically and commercially.

Lyrics and music

The texts, which contain many literary references to famous authors (such as Baudelaire, Poe, etc.), were written by Mylène Farmer, except "L'Horloge" (a poem by Charles Baudelaire), "Déshabillez-moi" (originally sung in 1966 by Juliette Gréco) and "The Farmer's Conclusion" (which is an instrumental song). The album has a melancholy and sad tone, and deals with death, suicide, madness with gloomy and desperate texts. Sexual ambiguity, sodomy and provocation are also tackled.[5][6]

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[7]

The album was generally well received in the media and remains sometimes considered as "one of the most successful",[8] even the singer's "best album".[6] When the album was released, the press said: "Mylène shows an imagination and a new maturity in these charming libertine poems and her synthetic hits containing literary references" (20 Ans).[9] This "great" (Gaipied)[10] and "successful" (Les Dernières Nouvelles d'Alsace)[11] album has "an intellectual and musical universe always so creative" (Gaipied).[12] Its songs were described as "powerful, sometimes catchy and often spellbinding compositions" (Paris Nuit),[13] whose texts are "chiseled but perfectly licentious" (France Soir).[14] The "poetic quality of the texts" and "the sense of the melody" (Le Télégramme)[15] were also mentioned. Rock and Folk said this Laurent Boutonnat's production is "impeccable", demonstrating his "undoubted talent".[16] According to Télé Poche, "the time of success has come for Mylène Farmer" with this album.[17] The journalist Caroline Bee said this album is "an ambiguous, bright, romantic and beautifully produced gem".[8] A review in Pan-European magazine Music & Media praised Ainsi soit je..., ranking it as "Album of the week", and added: "A first-class electro-based pop LP... That sophisticated sensuality! Laurent Boutonnat's production and compositions are flowing with a commerciabdity, comparable to the works of the Pet Shop Boys. Farmer... reveals the full palette of her caressing and dreamy voice."[18]

Some criticisms were also made against Ainsi soit je... For example, according to L'Humanité, this album uses an "old-fashioned stylistic mannerism to reinvent poetry" (L'Humanité).[19] Rock Land qualified this album as a "second collection of bad thoughts with a spectacular flippantly", whose "B-side is flat".[20]

Commercial performance

In France, the album debuted at number 8 in April 1988, but it dropped to number 26 five months later. However, thanks to the successful single "Pourvu qu'elles soient douces" (number-one hit in December 1988), the album reached number one for two weeks in December 1988. The album managed to stay for eleven months in the top ten and about one year on the chart.[21] On 29 June 1988, the album was certified Gold by the SNEP for 100,000 copies sold, then Platinum for 300,000 sales, then Double Platinum on 17 February 1989 for 600,000 sales, and eventually Diamond on 14 November 1989 for a minimum of 1,000,000 copies sold.[22][23] The album was also released in Germany, where it reached number 47.[24]

Track listing

# Title Length Writer(s) Composer(s) Notes
1 "L'Horloge" 5:03 Charles Baudelaire Laurent Boutonnat Adaptation of the poem of the same name by Charles Baudelaire, from Les Fleurs du mal. The music begins and ends with the sound of a clock pendulum, as well as cries of a baby. The words evoke the passage of time which leads to death. A male voice repeatedly says, "Souviens-toi!" (the French for "Remember", itself spoken in the song as well).[25]

Performed during the 1989, 2019 tours and never on television.

2 "Sans contrefaçon" 4:07 Mylène Farmer Boutonnat Performed during the 1989, 1996, 1999, 2006, 2009, 2013, 2019 and 2023 tours and 16 times on television.
3 "Allan" 4:46 Farmer Boutonnat Performed during the 1989 tour and one time on television.
4 "Pourvu qu'elles soient douces" 4:52 Farmer Boutonnat Performed during the 1989, 1999, 2009 and 2019 tours and 12 times on television.
5 "La Ronde triste" 4:13 Farmer Boutonnat Although the title is in French, the lyrics are in English. The song discusses suicide and death, while a male voice repeatedly says, "Don't cry".

It was never performed on stage, but was once on television (Domicile A2, 15 December 1987, Antenne 2). It served as the B-side of "Sans contrefaçon".[26]

6 "Ainsi soit je..." 6:18 Farmer Boutonnat Performed during the 1989, 1996, 2009 and 2019 tours and 12 times on television.
7 "Sans logique" 4:30 Farmer Boutonnat Performed during the 1989 and 2019 tours and five times on television.
8 "Jardin de Vienne" 5:17 Farmer Boutonnat Opens with a few notes of Richard Wagner's opera Tannhäuser. The lyrics discuss a young boy who hanged himself in a garden in Vienna. In the refrain, the death is seen as a release.[27]

Performed during the 1989 tour, but never on television.

9 "Déshabillez-moi" 3:45 Robert Nyel Gaby Verlor Performed during the 1989 and 2006 tours and twice on television.
10 "The Farmer's Conclusion" 2:15 — Boutonnat A wordless piece with the cries of various animals, mixed with Farmer's sighs. The title is a play on Farmer's last name and is a humorous reply to journalists who sometimes give her that name in a literal way.[28]

Never performed on stage, nor on television.

Charts

Certifications and sales

Region Certification Certified units/sales
Belgium (BEA)[34] Gold 25,000*
France (SNEP)[22] Diamond 1,500,000[35]
Switzerland (IFPI Switzerland)[36] Gold 25,000^
Summaries
Worldwide — 1,800,000[37]

* Sales figures based on certification alone.
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

Personnel

Release history

Date Label Region Format Catalog
1988 Polydor France CD 835654-2
Picture CD
12" 835564-1
Cassette 835465-4
Collector edition ?
Allemagne CD 835564-1
12" 835564-2
Canada 12" 835564-1
Promo 12"
Cassette 835564-4
Italy Cassette 835564-4
Japan CD POCP1001
Promo CD
Korea 12" RG2039
Netherlands Cassette 835564-4
Spain 12" 835564-1
1994 Polygram France CD 8355642
1998 Polygram France 835564
2005 Polydor Digital —
2005 Universal CD - Digipack 9828262

Formats

References

  1. ^ "Ainsi soit je...". Le Progrès (in French). 18 April 1988. Retrieved 27 March 2008.[permanent dead link]
  2. ^ "Ainsi soit je...". Madame Figaro (in French). 3 June 1988. Retrieved 27 March 2008.[permanent dead link]
  3. ^ Pulsion (in French). May 1988.((cite journal)): CS1 maint: untitled periodical (link)
  4. ^ Violet, 2004, p. 93.
  5. ^ Chuberre, 2007, p. 26.
  6. ^ a b Cachin, 2006, pp. 28-29.
  7. ^ AllMusic review
  8. ^ a b Bee, 2006, p. 362.
  9. ^ "Ainsi soit je...". 20 Ans (in French). June 1988. Retrieved 27 March 2008.[permanent dead link]
  10. ^ "Skeuds de Noël". Gaipied (in French). 12 December 1988. Retrieved 27 March 2008.[permanent dead link]
  11. ^ "Ainsi soit je...". Les Dernières Nouvelles d'Alsace (in French). 14 May 1988. Retrieved 27 March 2008.[permanent dead link]
  12. ^ "Ainsi soit-elle". Gaipied (in French). 17 May 1988. Retrieved 27 March 2008.[permanent dead link]
  13. ^ "Ainsi soit je...". Paris Nuit (in French). April 1988. Retrieved 27 March 2008.[permanent dead link]
  14. ^ G., R. (19 November 1988). "Mylène Farmer: "Vivre avec trois amants"". France Soir (in French). Retrieved 27 March 2008.[permanent dead link]
  15. ^ "Ainsi soit je...". Le Télégramme (in French). 20 April 1988. Retrieved 27 March 2008.[permanent dead link]
  16. ^
    * "Ainsi soit je... (1)". Rock and Folk (in French). 1988. Retrieved 27 March 2008.[permanent dead link]
    * "Ainsi soit je... (2)". Rock and Folk (in French). 1988. Retrieved 27 March 2008.
  17. ^ "Cherchez 'la' Farmer". Télé Poche (in French). 30 April 1988. Retrieved 27 March 2008.[permanent dead link]
  18. ^ "Esprit français - French Talent" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 5, no. 22. 28 May 1988. p. 21. OCLC 29800226. Retrieved 11 August 2023 – via World Radio History.
  19. ^ "Ainsi soit je...". L'Humanité (in French). 2 June 1988. Retrieved 27 March 2008.[permanent dead link]
  20. ^ "Ainsi soit je...". Rock Land (in French). May 1988. Retrieved 27 March 2008.[permanent dead link]
  21. ^ "Albums chart trajectories in France, database" (in French). Infodisc. Archived from the original on 20 August 2008. Retrieved 9 September 2008.
  22. ^ a b "French album certifications – Mylène Farmer – Ainsi soit je..." (in French). InfoDisc. Retrieved 15 November 2021. Select MYLÈNE FARMER and click OK. 
  23. ^ "Du diamant pour Mylène Farmer". Var Matin (in French). 3 March 1989. Retrieved 30 March 2008.[permanent dead link]
  24. ^ a b "Offiziellecharts.de – Mylène Farmer – Ainsi soit je.." (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 15 June 2016.
  25. ^ Cachin, 2006, p. 120.
  26. ^ Cachin, 2006, p. 234.
  27. ^ Cachin, 2006, p. 135.
  28. ^ Cachin, 2006, p. 105.
  29. ^ "Hits of the World (21 January 1989)" (PDF). Billboard. Retrieved 16 June 2016.
  30. ^ "Les "Charts Runs" de chaque Album Classé" (in French). InfoDisc. Retrieved 15 June 2016.
  31. ^ "1988 Year End Eurocharts – European Top 100 Albums" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 6, no. 52/1. 1 January 1989. p. 31. OCLC 29800226. Page 17 on the PDF archive. Archived (PDF) from the original on 16 April 2022. Retrieved 22 November 2023 – via World Radio History.
  32. ^ "Les Albums (CD) de 1988 par InfoDisc" (in French). InfoDisc. Archived from the original on 23 October 2014. Retrieved 16 June 2016.
  33. ^ "European Top 100 Albums 1989" (PDF). Music & Media. 23 December 1989. p. 9. Archived (PDF) from the original on 27 September 2021. Retrieved 22 November 2023.
  34. ^ "Ultratop − Goud en Platina – albums 1998". Ultratop. Hung Medien. Retrieved 16 June 2016.
  35. ^ Jonathan Hamard (3 January 2016). "Mylène Farmer : quel est son album le mieux vendu ?" (in French). Webedia. Retrieved 16 June 2016.
  36. ^ "The Official Swiss Charts and Music Community: Awards ('Farmer')". IFPI Switzerland. Hung Medien.
  37. ^ "Les spectacles: Mylène Farmer, les dessous du mythe". Le Parisien (in French). 11 September 2009. Retrieved 5 February 2018.
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