"Auteuil, Neuilly, Passy (rap BCBG)" is a song recorded by the satiric group

Les Inconnus Les Inconnus ("The Unknowns") are a French trio of humourists consisting of Didier Bourdon, Bernard Campan and Pascal Légitimus. While their first successes were on stage, they are most famous for their satirical sketch comedy television show ...

in 1991. Released as a single from their album ''Bouleversifiant'', it achieved great success in France, reaching number one on the national singles chart.

Lyrics and music

After their success with many sketches, Les Inconnus decided to release this single, their biggest success, which is actually a humorous sketch. The group used music by

Maceo Parker Maceo Parker (; born February 14, 1943) is an American funk and soul jazz saxophonist, best known for his work with James Brown in the 1960s, Parliament-Funkadelic in the 1970s and Prince in the 2000s. Parker was a prominent soloist on many o ...

in the song without his permission; as a result, they had legal problems due to copyright issues. The song has rap and R&B sounds, and is punctuated by many "Salut ! Tu - vas - bien ?". '' Music & Media'' considered the song as a "parody on rap", in which "the three TV stars turn the tables on the usual raprecord dialogue-which often boasts of male chauvinism, ghetto talk and social engagement-by coming out with a rap about rich snobs. Miles from Brooklyn in many ways, Auteuil, Neuilly, and Passy are names of the most fashionable quarters of Paris". The song is about the life of fictitious youngsters from the

upper class Upper class in modern societies is the social class composed of people who hold the highest social status, usually are the wealthiest members of class society, and wield the greatest political power. According to this view, the upper class is gen ...

singing

rap Rapping (also rhyming, spitting, emceeing or MCing) is a musical form of vocal delivery that incorporates "rhyme, rhythmic speech, and street vernacular". It is performed or chanted, usually over a backing beat or musical accompaniment. The ...

on their allegedly difficult lives. The characters bear traditional

French names French names typically consist of one or multiple given names, and a surname. Usually one given name and the surname are used in a person’s daily life, with the other given names used mainly in official documents. Middle names, in the English s ...

, with lots of middle names and surnames with particles. Later we can see the same thing with the women, they bear very traditional names that are associated either with older generations or upper and more traditional classes. They use a mix of a very sophisticated language with slang words pronounced with a Parisian accent.

Critical reception

According to '' Music & Media'', "the humor f the songis appreciated, especially with a little understanding of French".

Chart performances

In France, "Auteuil, Neuilly, Passy" was one of the biggest hits of 1991: it debuted at number two on the chart edition of 8 June and reached number one three weeks later, thus dethroning

Mylène Farmer Mylène Jeanne Gautier (; born 12 September 1961), known professionally as Mylène Farmer (), is a Canadian-born French singer, songwriter, occasional actress, writer, and entrepreneur. Having sold more than 30 million records in France, she is ...

's hit "

Désenchantée "Désenchantée" (; feminine of ''désenchanté'', which is French for "Disenchanted" or "Disappointed") is a 1991 song recorded by French singer-songwriter Mylène Farmer. The first single from her third studio album '' L'Autre...'', it was re ...

", stayed atop for non successive four weeks, in alternance with

Lagaf' Vincent Rouil (; born 30 October 1959 in Mont-Saint-Aignan), better known as Vincent Lagaf' (), is a French humorist, TV presenter, singer and actor. Biography In 1987, Vincent Lagaf', who had just arrived in Paris, came to national attention as ...

s " La Zoubida", and remained in the top ten for a total of 18 weeks and in the top 50 for 21 weeks. It was certified

Gold disc Music recording certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped, sold, or streamed a certain number of units. The threshold quantity varies by type (such as album, single, music video) and by nation or territory (see ...

by the Syndicat National de l'Edition Phonographique, the French certifier, for a minimum of 250,000 units. In Belgium (Wallonia), it topped the chart for consecutive two weeks, on 10 and 17 August 1990, and remained in the top ten for nine weeks. On the European Hot 100, it entered at number 17 on 22 June 1991, reached number ten for non consecutive four weeks, and spent 19 weeks on the chart, 14 of them in the top 20. Much aired on radio, it charted for eight weeks on the European Airplay Top 50, with a peak at number 22 in its fifth week, on 20 July 1991.

Track listings

* CD single # "Auteuil, Neuilly, Passy (rap BCBG)" — 4:10 # "C'est ton destin" — 3:45 * 7-inch maxi # "Auteuil, Neuilly, Passy (rap BCBG)" — 4:10 # "C'est ton destin" — 3:45

Charts

Peak positions

Year-end charts

Certifications

References

{{authority control 1991 singles Les Inconnus songs SNEP Top Singles number-one singles Songs about Paris 1991 songs Ultratop 50 Singles (Wallonia) number-one singles