Malicorne (band)

Malicorne are a French folk and folk rock band formed in September 1973 by Gabriel Yacoub, Marie Yacoub (now Marie Sauvet), Hughes de Courson and Laurent Vercambre. They flourished in the 1970s,Choutet, p. 19.Choutet, p. 49.Choutet, p. 81. broke up three times in the 1980sChoutet, p. 94. but re-formed twice in the early 2010sChoutet, p. 153.Choutet, p. 159 and toured from July 2012 until their last show in August 2017, after which they broke up.Choutet, p. 165.

History

1973–1977: The traditional years

Gabriel Yacoub and Marie Yacoub formed Malicorne on 5 September 1973 (naming it after the town of Malicorne in north-western France, famous for its porcelain and faience). For two years, Gabriel had been a member of Alan Stivell's band, playing folk-rock based on Breton music. He sang and played acoustic guitar, banjo and dulcimer with Stivell, appearing on his 1972 '' À l'Olympia'' breakthrough (live) album and his 1973 ''Chemins de Terre'' (studio) album, before leaving at the end of Summer 1973 to form his own band, intending to popularise French music the way Stivell had popularised Breton music. Since several of their albums are called simply ''Malicorne'' it had become the custom to refer to them by number, even though no number appears on the cover at all.

Released in October 1974, ''Malicorne 1'' consisted of the four founder members, that is the Yacoubs, Hughes de Courson and Laurent Vercambre. They use a combination of electric guitar, violin, dulcimer, bouzouki and vocals. The four musicians, between them, could play twelve instruments. Their first four albums (one album released each Fall from 1974 to 1977) consisted of mostly traditional French folk songs, with, per album, one or two songs written by Gabriel Yacoub, one or two instrumentals and a few music and lyrics borrowed from some Canadian versions of the songs and instrumentals. They occasionally sang group harmonies a cappella. On ''Malicorne 4'', they were lastingly joined by a fifth member, Olivier Zdrzalik, on bass, percussion and vocals.

1978–1980: The experimental years

''L'Extraordinaire Tour de France d'Adélard Rousseau, dit Nivernais la Clef des Cœurs, Compagnon Charpentier du Devoir'' (1978) was very much a concept album, concerning a guild craftsman's travels around France, with an implied spiritual exploration. It is perhaps the most exciting of their albums, with some gothic and prog-rock elements in the music. Like their next album ''Le Bestiaire'', it consists mostly of songs by Gabriel, with a few by Zdrzalik and de Courson. The range of sounds of these albums is huge. Some sections are clearly classical music, but electronic wizardry and bagpipes also appear. Their appeal goes beyond the French-speaking world, and still gives them a dedicated following. All of their albums but one (''Les Cathédrales de l'industrie'') are available on CD. In 1978, Malicorne released their first compilation album ''Quintessence'' spanning their first four "classic" albums and including their non-album track "Martin" (previously released only as a single in early 1975).

1981–1989: Decline, reunions and break-ups

The size of the band grew to seven members, including at one point, Brian Gulland from the English group Gryphon. Their commercial success enticed them into pure pop. ''Balançoire En Feu'' (1981) was a critical and commercial disappointment. They disbanded in early 1982 at the end of the album supporting tour. Malicorne reunited a first time in Summer 1984 to tour North America in July–August 1984 and to perform a few shows in France in October 1984; and a second time in February 1986 when Gabriel Yacoub's record company convinced him to record a new album under the name Malicorne, thus reactivating the band including new members. The new line-up recorded ''Les Cathédrales de L'Industrie'' (1986) which opens with the title track, a folk-rock song. One of the other tracks, "Big Science 1-2-3", is in the style of Peter Gabriel, Laurie Anderson or Gary Numan. About a year after the album release, the band embarked on a 2-year 1987–1989 extensive tour to support the new album, starting on 10 July 1987 at Les Francofolies de La Rochelle Festival, France and ending on 22 July 1989 in Saint-Gouéno

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