''Verlaine et Rimbaud'' (English: "''Verlaine and Rimbaud''") is an album by Léo Ferré. It was released in December 1964 by

Barclay Records Barclay is a French record company and label founded by Eddie Barclay in 1953. Eddie Barclay was a bandleader, pianist, producer, and nightclub owner. With his wife, Nicole, who was the vocalist in his band, he started Barclay. The catalogue inc ...

. This album is one of the first studio

double albums A double album (or double record) is an audio album that spans two units of the primary medium in which it is sold, typically either records or compact disc. A double album is usually, though not always, released as such because the recording ...

in popular music history (before

Bob Dylan Bob Dylan (legally Robert Dylan, born Robert Allen Zimmerman, May 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. Often regarded as one of the greatest songwriters of all time, Dylan has been a major figure in popular culture during a career sp ...

's or Frank Zappa's).

Background

''Verlaine et Rimbaud'' is Ferré's third LP entirely dedicated to a poet, after Baudelaire's ''

Les Fleurs du mal ''Les Fleurs du mal'' (; en, The Flowers of Evil, italic=yes) is a volume of French poetry by Charles Baudelaire. ''Les Fleurs du mal'' includes nearly all Baudelaire's poetry, written from 1840 until his death in August 1867. First publish ...

'' ("''Flowers of Evil''") in 1957 and ''

Les Chansons d'Aragon ''Les Chansons d'Aragon'' (English: "''Songs of Aragon''") is an album by Léo Ferré, released in 1961 by Barclay Records. It is his second album dedicated to a poet, after Baudelaire's '' Les Fleurs du mal'' in 1957. Here, Ferré focuses on fo ...

'' ("''Songs of Aragon''") in 1961. Here, Ferré sets into music 10 poems from

Arthur Rimbaud Jean Nicolas Arthur Rimbaud (, ; 20 October 1854 – 10 November 1891) was a French poet known for his transgressive and surreal themes and for his influence on modern literature and arts, prefiguring surrealism. Born in Charleville, he start ...

and 14 from

Paul Verlaine Paul-Marie Verlaine (; ; 30 March 1844 – 8 January 1896) was a French poet associated with the Symbolist movement and the Decadent movement. He is considered one of the greatest representatives of the '' fin de siècle'' in international and ...

. He considers their two different kind of poetry as a whole and mixes them in the track listing, to underline their mythical love affair. The way classical music 'soundscape' tastefully fits into tuneful and straightforward songs is something of an achievement here.

Track listing

All songs composed by Léo Ferré. ;Original LP

Personnel

* – backing vocals (uncredited) * Lionel Gali – violin solo (uncredited) * Barthélémy Rosso – guitar (uncredited) * The orchestra consists of session musicians hired for the recording

Credits

Jean-Michel Defaye Jean-Michel Defaye (born 18 September 1932) is a French pianist, composer, arranger and conductor known for his collaboration with French poet and singer-songwriter Léo Ferré. He was born in Saint-Mandé, Val-de-Marne near Paris, on 18 Septemb ...

– arranger & orchestra conductor *

Gerhard Lehner Gerhard is a name of Germanic origin and may refer to: Given name * Gerhard (bishop of Passau) (fl. 932–946), German prelate * Gerhard III, Count of Holstein-Rendsburg (1292–1340), German prince, regent of Denmark * Gerhard Barkhorn (1919� ...

– director of engineering * Jean Fernandez – executive producer * Maurice Frot – artwork * Hubert Grooteclaes – photography * Léo Ferré - original liner notes

External links

Album presentation
(French) {{DEFAULTSORT:Verlaine et Rimbaud Léo Ferré albums Barclay (record label) albums French-language albums 1964 albums Musical settings of poems by Arthur Rimbaud