''Boucan d'enfer'' is a
studio album
An album is a collection of audio recordings (e.g., music) issued on a medium such as compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl (record), audio tape (like 8-track cartridge, 8-track or Cassette tape, cassette), or digital distribution, dig ...
from
French artist
Renaud
Renaud Pierre Manuel SĂ©chan (; born 11 May 1952 in Paris), known as Renaud, is a French singer-songwriter.
With twenty-six albums to his credit, selling nearly twenty million copies, he is one of France's most popular singers. Several of h ...
. It was released in 2002 and published by
Virgin Records
Virgin Records is a British record label owned by Universal Music Group. They were originally founded as a British independent record label in 1972 by entrepreneurs Richard Branson, Simon Draper, Nik Powell, and musician Tom Newman (musician), ...
. It was Renaud's first production with original material since 1994's ''
Ă€ la belle de mai.''
It marked Renaud's comeback to the musical scene after years of
alcoholism
Alcoholism is the continued drinking of alcohol despite it causing problems. Some definitions require evidence of dependence and withdrawal. Problematic use of alcohol has been mentioned in the earliest historical records. The World He ...
. Some of the songs thus refer to this period, especially the first track, ''Docteur Renaud, Mister Renard'' which opposes the good and the bad sides of the past and present Renaud in an obvious parody of
Dr Jekyll & Mr Hyde. The track was released as a single and proved a minor success hitting number 25 on the French charts.
His separation from his wife is also very present in the lyrics, but the usual social themes haven't been left out either. ''Petit pédé'' is the story of a homosexual who left his country town after his coming out. But the song ''Manhattan-Kaboul'', a duet with
Belgian Axelle Red
Fabienne Demal (born 15 February 1968), better known by her stage name Axelle Red, is a Belgian singer-songwriter. She has released 12 albums, including ''Sans plus attendre'', ''À Tâtons'', ''Toujours Moi'' and ''Jardin Secret''. She is best ...
, became the most recognised song of the album, and one of Renaud's biggest hits (the single spent five months in the French top twenty with two weeks at number 2). In Manhattan-Kaboul Renaud talks about a
Puerto Rican immigrant worker who died in the 9/11 attack, while Axelle Red tells the story of a young
Afghan
Afghan or Afgan may refer to:
Related to Afghanistan
*Afghans, historically refers to the Pashtun people. It is both an ethnicity and nationality. Ethnicity wise, it refers to the Pashtuns. In modern terms, it means both the citizens of Afghanist ...
girl who died when the US-led coalition attacked her country in retaliation. "''Corsic'armes''" focuses on
nationalism in Corsica, the song being dedicated to 'Christel' (Christelle), the widow of assassinated nationalist François Santoni.
[ Wiki on Santoni in French]
Some of the album's songs have more humorous tones, for example ''Baltique'', which is about
François Mitterrand
François Maurice Adrien Marie Mitterrand (26 October 19168 January 1996) was a French politician and statesman who served as President of France from 1981 to 1995, the longest holder of that position in the history of France. As a former First ...
's dog, who wasn't allowed to attend his master's funeral. Renaud writes "But one day, I know God will recognise dogs". ''L'entarté'', on the other hand, is an all-out attack on philosopher
Bernard-Henri LĂ©vy
Bernard-Henri Georges LĂ©vy (; ; born 5 November 1948) is a French public intellectual. Often referred to in France simply as BHL, he was one of the leaders of the " Nouveaux Philosophes" (New Philosophers) movement in 1976. His opinions, politi ...
, although he is only mentioned as "l'entarté", a reference to his numerous encounters with cream pie flinger
Noël Godin
Noël Godin (born 13 September 1945) is a Belgian writer, critic, actor and notorious pie thrower or ''entarteur''. Godin gained global attention in 1998 when his group ambushed Microsoft CEO Bill Gates in Brussels, pelting the software magna ...
. The album cover was shot in the bar at the Closerie des Lilas, the
Left Bank
In geography, a bank is the land alongside a body of water.
Different structures are referred to as ''banks'' in different fields of geography.
In limnology (the study of inland waters), a stream bank or river bank is the terrain alongsid ...
cafe made famous by its patronage by Paris's literati since 1847.
Track listing
# "Docteur Renaud, Mister Renard"
# "Petit pédé"
# "Je vis caché"
# "Coeur perdu"
# "
Manhattan-Kaboul
"Manhattan- Kaboul" is a French song written by Renaud and composed by Jean-Pierre Bucolo, sung by Renaud in duo with Axelle Red, from the album '' Boucan d'enfer'' (2002). It was written in the aftermath of the incidents of September 11, 2001 an ...
" (with
Axelle Red
Fabienne Demal (born 15 February 1968), better known by her stage name Axelle Red, is a Belgian singer-songwriter. She has released 12 albums, including ''Sans plus attendre'', ''À Tâtons'', ''Toujours Moi'' and ''Jardin Secret''. She is best ...
)
# "Elle a vu le loup"
# "Tout arrĂŞter..."
# "Baltique"
# "L'entarté"
# "Boucan d'enfer"
# "Mon nain de jardin"
# "Mal barrés"
# "Corsic'armes"
# "Mon bistrot préféré"
Reception
The album received positive reviews. Track 5 was covered for the tribute album ''
La Bande Ă Renaud
''La Bande Ă Renaud'' is a series of two tribute albums to French singer Renaud, consisting of songs of his performed by various other artists. The albums were released in June and October 2014, respectively.
''La Bande Ă Renaud''
The initial a ...
''.
Charts
Weekly charts
Year-end charts
Certifications
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Boucan D'enfer
2002 albums
Renaud albums
Virgin Records albums
2000s French-language albums