Let Us Remember: Serge Gainsbourg’s “Cannabis”

From the soundtrack to Pierre Koralnik’s film of the same name, “Cannabis” is currently one of my favorite songs ever. With its achingly anthemic double guitar line, “Cannabis,” like the coda to “Layla,” like the Allman Brothers’ “Jessica,” like Television’s “Marquee Moon,” is one of those songs that uses the upper registers of the guitar to reach ecstatic heights. Commenters on the YouTube video of the song seem to think the melody is based on Pachobel’s “Canon In D,” but I’m not hearing that.

I stumbled upon the song on Saint Etienne’s The Trip, a double mix CD by the British group that features a stunning mix of 60s rock, disco, and Northern soul, including Esther Phillips’ “Last Night Changed It All,” which is sampled for the “Last Night” skit on Ghostface Killah’s Pretty Toney Album. The sample that begins the song, a conversation between a father and son from what I assume is an educational film, was added by St. Etienne.

Hilariously, the Cannabis soundtrack’s other version of “Cannabis” sums up pretty much everything I dislike about most of Gainsbourg’s work. The “vocal” version of the cut, it’s mostly just Gainsbourg whisper-singing over the melody, sounding more like a rapper rapping over a stolen beat on a mixtape than a dude singing over his own song. I will never understand the appeal of Gainsbourg’s singing voice. As a musician and composer, he is an undisputed genius, and he was recording in an era where you could have a hit record with an instrumental song, so why sing? 

Cannabis – Serge Gainsbourg

Buy the Cannabis soundtrack

Buy Saint Etienne’s The Trip