ViewWomen—Francoise Hardy - French musician - Brief Article - Interview

HER INFLUENCE IS STILL REVERBERATING

BAABA MAAL: At 17, you began writing your own songs and singing in French clubs. You released your first album in 1962, and you've been extremely popular ever since. What do you think has given you this longstanding success?

FRANCOISE HARDY: I am obviously less popular today than 40 years ago, but I think that in order to last in such a competitive field you have to be very selective and demanding about the types of songs that you make and the musicians that you work with.

BM: Do your lyrics from the '60s have the same significance today?

FH: I had an album that came out a year ago that surprised me and turned out to be successful; so, evidently, I do pay a lot of attention to the lyrics. I also make a point to sing lyrics that correspond to my age. Singers who are 60 can no longer sing songs created for someone who is 30. For example, if I do love songs, the lyrics are written in a more evolved, mature style than 30 years ago. In any case, I try. [both laugh]

BM: In the '60s Mick Jagger said that you were the most beautiful woman in the world.

FH: No, he did not say that! I read in a magazine that he said that I was his ideal woman at the time. But, he was the ideal man at the time for me as well.

BM: Did you ever meet him?

FH: Yes, I met Mick Jagger because we had our picture taken together. And I think we even had dinner together, but in the end, neither of us was single... [laughs]

BM: What was your impression of him?

FH: An extremely attractive man. Very seductive, and obviously a very great artist. I find that the most interesting things in pop music come from England. Even now. I love the group Radiohead. I was a fan of theirs even before they became famous.

BM: You're still influencing young bands, like Air, for example.

FH: That's a little exaggerated. Air made an impression on me, and I made an impression on them; we recorded a song together. They are extremely talented and charming people.

BM: What was your childhood like? How did you grow up?

FH: I had a very solitary childhood. I had a mother who was not married, which at the time, was very badly regarded. My mom worked to raise me and my sister. The first feeling I ever consciously felt was embarrassment because I did not feel like the others. I did not feel comfortable in school, I did not feel comfortable anywhere, except in my room. And it hasn't changed much. I am very solitary. I feel most comfortable by myself with the exception of the company of a few friends whom I know well. What I love in life are things that you can only do alone, like reading and writing. Even if it's a type of suffering, I love it. I was conditioned by my childhood to spend time alone.

BM: People say that you were the flavor of Paris during the '60s and '70s. When you think of Paris you think of glamour, and you think of Francoise Hardy.

FH: [laughs] You honor me a lot. You know, I am very passionate about all that happened in France between the two wars. I am very passionate about the artistic and literary world of that period. So, obviously, for me Paris is the people who lived here in this period, all the great intellectuals and artists like Picasso, Albert Camus, Jean-Paul Sartre, Simone de Beauvoir, Marcel Proust.

BM: Considering the spectacular image people have of you from the '60s and '70s, how did you feel inside?

FH: I felt good in the clothes that Andre Courreges made for me for the stage. I do not have a classic silhouette, so I am not easy to dress. However, in general I felt a little uncomfortable with the entire process of representation. I was someone who went out very little, and got dressed up very rarely. I did not really care about appearances. I passed more time trying to cultivate my mind, better nourishing myself than better dressing myself. [laughs]

BM: You recorded an album called Paris with Malcolm McLaren in 1994. How did you like working with him?

FH: It did not go well, because I really loved the songs, and I recorded them on a very specific rhythmic base that was made very original by the use of an African choir. I was so pleased to sing on top of it all. Then at the end, Malcolm McLaren changed what was beneath my voice, which was a process I didn't agree with. So, I had to fight to keep the rhythmic base on top of what I sang. I find that the album is magnificent, and I have a lot of respect for Malcolm McLaren's artists, but I found that he used artists as if they were objects, and not like people.

BM: You also recorded with Iggy Pop.

FH: It is one of the recordings that I am most proud of Personally, I am scared that Iggy Pop does not think the same thing, but I found it to be magnificent. I was very scared to sing with Iggy Pop because he has a powerful voice and I have a very little one, but in the end it went very well. He was really adorable.

BM: How do you spend your time these days?

FH: I have been doing astrology professionally for about 15 or 20 years. And since I did an album last year that was very successful, I cannot follow it immediately with something else, so I alternate my time as a singer with the activities of an astrologist. I am working on editing a book on astrology.