Jane Birkin: An overview of her most important works

Jane Birkin passed away on July 16, 2023 at the age of 76. The musician and actress was found dead in her Paris apartment. Little is known about the circumstances. We want to remember the exceptional artist who was born in London on December 14, 1946.

She entered a stage for the first time at the age of 17. She achieved her breakthrough as an actress in Michelangelo Antonioni’s cult film “Blow Up”, in which she played a model. In 1967 the work received a Palme d’Or in Cannes. Her musical breakthrough followed two years later.

Here is an overview of Jane Birkin’s most important tracks – paired with the most important facts about her life and work.

Serge Gainsbourg feat. Jane Birkin – “Je t’aime… moi non plus” (1969)

Jane Birkin met French musician and actor Serge Gainsbourg while filming Slogan, with whom she later became involved. Birkin, who now lives in France, sang the song “Je t’aime … moi non plus” with Gainsbourg in 1969, which Brigitte Bardot gave her voice for the first time, but which was not published at her request. In favor of Birkin, who was also able to make a name for herself in the music industry with this song. Although the scandalous track was blacklisted by many radio stations because it initially seemed too offensive for the mainstream, the two musicians made the piece a smash hit.

Quoi (1986)

Jane Birkin also released music in the 1970s, some of it in collaboration with Serge Gainsbourg. The couple separated in 1981, but remained friends and continued to work diligently on music together. In 1986 her single “Quoi” followed, which also received gold status in France. In the same year, the German-French drama “La femme de ma vie” (in English: “The woman of my life”) was released, in which Birkin plays his wife Laura.

Lost Song (1987)

A year later the album LOST SONG followed and she released the title track as a single. A piece with which Jane Birkin was able to present another facet of her skills. In 1987 she was also seen in some important films: “Comédie”; “Protect your rights”; “Jane B. par Agnès V. and “The time with Julien”. Her working pension was always high: by this point, Birkin had acted in 37 films and released six albums.

A LA LEGERE (1998)

In 1990 Serge Gainsbourg released his last album AMOURS DES FEINTES, which he dedicated to Birkin. A year later, the Frenchman died, after which Birkin decided to end her musical career as well: “I will not sing anymore. I just can’t imagine making a recording with anyone else. With the record, the then 52-year-old processed the loss and shared her grief with the world.

ARABESQUE (2002)

Twelve years later, Jane Birkin decided to reinterpret Gainsbourg’s songs and thus bring the deceased back into the conversation. She brought in the Algerian violinist Djamel Benyelles for support, who gave the album an oriental sound to match the title. The record later achieved gold status in France.