today's lesson is ....

Jenny Owen Youngs.
I've been addicted to a handful of mp3 blogs, and one of them, called SKATTERBRAIN, posted some info about this artist. Intrigued, I clicked over to her MySpace page, and was delighted to find four very different songs to stream. (SKATTERBRAIN still has one as a download -- grab it while it's hot.) One of the songs is a cover of possibly the best pop song of last year from a Top 40 artist -- Kelly Clarkson's "Since You Been Gone." She's a dash of Cat Power, a pinch of Rachael Yamagata and a sprinkle of Beth Orton. Enjoy!

---

Serge Gainsbourg is famous for his "Je T'Aime ... Moi Non Plus," although the most famous thing about that song is the breathy orgasm Jane Birkin seems to be having as the song ... um ... climaxes. When it was first released in 1969, it was considered "immoral" and became the focus of quite the scandal. Seriously, the Vatican was even involved. Over a song. I wonder what the new Pope thinks about gangsta rap. Hmmm, maybe that's another blog posting.

Anyway, check out the song -- it's a classic. I mention this also because Pitchfork announced today the track listings for a new tribute album to Serge, who died in 1991, and it pulls some heavy hitters.

Birkin even makes an appearance by joining up with Franz Ferdinand for a song. I've heard the Cat Power & Karen Elson's (wife of Jack White) version of "Je T'Aime (Moi Non Plus)," or in English "I Love You (Me Either)," would make Serge proud. It has all the breathy urgency of the original and is still fragile and provocative.

Carla Bruni, who I discovered for myself on a business trip in Paris, is also included. For my friends who know me, she's the one who sings the song in my slide show of the photos I took in Paris. I know, I'm a geek, but I love it.

Here's the track listing:
01 Franz Ferdinand and Jane Birkin: "A Song for Sorry Angel"
02 Cat Power and Karen Elson: "I Love You (Me Either)"
03 Jarvis Cocker and Kid Loco: "I Just Came to Tell You That I'm Going"
04 Portishead: "Requiem for Anna"
05 Faultline, Brian Molko, and Françoise Hardy: "Requiem For A Jerk"
06 Michael Stipe: "L'Hôtel"
07 Tricky: "Au Revoir Emmanuelle"
08 Marianne Faithfull and Sly and Robbie: "Lola R. For Ever"
09 Gonzales, Feist, and Dani: "Boomerang 2005"
10 Marc Almond and Trash Palace: "Boy Toy"
11 Placebo: "The Ballad of Melody Nelson"
12 The Rakes: "Just a Man With a Job"
13 The Kills: "I Call It Art"
14 Carla Bruni: "Those Little Things"

The album will be called Monsieur Gainsbourg Revisited, and it should be out in March.