Pardonne-moi (Mylène Farmer song)

"Pardonne-moi" (English: "Forgive Me") is a 2001 song recorded by French singer-songwriter Mylène Farmer, with lyrics written by herself and music composed by Laurent Boutonnat. It was the third and last single from Les Mots, and was released on 21 October 2002. The song is about the unhappy love of a woman who is asking for forgiveness from the Oriental princes whom she loves. The black and white accompanying music video was directed by Boutonnat in Morocco and shows Farmer dressed as a nun, with images of a knight galloping on horseback and a snake. Like the single "À quoi je sers..." released thirteen years earlier, "Pardonne-moi" is generally deemed a synthesis of Farmer's work and thus marked the end of an artistic period in her career. The song received positive reviews from critics and became a top ten hit in France and in the Waloon Belgium, although its sales were rather disappointing.

"Pardonne-moi"
Single by Mylène Farmer
from the album Les Mots
B-side"Remix + instrumental"
Released21 October 2002
Recorded2001, France
GenrePop, trip hop, ambient
Length4:30
LabelPolydor
Songwriter(s)Lyrics: Mylène Farmer
Music: Laurent Boutonnat
Producer(s)Laurent Boutonnat
Mylène Farmer singles chronology
"C'est une belle journée"
(2002)		 "Pardonne-moi"
(2002)		 "Fuck Them All"
(2005)

Release

After many hesitations, Polydor began sending promotional CDs to radio stations starting on 3 September 2002 before announcing the song's release as a single on 14 October. The song was finally released the following week.[1] Unlike Farmer's previous songs "Les Mots" and "C'est une belle journée", as well as Kate Ryan's "Désenchantée" cover, "Pardonne-moi" was poorly broadcast on radio, although it enjoyed an extensive advertising campaign on TF1 and M6.[2] The single was issued as CD single in a limited easel edition, and as 12" maxi with a run of 6,000 also copies containing another remix named 'forgiveness club remix'. There was no CD maxi.[3]

Lyrics and music

"Pardonne-moi" uses the imagery of a fairy tale. In the lyrics, Farmer cites various princes to whom she speaks: a Hungarian Prince, Hindu Prince, Arabic Prince, Dawn Prince, and Black Prince. French author Erwan Chuberre said that the lyrics deal with "a love that hurts, the one who was lost without knowing why" and refer to the film Lawrence of Arabia by David Lean.[4] Author Julien Rigal stated that the song is about "the discharge of a woman in love many times neglected because of her too strong love".[3] Journalist Benoît Cachin noted several references to Charles Perrault's fairy tale Sleeping Beauty (La Belle au Bois dormant or The Sleeping Beauty in the Wood).[5] According to biographer Bernard Violet, "Pardonne-moi" has a "deliberately plaintive" music.[2]

Music video

The music video was directed by Laurent Boutonnat, and the screenplay of this Requiem Publishing and Stuffed Monkey production was written both by Mylène Farmer and Boutonnat. Some fans worried that the video would be the continuation of "C'est une belle journée", which was considered irrelevant given the quite different themes of both songs.[3] As the song had several Oriental sonorities, several rumors about the video were divulged in the media,[6] saying it would be filmed in Morocco during the singer's vacations in September 2002. The video was eventually shot in two days in Stains, France, and cost about 40,000 euros,[7] making it one of the singer's least expensive videos. It features a horse, which gallops on a treadmill to give the impression that it does not move forward, and a snake, which belongs to Farmer, both of which were bought in Morocco.[8]

The video was produced in black and white and deals with religion. It features Farmer, dressed as a nun, praying and sometimes performing a dance, surrounded by white smoke. Technically, the video is built on a rapid acceleration of images showing Farmer alternating with images of a closely filmed snake and of a mysterious knight on horseback whose running is accelerating throughout the video. During the refrain, Farmer begs forgiveness with a smoky light coming from above, the display alternating between white eyes and snake-like eyes.[3][9]

In this video, "Boutonnat seems to sum up the features of Farmer's imagery: total harmony between photography, editing, and sound, but also haunting images at the expense of the narrative, like moments which are thrown on their own ambiance (...). The absence of colors and landscapes, and the several close ups inspire melancholy, almost dread. This feeling is accentuated by certain images of the singer engaged in an epileptic choreography, pretending to struggle in a smoke".[10] Several elements of the video refer to visual effects already used in many of Farmer's previous videos: black and white ("À quoi je sers..."), eyes rolled upwards ("Tristana"), a snake ("Sans logique"), a moon ("Ainsi soit je..."), a horse through a cloud of smoke ("Allan"), some moving sails ("L'Âme-stram-gram"), a smoky camera ("Beyond My Control"), and a succession of zooms and close ups ("Maman a tort"). Thus, many observers saw in these references a conclusive aspect to this video and a summary of the singer's work, like "À quoi je sers..." (which featured characters from many of her earlier videos), 13 years earlier.[10] In spite of these symbolic aspects, the music video was not greatly appreciated by the public because it was considered "too simple and too bland".[8] Rigal deemed the video "aesthetic".[3]

Critical reception

"Pardonne-moi" was generally well received by the media. For example, French magazine Fan2 said the singer "uses ingredients that make her success: an enigmatic voice raised on somber and melancholy lyrics".[11] The melody was described as "sweet and sad", with a "delightful and melancholy lyrics" by Star Club.[12] Télé Magazine deemed that "Pardonne-moi" has an "effective melody", a "evanescent voice" and mysterious lyrics, which can be variously interpreted.[13] Magazine Jukebox described it as a "melancholic" and "tortured" song.[14]

In France, "Pardonne-moi" entered the singles chart at a peak of number six on 26 October, becoming Farmer's 25th top ten hit. However, the single quickly dropped on the chart and totaled six weeks in the top 50 and seventeen weeks on the chart.[15] In Belgium (Wallonia), the single debuted at number thirteen on 6 November on the Ultratop 50, then reached a peak at number seven the week after, and remained in the top 40 for eight weeks.[16] It appeared at number 85 on the Belgian year-end chart.[17] In Switzerland, "Pardonne-moi" debuted at number 53 on 11 November, then dropped and fell off the chart on 26 January 2003, but re-entered directly at a peak of number 45 and eventually totaled eleven weeks in the top 100.[18]

Formats and track listings

These are the formats and track listings of single releases of "Pardonne-moi":[19]

  • CD single[20] / CD single – Tryptic[21]
No.TitleLength
1."Pardonne-moi" (single version)4:30
2."Pardonne-moi" (dark side of the mix)4:30
3."Pardonne-moi" (instrumental)4:30
No.TitleLength
1."Pardonne-moi" (forgiveness club remix)6:30
2."Pardonne-moi" (single version)4:30
  • CD single – Promo[23] / CD single – Promo – Luxurious limited edition (800)[24]
No.TitleLength
1."Pardonne-moi" (radio edit)4:05
No.TitleLength
1."Pardonne-moi" (video) 

Official versions
Version[26]LengthAlbumRemixed byYearComment
Album / Single version 4:30 Les Mots — 2001 See the previous sections
Radio edit 4:05 — Laurent Boutonnat 2002 The musical bridge before the last refrain is shortened.[27]
Instrumental version 4:30 — Laurent Boutonnat 2002 This version is exactly similar to the album one, but all lyrics are removed, including background vocals.[28]
Dark side of the mix 4:30 — Bertrand Châtenet 2002 At the beginning, a languished voice can be heard.[27]
Forgiveness club remix 6:30 — Blue Planet Corporation and Taïa 2002 Devoted to the discothèques, this version has dance and techno sonorities.[28]
Music video 4:15 Music Videos IV — 2002

Credits and personnel

These are the credits and the personnel as they appear on the back of the single:[19][29]

  • Mylène Farmer – lyrics
  • Laurent Boutonnat – music, production
  • Bertrand Chatenet – mixing
  • Requiem Publishing – edition
  • Polydor – recording company
  • Ellen Von Unwerth / H&K – photo
  • Henry Neu / Com'N.B – design
  • Made in the E.U.

Charts

Release history
Region Date Format
France, Belgium, Switzerland 3 September 2002 Promo CD single[23]
21 October 2002 CD single,[33] 7" maxi[34]
October 2002 VHS[25]

References
  • Bee, Caroline; Bioy, Antoine; Thiry, Benjamin (January 2006). Mylène Farmer, la part d'ombre (in French). L'Archipel. ISBN 2-84187-790-6.
  • Cachin, Benoît (2006). Le Dictionnaire des Chansons de Mylène Farmer (in French). Tournon. ISBN 2-35144-000-5.
  • Chuberre, Erwan (2008). Mylène Farmer, phénoménale (in French). City. ISBN 978-2-35288-176-6.
  • Chuberre, Erwan (18 June 2009). Mylène Farmer : Des mots sur nos désirs (in French). Alphée. ISBN 2-7538-0477-X.
  • Rigal, Julien (September 2010). Mylène Farmer, la culture de l'inaccessibilité (in French). Premium. ISBN 978-2-35636-096-0.
  • Royer, Hugues (2008). Mylène, biographie (in French). Spain: Flammarion. ISBN 978-2-35287-139-2.
  • Violet, Bernard (2004). Mylène Farmer, biographie (in French). J'ai lu. ISBN 2-290-34916-X.

Notes
  1. "Mylène Farmer – "Pardonne-moi" – Histoire du single" (in French). Mylene.net. Retrieved 27 February 2010.
  2. Violet, 2004, p. 223.
  3. Rigal, 2010, p. 132
  4. Chuberre, 2009, pp. 180–81.
  5. Cachin, 2006, p. 191.
  6. Bee, 2006, p. 51.
  7. "Mylène Farmer – "Pardonne-moi" – Clip" (in French). Mylene.net. Retrieved 23 February 2010.
  8. Chuberre, 2008, p. 243.
  9. Rigal, Julien. "Clip "Pardonne-moi"" (in French). Sans-logique. Archived from the original on 14 December 2007. Retrieved 19 December 2007.
  10. Bee, Caroline; Bioy, Antoine (2003). "Pardonnez-la...". Instant-Mag (in French). Pantin: Tear Prod. 12: 15–16.
  11. "Pardonne-moi". Fan2 (in French). October 2002.
  12. "Pardonne-moi". Star Club (in French). Paris: Edipresse. November 2002.
  13. "Confession "Pardonne-moi"! — Le cri de Mylène". Télé Magazine (in French). 2455: 16. November 2002. Archived from the original on 20 March 2012. Retrieved 22 March 2008.
  14. Lagrange, Clément (February 2008). "Mylène Farmer, l'icône". Jukebox (in French). Paris. 253: 7. Archived from the original on 16 October 2011. Retrieved 13 May 2008.
  15. "Mylène Farmer — "Pardonne-moi", French Singles Chart" (in French). Lescharts. Retrieved 19 December 2007.
  16. "Mylène Farmer — "Pardonne-moi", Belgian (Wallonia) Singles Chart" (in French). Ultratop. Retrieved 3 January 2007.
  17. "Rapports annuels 2002 — Singles" (in French). Ultratop. Retrieved 22 February 2010.
  18. "Mylène Farmer — "Pardonne-moi", Swiss Singles Chart" (in French). Hitparade. Retrieved 19 December 2007.
  19. "Mylène Farmer – "Pardonne-moi" – Supports" (in French). Mylene.net. Retrieved 27 February 2010.
  20. Pardonne-moi (CD-one Single liner notes) (in French). Mylène Farmer. Polydor. 2002. 570 933-2.CS1 maint: others (link)
  21. Pardonne-moi (Tryptic CD-one Single liner notes) (in French). Mylène Farmer. Polydor. 2002. 065 963-2.CS1 maint: others (link)
  22. Fuck Them All (12-inch Vinyl liner notes) (in French). Mylène Farmer. Polydor. 2005. 570 933-1.CS1 maint: others (link)
  23. Pardonne-moi (Promo CD-one Single liner notes) (in French). Mylène Farmer. Polydor. 2002. 8854.CS1 maint: others (link)
  24. Pardonne-moi (Luxurious promo CD-one Single liner notes) (in French). Mylène Farmer. Polydor. 2002. 8854.CS1 maint: others (link)
  25. Pardonne-moi (DVD liner notes) (in French). Mylène Farmer. Polydor. 2002.CS1 maint: others (link)
  26. "Mylène Farmer – "Pardonne-moi" – Versions" (in French). Mylene.net. Retrieved 16 July 2010.
  27. Cachin, 2006, p. 192.
  28. Cachin, 2006, p. 193.
  29. "Mylène Farmer – "Pardonne-moi" – Crédits" (in French). Mylene.net. Retrieved 3 April 2010.
  30. "Le Classement Radio — Semaine du 10/10/2002" (in French). Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique. Archived from the original on 21 January 2013. Retrieved 20 May 2011.
  31. Royer, 2008, p. 365.
  32. Cachin, 2006, p. 192.
  33. ""Pardonne-moi" [CD single]" (in French). Amazon.fr. Retrieved 5 June 2011.
  34. ""Pardonne-moi" [CD single, EP, Single Maxi]" (in French). Amazon.fr. Retrieved 5 June 2011.
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