Ipecac is proud to present the new album by legendary musician, composer and arranger Jean Claude Vannier.

Jean Claude Vannier et son orchestre de mandolines is a playful album of beautiful reveries composed for mandolin and accordion, which are both poetic and unbridled.

This is the first time that the ever-creative composer has written specifically for the mandolin. The album calls on another enthusiast, Vincent Beer-Demander, whose mandolin is multiplied by an orchestra to form a singular palette of sound, carefully combined with Grégory Daltin’s accordion.

A pinch of strings, a hint of childhood, melodies that touch the heart, an orchestration that is always unexpected… These are just some of the elements that stand out on this album.

Mike Patton, who collaborated with Jean Claude Vannier on Corpse Flower in 2019, said of the release of his new album on Ipecac: ‘Jean Claude is a dear friend, a mentor and a wonderfully gifted and decorated songwriter. Read: LEGEND. Working with him is a real honour. His writing and arrangements have influenced an ocean of artists and I consider myself one of the lucky ones who crossed his path. He was writing revolutionary things before I was born. He had a profound impact on me and for that I am eternally grateful.’

The album was created as music for a non-existent silent film, and tells the love story of a young boy who is followed through time. His first single, ‘Perdue dans la cité’, refers to his search for a lost love:

I never saw her again (Je ne l’ai plus jamais revue)

I looked for her in vain in the city (Je l’ai cherchée en vain dans la cité)

Time went by (Le temps a passé)

And then I had my problems (Et puis j’ai eu mes problèmes)

I started drinking (Je me suis mis à boire)

I’ve been a barman, a dustman, a fire-eater, a night porter, a gutter sweeper and a beggar. (J’ai été barman, éboueur, cracheur de feu, portier de nuit balayeur des caniveaux j’ai fait la manche)

Jean Claude Vannier, known in the press as ‘the rare bird’, has worked over the past 60 years with Serge Gainsbourg and Jane Birkin, as well as artists such as Beck and Sean Lennon. He has contributed to countless soundtracks and released six solo albums. Today, he is an icon of French pop culture.

This new album features mandolin virtuoso Vincent Beer-Demander, who has collaborated with the Orchestre National de France, the Czeske Philharmonic Orchestra, the Mid-Atlantic Symphonic Orchestra and hundreds of others around the world. The sound is unlike anything Demander or Vannier have done before. Grégory Daltin, whose accordion adds another dimension to this magnificent album, is also present.