Blah Blah Cafe, the Jean-Michel Jarre forum

[Rubberlips]

I've just been listening to the Waitiing for Cousteau album and forgot how great it is!

Then I got thinking, is this perhaps Jarre's last 'great' album? When I say great, I'm talking about originality, production values and creativeness.

Think about it...

Chronologie - a good album for sure but it suffers as a result of Jarre thinking about the live performance and the influence of the current electronica scene.

Oxygene 7-13 - again another very good album but it lacks originality (surely part of the concept?) and is perhaps sonically less interesting?

Metamorphoses - An interesting turn for Jarre, but perhaps suffers from too much digital programming and a lack of consistency in the variety of musical ideas presented?

Sessions 2000/Geometry of Love - good records but a bit stinted in their originality - too much outside influence?

Teo & Tea - I won't even go there!

Yep, it seems to me that Waiting for Cousteau may well be Jarre's last truely great album.

I welcome your thoughts!

[Stereomatic]

I don´t think so. For me Waiting for Cousteau is one of the albums which entertains me the less. You have three good tracks (Calypso 1-3) and one track that seems to be a "gap filler". I read it was usually used as background music to his Concert D´Images exhibition in 1989.
I think that Calypso 2 is one of the best tracks by Jarre, but I wouldn´t call WfC a great album in its entirety. The title track is a great track at the beginning of his concerts, but not to hear at home (all 47mins of it).

For me the last really great album is Oxygene 7-13. I never saw this album as a continuation or remake of the original album. It is an album that stands fo it own. Imagine the title of it was not Oxygene 7-13 but something completly different, would you really compare it only to Oxygene?

In the end I think it is very difficult to answer this question. As there are maybe some people who like T&T....

[Jakob BC]

Deja Vu...

Why even try to discuss it?

[Dr_Jones]

how can one not acknowledge the greatness of Chronologie??

[Phil J.]

I like the album but it's not his best work. The 46 minute version of WFC is a great relaxer if you can't sleep.

[GeeJee]

Waiting for Cousteau, the track, a filler? Holy cow.. that's nearly blasphemy!!!
I love that track.. I really do!

As for the question whether or not the album was his last greatest, I disagree. The last one I really enjoyed was Geometry Of Love. Aero and S2K have their moments, but they are the albums I listen to less and less. Although I must admit S2K works surprisingly well when it's hot outside and you are chilling with a nice drink... Metamorphoses is really awesome, really underestimated. The more you play it, the more you enjoy it.. I knew it really grew on me..

No, WFC was not his last great album. Definately not.

[moviemaker]

Agree 100% with GeeJee.

WFC showed Jarre didn't stick with the expected 4 minute track and actually took you to another level with that final track.

But Metamorphoses is really an underrated album and I'm happy Jarre tried new things with S2K, GOL and Teo & Tea. They are not classic Jarre at all but not a rehash of Oxygene either.

Chronologie is fantastic even though it has dated a little with time.

Oxygene 7-13 is still one of my all-time favorites and never dates for me.

[1906]

Agree 100% with GeeJee.

WFC showed Jarre didn't stick with the expected 4 minute track and actually took you to another level with that final track.

JMJ had even less work on this particular track than on the Teo & Tea album

But Metamorphoses is really an underrated album and I'm happy Jarre tried new things with S2K, GOL and Teo & Tea. They are not classic Jarre at all but not a rehash of Oxygene either.

Chronologie is fantastic even though it has dated a little with time.

Oxygene 7-13 is still one of my all-time favorites and never dates for me.

The problem with Oxygene 7-13 is Oxygene 10, 11 and 12...These tracks are nice, but they don't fit in there. They lack the smoothness of the Oxygene-sound. It just doesn't belong there..

[moviemaker]

Agree 100% with GeeJee.

WFC showed Jarre didn't stick with the expected 4 minute track and actually took you to another level with that final track.

JMJ had even less work on this particular track than on the Teo & Tea album

But Metamorphoses is really an underrated album and I'm happy Jarre tried new things with S2K, GOL and Teo & Tea. They are not classic Jarre at all but not a rehash of Oxygene either.

Chronologie is fantastic even though it has dated a little with time.

Oxygene 7-13 is still one of my all-time favorites and never dates for me.

The problem with Oxygene 7-13 is Oxygene 10, 11 and 12...These tracks are nice, but they don't fit in there. They lack the smoothness of the Oxygene-sound. It just doesn't belong there..

Ha! Well then I'm giving him too much credit on the WFC track. Lemme guess, is it Geiss?

As for Oxy 7-13 I have to respectfully disagree. I just adore that album, even if I'm in the minority.

[AnDrOiD]

Agree 100% with GeeJee.

WFC showed Jarre didn't stick with the expected 4 minute track and actually took you to another level with that final track.

JMJ had even less work on this particular track than on the Teo & Tea album

But Metamorphoses is really an underrated album and I'm happy Jarre tried new things with S2K, GOL and Teo & Tea. They are not classic Jarre at all but not a rehash of Oxygene either.

Chronologie is fantastic even though it has dated a little with time.

Oxygene 7-13 is still one of my all-time favorites and never dates for me.

The problem with Oxygene 7-13 is Oxygene 10, 11 and 12...These tracks are nice, but they don't fit in there. They lack the smoothness of the Oxygene-sound. It just doesn't belong there..

Ha! Well then I'm giving him too much credit on the WFC track. Lemme guess, is it Geiss?

Nah, he pressed a key on a computer that then played some random notes.

[1906]

Nah, he pressed a key on a computer that then played some random notes.

at least he pushed the button himself

[Jakob BC]

Agree 100% with GeeJee.

WFC showed Jarre didn't stick with the expected 4 minute track and actually took you to another level with that final track.

JMJ had even less work on this particular track than on the Teo & Tea album

But Metamorphoses is really an underrated album and I'm happy Jarre tried new things with S2K, GOL and Teo & Tea. They are not classic Jarre at all but not a rehash of Oxygene either.

Chronologie is fantastic even though it has dated a little with time.

Oxygene 7-13 is still one of my all-time favorites and never dates for me.

The problem with Oxygene 7-13 is Oxygene 10, 11 and 12...These tracks are nice, but they don't fit in there. They lack the smoothness of the Oxygene-sound. It just doesn't belong there..

Ha! Well then I'm giving him too much credit on the WFC track. Lemme guess, is it Geiss?

As for Oxy 7-13 I have to respectfully disagree. I just adore that album, even if I'm in the minority.

Indeed! Oxygene 10 was the first track I heard from the album. Somehow I have always thought the music on that album was wide and huge. I guess it will always be my favourite album.

[Jon]

WFC is a awesome album, along with Chronologie (only because I still adore Chrono 4). But I agree that the last true Jarre album was Oxy 7-13.

[moviemaker]

Agreed Jon!

So Android, 1906... is WFC a few presets then? Wasn't it composed by Jarre, seriously?

[Rubberlips]

A good mixture of opinion here!

I'm sorry but I just can't get passed how mindblowingly amazing Calypso II and WFC are... Calypso II has always been one of my favourites (it's SO under rated) and I think I've played it about 10 times today alone... I must be in one of those moods!

For me Chronologie, Oxygene 7-13 and Metamorphoses are all albums of two halves. The first halves are spot on (Chronologie II, III, Oxygene 7 & 8, Je Me Souviens - Hey Gagarin) but all three albums seem to lose their grip somewhere around the middle.

Waiting For Cousteau keeps me captivated in from start to finish!