A few years ago, when I bought a batch of second-hand vinyl records, I noticed the strange and beautiful similarity between 3 Joe Dassin 45T covers, all under the "Série Gemini" label, a CBS sub-label. Engraved illustrations reminiscent of the late 19th century, a monochrome background, a marie-louise, and his name reproduced as a stencil font logo are their characteristics. As our (almost) national Jojo holds a special place in the family's heart, I decided to delve deeper.
3 then 6 then... 13!
Hunting for this series of 45s is like looking for porcini mushrooms the day after the Chernobyl cloud passed: you find tons of them! In total, 13 45s, spanning a period of 9 years, form a colorful and somewhat nostalgic gallery. It all started in 1966 with the cover of Guantanamera and ended in 1974 with two lesser-known Joe Dassin tracks. In between, a string of hits such as Les Daltons, Le Petit Pain Au Chocolat, Siffler Sur La Colline, Les Champs-Elysées, and L'Amérique, at a rate of 1 to 3 45s per year. Why this rhythm and this alternation with more classic covers? Who chose this design? What was the source of the illustrations? So many questions that will remain unanswered, unless you have a former CBS France employee or someone from Dillard et Cie printing, credited on the covers, in your family.
Mystery Graphic Designer
In this period, corresponding to the golden age of the 45T and yéyés, it's easy to imagine that the covers must have been a bit rushed, entrusted the day before for the next day to an intern in a windowless office. The day the Guantanamera cover was made, an illustration catalog must have been lying on the intern's desk and would become, a few scissor cuts later, the inspiration for the series. It would be a clever person who could find any common thread – steam locomotion sits alongside portraits of demure women, cherubs follow pistols – but it must be admitted that the result is very successful.
Universal Support
Let's be frank, we owe to this series the creation by Rock on Wall of the universal support, the accessory that allows the presentation of 45s (and picture discs) in our frame. Indeed, a trick had to be found to highlight this unique and mysterious series without damaging the covers with adhesive or glue. Black background, white marie-louise (or the reverse now on the new version) and a central cut-out allowing to install the cover perfectly in the center of the frame: the universal support expresses all its potential thanks to this series.
