DONNE-MOI DU TEMPS
As a guitarist I combined a busy semi-pro live music career with full-time teaching until I hit sixty a few years back - then I closed my maths books for good and released a blues album called Little Monsters in Europe. Now, following the Covid pandemic and a few serious health scares, I flew into New York City in spring of 2025 to record a new album, Donne-moi du temps, with producer/guitarist James Mastro (Ian Hunter, The Bongos) at the helm.
Donne-moi du temps is a six-song mini-album (which translates as Give Me Time) packed with gritty, angular, crashing riffs recalling the energy and excitement of prime Rolling Stones and Dr. Feelgood and early Fleetwood Mac, Mott the Hoople and Mick Ronson. This time out, I sing in French, my native tongue.
The release of Donne-moi du temps on Magic Door Record Label is the album I’ve dreamed of making all my life and now I’ve been given the time. My little demo songs were rough diamonds and with a little help from James and his mates they are sparkling gems.
The official release date for the CD is 5 September 2025.
DONNE-MOI DU TEMPS
En tant que guitariste, j'ai combiné une carrière musicale semi-professionnelle avec l'enseignement à temps plein jusqu'à ce que j'atteigne la soixantaine il y a quelques années - j'ai alors fermé mes livres de mathématiques pour de bon et j'ai sorti un album de blues intitulé Little Monsters en Europe. Aujourd'hui, après la pandémie de Covid et quelques graves problèmes de santé, je me suis envolé pour New York au printemps 2025 afin d'enregistrer un nouvel album, Donne-moi du temps, avec le producteur/guitariste James Mastro (Ian Hunter, The Bongos) à la barre.
Donne-moi du temps est un mini-album de six chansons (qui se traduit par Give Me Time) rempli de riffs grinçants, anguleux et fracassants qui rappellent l'énergie et l'excitation des premiers Rolling Stones et Dr. Feelgood et des premiers Fleetwood Mac, Mott the Hoople et Mick Ronson. Cette fois, je chante en français, ma langue maternelle.
La sortie de Donne-moi du temps sur le label Magic Door Record est l'album que j'ai rêvé de faire toute ma vie et maintenant on m'en donne le temps. Mes petites démos étaient des diamants bruts et avec un peu d'aide de James et de ses amis, elles sont devenues des joyaux étincelants.
Laurent writes
Many of you seem to like my new record but keep on asking ‘what's our Lolo singing about ?’. When asked about that, James Mastro once answered, ‘as far as I know he could be singing “death to all Americans”, and I wouldn't be wiser’.
Well obviously it's not what my lyrics are about. Let's talk about them song after song.
Sois sage oh ma douleur: This song is about a man who is deep in pain because of a toxic love story. The title is a quote from Charles Baudelaire. It means ‘Be still oh my pain’. Towards the end of the song the guy realizes his toxic love story has to be put to an end and his old self be killed (so to speak) so that he could be reborn and start anew. We have to admit this theme is to be found in more than one of the songs I wrote for this record. Life ain't always easy when it comes to love, is it ?
Le blues du HLM: what we call ‘HLM’ in France is what you'd call ‘social housing’, preferably a multi storey building. This song evoques life in such an estate and some of the people who live there. The depressed guy next door who'd rather be a goldfish than having to go to work, the horny housewife who lives on the 6th floor and the bully who lives on the second floor. There goes the neighbourhood!
Donne-moi du temps: The title translates as ‘gimme time’. It's a song I wrote thinking of all the friends I played with and who now are gone forever. From the guys I played with in my first band when we were in high school to people I played with more recently. We dreamed of playing in the greatest French rock band and here I am now alone trying to fulfill this dream.
Mon Dieu: is a fair (at least as fair as possible) translation of James Mastro's ‘My God’.
Une chose en entraînant une autre: The title means ‘one thing leading to another’. It's a song about a man who volunteers to go live for a year on the ice floe and study the penguins. He claims he feels better that way than having to cope with his ex. Don't we all sometimes do ?
Que puis-je faire? What can I do ? What can I do to help you babe to keep you from feeling blue ? A love letter to a woman who seems to think she's too old for love, too old for life. We're never too old are we ? We just need to free the young man or woman who lives in us. He or she is still there.
