It's funny that I can recall the day when I found a CD version of the OST EP of Jean-Luc Godard's "Masculin Feminin." I was shopping in Tower Shinjuku Tokyo and was with a friend, and bingo, this came out of nowhere. I bought a copy for a friend who was taking me around Tokyo that day, and one for myself. As an artifact, it's priceless, as art, it's not bad. What makes it great is that it's the soundtrack to Godard's great film. In essence, one feels that they own something that is from ground zero on the planet French New Wave.
Originally the "Masculin Feminin" was released as a 7" EP in 1966. It has six songs on it, which is unusual because most French 7" EP's had only four songs. Nevertheless, this is a compact pop history that is even hard for me to write about with respect if it's good or not. The last three songs (on vinyl, side two) are superb and iconic Yé-Yé recordings. The first three is good, but for me, it's side two that kicks butt.
On the other hand, compared to artists like France Gall and of course Hardy, she doesn't come close to their greatness. Still, this being connected to such a perfection that is Godard's work, it's a must for anyone who has the Jean-Luc bug. Very difficult to find in any format at the moment. The French label Sam Records has put out a lot of fascinating (CD) reissues from the 1960s, including British artists as well as French, of course. They do great packaging as well as preserving essential music that may have fallen through the cracks of time.
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