One of the few producers to pursue a real fusion of jazz and house music, Frenchman
Ludovic Navarre began recording in the early '90s using various aliases (
Subsystem, Modus Vivendi, Deepside) for a range of French imprints.
St. Germain debuted in 1994 for
Laurent Garnier's F Communications label and
Navarre released his first album, Boulevard, in 1996. Featuring trumpeter
Pascal Ohse, the album worked as a hybrid of American R&B and jazz with the growing French house scene exemplified by
Garnier, La Funk Mob, and
Dimitri from Paris.
Tourist, issued at the turn of the century by Blue Note, took the concept further, with
Navarre working post-production on a fuller complement of musicians.
Navarre has also remixed such varying artists as
Björk,
Pierre Henry, and
the Suburban Knight.
As
St. Germain he signed with Nonesuch in early 2015. In May he announced a self-titled offering -- his first album of new material in 15 years. Inspired by his longtime love of Malian music, the album was recorded in
Navarre's Paris studio. His stable of studio musicians included Brazilian percussionist Jorge Bezerra, Malian kora player Mamadou Cherif Soumano, Malian guitarist and n'goni player Guimba Kouyate, and longtime associate Martiniquais keyboardist
Didier Davidas.
St. Germain's pre-release single "Real Blues" was issued in May, while the album was released that October. ~ John Bush