The Operation

Album: 5.55 (2006)
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • In this song, former Pulp lead singer Jarvis Cocker's lyrics compare obsessive love to an operation. The subject matter was uncannily echoed the following year when Gainsbourg had to have surgery following a brain hemorrhage.
  • Gainsbourg likes to sing behind a sheet in the studio. She explained why to The Mail on Sunday June 13, 2010: "My greatest struggle has been finding confidence as a singer. Though I've made three albums, I never think of myself as a singer. Stepping up to a microphone has always been traumatic for me, because I've felt like I was standing in the shadow of my father's greatness. When I was making the 5.55 album with Jarvis Cocker in 2006, he could see how intimidated I was in the studio. He'd been the same when he started out, and explained that he used to hide his face behind a cloth when he sang in the studio. That gave me the idea of singing behind a sheet. It was liberating to isolate myself in that way."

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Gary Brooker of Procol Harum

Gary Brooker of Procol HarumSongwriter Interviews

The lead singer and pianist for Procol Harum, Gary talks about finding the musical ideas to match the words.

Don Felder

Don FelderSongwriter Interviews

Don breaks down "Hotel California" and other songs he wrote as a member of the Eagles. Now we know where the "warm smell of colitas" came from.

Allen Toussaint - "Southern Nights"

Allen Toussaint - "Southern Nights"They're Playing My Song

A song he wrote and recorded from "sheer spiritual inspiration," Allen's didn't think "Southern Nights" had hit potential until Glen Campbell took it to #1 two years later.

Donnie Iris (Ah! Leah!, The Rapper)

Donnie Iris (Ah! Leah!, The Rapper)Songwriter Interviews

Before "Rap" was a form of music, it was something guys did to pick up girls in nightclubs. Donnie talks about "The Rapper" and reveals the identity of Leah.

Al Kooper

Al KooperSongwriter Interviews

Kooper produced Lynyrd Skynyrd, played with Dylan and the Stones, and formed BS&T.

Emilio Castillo from Tower of Power

Emilio Castillo from Tower of PowerSongwriter Interviews

Emilio talks about what it's like to write and perform with the Tower of Power horns, and why every struggling band should have a friend like Huey Lewis.