La Mauvaise réputation, a boxed set of 13 CDs* released on the Universal label, is the third attempt since Brassens's death in October '81, to present a musical retrospective of the 'chanson' star's career. This new set of re-releases is not, strictly speaking, the "complete works" of Brassens (any more than the last two boxed sets were, in fact). Pedantic precisions aside, however, la Mauvaise réputation does make a wealth of interesting new material available to committed 'Brassensophiles' for the first time.
The first missing pieces of the puzzle which stops la Mauvaise réputation going down in history as the "complete works" is the album Brassens chante les chansons de sa jeunesse. (This album, re-released as part of a boxed 'tribute' set in 1991, has not been re-issued by Universal, who inherited it as part of the impressive Brassens's back catalogue from the singer's original label, Philips). However, four songs which were intended to appear on that album (but didn't) have been included on La Mauvaise réputation as bonus tracks. The second missing piece of the puzzle is the album Brassens chante Bruant, Colpi, Musset, Nadaud, Norge. This album was re-released in France as part of the "Esprit poète" series in March this year, but is curiously absent from La Mauvaise réputation.

Apart from the fact that La Mauvaise réputation omits two such important albums, the new set of Brassens's "complete works" is a veritable gem of a compilation. And one of the main reasons for this is that it includes the famous "Making of a Guitar" series, released in 1968 (and so called because each of the 12 LP covers in the series showed a different stage in the process of the construction of a guitar). The tracklist of each LP is faithfully reproduced in the new edition and 'Brassensophiles' will be delighted to discover the addition of bonus tracks on eight of the twelve albums. These include four songs in Spanish, Brassens's famous duet with Patachou (Papa Maman), re-recordings of several songs from 1955 to 1959 and a series of film songs, together with extracts from concerts and studio recording sessions. Needless to say, the 12 LPs are accompanied by booklets containing song lyrics, photos and the famous sleeve notes penned by one of Brassens's closest friends, the novelist René Fallet.

And, as if these 12 CDs and the beautifully-illustrated biography booklet were not enough, the Mauvaise réputation set also includes a special highlight in the form of an album entitled Inédits. The previously unreleased material contained on the latter is guaranteed to have 'Brassensophiles' watering at the mouth. To whet your appetite, the list includes two working versions of Les Passantes, Altesse (a previously unknown song based on a Victor Hugo text), Jean rentre au village (a song Brassens sang only once on a TV report), a couple of duets with Charles Trenet (which the duo performed on a French television show in 1966) and Tu t’en iras les pieds devant (a song which might readily be taken for a song written by Brassens himself, but which was, in fact, penned by a poetically-minded minister of the Third Republic!)

Inédits also features nine songs recorded live at the "Villa d’Este" cabaret on 21 December 1953. This recording is all the more remarkable for the fact that modern-day fans get to catch a glimpse of Brassens in his famous grouchy stage mood. Brassens's ill-humour appears to have had little effect on the audience at the "Villa d'Este", however. Rapturous applause rings out during the opening bars of each song in his soon-to-be-legendary repertoire, as Brassens runs through his list of 'chanson' classics: la Mauvaise Réputation, le Mauvais Sujet repenti, le Parapluie, Hécatombe, la Chasse aux papillons, le Gorille, les Amoureux des bancs publics, P... de toi and Brave Margot. (Collectors will no doubt be rushing out to buy the limited-edition LP of these nine songs, released as a 25cm 33rpm just like Brassens's first albums).
And while we're on the subject of previously unreleased Brassens-obilia, fans may also like to know that Universal has just put out Bobino 1964 (a live recording of a show at the famous Paris cabaret, miraculously well-preserved by the singer's faithful male secretary, "Gibraltar"). This recording, which kicks off with the MC's sober understatement "Le voici!" (Here he is!), includes everything from an instrumental cover of Brave Margot to superb performances of La Route aux quatre chansons and La Mauvaise Réputation. Brimful of energy but as churlish as ever – and muttering all kinds of grouchy asides between songs - Brassens actually sounds as if he's having a much better time at the Bobino than he ever did at his studio sessions. What's more, the sound quality of the Bobino recording is far superior to other live recordings such as Brassens in Great-Britain (released in 1973) or Brassens TNP (released in 1966).

Committed 'Brassensophiles' appear to be altogether less enthralled with Il n’y a d’honnête que le bonheur, however. This album features 52 minutes of original tapes made on amateur tape-recorders when Brassens visited friends in Brussels on several occasions between 1952 and 1955. Legend has it that it was here in Brussels in 1952 that Brassens actually sang in front of a microphone for the first time. The upside of Il n’y a d’honnête que le bonheur is that the album includes the only known recordings of La File indienne, Les Radis, Le Bricoleur and Les Croque-morts améliorés. However, the downside is that the sound quality of the recordings are absolutely execrable and Brassens's 'private' performances are marred by bursts of laughter, rowdy chorus singing from friends and assorted guests and occasional lapses of memory as to the words!

Listening to Brassens's clowning around with friends at the dinner table or performing weak renditions of Gilbert Bécaud hits – which, incidentally, he himself describes, at the end of one of the songs as "an absolute massacre"! – adds little to the legend. The only pleasure to be gleaned from this album is hearing Brassens perform in a relaxed 'off-camera' atmosphere, in which he feels comfortable enough to launch into jaunty bursts of 'swing' guitar without worrying whether his audience can follow the lyrics or not. In short, serious fans of Brassens's music should bypass Il n’y a d’honnête que le bonheur and turn to the 'chanson' classics or the lesser-known gems on the new album Inédits.

Georges Brassens La mauvaise réputation boxed set of 13 CDs UNIVERSAL *also sold individually