Uncle Serge is back! And he’s still on his winning streak, after last year’s La Couche Du Diable and this year’s Des Clous Pour Une Pelure. This time, he’s turned his attention to jasmine once again with a release called Fils De Joie — a name with connotations I hadn’t appreciated until a few viewers explained them to me during the Love At First Scent broadcast reviewing the scent. You can watch it at this link: Serge Lutens Fils De Joie review.
The prospect of a new jasmine from the brand that has given us two of the finest modern takes on the flower (A La Nuit and Sarrasins) is undoubtedly exciting, and I’m pleased to say that Fils De Joie doesn’t disappoint. As though taking a cue from Tauer Le Maroc Pour Elle, it presents a decidedly spicy, North African take on the blossoms, conjuring an image in which the white blossoms are crushed in a mortar and pestle with a suitably heady mix of pepper, rose, clove, nutmeg and beeswax. The ochre powder is then flung into the night sky… and carried off by the balmy winds. An intoxicating piece of work and quite possibly one of the finest Lutens releases of the last five years. Do seek it out.
Persolaise
[Serge Lutens Fils De Joie review based on a sample of eau de parfum provided by the brand in 2020.]
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Hi Persolaise – Serge Lutens’ A game is pretty much my sweet spot. I just wondered if anyone has noticed how very different the French version of the press release is: Le rire des désenchantés est celui que fait éclater sans raison le fils de joie. Enfant, dans l’ombre, il en a appris l’ivresse, les larmes et les illusions. Aujourd’hui, il nous en restitue la lumière dans une senteur splendide de mesk-ellil.
Rough translation: The laughter of the world-weary is what makes the fils de joie suddenly bursts out laughing for no reason. As a child in the shadow, this was where he learned drunkenness, tears and deceptions. Today, he restores the light for us with the fantastic scent of mesk-elil (? no idea what this is)
I think the French paints more of a story about someone leaving behind their sad and sordid world of shadow to shine in the light. Even the French is obscure and has plenty of double meanings (éclater could be burst out laughing but also just burst or shatter, and you can have éclater au grand jour for come into the light, which is what this story seems to be saying, as well as éclater de joie, bursting with joy, which could be an allusion to the name…) but the English seems wilfully obtuse.
Anyway, some more food for thought. Great news about the release, though! Just a shame it is so hard to browse perfumes these days…
You’ll have to delete my previous comment – total nonsense. The English is much closer to the French than I realised – I don’t know where I was looking!
Oh no! I loved that first comment. Mind you, I love this one too, because of how much it made me laugh.
But where did you find that text? It sounds so plausible.
Anyway, thank you so much for taking the time to write. I have the best readers!
Fille de joie means prostitute in older generation French. There is no per-se a real meaning to fils de joie in the French language unless you want to extrapolate the meaning to the masculine gender.
Wonderful. Thanks, Justin.
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