Boulevard (St Germain album)

Boulevard
Studio album by
Released28 July 1995 (1995-07-28)
Genre
Length75:10
LabelF Communications
ProducerLudovic Navarre
St Germain chronology
Boulevard
(1995)
From Detroit to St Germain
(1999)

Boulevard is the debut studio album by French DJ and record producer Ludovic Navarre under the stage name St Germain. It was released in 1995 through F Communications.

In 2009, it was awarded a diamond certification from the Independent Music Companies Association which indicated sales of at least 250,000 copies throughout Europe.[1]

Background

Boulevard is St Germain's debut studio album.[2] It features contributions from Alexandre Destrez (on piano), Pascal Ohsé (on trumpet), Édouard Labor (on saxophone), Malik (on flute), and Miguel "Punta" Rios (on percussion).[2][3]

Release

Boulevard was released in the United Kingdom on 28 July 1995.[4] In the United States, it was released on 26 March 2002, with a different track listing.[4]

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[5]

Andy Hermann of PopMatters stated, "There's little doubt that Boulevard was one of the most influential house music releases of the 1990s -- but influential does not always mean great, and St. Germain's debut, while still a solid effort, doesn't measure up to the brilliance of Tourist."[4]

In 2020, Ben Cardew of DJ Mag described Boulevard as "An album that revolutionized the perception of French music, consummated the union between house and jazz, and spawned a million weakling copies."[2]

Track listing

All tracks are written by Ludovic Navarre.

Boulevard track listing (1995 original edition)
No.TitleLength
1."Deep in It"7:20
2."Thank U Mum (4 Everything You Did)"12:34
3."Street Scene (4 Shazz)" (jazz-hop mix)10:50
4."Easy to Remember"9:40
5."Sentimental Mood"10:20
6."What's New?"7:45
7."Dub Experience II"3:48
8."Forget It"7:57
Total length:75:10
Boulevard track listing (2002 U.S. edition)
No.TitleLength
1."Deep in It"7:20
2."Street Scene (4 Shazz)"15:46
3."Sentimental Mood"10:20
4."What's New?"7:45
5."Dub Experience II"3:48
6."Forget It"7:57
7."Soul Salsa Soul"10:36
8."Alabama Blues" (Todd Edwards vocal mix)5:36
Total length:68:51

Personnel

Credits adapted from liner notes.[3]

Charts

Chart performance for Boulevard
Chart (2001) Peak
position
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[6] 33
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[7] 47
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[8] 9
French Albums (SNEP)[9] 32
UK Independent Albums (OCC)[10] 40

Certifications

Region Certification Certified units/sales
Netherlands (NVPI)[11] Gold 50,000^
United Kingdom (BPI)[12] Silver 60,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

References

  1. ^ "Independent artists win over forty new IMPALA Awards, with European Multi-Platinum for Carla Bruni, Platinum for Katie Melua and Diamond for Die Toten Hosen". Impala. 21 January 2009. Archived from the original on 9 August 2018. Retrieved 9 August 2018.
  2. ^ a b c Cardew, Ben (10 February 2020). "Solid Gold: How St Germain's 'Boulevard' opened the door for French house". DJ Mag. Archived from the original on 21 January 2021. Retrieved 6 September 2025.
  3. ^ a b St Germain (1995). Boulevard (CD booklet). F Communications.
  4. ^ a b c Hermann, Andy (15 May 2002). "St. Germain: Boulevard: New Version, the Complete Series". PopMatters. Archived from the original on 30 October 2004. Retrieved 6 September 2025.
  5. ^ Carlson, Dean. "Boulevard - St. Germain". AllMusic. Retrieved 6 September 2025.
  6. ^ "Ultratop.be – St Germain – Boulevard - The Complete Series" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 6 September 2025.
  7. ^ "Ultratop.be – St Germain – Boulevard - The Complete Series" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved 6 September 2025.
  8. ^ "Dutchcharts.nl – St Germain – Boulevard - The Complete Series" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 6 September 2025.
  9. ^ "Lescharts.com – St Germain – Boulevard - The Complete Series". Hung Medien. Retrieved 6 September 2025.
  10. ^ "Official Independent Albums Chart Top 50". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 6 September 2025.
  11. ^ "Dutch album certifications – St. Germain – Boulevard" (in Dutch). Nederlandse Vereniging van Producenten en Importeurs van beeld- en geluidsdragers. Retrieved 9 August 2018. Enter Boulevard in the "Artiest of titel" box. Select 2001 in the drop-down menu saying "Alle jaargangen".
  12. ^ "British album certifications – St. Germain – Boulevard". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 9 August 2018.