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Johnny Hallyday
Hallyday performing in Milan in 1973
Born
Jean-Philippe Léo Smet

(1943-06-15)15 June 1943
Paris, France
Died5 December 2017(2017-12-05) (aged 74)
Marnes-la-Coquette, France
Resting placeLorient, Saint Barthélemy, parish church cemetery
Occupations
  • Singer-songwriter
  • musician
  • actor
Spouses
​
​
(m. 1965; div. 1980)​
Babeth Étienne
​
​
(m. 1981; div. 1982)​
Adeline Blondieau
​
​
(m. 1990; div. 1992)​
​
​
(m. 1994; div. 1995)​
Læticia Boudou
​
(m. 1996)​
Partners
  • Sabina (1981)
  • Nathalie Baye (1982–1986)
  • Gisèle Galante (1987–1988)
  • Leah (1988–1989)
Children4 (including David and Laura)
Musical career
Genres
Instruments
  • Vocals
  • piano
  • guitar
Years active1955–2017
Labels
Websitejohnnyhallyday.com

Jean-Philippe Léo Smet (French pronunciation: [ʒɑ̃ filip leo smɛt]; 15 June 1943 – 5 December 2017), better known by his stage name Johnny Hallyday, was a French rock and roll and pop singer and actor, credited with having brought rock and roll to France.[1][2][3]

During a career spanning 57 years, he released 79 albums and sold more than 110 million records worldwide,[4][5] mainly in the French-speaking world, making him one of the best-selling artists in the world.[6] He had five diamond albums, 40 gold albums, 22 platinum albums and earned ten Victoires de la Musique.[7] He sang an estimated 1,154 songs and performed 540 duets with 187 artists.[8] Credited for his strong voice and his spectacular shows, he sometimes arrived by entering a stadium through the crowd and once by jumping from a helicopter above the Stade de France, where he performed 9 times. Among his 3,257 shows completed in 187 tours, the most memorable were at Parc des Princes in 1993, at the Stade de France in 1998, just after France's win in the 1998 FIFA World Cup, as well as at the Eiffel Tower in 2000, which had record-breaking ticket sales for a French artist.[citation needed] A million spectators gathered to see his performance at the Eiffel Tower, with some 10 million watching on television.

Usually working with the best French artists and musicians of his time, he collaborated with Charles Aznavour, Michel Berger and Jean-Jacques Goldman. Hugely popular in France, he was referred to as simply "Johnny" and seen as a "national monument"[citation needed] and a part of the French cultural legacy. He was a symbol of the Trente Glorieuses when he emerged in 1960 and a familiar figure to four generations. More than 2,500 magazine covers and 190 books were dedicated to him during his lifetime, making him one of the people most widely covered by the media in France. His death from cancer in 2017 was followed by a "popular tribute" during which a million people attended the procession and 15 million others watched the ceremony on TV. He remained relatively unknown in the English-speaking world, where he was dubbed "the biggest rock star you've never heard of" and introduced as the French version of Elvis Presley.[9]

Early life

[edit]

Jean-Philippe Smet was born in the 9th arrondissement of Paris on 15 June 1943 to a Belgian father, Léon Smet,[10] and a French mother, Huguette Eugénie Pierrette Clerc. Léon Smet, who worked as a nightclub performer, left his wife and son a few months later. Clerc started a modeling career, which left her with little time to care for her son.[11] Hallyday grew up with his aunt, Hélène Mar,[12] and took his stage name from a cousin-in-law from Oklahoma (Lemoine Ketcham) who performed as Lee Halliday. The latter called Smet "Johnny" and became a father figure, introducing him to American music.[13]

Career

[edit]
Hallyday performing in 1963
Hallyday performing in 1965
Hallyday with his touring band in 1978

Influenced by Elvis Presley and the 1950s rock n' roll revolution, Hallyday became known for singing rock 'n' roll in French. His debut single, "T'aimer follement" ("Love you madly"), a French adaption of the controversial 1959 Floyd Robinson hit "Makin' Love" that was also a hit for Dalida the month prior, was released on the Vogue label in March 1960.[14] His debut album, Hello Johnny, was released later that year.[15] In 1961, his French-language cover of "Let's Twist Again", "Viens Danser Le Twist", sold over one million copies and was awarded a gold disc.[16] It topped almost every European chart, although the track did not appear in the UK Singles Chart.[17] He appeared on the American The Ed Sullivan Show with American singing star Connie Francis in a show that was taped at the Moulin Rouge nightclub in Paris. He staged many appearances in the Paris Olympia under the management of Bruno Coquatrix. For their first concert, The Jimi Hendrix Experience opened for Johnny Hallyday in Nancy on 14 October 1966. Film footage from October 1966 exists of Hallyday partying with Hendrix, his manager Chas Chandler and others.[18] He also socialised with Keith Richards and Bob Dylan.[19]

At the end of the 1960s, Hallyday made a string of albums with Foreigner's Mick Jones[20] and Tommy Brown as musical directors, and Big Jim Sullivan, Bobby Graham and Jimmy Page as session musicians. These are Jeune homme, Rivière... Ouvre ton lit (also known as Je suis né dans la rue) and Vie. On Je suis né dans la rue, Hallyday hired both Peter Frampton and the Small Faces and they all play on most of the tracks on the album. Steve Marriott and Ronnie Lane of the Small Faces contributed their compositions "Amen (Bang Bang)", "Reclamation (News Report)", and "Regarde pour moi (What You Will)" to the album. "Amen" is a French-language variation on "That Man", a previously-released 1967 Small Faces song played in a heavy rock style. Tensions between the Small Faces during the recording sessions led to Marriott leaving the band and forming Humble Pie with Frampton, and rearranged English language versions of both "Reclamation (News Report)" and "Regarde pour moi (What You Will)" appeared on Humble Pie's debut LP of 1969. Often forgotten is Hallyday's non-LP single and EP track "Que je t'aime" from the same sessions.[21] By 1969 alone, his record sales exceeded twelve million units.[16]

One of Hallyday's later concerts, 100% Johnny: Live à la tour Eiffel in 2000, attracted an audience of 500,000 and 9.5 million television viewers (the show was broadcast live on French TV).[22] In December 2005, Hallyday had his third number-one single on the French SNEP singles chart since its establishment in 1984,[23] "Mon plus beau Noël" (after "Tous ensemble" and "Marie"), dedicated to his adopted daughter Jade.[24] Shortly before announcing his retirement from touring in 2007, he released a blues-flavored album, Le Cœur d'un homme. In addition to the lead single "Always", Le Cœur d'un homme features "T'aimer si mal", a duet with blues musician Taj Mahal and "I Am the Blues", an English-language song (uncharacteristically for Hallyday) written by U2's lead singer Bono.[25] His next album, Ça ne finira jamais, released in 2008,[26] another No. 1 on the French album chart, and its lead single, "Ça n'finira jamais", also reached No. 1.[27] Hallyday's album Tour 66: Stade de France 2009 was a live set recorded at Stade de France during his farewell tour.[28] In 2011 Hallyday released album Jamais seul, recorded with Matthieu Chedid, and started touring again. In 2012 he gave concerts in different countries, including Russia, and released the album L'Attente. Later Hallyday released two live albums, On Stage and Born Rocker Tour (a recording of his 70th anniversary concerts in Bercy and Theatre de Paris). Albums named Rester Vivant and De L'Amour were released in 2014 and 2015 respectively. In 2015–2016 Hallyday had the Rester Vivant Tour. A concert in Brussels was released as a live album in 2016.

Personal life

[edit]

Marriages and children

[edit]

Hallyday was married five times, including twice to the same woman, with the first four marriages ending in divorce. His last marriage was his longest, lasting twenty-one years.

His first marriage was to French singer Sylvie Vartan, lasting fifteen years from 1965 to 1980.[29] Their son David was born in 1966. His second marriage to Babeth Étienne was his shortest, lasting for 65 days.[30] Hallyday had a four-year relationship with French actress Nathalie Baye. Their daughter Laura was born in 1983.[31] His third and fourth marriages were to the same woman, Adeline Blondieau, from 1990 to 1992, and from 1994 to 1995.[32] Officiated by Nicolas Sarkozy, his fifth and final marriage was to Læticia Boudou from 1996 until his death. The couple adopted two girls from Vietnam: Jade Odette Désirée, born 3 August 2004 (formerly Bùi Thị Hoà), in November 2004,[33] and Joy in 2008.

Residence

[edit]

Hallyday, who resided in Los Angeles, owned a chalet in the Swiss town of Gstaad from 2006 to 2015 to avoid the high tax rate imposed by the French government.[13][34] Hallyday said that he would have moved his residency back to France if it changed its tax laws.[35] In January 2014, Hallyday said that his current residence was in the United States after an investigation by a Swiss journalist showed that Hallyday did not spend enough time in Gstaad to qualify as a resident.[36] One of his favourite leisure activities was riding his Harley-Davidson on long trips through the California desert, staying in small motels along the way.[37]

Illness and death

[edit]

In July 2009, Hallyday was diagnosed with colon cancer,[38] and underwent surgery. On 26 November 2009,[39] Hallyday underwent surgery in Paris to repair a herniated disc. He suffered complications and was admitted to Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles. Doctors announced that they had put Hallyday into a medically-induced coma so they could repair lesions that had formed as a result of the surgery, and to relieve his pain. On 17 December 2009, Hallyday and his wife started legal proceedings against Stephane Delajoux, the doctor who had performed the original surgery.[40] The conflict was resolved in February 2012 following Delajoux's vindication by medical investigators.[41]

Hallyday died of lung cancer at 10:10 pm on 5 December 2017[42] in Marnes-la-Coquette, near Paris, at the age of 74.[43][13][44][45] French President Emmanuel Macron paid tribute, saying he "transcended generations and is etched in the memory of the French people".[46] On 9 December, his funeral was held in Paris; 900,000 lined the Champs-Élysées as his body was taken to the Madeleine Church. The service was attended by Macron and two of his predecessors.[47]

He was buried on the French Caribbean island of Saint Barthélemy in the cemetery of Lorient parish church (Église de Lorient) on 11 December 2017.[48]

In February 2018, his two oldest children, David and Laura, announced that they were contesting his will, which left his entire estate to his last wife Læticia and their two adopted children. The will was drafted in the US, and their lawyers contended that this violated French law, which prevents children from being disinherited.[49]

Legacy

[edit]
Hallyday's handprint in Canness Chemin des étoiles (Walk of Fame)

Hallyday was once called "the French Elvis".[50][51] The Daily Beast described Hallyday as "a hip swiveling, leather-clad Gallic answer to Elvis Presley who shook up his home country's music scene with American-style rock-n-roll and bad-boy antics."[52] He remained largely unknown outside the francophone world and was sometimes described as "the biggest rock star you've never heard of" in English-speaking countries.[37][53][54] He was made Chevalier (Knight) of the Legion of Honour in 1997[55] and Officer of the Order of the Crown (Belgium) in 2001.[56]

Jimmy Buffett paid tribute to Johnny with his song "Johnny's Rhum" on his 2023 album Equal Strain On All Parts.

Discography

[edit]
Main article: Johnny Hallyday discography

Studio albums

[edit]
  • Hello Johnny (1960)
  • Nous les gars, nous les filles (1961)
  • Tête à tête avec Johnny Hallyday (1961)
  • Viens danser le twist (1961)
  • Salut les copains (1961)
  • Retiens la nuit (1962)
  • Madison Twist (1962)
  • L'Idole des jeunes (1963)
  • Les Bras en croix (1963)
  • Da dou ron ron (1963)
  • Les guitares jouent (1964)
  • Johnny, reviens ! Les Rocks les plus terribles (1964)
  • Le Pénitencier (1964)
  • Hallelujah (1965)
  • Johnny chante Hallyday (1965)
  • La Génération perdue (1966)
  • Johnny 67 (1967)
  • Jeune Homme (1968)
  • Rêve et Amour (1968)
  • Rivière… ouvre ton lit (1969)
  • Vie (1970)
  • Flagrant Délit (1971)
  • Country, Folk, Rock (1972)
  • Insolitudes (1973)
  • Je t'aime, je t'aime, je t'aime (1974)
  • Rock 'n' Slow (1974)
  • Rock à Memphis (1975)
  • La Terre promise (1975)
  • Derrière l'amour (1976)
  • Hamlet (1976)
  • C'est la vie (1977)
  • Solitudes à deux (1978)
  • Hollywood (1979)
  • À partir de maintenant (1980)
  • En pièces détachées (1981)
  • Pas facile (1981)
  • Quelque part un aigle (1982)
  • La Peur (1982)
  • Entre violence et violon (1983)
  • Nashville 84 (1984)
  • En V.O. (1984)
  • Drôle de métier (1984)
  • Spécial Enfants du rock (1984)
  • Rock'n'Roll Attitude (1985)
  • Gang (1986)
  • Cadillac (1989)
  • Ça ne change pas un homme (1991)
  • Lorada (1995)
  • Destination Vegas (1996)
  • Ce que je sais (1998)
  • Sang pour sang (1999)
  • À la vie, à la mort ! (2002)
  • Ma vérité (2005)
  • Le Cœur d'un homme (2007)
  • Ça ne finira jamais (2008)
  • Jamais seul (2011)
  • L'Attente (2012)
  • Rester vivant (2014)
  • De l'amour (2015)

Foreign-language studio albums

[edit]
  • Sings America's Rockin' Hits (1962)
  • In italiano (1976)
  • Black es noir (1981)
  • Rough Town (1994)

Posthumous studio albums

[edit]
  • Mon pays c'est l'amour (2018)

Films

[edit]

Books

[edit]
  • Hallyday, Johnny (1979). Johnny raconte Hallyday (1st ed.). Paris: Filipacchi. ISBN 2-86391-006-X.
  • Hallyday, Johnny; Sthers, Amanda (2014). Dans mes yeux : Johnny Hallyday se raconte à Amanda Sthers. Paris: Pocket. ISBN 9782266236225. OCLC 887560125.

See also

[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "Johnny Hallyday renonce à la nationalité belge". Le Monde (in French). 22 October 2007. Retrieved 5 February 2024.
  2. ^ "Miles Kington: Johnny Hallyday – Legendary for being legendary?". The Independent. 10 January 2008. Archived from the original on 14 June 2022. Retrieved 6 June 2017.
  3. ^ "Johnny Hallyday rocks Brussels' blues away". Radio France Internationale. 27 March 2016. Retrieved 6 June 2017.
  4. ^ "Johnny Hallyday: France's dead rocker scoops sales record". BBC News. 26 October 2018. Retrieved 15 June 2019.
  5. ^ O'Connor, Raisin (27 October 2018). "French rocker Johnny Hallyday beats Drake's one-week sales figure with posthumous album". The Independent. Archived from the original on 14 June 2022. Retrieved 15 June 2019.
  6. ^ Brandle, Lars (8 March 2017). "Legendary French Singer Johnny Hallyday Is Being Treated for Cancer". Billboard. Retrieved 18 March 2017.
  7. ^ "Johnny Hallyday à la conquête du Kremlin" (in French). Retrieved 27 September 2017.
  8. ^ "SACEM (Society of Authors, Composers and Publishers of Music)-Johnny Hallyday". 6 December 2018. Retrieved 7 January 2018.
  9. ^ "Johnny Hallyday: the biggest rock star you've never heard of". 9 December 2017. Retrieved 6 January 2018.
  10. ^ Who's Who in France. 2008. p. 1099.
  11. ^ Hallyday 1979, pp. 7–10
  12. ^ Sthers, Amamda (7 December 2017). "Hommage à JOHNNY HALLYDAY : L'ENFANT DU 9e" (in French). Archived from the original on 10 December 2017. Retrieved 11 December 2017.
  13. ^ a b c Chrisafis, Angelique; Willsher, Kim (6 December 2017). "Johnny Hallyday, the 'French Elvis', dies at 74". The Guardian. Retrieved 7 December 2017.
  14. ^ Tobler, John (1992). NME Rock 'N' Roll Years (1st ed.). London: Reed International Books Ltd. p. 80. ISBN 0-600-57602-7. CN 5585.
  15. ^ "Biography - Johnny Hallyday". Radio France International. Archived from the original on 20 November 2014. Retrieved 5 October 2019.
  16. ^ a b Murrells, Joseph (1978). The Book of Golden Discs (2nd ed.). London: Barrie and Jenkins Ltd. p. 136. ISBN 0-214-20512-6.
  17. ^ Tobler, John (1992). NME Rock 'N' Roll Years (1st ed.). London: Reed International Books Ltd. p. 101. ISBN 0-600-57602-7. CN 5585.
  18. ^ "VIDEO. Quand Jimi Hendrix et Johnny Hallyday tournaient en Lorraine en 1966". Republicain Lorrain. 8 September 2016. Retrieved 6 December 2017.
  19. ^ "Quand Jimi Hendrix Faisait la Première Partie de Johnny Hallyday". Le Journal de Dimanche. 6 December 2017. Archived from the original on 6 March 2019. Retrieved 6 December 2017.
  20. ^ "Video Interview Foreigner et Johnny Hallyday Taratata 23.12.1994". 23 December 1994. Retrieved 6 December 2017.
  21. ^ [Frampton and Small Faces contribution on 1969 album.] Steve Marriott – All Too Beautiful... (Paulo/Hellier) ISBN 1-900924-44-7 p.324
  22. ^ "Johnny Hallyday – Site Officiel". Johnnyweb.fr. Archived from the original on 21 November 2008. Retrieved 15 July 2014.
  23. ^ "Mon plus beau Noël", French Singles Chart Lescharts.com (Retrieved 4 October 2008)
  24. ^ "Paroles et traduction Johnny Hallyday : Mon Plus Beau Noël – paroles de chanson". lacoccinelle.net. Retrieved 7 December 2017.
  25. ^ "Le Cœur d'un Homme". AllMusic. Retrieved 7 December 2017.
  26. ^ "Ça Ne Finira Jamais". AllMusic. Retrieved 7 December 2017.
  27. ^ "Ça n'finira jamais", French Singles Chart Lescharts.com (Retrieved 25 November 2008)
  28. ^ "Tour 66: Stade de France 2009". AllMusic. Retrieved 7 December 2017.
  29. ^ "Mort de Johnny Hallyday : Sylvie Vartan a le cœur "brisé"". Paris Match. 6 December 2017. Retrieved 7 December 2017.
  30. ^ Royer, Marion (6 December 2017). "Mort de Johnny Hallyday : Babeth, l'épouse oubliée". Gala. Retrieved 7 December 2017.
  31. ^ "Mort de Johnny Hallyday : son ex Nathalie Baye réagit sur les réseaux sociaux". Voici. 6 December 2017. Retrieved 7 December 2017.
  32. ^ Rousset, Virginie (6 December 2017). "Mort de Johnny Hallyday – Adeline Blondieau, la femme qu'il a épousée deux fois". Gala. Retrieved 7 December 2017.
  33. ^ "Johnny Hallyday". Nndb.com. Retrieved 26 March 2012.
  34. ^ Louaguef, Sarah (5 February 2015). "Johnny Hallyday vend son chalet pour 9,5 millions d'euros". Paris Match. Retrieved 7 December 2017.
  35. ^ "Entertainment | Hallyday exile row gets political". BBC News. 18 December 2006. Retrieved 15 July 2014.
  36. ^ "French rocker prefers California to Gstaad". swissinfo.ch. 17 January 2014. Retrieved 17 January 2014.
  37. ^ a b "Le fin for the original French pop idol". The Independent. London. 14 May 2009. Archived from the original on 14 June 2022. Retrieved 17 October 2009.
  38. ^ Davies, Lizzy (16 December 2009). "Johnny Hallyday tour cancelled because of health problems". The Guardian. Retrieved 15 July 2014.
  39. ^ "French rocker Johnny Hallyday in induced coma". The Daily Telegraph. 10 December 2009. Archived from the original on 12 January 2022. Retrieved 15 July 2014.
  40. ^ "Entertainment News, Celebrity and Pop Culture". ABC News. Retrieved 15 July 2014.
  41. ^ "Johnny Hallyday comes to agreement with doctor after long-running dispute". The Connexion. Retrieved 15 February 2016.
  42. ^ Mairie de Marnes-la-Coquette, 12 décembre 2017, extrait de l'acte de décès de Jean-Philippe Léo SMET.
  43. ^ "Johnny Hallyday est mort cette nuit à l'âge de 74 ans". Le Parisien. 6 December 2017. Retrieved 7 December 2017.
  44. ^ "Johnny Hallyday, the Elvis Presley of France, Is Dead at 74". The New York Times. 6 December 2017. Retrieved 6 December 2017.
  45. ^ "Johnny Hallyday: French rock star dies at 74". BBC. 6 December 2017. Retrieved 6 December 2017.
  46. ^ "Les réactions de politiques à la mort de Johnny Hallyday". Le Monde. 6 December 2017. Retrieved 6 December 2017.
  47. ^ Breeden, Aurelien (9 December 2017). "'Merci, Johnny': Hallyday Honored With Rock-Star Funeral (and Motorbikes)". The New York Times. Retrieved 9 December 2017.
  48. ^ Ascensio, Amandine (9 December 2017). "Saint-Barthélemy se prépare à accueillir Johnny Hallyday pour l'éternité". Le Figaro (in French). Retrieved 9 December 2017.
  49. ^ "Johnny Hallyday's children contest exclusion from his will". BBC. 12 February 2018. Retrieved 12 February 2018.
  50. ^ Christopher Muther (8 May 2014). "Johnny Hallyday is more than just a French Elvis". Boston Globe. Retrieved 27 November 2014.
  51. ^ Marc Myers (19 April 2012). ""French Elvis" Plays America". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 26 January 2017.
  52. ^ Erin Zaleski (6 December 2017). "Johnny Hallyday, We Hardly Knew You!". The Daily Beast. Retrieved 12 December 2017.
  53. ^ Willsher, Kim; Stares, Justin (15 January 2006). "Go, go Johnny go – but to Belgium?". The Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on 12 January 2022. Retrieved 3 May 2012.
  54. ^ Samuel, Henry (11 May 2009). "End of the road for France's Elvis". The Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on 10 November 2013. Retrieved 3 May 2012.
  55. ^ "ORDRE DE LA LEGION D'HONNEUR Décret du 31 décembre 1996 portant promotion et". JORF. 1997 (1): 29. 1 January 1997. PREX9612816D. Retrieved 5 April 2009.
  56. ^ (in French) "Johnny Hallyday, officier de l'ordre de la Couronne!". La Dernière Heure. 2 June 2001. Retrieved 11 December 2017.
  57. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q "Johnny Hallyday". British Film Institute. Archived from the original on 9 August 2016. Retrieved 7 December 2017.
  58. ^ Animal (1977) - IMDb, retrieved 10 June 2020
  59. ^ Canby, Vincent (23 August 1985). "Screen: 'Detective,' by Jean-Luc Godard". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 10 June 2020.
  60. ^ "The Iron Triangle". Empire. 1 January 2000. Retrieved 10 June 2020.
  61. ^ Crime Spree, retrieved 10 June 2020
  62. ^ Crimson Rivers 2: Angels of the Apocalypse, retrieved 10 June 2020
  63. ^ "We Love You, You Bastard (Salaud, on t'aime): Film Review". The Hollywood Reporter. 2 April 2014. Retrieved 10 June 2020.
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  65. ^ AlloCine, Casting de Chacun sa vie, retrieved 10 June 2020
[edit]
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