Robert Lapointe (16 April 1922 – 29 June 1972) was a French singer, noted for his humorous texts, alliteration

Alliteration

In language, alliteration refers to the repetition of a particular sound in the first syllables of Three or more words or phrases. Alliteration has historically developed largely through poetry, in which it more narrowly refers to the repetition of a consonant in any syllables that, according to...

s and plays on words.

He was born in Pézenas

Pézenas

Pézenas is a commune in the Hérault département in Languedoc-Roussillon, southern France. At the 1999 census, its population was 7443.-Name:...

, in the Hérault

Hérault

Hérault is a department in the south of France named after the Hérault river.-History:Hérault is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on 4 March 1790...

 département of France. A brilliant scholar, he prepared for the entrance exam to the Centrale (engineering school) and Sup-Aero at Montpellier

Montpellier

-Neighbourhoods:Since 2001, Montpellier has been divided into seven official neighbourhoods, themselves divided into sub-neighbourhoods. Each of them possesses a neighbourhood council....

, but was conscripted into the Youth Building Projects in 1942 and sent to Germany in 1943 for compulsory work service. He escaped the same year, and found work as a diver in La Ciotat

La Ciotat

La Ciotat is a commune in the Bouches-du-Rhône department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southern France. It is part of the metropolitan area of Marseille Provence. La ciotat is located to the east of Marseille at an equal distance from Marseille and Toulon...

, a suburb of Marseilles, in 1944.

In 1946, he married Colette Maclaud. They had two children, Ticha (born 1948) and Jacky (1950).

His first published work, Les douze chants d'un imbecile, appeared in 1951. He moved to Paris and opened a fashion and baby clothes shop, still writing and producing plays. Later, he switched to being a fitter of TV aerials and began singing.

His fame grew when the actor Bourvil

Bourvil

André Bourvil, born André Robert Raimbourg was a French actor and singer best known for his roles in comedy, most notably in his collaboration with Louis de Funès in La Grande Vadrouille .-Biography:His father was killed in the First World War before Bourvil was born...

 sang Lapointe's song Aragon et Castille in the 1954 film Poisson d'avril. In 1960, film director François Truffaut

François Truffaut

François Roland Truffaut was an influential film critic and filmmaker and one of the founders of the French New Wave. In a film career lasting over a quarter of a century, he remains an icon of the French film industry. He was also a screenwriter, producer, and actor working on over twenty-five...

 offered him a part in Tirez sur le Pianiste

Shoot the Piano Player

Shoot the Piano Player is a 1960 French film directed by François Truffaut, starring Charles Aznavour.The film is loosely based on the novel Down There by David Goodis.- Plot summary :...

in which he sang Framboise, accompanied by Charles Aznavour

Charles Aznavour

Charles Aznavour, OC is an Armenian-French singer, songwriter, actor, public activist and diplomat. Besides being one of France's most popular and enduring singers, he is also one of the best-known singers in the world...

 on piano. This marked the start of a career that saw Lapointe perform at major venues throughout France. His joyful character led him to build friendships with the likes of Anne Sylvestre, Raymond Devos

Raymond Devos

Raymond Devos was a Belgian-French humorist, stand-up comedian and clown. He is best known for his sophisticated puns and surreal humour.- Early life :...

, Jacques Brel

Jacques Brel

Jacques Brel was a Belgian singer-songwriter who composed and performed literate, thoughtful, and theatrical songs that generated a large, devoted following in France initially, and later throughout the world. He was widely considered a master of the modern chanson...

 and Georges Brassens

Georges Brassens

Georges Brassens , 22 October 1921 – 29 October 1981), was a French singer-songwriter and poet.Brassens was born in Sète, a town in southern France near Montpellier...

.

Lapointe was also a mathematician, and developed the bi-bi-binary system (also known as the bibi system) in 1971.

Photos

The town of Pézenas contains a monument to Lapointe (in the Place Boby Lapointe) and 7 carved stone sculptures relating to the man and his songs.

List of songs

Aragon et Castille Framboise Marcelle Insomnie Le Poisson fa Embrouille minet Petit homme qui vit d'espoir Bobo Léon Tchita Le Beau voyage L'Ange Le Troubadour (ou la crue du Tage) La Fleur bleue contondante La Fille du pécheur Eh ! Toto L'Hélicon Léna

La Peinture à l'huile Eh ! V'nez les potes J'ai fantaisie Leçon de guitare sommaire Ta Katie t'a quitté Je joue du violon tzigane T'as pas, t'as pas tout dit Le Papa du papa Aubade à Lydie en do Lumière Tango (Loumiere's Tango) From Two to Two Saucisson de cheval n° 1 Saucisson de cheval n° 2 L'ami Zantrop La Banane anana L'Été où est-il ? La Question ne se pose pas

Andrea c'est toi L'Idole et l'enfant Comprend qui peut Monsieur l'agent Méli-mélodie Diba-diba Le Tube de toilette Madam' Mado m'a dit Moi, le philosophe et l'esthète La Maman des poissons Revanche Sentimental bourreau Ça va ça vient In the Desert Mon père et ses verres Je suis né au Chili Le Tigre

External links

• Official site (French)
• Vidéo: Boby Lapointe in 1967, singing Saucisson de cheval, an archive of Télévision Suisse Romande
  Télévision Suisse Romande
  Télévision Suisse Romande is a TV network with 2 channels: TSR 1 and TSR 2. They are the main French language channels in Switzerland, part of SRG SSR idée suisse...
  
  
• Bibibinary system in French Wikipedia