Sylvie Vartan
Encyclopedia
Sylvie Vartan is a French singer
. She was one of the first rock
girls in France. Vartan was the most productive and active of the yé-yé
style artists, considered as the toughest-sounding of those. Her performance often featured elaborate show-dance choreography. She made many appearances on French and Italian TV. Yearly shows with her husband at the time Johnny Hallyday
attracted full houses at the Olympia
and the Palais des congrès de Paris
throughout the 1960s and mid-1970s. After a break in performances, she began recording and giving concerts of jazz ballads in French-speaking countries in late 2004.
, Bulgaria
. Her father, Georges Vartan, was born in France to an Armenian father and a Bulgarian mother. He worked as an attaché
at the French embassy in Sofia. Her mother, Ilona (née Mayer), was Hungarian. The original family name was Vartanian, but her parents shortened it to Vartan after they fled to France
. In September 1944, when the Soviet Army
occupied Bulgaria, the Vartanian family house was nationalised
and they moved to Sofia. In 1952, Dako Dakovski, a film director and her fathers' friend offered Sylvie a role of a schoolgirl in the movie Pod igoto. The film was about Bulgarian rebels against the Turkish occupation. Being a part of the film had a lasting impression on her and made her dream of becoming an entertainer.
The privations of the postwar Bulgaria made the family emigrate to Paris in December 1952. At first they stayed in the Lion d'Argent hotel near Les Halles
, where Georges found a job. The family stayed in a single room at the Angleterre Hotel for the following four years. Young Sylvie had to work hard to keep up at school and to assimilate with her schoolmates. She learned French in two years. In 1960 her family moved to an apartment in Michel Bizot Avenue. Thanks to the example of her music producer brother Eddie, teenage Sylvie's main interest became music. The most influential genres were jazz
and, out of spite toward her strict high school, rock 'n' roll. Her favourites included Brenda Lee
, Bill Haley
and Elvis Presley
.
was a surprise hit. Although she was not credited on the sleeve, "Panne d'essence" provided Vartan her first appearance on French television
. The journalists gave her the nickname la collégienne du twist. After the "twisting schoolgirl" had finished the Victor Hugo High School, she was free to sign a contract with Decca Records to start recording her own EP. By the beginning of December 1961 the EP with the title song "Quand le film est triste", covering Sue Thompson
's "Sad Movies (Make Me Cry)
" was on sale. This was yet another hit, that served her first concert in Paris Olympia
hall on 12 December 1961. Quickly "Est-ce que tu le sais?", her version of the Ray Charles
song "What’d I Say", was released. She opened for Vince Taylor
at Paris Olympia for her second concert. In July she toured France with Gilbert Bécaud
. In fall, 1962 she released her version of "The Loco-Motion
" on EP and her first LP Sylvie. Her next hit was "Tous mes copains", issued on EP in 1962. A small part of a singer in the film Un clair de lune à Maubeuge was her first adult appearance in a movie.
In 1963, Paul Anka offered her "I'm watching you", her first international hit (Japan, Korea). In the same year she did four TV specials and became the darling of the teen magazine Salut les Copains. Six of her thirty-one songs released in 1962/1963 became top 20 European hits. In late winter 1963, Vartan toured France with Johnny Hallyday
and starred with him in the movie D'où viens-tu, Johnny?
Later in 1963, after announcing their engagement over the radio, the young couple performed to a noisy audience of 200,000 at the La Nation Square of Paris. At the end of the year, they traveled to Nashville, Tennessee
to record an album with The Jordanaires
. With the special treatment of vocalists, strings and brass sections in the true Nashville style, these recordings were a great commercial success in France. The album Sylvie à Nashville included the hits "La plus belle pour aller danser" and "Si je chante" and three news songs in English (featuring Paul Anka again for one of them). Being accompanied by the movie Cherchez l’idole, the EP with "La plus belle pour aller danser" became n°1 in France, sold over a million copies in Japan, very successful in Korea and Spain too, and her 1st release in Italy. In 1964 at the Paris Olympia, she appeared as the main attraction (third performance) on the same bill as The Beatles
and Trini Lopez
. The commercial for the clothes “Renown” and a supporting role in the film "Patate" made her even more famous. The singer made appearances on U.S. TV:The Ed Sullivan Show
, Shindig!
, Hullabaloo
, and an international concert tour, including Canada, South America and Polynesia. In Tokyo she gave 13 concerts in 12 days.
on guitar, as they went to record in New York. The two Englishmen wrote a hit for her, called "Cette lettre-là". Set in the smart design of the J.C. Averty Show, "Cette lettre-là" was the first of Sylvie Vartan's TV variety night performances. In 1966-67 she recorded more original hits. "Dis moi, que tu m'aimes" was accompanied by a group of male dancers and aired on TV on 9 July 1967. "Le jour qui vient" was aired on the Dim dam dom program of the French Television 1 in color in 14 January 1968.
In 11 April 1968 she suffered injuries in a traffic accident but was back on tour in August. Her new sexy cabaret
dancer image was demonstrated to the French TV audience in the "Jolie poupée" show on 4 December 1968. In the show, the collaboration with Maritie and Gilbert Carpentier
produced a highly entertaining result. The variety night included the performance of "Irresistiblement", accompanied by elaborate girl-group choreography, and "Jolie Poupee", a dialogue between a doll Sylvie and an adult one. The hits of the "Jolie poupée" show were released as the Maritza album. In Italy, she released a cover version of Mina
's "Zum zum zum". Being the 23rd biggest selling single of the following year in Italy, Vartan's version did better in Italian charts than Mina's original. Vartan continued with her one-woman shows at the Paris Olympia in December 1968. The shows were published as the documentary Sylvie à L'Olympia. For nine Saturday nights in winter of 1969, Vartan starred in the Doppia coppia variety nights of RAI
, performing her hits "Irresistiblement" ("Irresistibilmente") and "Le jour qui vient" ("Una cicala canta") in Italian. In March 1969, "Irrestibilmente" entered the Italian charts at #3, peaked at #2 and stayed in Top Ten for 10 weeks. In 1969 the single was the #22 single on the Italian chart. The tender ballad "Blam blam blam", written originally for the Doppia coppia, peaked at #14 of the Italian charts and was among the 100 biggest selling singles in Italy in 1969.
After her world tour in autumn 1969, she returned to Italy to perform "Festa negli occhi, festa nel cuore" on a Canzonissima variety night and "C'est un jour à rester couché" on the Incontro con Sylvie Vartan TV show, recorded in the Gattopardo Club of Messina. Her appearances, dressed in short skirts and Barbarella
boots, with each song having a different costume, were popular in Italy and France. The cartoonists of both countries even drew Sylvie Vartan lookalikes.
. She sold millions of records on the RCA label (the most prolific artist on this label after Elvis Presley). Her most famous songs are "J'ai un probleme", "L'amour au Diapason", "Parle moi de ta vie", "Petit Rainbow", "Bye Bye leroy Brown", "Disco Queen". Her annual world tours and Italian TV shows, however, continued to include her best of the late sixties. In 1976, she recorded "Qu'est-ce qui fait pleurer les blondes?", a disco-style cover of a John Kongos
's track, which topped the French chart for several weeks. Her disco era climaxed at the Dancing star TV show on TF1
on 10 September 1977. The show was produced by Maritie and Gilbert Carpentier. The performances were published by RCA Records
as the LP Dancing star. After releasing "Love again" in duet with John Denver
, a #85 single on Billboard Hot 100
in 1984, she took a break from show business.
In 1990, she gave a concert at the Palace of Culture of Sofia, opening and closing with a Bulgarian song. This was her first visit to the city after her emigration. In 1991 she performed for three weeks at the Palais des Sports in Paris. She reached the charts with "Quand tu es là". After her brother Eddie died in 2001, she took another break from performing in public. In fall 2004 she started recording and giving concerts of jazz ballads in francophone countries and Japan. She performed two weeks in the Palais des congrès
in 2004 and 2008 (sold out concerts each time). In 2009 she toured in Turkey, France, Japan, Switzerland and Belgium.
girls in France. Before her, it was not common for a French pop artist to sing and dance at the same time. Sylvie Vartan was the most productive and active of the yé-yé
girls; and her rock-and-roll voice and rhythms made her the toughest-sounding of those.
in French theatres. There is a Sylvie Vartan rose variety and a toy factory named after her. The Mattel
toy company designed a dummy model after her body. In 2005, the singer was appointed as WHO Goodwill Ambassador
for Maternal and Child Health in the European Region.
. On 12 April 1965, they were married in Loconville
. They had a son David Michael Benjamin, later known as David Hallyday
. Johnny Hallyday and Vartan were the "golden couple" of their generation in France, and their marriage was among the most carefully watched relationships for the nation's publicity. However, as Hallyday openly preferred his pals to the parenting, they had disagreements and finally divorced on 4 November 1980. She is currently married to record producer Tony Scotti
. They have adopted a young Bulgarian girl, Darina. Vartan is an aunt to Eddie Vartan's son Michael Vartan
.
EPs
Music of France
France has a wide variety of indigenous folk music, as well as styles played by immigrants from Africa, Latin America and Asia. In the field of classical music, France has produced a number of legendary composers, while modern pop music has seen the rise of popular French hip hop, techno/funk,...
. She was one of the first rock
Rock and roll
Rock and roll is a genre of popular music that originated and evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s, primarily from a combination of African American blues, country, jazz, and gospel music...
girls in France. Vartan was the most productive and active of the yé-yé
Yé-yé
Yé-yé was a style of pop music that emerged from France, Québec and Spain in the early 1960s. The term "yé-yé" derived from "yeah! yeah!" The style expanded worldwide, due to the success of figures such as the French singer-songwriter Serge Gainsbourg....
style artists, considered as the toughest-sounding of those. Her performance often featured elaborate show-dance choreography. She made many appearances on French and Italian TV. Yearly shows with her husband at the time Johnny Hallyday
Johnny Hallyday
Johnny Hallyday is a French singer and actor. An icon in the French-speaking world since the beginning of his career, he was considered by some to have been the French Elvis Presley. He was married for 15 years to one of the most popular French female singers: Sylvie Vartan...
attracted full houses at the Olympia
Paris Olympia
The Olympia is a music hall in the 9th arrondissement of Paris. Located at No. 28, Boulevard des Capucines, its closest métro/RER stations are Madeleine, Opéra, Havre – Caumartin and Auber....
and the Palais des congrès de Paris
Palais des congrès de Paris
The Palais des congrès de Paris is a concert venue and convention centre in the 17th arrondissement of Paris, France. The venue was built by French architect Guillaume Gillet, and was inaugurated in 1974. Nearby the venue are Bois de Boulogne and the affluent neighbourhood of Neuilly-sur-Seine...
throughout the 1960s and mid-1970s. After a break in performances, she began recording and giving concerts of jazz ballads in French-speaking countries in late 2004.
Early life
Vartan was born in Iskretz, Sofia ProvinceSofia Province
Sofia Province is a province of Bulgaria. The province does not include Sofia in its territories, but Sofia however remains its administrative center...
, Bulgaria
Bulgaria
Bulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic in Southeast Europe. The country borders Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, as well as the Black Sea to the east...
. Her father, Georges Vartan, was born in France to an Armenian father and a Bulgarian mother. He worked as an attaché
Attaché
Attaché is a French term in diplomacy referring to a person who is assigned to the diplomatic or administrative staff of a higher placed person or another service or agency...
at the French embassy in Sofia. Her mother, Ilona (née Mayer), was Hungarian. The original family name was Vartanian, but her parents shortened it to Vartan after they fled to France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
. In September 1944, when the Soviet Army
Soviet Army
The Soviet Army is the name given to the main part of the Armed Forces of the Soviet Union between 1946 and 1992. Previously, it had been known as the Red Army. Informally, Армия referred to all the MOD armed forces, except, in some cases, the Soviet Navy.This article covers the Soviet Ground...
occupied Bulgaria, the Vartanian family house was nationalised
Nationalization
Nationalisation, also spelled nationalization, is the process of taking an industry or assets into government ownership by a national government or state. Nationalization usually refers to private assets, but may also mean assets owned by lower levels of government, such as municipalities, being...
and they moved to Sofia. In 1952, Dako Dakovski, a film director and her fathers' friend offered Sylvie a role of a schoolgirl in the movie Pod igoto. The film was about Bulgarian rebels against the Turkish occupation. Being a part of the film had a lasting impression on her and made her dream of becoming an entertainer.
The privations of the postwar Bulgaria made the family emigrate to Paris in December 1952. At first they stayed in the Lion d'Argent hotel near Les Halles
Les Halles
Les Halles is an area of Paris, France, located in the 1er arrondissement, just south of the fashionable rue Montorgueil. It is named for the large central wholesale marketplace, which was demolished in 1971, to be replaced with an underground modern shopping precinct, the Forum des Halles...
, where Georges found a job. The family stayed in a single room at the Angleterre Hotel for the following four years. Young Sylvie had to work hard to keep up at school and to assimilate with her schoolmates. She learned French in two years. In 1960 her family moved to an apartment in Michel Bizot Avenue. Thanks to the example of her music producer brother Eddie, teenage Sylvie's main interest became music. The most influential genres were jazz
Jazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
and, out of spite toward her strict high school, rock 'n' roll. Her favourites included Brenda Lee
Brenda Lee
Brenda Mae Tarpley , known as Brenda Lee, is an American performer who sang rockabilly, pop and country music, and had 37 US chart hits during the 1960s, a number surpassed only by Elvis Presley, The Beatles, Ray Charles and Connie Francis...
, Bill Haley
Bill Haley
Bill Haley was one of the first American rock and roll musicians. He is credited by many with first popularizing this form of music in the early 1950s with his group Bill Haley & His Comets and their hit song "Rock Around the Clock".-Early life and career:...
and Elvis Presley
Elvis Presley
Elvis Aaron Presley was one of the most popular American singers of the 20th century. A cultural icon, he is widely known by the single name Elvis. He is often referred to as the "King of Rock and Roll" or simply "the King"....
.
Twisting schoolgirl
In 1961 Eddie offered Sylvie to record the song "Panne d'essence" with the French rocker Frankie Jordan. The EP by Decca RecordsDecca Records
Decca Records began as a British record label established in 1929 by Edward Lewis. Its U.S. label was established in late 1934; however, owing to World War II, the link with the British company was broken for several decades....
was a surprise hit. Although she was not credited on the sleeve, "Panne d'essence" provided Vartan her first appearance on French television
TF1
TF1 is a national French TV channel, controlled by TF1 Group, whose major share-holder is Bouygues. TF1's average market share of 24% makes it the most popular domestic network...
. The journalists gave her the nickname la collégienne du twist. After the "twisting schoolgirl" had finished the Victor Hugo High School, she was free to sign a contract with Decca Records to start recording her own EP. By the beginning of December 1961 the EP with the title song "Quand le film est triste", covering Sue Thompson
Sue Thompson
Sue Thompson is an American pop and country music singer. She is best known for the million selling hits "Sad Movies " and "Norman", both pop hits for her in the 1960s.-Early life:...
's "Sad Movies (Make Me Cry)
Sad Movies (Make Me Cry)
"Sad Movies " is a 1961 pop song by the American singer Sue Thompson. The song was written by John D. Loudermilk and appears on Thompson's 1962 Hickory Records album Meet Sue Thompson....
" was on sale. This was yet another hit, that served her first concert in Paris Olympia
Paris Olympia
The Olympia is a music hall in the 9th arrondissement of Paris. Located at No. 28, Boulevard des Capucines, its closest métro/RER stations are Madeleine, Opéra, Havre – Caumartin and Auber....
hall on 12 December 1961. Quickly "Est-ce que tu le sais?", her version of the Ray Charles
Ray Charles
Ray Charles Robinson , known by his shortened stage name Ray Charles, was an American musician. He was a pioneer in the genre of soul music during the 1950s by fusing rhythm and blues, gospel, and blues styles into his early recordings with Atlantic Records...
song "What’d I Say", was released. She opened for Vince Taylor
Vince Taylor
Vince Taylor was a British rock and roll singer. As the frontman for The Playboys, Taylor was successful primarily in France and the Continent during the late 1950s and early 1960s, afterwards falling into obscurity amidst personal problems and drug abuse.-Early life:Born Brian Maurice Holden,...
at Paris Olympia for her second concert. In July she toured France with Gilbert Bécaud
Gilbert Bécaud
Gilbert Bécaud was a French singer, composer and actor, known as "Monsieur 100,000 Volts" for his energetic performances. His best-known hits are "Nathalie" and "Et Maintenant", a 1961 release that became an English language hit as "What Now My Love"...
. In fall, 1962 she released her version of "The Loco-Motion
The Loco-Motion
"The Loco-Motion" is a 1962 pop song written by American songwriters Gerry Goffin and Carole King. The song is notable for appearing in the American Top 5 three times – each time in a different decade: for Little Eva in 1962 ; for Grand Funk Railroad in 1974 ; and for Kylie Minogue in 1988 "The...
" on EP and her first LP Sylvie. Her next hit was "Tous mes copains", issued on EP in 1962. A small part of a singer in the film Un clair de lune à Maubeuge was her first adult appearance in a movie.
Johnny Hallyday
Johnny Hallyday is a French singer and actor. An icon in the French-speaking world since the beginning of his career, he was considered by some to have been the French Elvis Presley. He was married for 15 years to one of the most popular French female singers: Sylvie Vartan...
and starred with him in the movie D'où viens-tu, Johnny?
Later in 1963, after announcing their engagement over the radio, the young couple performed to a noisy audience of 200,000 at the La Nation Square of Paris. At the end of the year, they traveled to Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville is the capital of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat of Davidson County. It is located on the Cumberland River in Davidson County, in the north-central part of the state. The city is a center for the health care, publishing, banking and transportation industries, and is home...
to record an album with The Jordanaires
The Jordanaires
The Jordanaires are an American vocal quartet, which formed as a gospel group in 1948. They are best known for providing vocal background for Elvis Presley, in live appearances and recordings from 1956 to 1972...
. With the special treatment of vocalists, strings and brass sections in the true Nashville style, these recordings were a great commercial success in France. The album Sylvie à Nashville included the hits "La plus belle pour aller danser" and "Si je chante" and three news songs in English (featuring Paul Anka again for one of them). Being accompanied by the movie Cherchez l’idole, the EP with "La plus belle pour aller danser" became n°1 in France, sold over a million copies in Japan, very successful in Korea and Spain too, and her 1st release in Italy. In 1964 at the Paris Olympia, she appeared as the main attraction (third performance) on the same bill as The Beatles
The Beatles
The Beatles were an English rock band, active throughout the 1960s and one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music. Formed in Liverpool, by 1962 the group consisted of John Lennon , Paul McCartney , George Harrison and Ringo Starr...
and Trini Lopez
Trini Lopez
Trini Lopez is an American singer, guitarist and actor.-Career:Lopez was born in Dallas, Texas, on Ashland Street in the Little Mexico neighborhood. He began his entertainment career in Dallas playing at the Vegas Club, a nightclub owned by Jack Ruby...
. The commercial for the clothes “Renown” and a supporting role in the film "Patate" made her even more famous. The singer made appearances on U.S. TV:The Ed Sullivan Show
The Ed Sullivan Show
The Ed Sullivan Show is an American TV variety show that originally ran on CBS from Sunday June 20, 1948 to Sunday June 6, 1971, and was hosted by New York entertainment columnist Ed Sullivan....
, Shindig!
Shindig!
Shindig! was an American musical variety series which aired on ABC from September 16, 1964 to January 8, 1966. The show was hosted by Jimmy O'Neill, a disc jockey in Los Angeles at the time who also created the show along with his wife Sharon Sheeley and production executive Art Stolnitz....
, Hullabaloo
Hullabaloo (TV series)
Hullabaloo is an American musical variety series that ran on NBC from January 12, 1965 through August 29, 1966. Similar to Shindig! it ran in prime time in contrast to ABC's American Bandstand.-Overview:...
, and an international concert tour, including Canada, South America and Polynesia. In Tokyo she gave 13 concerts in 12 days.
Yé-yé diva
In December 1964, as her husband went into military service, brother Eddie hired two English songwriting session musicians, Tommy Brown on drums and Mick JonesMick Jones (Foreigner)
Michael Leslie "Mick" Jones is an English guitarist, songwriter, and record producer best known as the founding member of the rock band Foreigner.-Life and career:...
on guitar, as they went to record in New York. The two Englishmen wrote a hit for her, called "Cette lettre-là". Set in the smart design of the J.C. Averty Show, "Cette lettre-là" was the first of Sylvie Vartan's TV variety night performances. In 1966-67 she recorded more original hits. "Dis moi, que tu m'aimes" was accompanied by a group of male dancers and aired on TV on 9 July 1967. "Le jour qui vient" was aired on the Dim dam dom program of the French Television 1 in color in 14 January 1968.
In 11 April 1968 she suffered injuries in a traffic accident but was back on tour in August. Her new sexy cabaret
Cabaret
Cabaret is a form, or place, of entertainment featuring comedy, song, dance, and theatre, distinguished mainly by the performance venue: a restaurant or nightclub with a stage for performances and the audience sitting at tables watching the performance, as introduced by a master of ceremonies or...
dancer image was demonstrated to the French TV audience in the "Jolie poupée" show on 4 December 1968. In the show, the collaboration with Maritie and Gilbert Carpentier
Maritie and Gilbert Carpentier
The married couple Maritie and Gilbert Carpentier were producers of very popular TV shows in France, from the fifties to the nineties.- Family and studies:...
produced a highly entertaining result. The variety night included the performance of "Irresistiblement", accompanied by elaborate girl-group choreography, and "Jolie Poupee", a dialogue between a doll Sylvie and an adult one. The hits of the "Jolie poupée" show were released as the Maritza album. In Italy, she released a cover version of Mina
Mina (singer)
Anna Maria Quaini, Grand Officer , known as Mina, is an Italian pop singer. She was a staple of Italian television variety shows and a dominant figure in Italian pop music from the mid-1960s to mid-1970s known for her three-octave vocal range, the agility of her soprano voice, and her image as an...
's "Zum zum zum". Being the 23rd biggest selling single of the following year in Italy, Vartan's version did better in Italian charts than Mina's original. Vartan continued with her one-woman shows at the Paris Olympia in December 1968. The shows were published as the documentary Sylvie à L'Olympia. For nine Saturday nights in winter of 1969, Vartan starred in the Doppia coppia variety nights of RAI
RAI
RAI — Radiotelevisione italiana S.p.A. known until 1954 as Radio Audizioni Italiane, is the Italian state owned public service broadcaster controlled by the Ministry of Economic Development. Rai is the biggest television company in Italy...
, performing her hits "Irresistiblement" ("Irresistibilmente") and "Le jour qui vient" ("Una cicala canta") in Italian. In March 1969, "Irrestibilmente" entered the Italian charts at #3, peaked at #2 and stayed in Top Ten for 10 weeks. In 1969 the single was the #22 single on the Italian chart. The tender ballad "Blam blam blam", written originally for the Doppia coppia, peaked at #14 of the Italian charts and was among the 100 biggest selling singles in Italy in 1969.
After her world tour in autumn 1969, she returned to Italy to perform "Festa negli occhi, festa nel cuore" on a Canzonissima variety night and "C'est un jour à rester couché" on the Incontro con Sylvie Vartan TV show, recorded in the Gattopardo Club of Messina. Her appearances, dressed in short skirts and Barbarella
Barbarella (film)
Barbarella is a 1968 Franco-Italian science fiction film based on Jean-Claude Forrest's French Barbarella comics. The film was directed by Roger Vadim and stars Jane Fonda, who was Vadim's wife at the time.-Plot:...
boots, with each song having a different costume, were popular in Italy and France. The cartoonists of both countries even drew Sylvie Vartan lookalikes.
1970–today
In spite of suffering a second serious car accident in 1970, Sylvie Vartan continued extensive performing and recording and, in 1972, she starred in the film MalpertuisMalpertuis (film)
Malpertuis is a 1971 Belgian fantasy-horror directed by Harry Kümel, based on the novel of the same name...
. She sold millions of records on the RCA label (the most prolific artist on this label after Elvis Presley). Her most famous songs are "J'ai un probleme", "L'amour au Diapason", "Parle moi de ta vie", "Petit Rainbow", "Bye Bye leroy Brown", "Disco Queen". Her annual world tours and Italian TV shows, however, continued to include her best of the late sixties. In 1976, she recorded "Qu'est-ce qui fait pleurer les blondes?", a disco-style cover of a John Kongos
John Kongos
John Kongos is a singer-songwriter. He is best known for his 1971 Top 10 hit single, "He's Gonna Step On You Again".-Career:...
's track, which topped the French chart for several weeks. Her disco era climaxed at the Dancing star TV show on TF1
TF1
TF1 is a national French TV channel, controlled by TF1 Group, whose major share-holder is Bouygues. TF1's average market share of 24% makes it the most popular domestic network...
on 10 September 1977. The show was produced by Maritie and Gilbert Carpentier. The performances were published by RCA Records
RCA Records
RCA Records is one of the flagship labels of Sony Music Entertainment. The RCA initials stand for Radio Corporation of America , which was the parent corporation from 1929 to 1985 and a partner from 1985 to 1986.RCA's Canadian unit is Sony's oldest label...
as the LP Dancing star. After releasing "Love again" in duet with John Denver
John Denver
Henry John Deutschendorf, Jr. , known professionally as John Denver, was an American singer/songwriter, activist, and humanitarian. After growing up in numerous locations with his military family, Denver began his music career in folk music groups in the late 1960s. His greatest commercial success...
, a #85 single on Billboard Hot 100
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
in 1984, she took a break from show business.
In 1990, she gave a concert at the Palace of Culture of Sofia, opening and closing with a Bulgarian song. This was her first visit to the city after her emigration. In 1991 she performed for three weeks at the Palais des Sports in Paris. She reached the charts with "Quand tu es là". After her brother Eddie died in 2001, she took another break from performing in public. In fall 2004 she started recording and giving concerts of jazz ballads in francophone countries and Japan. She performed two weeks in the Palais des congrès
Palais des congrès de Paris
The Palais des congrès de Paris is a concert venue and convention centre in the 17th arrondissement of Paris, France. The venue was built by French architect Guillaume Gillet, and was inaugurated in 1974. Nearby the venue are Bois de Boulogne and the affluent neighbourhood of Neuilly-sur-Seine...
in 2004 and 2008 (sold out concerts each time). In 2009 she toured in Turkey, France, Japan, Switzerland and Belgium.
Artistry
Sylvie Vartan was one of the first rockRock and roll
Rock and roll is a genre of popular music that originated and evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s, primarily from a combination of African American blues, country, jazz, and gospel music...
girls in France. Before her, it was not common for a French pop artist to sing and dance at the same time. Sylvie Vartan was the most productive and active of the yé-yé
Yé-yé
Yé-yé was a style of pop music that emerged from France, Québec and Spain in the early 1960s. The term "yé-yé" derived from "yeah! yeah!" The style expanded worldwide, due to the success of figures such as the French singer-songwriter Serge Gainsbourg....
girls; and her rock-and-roll voice and rhythms made her the toughest-sounding of those.
Influence
Vartan's concerts were said to be an excuse for some of the first violent acts of rockersRocker (subculture)
Rockers, leather boys or ton-up boys are a biker subculture that originated in the United Kingdom during the 1950s. It was mainly centered around British cafe racer motorcycles and rock and roll music....
in French theatres. There is a Sylvie Vartan rose variety and a toy factory named after her. The Mattel
Mattel
Mattel, Inc. is the world's largest toy company based on revenue. The products it produces include Fisher Price, Barbie dolls, Hot Wheels and Matchbox toys, Masters of the Universe, American Girl dolls, board games, and, in the early 1980s, video game consoles. The company's name is derived from...
toy company designed a dummy model after her body. In 2005, the singer was appointed as WHO Goodwill Ambassador
WHO Goodwill Ambassador
WHO Goodwill Ambassadors are celebrity advocates of the World Health Organization and use their talent and fame to advocate for health and well-being.-List of Goodwill Ambassadors:WHO Goodwill Ambassadors, and the year they were appointed:...
for Maternal and Child Health in the European Region.
Honours
- Chevalier (Knight) of the Ordre national du MériteOrdre National du MériteThe Ordre national du Mérite is an Order of State awarded by the President of the French Republic. It was founded on 3 December 1963 by President Charles de Gaulle...
on 13 November 1987, Officier (Officer) in 2006. - Chevalier (Knight) of the Légion d'honneurLégion d'honneurThe Legion of Honour, or in full the National Order of the Legion of Honour is a French order established by Napoleon Bonaparte, First Consul of the Consulat which succeeded to the First Republic, on 19 May 1802...
on 14 November 1998, Officier (Officer) in 2009.
Personal life
In 1962, during her second concert in Paris Olympia hall, Vartan met Jean-Philippe Smet, known as Johnny HallydayJohnny Hallyday
Johnny Hallyday is a French singer and actor. An icon in the French-speaking world since the beginning of his career, he was considered by some to have been the French Elvis Presley. He was married for 15 years to one of the most popular French female singers: Sylvie Vartan...
. On 12 April 1965, they were married in Loconville
Loconville
Loconville is a small village in northern France. It is designated municipally as a commune within the département of Oise.-References:*...
. They had a son David Michael Benjamin, later known as David Hallyday
David Hallyday
David Hallyday is a French singer/songwriter and amateur sports car racer. He was born in Boulogne-Billancourt and is the son of the French singers Sylvie Vartan and Johnny Hallyday....
. Johnny Hallyday and Vartan were the "golden couple" of their generation in France, and their marriage was among the most carefully watched relationships for the nation's publicity. However, as Hallyday openly preferred his pals to the parenting, they had disagreements and finally divorced on 4 November 1980. She is currently married to record producer Tony Scotti
Tony Scotti
Anthony "Tony" Joseph Scotti is an American actor, television and film producer, and co-founder of Scotti Brothers Records.-Acting:...
. They have adopted a young Bulgarian girl, Darina. Vartan is an aunt to Eddie Vartan's son Michael Vartan
Michael Vartan
Michael S. Vartan is a French-American film and television actor. He is probably best known for the role of Michael Vaughn on the American television action drama Alias...
.
Discography
Albums in the 1960s- 1962 : Sylvie
- 1963 : Twiste et ChanteTwiste et Chante-Track listing:# "Twiste et Chante" # "Clous D'or"# "Avec Moi"# "Ne T'en Vas Pas"# "Mon Ami"# "Je Ne Vois que Toi"# "Every Little Move You Make"# "En Ecoutant la Pluie"# "Comm' Tu es Fou"# "Deux Enfants"# "Il Faut Choisir"...
- 1964 : Sylvie a Nashville
- 1965 : A gift wrapped from Paris
- 1966 : Il y a deux filles en moi
- 1967 : 2'35 de bonheur
- 1967 : Comme un garçon
- 1968 : La Maritza
EPs
- 1961 : Panne d'essence (with Frankie Jordan)
- 1962 : Le Locomotion
- 1962 : Tous mes copains
- 1963 : I'm watching you
- 1963 : Si je chante
- 1964 : La Plus Belle pour aller danser
- 1965 : Cette lettre-là
- 1965 : Quand tu es là
- 1966 : Il y a deux filles en moi
- 1966 : Par amour, par pitié
- 1967 : 2' 35 de bonheur (with Carlos)
- 1967 : Comme un garçon
- 1968 : Irrésistiblement
- 1968 : La Maritza
- 1969 : Face au soleil
- 1969 : Abracadabra
- 1971:Parle-moi de ta vie
- 1973: J'ai un probleme
- 1974: L'amour au diapason
- 1974: Bye Bye Leroy Brown
- 1975: La Drole de fin
- 1975: Danse-la, Chante-la
- 1976: Qu-est-ce qui fait pleurer les blondes
- 1976: L'amour c'est comme les bateaux
- 1977: Petit Rainbow
- 1978: Fantaisie
- 1978: Solitude
- 1978: Disco Queen
- 1979: I don't want he night to end
- 1980: Nicolas
- 1980: Tape, Tape
- 1981: L'amour c'est comme une cigarette
- 1981: Ca va mal
- 1982: La sortie de secours
- 1983: La premiere fois qu'on s'aimera
- 1983: Danse ta vie
- 1985: If you walk away
- 1985: Double Exposure
- 1988: Femme sosu influence
- 1990: C'est fatal
- 1990: Quant tu es la
- 1993: Tes tendres annees
- 1996: Je n'aime encore que toi
- 1998: Darina
- 2004: Ce n'est pas rien
- 2005: La neige en ete
- 2009: Je chante le blues
- 2010: Je me detacherai
- 2011: Personne
Filmography
- Pod igoto (1952)
- Un clair de lune à Maubeuge (1962)
- Cherchez l'idole (1963)
- D'où viens-tu, Johnny? (1964)
- Patate (1964)
- MalpertuisMalpertuis (film)Malpertuis is a 1971 Belgian fantasy-horror directed by Harry Kümel, based on the novel of the same name...
(1971) - L'ange noir (1994)
- Mausolée pour une garce (2001) (TV)