GILBERT BECAUD Rare OLYMPIA '77 LP OOP France PATHE

GILBERT BECAUD OLYMPIA 77 LPCategory / Style / Moods: Vocal * French Pop * Cabaret Moods Instruments * Ironic * Intimate * Sentimental * Sweet * Romantic * Vocals * Composer24.77 / FP asocc1977 FRANCE PATHE EMI LPTITLE: OLYMPIA 77ARTIST: GILBERT BECAUDCONDITIONCOVER: VGVINYL: VG+ OR BETTERClick here for info on grading and abbreviationsRARE!Click the pix for a better view TRACKS: Disc: 1 Biography by Steve Huey Known as "Monsieur 100,000 Volts" for his dynamic stage presence, Gilbert B�caud was one of France's most popular singers during the 1950s and '60s, and enjoyed a career of more than four decades in show business. B�caud is best known for his 1961 smash "Et Maintenant," which became a pop standard in the English-speaking world after it was translated as "What Now My Love." He was also an occasional film actor, a highly successful songwriter with over 150 credits, and an ambitious composer who completed a Christmas cantata, an opera, and a Broadway stage musical. But his primary impact came as a singer. In an era when cabaret vocalists remained largely stationary on-stage, B�caud's energetic showmanship drove his audiences into a frenzy, as they strove to match his boundless enthusiasm. He became a regular presence at Paris' legendary Olympia concert theater, where he performed over 30 times -- more than any other artist. A notoriously heavy smoker, B�caud succumbed to lung cancer in 2001, but kept performing almost right up to the end. B�caud was born Fran�ois Gilbert L�opold Silly on October 24, 1927, in the Mediterranean port city of Toulon, France. He developed quickly as a pianist, and by age nine, he was already studying at the Conservatoire de Nice. His education was interrupted by World War II, and he left school in 1942 to join his family in Albertville and work for the French Resistance movement. After the war, the family settled in Paris, and the 20-year-old Fran�ois began playing piano in cabarets and nightclubs. Around the same time, he also started composing music for films under the name Fran�ois B�caud, and also met songwriter Maurice Vidalin, who sparked his interest in writing pop songs in the traditional chanson style. In 1948, B�caud started penning material for singer Marie Bizet; through her, he met songwriter Pierre Delano�, who would join B�caud and Vidalin to forge a highly successful creative partnership.In 1950, B�caud took a job as touring pianist for singer Jacques Pills, another connection made through Bizet. While on tour in America, the two met legendary singer Edith Piaf, and wrote her a hit song, "Je T'Ai Dans la Peau." Pills and Piaf married, and B�caud served as Piaf's accompanist and manager for a short time. In 1952, he changed his stage name to Gilbert B�caud, made his performing debut as a singer, got married, and made important songwriting connections with Louis Amade and the young Charles Aznavour. Thanks in part to Piaf's advocacy, B�caud got the chance to record as a singer, and cut his first two singles -- "Mes Mains" and "Les Croix" -- in 1953; the songs were written by Delano� and Amade, respectively, and helped establish B�caud as an up-and-coming talent. In early 1954, B�caud made his first appearance at the Olympia concert hall, serving as a supporting act on the night of its reopening. He returned as a headliner in February 1955 and delivered an exciting, star-making performance at which the teenage crowd went wild and started ripping the seats out of the theater. The stir captured the imagination of the French press, who nicknamed B�caud "Monsieur 100,000 Volts"; all the publicity effectively catapulted him into the front rank of French singers.B�caud scored numerous hits over the remainder of the '50s, including "La Corrida" (1956), "Les March�s de Provence" (1957), "Le Jour o� la Pluie Viendra" (1957; written with Delano�), and "C'est Merveilleux l'Amour" (1958), among others. Additionally, "Le Jour o� la Pluie Viendra" was adapted into "The Day the Rains Came," and recorded for a chart-topping U.K. hit by Jane Morgan in 1958. This exquisite piece of retro music history is a vinyl sound recording (not a CD). Please visit the A Sound Deal store for similar items and information on grading and shipping. Add me to your favorites for red hot sales bulletins and sneak previews of upcoming products. Combine Items to Save $$$! Click here to check the store for more!�A Sound Deal