Ringo (singer)

Last updated

Ringo
Birth nameGuy Bayle
Born (1947-05-11) 11 May 1947 (age 76)
OriginToulouse, Occitanie, France
Genres Pop music
Occupation(s)Singer
Years active1972–early 1980s

Ringo (born Guy Bayle 11 May 1947, [1] in Toulouse, Occitanie, France), [2] also known as Ringo Willy Cat is a French pop singer who became famous in the 1970s. [1] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] According to Billboard magazine he "enjoyed a huge amount of sales" with various hits. [8] Ringo was cited by Billboard as an example of a French artist having a big impact in exporting French songs to the international arena and creating international hits despite the language barrier which French artists face abroad. [8] He was married to Sheila, a female French singer. [3] [9] Ringo's career ended in the mid–'80s. [2] [10]

Contents

Early life

Ringo, during his high-school years in Toulouse, enjoyed reading Albert Camus as well as literary works by other authors. He also wrote and performed songs and played the guitar. As a composer he was influenced by the American music of the era. In the late '60s he met musician Pierre Groscolas and the two formed the group Chœurs. After some initial success in Toulouse, the group decided to go to Paris. [2]

Music career

Ringo was discovered in Paris by Mario Padovan, a photographer and publisher of teen-girl magazines Nous Deux and Télé Poche who suggested to the young artist that he appear in one of his magazines. It was during a photo shoot at Padovan's magazines that Ringo met his future wife, Sheila. Meeting her led to his being introduced to Claude Carrère, who became the manager of his musical career. [2]

Carrère, a pioneer, who at the time, was France's most successful independent producer, launched Ringo's career in 1971. His first big hit under Carrère's management was Elle, je ne veux qu’elle. [2] Carrère wanted to capture the teenage market before they were attracted by established stars. [11] Carrère augmented his distribution network by entering into a deal with Sonopresse in 1972. [12] Under the deal, he released his first two discs under the Sonopresse label, one of which was Trop Belle Pour Rester Seule by Ringo. At the time, he also sang Help, Get Me Some Help in French, selling over one million records in France. [12] He also sang a rendition of the international hit, "Mamy Blue", by Los Pop Tops. [13]

Both Ringo and Sheila were managed by Carrère. In a 1974 interview to Billboard, Carrère mentioned that the wedding of Sheila and Ringo was attended by 15,000 people at the city hall and "resembled a royal wedding". [14] In the 1970s, Ringo sold 30 million records with hits such as Elle, je ne veux qu'elle, Ma jalousie, Les Oiseaux de Thaïlande, Rosanna fille sauvage and Goodbye Elvis. In 1973, his single Ma jalousie was featured in Billboard's Hits of the World in Belgium's and Switzerland's top 10 at No. 7, while his LP Ringo was at No. 8 in Belgium. [15] [16] With his then-wife Sheila, he also recorded a duet, Les gondoles à Venise, which became a big hit. [3] In 1980, he discontinued his association with Carrère and produced Allô à l'OVNI, followed by L'ange exterminateur (L'Antéchrist) in 1982. [2] These were followed in 1983 by J'ai toujours besoin d'amour, with Une star s'endort ainsi on the flip–side, his last records. [2]

To this date, there has been no compilation of his hits in CD format. [2]

Business career

In 1985, he opened City Rock Café in Paris, which closed in 1993. [2] Soon after, he left France for Florida and then after some years he returned to Toulouse, [3] where in 2001 he opened an American-nostalgia themed restaurant named Jim Mc Mahon's world famous cafe with his current wife Annick who also functioned as the acting artistic director of the place at the time. [2] [3] Ringo planned to decorate the restaurant with iconic artifacts from the 1950s such as a likeness of Marilyn Monroe in the subway scene, the Creature from the Black Lagoon and the Curtiss-Wright X-19 experimental aircraft, which he wanted to import from the United States. The Toulouse restaurant was to be part of a national chain. [3] In early 2000 this restaurant closed as well. [2]

Personal life

In 1975, he and Sheila had a son named Ludovic Chancel, who became a writer. [10] After the couple were divorced in 1977, [2] Ringo rarely, if ever, saw his son. [2] [10] In 1981, Ringo married Annick, his second wife. [2] In 2005, Chancel published an autobiography entitled Fils de in which, among other things, he relates the details of his upbringing and his relationship with his parents. [10] [17] In 1982, Ringo sold his biography to France Dimanche . [2] Ludovic died in 2017, leaving behind his daughter, Tara Rose (b. 2001)

Discography

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Claude Nougaro</span> French jazz singer (1929–2004)

Claude Nougaro was a French jazz singer and poet.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sheila (French singer)</span> French singer (born 1945)

Sheila is a French pop singer who became successful as a solo artist in the 1960s and 1970s, and was also part of the duo Sheila & Ringo with her husband singer Ringo. She also fronted a disco act called Sheila and B. Devotion. Her stage name came from the title of her first release, a French cover version of "Sheila", a hit by Tommy Roe.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jean Lefebvre</span> French film actor

Jean Marcel Lefebvre was a French film actor.

Gilles Marchal, born Gilles Pastre, was a French songwriter and singer who reached the height of his career during the 1970s.

Robert Goldman is a French songwriter. He was born in Paris, the son of Alter Mojze Goldman and Ruth Ambrunn who were Jewish Resistance fighters during the Second World War. He is the younger brother of Jean-Jacques Goldman and half-brother of Pierre Goldman.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pascal Danel</span> French singer

Jean-Jacques Pascal known professionally as Pascal Danel is a French pop singer and composer.

Jean-Claude Brisseau was a French filmmaker best known for his 2002 film Secret Things and his 2006 film The Exterminating Angels.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Carrere Records</span> French record label

Carrere Records was a French record label which specialized in Euro disco and rock music. The record company was sold to Warner Music Group in the early 1990s.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Frédéric François</span> Musical artist

Frédéric François, is a French-speaking singer-composer living in Belgium.

Marc Liénart van Lidth de Jeude, known professionally as Art Sullivan, was a Belgian singer. He was successful in many countries, including Belgium, France, Portugal and Germany. Art Sullivan sold ten million records between 1972 and 1978. Compilations of his hits are still released.

Les Chats Sauvages was a French rock and roll band, that was formed in 1961. Together with Les Chaussettes Noires, they were among the first outfits to perform rock and roll music in France.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">C. Jérôme</span> French singer

Claude Dhotel, better known by his stage name C. Jérôme, was a French singer.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Michèle Torr</span> French singer and author (born 1947)

Michèle Torr is a French singer and author, best known in non-Francophone countries for her participation in the Eurovision Song Contest for Luxembourg in 1966 and for Monaco in 1977.

Sheila and B. Devotion was a disco group fronted by French singer Sheila between 1977 and 1980. This formation briefly reached popularity in Europe and to a lesser extent in the US club circuit during the disco era. The group recorded two albums before dissolving in 1980, when Sheila returned to her solo career.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sébastien El Chato</span> French singer and guitarist

Jean-Sébastien Abaldonato better known as Sébastien El Chato is a French singer and guitar player of Romani origin. He is based in Paris and has had a long string of albums since 1976.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Christophe (singer)</span> French musician (1945–2020)

Daniel Bevilacqua, better known by the stage name Christophe, was a French singer and songwriter. He was born in the Paris suburb of Juvisy-sur-Orge, to an Italian father.

Anne Renée is a Canadian pop singer who rose to fame in Quebec in the 1970s.

Lucky Blondo is a French singer who was popular in the 1960s.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Adiós Amor (Sheila song)</span> 1967 single by Sheila

"Adiós Amor" is a 1967 hit French-language song by French singer Sheila. It was one of the series of four hit singles in 1967 which made her best-selling artist of the year. Lyrics were by Jacques Plante, music by Claude Carrère and the recording was produced by American Sam Clayton. The song begins "Je ressens de l'amour pour toi."

References

  1. 1 2 "Ringo" . Retrieved 11 October 2011.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 D'Alguerre, Benjamin. "Bio of Willy Cat from music-story.com through Internet Archive". Archived from the original on 7 April 2015. Retrieved 25 February 2016.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Bernard Lescure. "Ringo ouvre un restaurant à Toulouse". La Dépêche du Midi. Retrieved 11 October 2011.
  4. ↑ "Issues 1337–1345". Le Point. 1998. p. 206.
  5. ↑ Chalvidant, Jean; Hervé Mouvet (2001). La belle histoire des groupes de rock français des années 60. Fernand Lanore. p. 95. ISBN   2-85157-219-9 . Retrieved 11 October 2011.
  6. ↑ "Issues 2452–2464". L'Express. 1998. p. 57.
  7. ↑ Robine, Marc; Fred Hidalgo (2004). Il était une fois la chanson française: des trouvères à nos jours. Fayard. pp. 95, 130. ISBN   2-213-61910-7 . Retrieved 11 October 2011.
  8. 1 2 "High Tax on Records p. 48; French Talent: The Language Barrier Still Persists p. 49". Billboard. 14 July 1973. pp. 48–49.
  9. ↑ Un sang d'encre. Editions Le Manuscrit. 1982. p. 32. ISBN   2-7481-2111-2 . Retrieved 11 October 2011.
  10. 1 2 3 4 "Ludovic Chancel Ecrivain français". 1975. Retrieved 11 October 2011.
  11. ↑ Mike Hennessey (12 August 1978). "The French Revolution". Billboard.
  12. 1 2 "Carrere Distib Network Via A Sonopresse Link". Billboard. 17 June 1972.
  13. ↑ "Sonopresse~Constant Expansion". Billboard. 8 July 1972. p. 39.
  14. ↑ "Carrere's Hit-Packed Career". Billboard. 25 May 1974. p. 56.
  15. ↑ "Hits of the World". Billboard. 24 February 1973. p. 45.
  16. ↑ "Hits of the World". Billboard. 27 January 1973.
  17. ↑ Chancel, Ludovic (2005). Fils de. Flammarion. ISBN   2-08-068792-1.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.