In Memoriam: Christophe, already five years without the dandy artist

Like Manu Dibango, Meat Loaf and many others, Christophe is among the artists who were taken by the Covid pandemic. It was five years ago already...

Daniel Bevilacqua, known as Christophe, was born on 13 October 1945, to a heating engineer father and a mother who was a seamstress at Balmain. At the age of ten, he was already passionate about French music, especially influenced by Edith Piaf. He also developed a great fascination for US culture, mesmerised by rock'n roll from Elvis Presley and the aura of James Dean. Driven by these passions and more inclined to dream of his future career than succeed at school, he learned how to play harmonica and the guitar.

He embarked on a solo career in the mid-60s under the name Christophe, in homage to a Saint Christopher medal given to him by his grandmother. His early tracks went unnoticed, including "Reviens Sophie". It was another female name that brought him success with "Aline", in 1965. The name of his dentist's assistant seems to have inspired the song which sold more than 3.5 million copies worldwide. The legend doesn't say whether a romance was born from it. Several hits followed, notably "Marionnettes" and "Excusez-moi Monsieur le professeur".

At the time, the amateur racing driver perfected his dandy lover look, growing his moustache and his blonde hair, which he slicked behind his signature dark glasses. A fashion fan, he once dreamed of becoming a model: "I showed up at Pierre Cardin's wearing a Levi's 501, white socks and Weston loafers," he recalls.

Another essential hit was "Les mots bleus" released about a decade later. Written by his friend (then unknown to the general public) Jean-Michel Jarre, the lyrics speak of the difficulty in expressing one's feelings. "I should really talk to her" is still belted out by karaoke enthusiasts.

The following years saw the release of several albums, such as "Le beau bizarre" or "Succès fou". The singer, a fan of poker, also devoted himself to his collection of jukeboxes, cars, and rare records. "At the beginning of my success, instead of saving, like a reasonable guy, I splashed it all on cars!" he confessed.

In 1996, the album "Bevilacqua", recorded at home, placed great emphasis on the lyrics written for the first time by the singer. In 2002, he returned to the stage after more than 27 years of absence, gracing the Olympia. In 2013, Christophe echoed his 1979 "Paradis Perdus" by unveiling "Paradis retrouvé", a compilation of thirteen unreleased tracks. In total, 17 studio albums marked his career, culminating in his last album "Les vestiges du chaos" in 2016, which was followed by two compilations.

He gave his last concert in 2020, just before the pandemic, and passed away the same year, at the age of 74. Since then, several documentaries have continued to pay homage to him, such as "Christophe, définitivement", which was followed by... a giant karaoke session!

(MH with Céline Massart - Photo: © Etienne Tordoir)

Photo: Christophe on the set of the TV show "Chansons à la carte" in Brussels (Belgium) in 1983