The ‘French Elvis,’ Johnny Hallyday dies
Johnny Hallyday, whose death at 74 was announced by both his wife and the French pres ident on Wednesday, was a rock and roll giant in his native France and survived drug use, family strife and near-death episodes to strut the stage for more than fifty years.
Hallyday, with his cowboy swagger and gravelly voice, was a “French Elvis” for hundreds of millions of followers, mostly if not all in his native country, where he sold more records than any other singer.
He had been fighting lung cancer, and also preparing yet another album recording and stage tour.
News of his death after weeks of frenzied speculation about his health, set social networks alight with tributes from fans, politicians and celebrities.
“For more than 50 years, he was a vibrant icon,” President Emmanuel Macron’s office said in a statement.
French-Canadian singer Celine Dion posted a Twitter message saying she was very saddened to hear of his death. “He was a giant in show business ... a true icon,” she said.
A walking monument, he had the star power to fill the 80,000-seat Stade de France and drew a crowd of more than 750,000 when he once held a free concert near the Eiffel Tower on France’s Bastille Day national holiday.
In 2012, Hallyday performed in Israel at the Nokia Arena in Tel Aviv. In an interview with The Jerusalem Post at the time, Hallyday talked about why he changed his mind and returned to the stage after various health scares: “Death, I started thinking about death, and that as long as I have the chance to keep making music while I’m alive, I’m going to do it. It helps keep me feeling young.”
Hallyday also starred in several movies and used his image, and steely blue eyes, to earn extra revenue from advertisements for sunglasses.
He was something of a contradiction, as a star who forged his career recycling rock gems such as The Animals’ version of “House of the Rising Sun” or Jimi Hendrix’s “Hey Joe” in a country that has a legal limit on the amount of English music played on the radio. He once claimed to have been born in Oklahoma.
“He introduced a slice of America in our national Pantheon,” said the statement from Macron’s office.
Born Jean-Philippe Leo Smet in Paris in 1943 to Huguette Clerc and Belgian-born Leon Smet, the young Johnny was raised by his aunt Helene Mar when his parents split up.
The defining moment in his career came when he saw Elvis Presley in the film Loving You, an experience that prompted him to restyle his image, adopting the hip shake that would characterize legions of rock stars on both sides of the Atlantic.
As Johnny Hallyday, he released his first single, “T‘aimer Follement” (To Love You Madly), at 16, and then set about bringing his own brand of rock to an avid French youth emerging from the austerity of the post-war era.
His music and wild stage antics sparked rioting and hysteria, and the leather-clad, Harley Davidson-loving rocker soon became famed for his hard living and self-destructive streak as much as for his chart-topping albums.
Partying, drugs, alcohol and dark tobacco, the latter apparently adopted on the advice of rock icon Keith Richards, all took their toll, carving out the husky voice and craggy face that were to become his trademark.
– Reuters David Brinn contributed to this report