Eddy Mitchell, whose real name is Claude Moine, is a French singer and actor whose particularity is to have been the singer of the first French rock group "Les Chaussettes Noires".
From an early age, little Claude was fascinated by the rock and roll version of Elvis Presley, as well as by the Westerns, which he regularly saw at the movies with his father.
He took his first singing steps at the age of 15, singing in front of Crédit Lyonnais employees where he worked as a courier. But it is especially his adoration for singer Gene Vincent that will push him to embark on a career as a singer.
At the end of the 1950s, he began to perform in balls where he used standards of the time. First in a band called "Eddy Dane Et Les Danners", then "The Fives Rocks" which later turns into "Les Cinq Rocks". Which will occur regularly at Golf-Drouot.
He then takes the name Eddy Mitchell, Eddy in reference to actor Eddie Constantine and Mitchell because the name must sound American. His nickname “Schmoll” would come from the fact that taller than most of his friends, he called them “Small”. Pronounced in the French style, it will give its nickname.
Barclay signed the group in 1960 and the first Single was released a year later in 1961. It was Eddie Barclay himself who, unbeknownst to them, changed the name of the group to "Les Chaussettes Noires". Change for which the reason is simple : he has just signed an advertising contract with Stemm socks.
The group will continue the successes until 1962, when the singer is called up for the flag. The recordings of new songs are always done but more difficult. He also took the opportunity to record his first solo songs. The final separation from the group will take place a year later in 1963.
His first solo albums, even if they are rock oriented, show an evolution of the influences that the singer undergoes. Ditto in terms of clothing. This is how songs like the now famous "Toujours un coin qui me rappelle" came into being in 1964.
But success followed failure until the middle of the 1970s. So much so that Barclay even suggested that he reform Les Chaussettes Noires. Offer he declines.
Back in force and return to the roots at the end of the 70s with albums where rock becomes predominant again. But also with superb ballads such as "Sur la route de Menphis", "La dernière séance", even more melodramatic pieces like "Il ne rentre pas ce soir".
With these successes, the singer accentuates his crooning side in the early 80s and the result is impressive. He delivers 3 magnificent titles: "Couleur menthe à l'eau" in 1980, "Pauvre baby doll" in 1981 and "Le cimetière des éléphants" in 1982.
And the decade ended in style with more rock titles such as "Vieille canaille" in 1986 and "Leche boots blues" in 1989.
A rare singer to have lived through several decades without being out of fashion, he remains to this day one of the last legendary figures in the French musical landscape and has left some first-rate pieces of anthology in history.
To discover or rediscover...
Discography (among others ...) :
60s Decade :
Be bop a lula (Les Chaussettes Noires) 1961
Tu parles trop (Les Chaussettes Noires) 1961
Daniela (Les Chaussettes Noires) 1961
Mais reviens moi 1962
Je ne pense qu’à l’amour 1963
Chain gang 1963
Ma maitresse d’école 1964
Toujours un coin qui me rappelle 1964
S’il n’en reste qu’un 1965
J’ai oublié de l’oublier 1966
Je ne me retournerai pas 1967
Alice 1967
Je n’aime que toi 1968
Miss Caroline 1969
70s Decade :
C’est facile 1971
En revenant vers toi 1972
Soudain l’été 1973
Alice au pays des amours 1974
Pas de boogie woogie 1976
La fille du motel 1976
Sur la route de Memphis 1976
La dernière séance 1977
Il ne rentre pas ce soir 1978
Tu peux préparer le café noir 1979
80s Decade :
Couleur menthe à l’eau 1980
Pauvre baby doll 1981
Le cimetière des éléphants 1982
L’amour est vraiment fort 1983
Comme quand j’étais môme 1984
Vieille canaille 1985
Manque de toi 1986
Dans la peau d’une autre 1987
Leche bottes blues 1989
90s Decade :
Le baby blues 1990
Soixante soixante deux 1991
Rio Grande 1993
Te perdre 1994
Les tuniques bleues et les indiens 1996
Un portrait de Norman Rockwell 1996
Ça fait désordre 1997
J’aime pas les gens heureux 1999
Ton homme de paille 1999
Destination terre 1999
2000s Decade :
J'aime les interdits 2003
Le monde est trop petit 2003
Sur la route 66 2003
Ma nouvelle Orleans 2006
Comme la planète 2006
On veut des légendes 2006
Frappe aux portes du paradis 2009
Je t'appartiens 2009
Comme un étranger dans la ville 2009
2010s Decade :
Avoir 16 ans aujourd'hui 2010
L'esprit grande prairie 2010
Je suis vintage 2010
Premiers printemps 2013
La cour des grands 2013
Final cut 2013
Quelque chose a changé 2015
Tu ressembles à hier 2015
Si j'étais vous 2015
La même tribu 2017
M'man 2017
C'est facile 2018
2020s Decade :
Garde tes nerfs 2021
Un petit peu d'amour 2021
Droite dans ses bottes 2021
En décapotable Pontiac 2024
Tracks :
1961...a first experience in grouped mode for the young Claude, a most successful experience and which will project him to the front of the stage in a way that is, to say the least, resounding...
1961...an experience which will not last for years and years but which will at least have had the merit of presenting him to the whole of France...
1961...and which above all allowed him to achieve his first successes and not the least. An ideal start to a career, to say the least...
1962 ... finished "Les Chaussetes Noires", welcome to the solo career of the one who will become in a few decades one of the greatest singers of the end of the XXth century on the French side
1963 ... a solo career that starts off with a bang and sees him success after success. And that's just the beginning !
1963 ... a perfectly mastered Yéyé style which allows him to quickly establish himself as one of the essential figures of the movement
1964 ... another perfect example with this title which once again hits the mark. Year after year, title after title, the legend is built ...
1964 ... then comes THIS title. A luxury cover of Lou Johnson's title "Always something there to remind me" and which will propel him to heights he never even suspected existed
1965 ... each year now brings its share of very high caliber successes. A dynamic that is not about to end !
1966 ... a beautiful first foray into the Intimist. An area in which he will prove to be extremely effective ...
1967 ... the beginning of the Sixties in Dance Yéyé mode then backtracking completely. From now on, it is "With emotions" register at all costs !
1967 ... decidedly, it floats like a certain air of romanticism in this year 1967. And my faith, who will complain ...?
1968 ... a change of year which does not bring any change in truth. Everything is stable and...quiet !
1969 ... the tempo suddenly accelerates again. We suspected that the natural would come back at a gallop. History to end the decade in style !
1971 ... change of decade, change of style and sound. The metamorphosis is obvious and announces a beautiful sequel
1972 ... well, for the next beautiful thing, we will have to wait a few more years. The titles are always of quality but the singer navigates between two waters on the sound side : on one side, the 60s and on the other the 70s. You have to choose ...
1973 ... a new foray into the Intimist which was not enough to raise the bar. Let us leave time to time ...
1974 ... a relative crossing of the desert which will not last very long. The main thing is to believe it ...
1976 ... the rebirth. THE title that will change everything and allow the artist to make a shattering appeal on the front of the stage. HU-GE !
1976 ... a decidedly exceptional year when everything was once again successful for the artist. The successes follow one another at astonishing speed !
1976 ... the pass of 3 ! With a HUGE title that will surely remain as one of his most emblematic. In addition to a Country style totally out of step with the standards of the time ...
1977 ... and what about that one ! He signs here one of his most beautiful titles and always in Country mode, what daring ! A daring that pays off in any case !
1978 ... it's a flood of incredible hits that allow the artist to once again become one of the essential figures of the moment. For the 2nd time !
1979 ... new luxury cover and new major success. This time thanks to Arthur Alexander's title "Everyday I have to cry". Decidedly the covers bring him luck !
1980 ... another change of decade and here comes the WONDER, an absolutely sumptuous Ultimate Slow which will undoubtedly remain as one of the most beautiful titles of the decade on the French side. MA-GIC !
1981 ... a start to the 1980s which is confirmed by emotion and romanticism. Once again MA-GIC !
1982 ... he connects the WONDERS at an incredible speed ! An extraordinary inspiration for 2 years which allows him to produce songs that will very quickly become legendary
1983 ... and it continues ! The years go by, the Intimist hits follow one another. An incredible and well deserved longevity !
1984 ... a beautiful new title, which literally floats in the air and which once again takes us on board with disconcerting ease ...
1985 ... surely one of the most famous duets of the decade. When 2 of the biggest names in French song meet, the result is bound to be up to par !
1986 ... as paradoxical as it may seem, he had his greatest successes in the Intimist while at the base he is a pure and hard rocker ... Astonishing no !
1987 ... one of his rare hybrid tracks. Half rock half Intimist, to please everyone !
1989 ... a rock sound that he lacked, that's obvious. So back to the fundamentals through titles of more than certain quality
1990 ... he will have gone through the 60s, then the 70s, then the 80s. The 3 with obvious brio. And here he is, fresh as a roach, at the dawn of the 90's. What talent !
1991 ... still the same desire, even after 30 years of career. Few French singers of his generation can say the same ...
1993 ... another magnificent ballad. The ballad and the Ultimate Slow, 2 musical registers of which he will undoubtedly remain one of the very best representatives on the French side at the end of the 20th century
1994 ... do you want more ? Well, help yourself, with him, on the emotional side, it's always been open bar !
1996 ... admittedly, it does not know the same level of success as in the 70s and 80s. But he is still there and the titles he delivers largely hold water !
1996 ... melodies that hit the mark again and again, in a style that is so particular to him and that has allowed him to be always and again there !
1997 ... new proof with this highly inspired title, like many before it. All in finesse, all in softness, all in lightness. And always this Country base that he particularly likes ...
1999 ... a 4th decade that is closing, one more. Come on, this time, we can imagine that he will finally take a well-deserved retirement ... Oh no ! See you the following decade !
1999...a 90 decade which is not quite over anyway with a plethora of titles in this year 1999. Who says plethora of titles says obvious form...
1999... the singer crosses the years, just like the decades, in a remarkable way, it is the least that one can say. What talent !
2003...and here he is again the following decade. While most of the 'colleagues' who started at the same time as him disappeared from the radar a long time ago, in any case he is still there. Truly exceptional longevity !
2003...not only is he still there, but when you see the quality of what he continues to offer, you can only salute this truly extraordinary talent. In any case, we want more !
2003...especially since he in no way denies its Country fundamentals which he manages to mix perfectly with much more trendy sounds. Surely one of the very few to be able to achieve this real feat...
2006...the production of titles remains plethoric to say the least and frankly impresses with its overall quality. But how does he manage to constantly reinvent himself like that, only him can answer this question, that's for sure...
2006...who, apart from him in the 2000s, can afford to deliver titles like this. A unique model that younger generations should be inspired by when we see the truly exceptional duration of his career...
2006... when 2 legends decide to push the song together, the result can only be up to par. An Eddy and a Johnny in perfect osmosis necessarily...
2009...we find him 3 years later on an opus covering legendary titles. He revisits here Bob Dylan's 'Knockin' on heaven's door' from 1973, a nice revisited version but which will not bring much more than the original...
2009...it now revisits Gilbert Bécaud dating from 1955. As with the previous title, it's a nice tribute and the copy is of good quality but unfortunately won't surpass the original...
2009... here he tackles Fred Neil's 'Everybody's talkin' from 1968 and once again, his revisited version holds up. Just a good job...
2010...here he begins his 6th decade of career ! Who can in the French musical landscape of the 2010s say the same ? You should be able to count them on the fingers of one hand...
2010...and still this Country style which he loves and which will always remain his hallmark. He will have carried it through all eras and all worlds with a mastery that is impressive to say the least !
2010... what is certain is that knowing him, this decade 2010 will surely not be the last. Unless fate decides to get involved, but that's something else...
2013...in any case, for the moment, everything continues to unroll in an ideal way for him. He continues to exist at the highest level as he sees fit and above all according to a timing that is his own and not imposed...
2013... we take everything that comes from him in any case with a certain pleasure. Inspiration, melodic quality, a neo-vintage style that works perfectly, in short, everything is fine in the best of worlds...
2013...it is clear that he will never top the Charts again but he certainly has nothing to be ashamed of at what he continues to offer. A real feat for someone who started his career in the 60s...
2015...a 2010 decade where he exclusively enjoys himself and regardless of whether there is success or not. But if there is, it's even better necessarily !
2015...he explores musical lands that have not really been his in the past. On the other hand, it would be wrong not to try at least once...
2015...we are far, very far, from his basic Country universe. He explores here a jazzy mode which allows him to offer a different facet of his talent and we can only appreciate the desire to offer something new...
2017...and the adventure goes on and on. He allows himself here to revisit his own titles in the company of the gratin of French singers, all generations combined. A unique moment !
2017...thirty years separate this title from the original released in 1987. Here he revisits one of his most beautiful titles and offers us an even finer version, which does not spoil anything, quite the contrary...
2018...a pretty glamorous duo to bring one of its most emblematic titles up to date. Good job again, as always...
2021...we know that nothing is ever over. Until fate decides otherwise, he will continue forever and again...
2021...a 2020 decade during which there is therefore a risk of still having some nice surprises in store for us, that's clear. And who would really blame him for wanting to please us...
2021...the last title ? We know full well that this will not be the case and that there will be a sequel at one time or another. To be continued...
2024...
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Official Website :
Greatest Hits :
Discography :