Henri Salvador
Henri Salvador (born July 18, 1917 in Sinnamary , French Guiana , † February 13, 2008 in Paris ) was a French chansonnier , guitarist and television presenter. He also worked as a comedian, publisher, musician and actor. Salvador was one of the founders of French rock 'n' roll and shaped the cultural life of France for many decades.
Life
Henri Salvador was born on July 18, 1917 in French Guiana to Caribbean parents. His father, Clovis, was of Spanish descent and his maternal grandmother, Antonine Paterne, was from the Caribbean. He had two siblings. When he was seven, Salvador's parents moved to Paris, where he met jazz musicians Louis Armstrong and Duke Ellington in his early teens . Since then, his career aspirations were clear. Against the resistance of his parents, who had envisaged a down-to-earth legal career for him, Henri Salvador wanted to become a musician.
From the beginning Salvador showed extraordinary musical talent. Initially devoted to the violin and the trumpet, he discovered his passion for the guitar at the age of 16 and was able to master it on the instrument in a very short time. After guest appearances in various jazz combos, Salvador's comedic talent made him acquainted with the violinist Eddie South in 1936 , which ended in a joint appearance. Subsequently, Salvador got to know his great idol Django Reinhardt and worked for a short time as an accompanying musician with him on tours. He worked closely with Boris Vian .
A short time later, the looming war in Europe also cast its shadow over the career of Henri Salvador. In 1937 he enlisted in the army for four years, where he served until 1941. He finally fled to unoccupied France and from there to Spain. In Ray Ventura's band , he toured South America until the end of the war and returned to France in 1945, where he began a career as a solo musician.
Salvador brought new rhythms with him from South America, which pushed the influence of his great role model Django Reinhardt into the background and helped him to develop his own style. His first 7 ″ records appeared in 1947 and paved the way for one of the greatest classics from Salvador's pen: “Le Loup, La Biche Et Le Chevalier (Une Chanson Douce)” from 1949.
In the 1950s, Salvador again showed its versatility. At the beginning of the decade he was still a regular guest on the stages of France, he gave his first guest appearance in the United States in 1955. The music lover was immediately caught up in the breaking rock'n'roll hype, so that after appearing on the Ed Sullivan Show and returning to France, he became one of the pioneers of rock'n'roll.
Together with his songwriting partner Boris Vian, Salvador introduced the French to the new grooves under the pseudonym Henry Cording . The collaboration between the two lasted until Vian's death in 1959. In the short time, the duo composed over 400 songs. The following decade became the most popular of Henri Salvador's. The starting shot was given by the live album “Alhambra” from 1960, which was followed by numerous hit singles on Salvador's newly founded label Disques Salvador .
" Le Lion Est Mort Ce Soir " from 1962 is one of his greatest hits as is "Syracuse" or " Juanita Banana ", both of which were released on Salvador's Rigolo label , which he started with his wife Jacqueline. TV shows in Italy and France made the fun-loving French a star on the TV screen before he made a name for himself as a successful singer of children's songs in the 1970s. The Disney soundtracks for “Robin Hood” and “Pinocchio” were set to music at this time. From 1975 he hosted a show on French television. He discovered Keren Ann and Art Mengo .
In 1979 Salvador revived the time with Vian in the form of the long player "Salvador / Vian" and returned to the stage in 1982, which his album "Live du Spectacle De La Porte De Pantin" impressively documents. Salvador's newly awakened stage and recording activity reached its preliminary climax in 1996 in a duet with Ray Charles . After a four-year break, the 80-year-old bon vivant returned in 2000 with the successful album “Chambre Avec Vue” and in 2004 gave his fans an impression of his youthful stage presence on the DVD “Bonsoir Amis” in spite of his old age.
With his album "Chambre Avec Vue" (2000) he experienced a comeback at the age of 80 and made himself known to the younger generation. With many talented young songwriters at his side, Salvador brought together South American bossa rhythms, jazzy swing, French chansons and light pop and won the hearts of music lovers around the world. With its Mediterranean entertainer charm, Salvador hit a nerve similar to that of the musicians of the Buena Vista Social Club with their songs.
After receiving the gold award for Chambre Avec Vue, he embarked on an extensive tour that took him from France through all of Europe, Canada, the USA and Brazil to the Caribbean. In between he recorded the album Ma Chère Et Tendre , which repeated the success of Chambre Avec Vue and earned him the appointment of Commander of the Legion of Honor - an honor that is bestowed on very few personalities outside the military.
In 2005 he received the Brazilian Order of Honor for Cultural Merit, which was presented to him by the singer and Minister of Culture Gilberto Gil and the Brazilian President Lula. The prize was intended to recognize his influence on Brazilian culture, especially bossa nova.
In 2006 Salvador released a new album. In “Révérence” he showed his deep affection for Brazil, the album was partly recorded there. Guest musicians included Gilberto Gil and Caetano Veloso .
Award
In 1996 he received the Rose d'Or honorary award for life's work.
Discography (selection)
- Chambre Avec Vue (2000) (FR:
diamond, CH: 
gold, BE: 
platinum) - Zorro Est Arrivé (2001)
- Performance! (2002) (FR:gold)
- Chanson Douce (2003)
- Ma Chère Et Tendre (2003) (FR: gold)
- Bonsoir Amis (video album, 2004) (FR: gold)
- Révérence (2006)
literature
- Henri Salvador: Attention ma vie , autobiography Éditions Jean-Claude Lattès, Paris 1994, 314 pp. ISBN 2709614987 (French).
- Véronique Mortaigne: Henri Salvador , Le Monde, February 15, 2008, p. 21 (French).
swell
Web links
- Works by and about Henri Salvador in the catalog of the German National Library
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Salvador, Henri |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | French chansonnier, guitarist and television presenter |
| DATE OF BIRTH | July 18, 1917 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Sinnamary |
| DATE OF DEATH | February 13, 2008 |
| Place of death | Paris |