Patrick Juvet

Patrick Juvet (1976)

Patrick Juvet (born August 21, 1950 in Montreux , † between March 29 and April 1, 2021 in Barcelona ) was a Swiss singer , pianist and songwriter . He has composed almost all of his songs himself and has recorded numerous records in the fields of chanson , disco and pop .

Life

Juvet began in France in the 1970s as a chanteur à minettes, as a singing, blonde heartthrob . His first hit, La musica , was released in several languages ​​and in eleven countries. When he replaced the disqualified Monica Morell at the Eurovision de la Chanson Grand Prix in 1973 for Switzerland and ended up in one of the lower ranks, his career across Europe seemed to be over. Not so in France: there Juvet was initially seen as the answer to teen idol David Cassidy , whose scandalous pose he recreated on the cover of Rolling Stone for a youth magazine. He not only borrowed music from British glam rock ( David Bowie , T. Rex ), he also appeared in sequins and makeup and called himself bisexual. He achieved his breakthrough to superstar at the end of 1973 with a sensational appearance at the Paris Olympia , which was part of the Musicorama series on the popular radio station Europe No. 1 and was released a little later as a record. Juvet recorded the ambitious concept album Chrysalide with his background singer Daniel Balavoine , while his catchy romantic hits continued to be popular with the public. Le lundi au soleil from his pen became a huge hit for Claude François .

The change of image then succeeded in collaboration with Jean Michel Jarre , who wrote the lyrics for the following two LPs and was responsible for the production. Recorded with well-known studio musicians (including Lee Ritenour , Klaus Voormann ) in American studios, Juvet's repertoire now included both ballads and dance numbers such as Où sont les femmes?, A classic of French-language disco music.

Juvet achieved its greatest commercial success and worldwide fame in 1978 with the English I Love America (label Pye Records ). In more than 15 countries, including the USA and Great Britain, it made the hit parades. The production carried the concise signature of the disco veterans Jacques Morali and Henri Belolo ( Village People , Ritchie Family ) and showed little of Juvet's talent as a composer. The following LP Lady Night (with a cover by Andy Warhol photographer Christopher Makos ) only sold well in Europe and is now considered a real gem of trash.

Juvet at the 54th Cannes Film Festival (2001)

By the end of the disco wave, Juvet was burned out and struggling with drug and alcohol problems. A concept album between mainstream and bombast rock flopped. For his return to French pop on Rêves Immoraux attributed to him Pierre Grillet , Nicolas Peyrac and Jean-Loup Dabadie the lyrics. But even with this LP, produced by Queen producer David Richards , Juvet could no longer build on its earlier successes. Several attempts at comeback with occasional single releases in the 1980s failed. For his last album to date, Juvet received prominent support from Marc Lavoine , Luc Plamondon and Françoise Hardy in 1991 , but sales fell far short of expectations.

He received more attention during the disco revival in the mid-1990s. Since then Juvet has played a medley of his hits mainly through the French provinces and occasionally through TV shows.

In his autobiography, Juvet revealed his unrequited love for Jean Michel Jarre . Previously, a failed relationship with Hollywood actress Melanie Griffith had repeatedly been the subject of the gossip press.

Juvet died at the age of 70. On April 1, 2021, it was announced that he had been found dead in an apartment in Barcelona. An autopsy was ordered. He last lived in Paris, but occasionally went to Barcelona or Switzerland.

Trivia

The French punk band Les Wampas released a mocking song for Patrick Juvet in 2000 ; In 2003, Juvet appeared in her video Manu Chao .

Discography

Albums:

• La musica (1973)
• Love (1973)
• PJ vous raconte son rêve - Olympia 1973 (1974)
• Chrysalid (1974)
• Mort ou vif (1976)
• Paris By Night (1977)
• Got a Feeling - I Love America (1978)
• Lady Night (1979)
• The story of Laura M (1979, soundtrack)
• "Live" (1980)
• Still Alive (1981)
• Rêves immoraux (1982)
• Solitudes (1991)

Compilations / best-ofs:

• Master Série (1988)
• Best Of (1995)
• Best of Disco (2000)
• L'essentiel (2002)

Autobiography

• Les bleus au cœur, 2005

Web links

Commons : Patrick Juvet  - Collection of Images

• Patrick Juvet at Discogs
• Patrick Juvet on Myspace

Footnotes

1. ↑ ^{a b} Patrick Juvet est mort: l'interprète de "Où sont les femmes" avait 70 ans. In: huffingtonpost.fr. April 1, 2021, accessed April 1, 2021 (French). 
2. ↑ Patrick Juvet - I Love America. In: Discogs.com