Danielle Frida Hélène Boccara (29 October 1940 – 1 August 1996) was a Moroccan-born French singer of Italian descent, who performed and recorded in a number of languages, including French,

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and

Russian Russian(s) refers to anything related to Russia, including: *Russians (, ''russkiye''), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries *Rossiyane (), Russian language term for all citizens and peo ...

Early life

Boccara was born in

Casablanca Casablanca, also known in Arabic as Dar al-Bayda ( ar, الدَّار الْبَيْضَاء, al-Dār al-Bayḍāʾ, ; ber, ⴹⴹⴰⵕⵍⴱⵉⴹⴰ, ḍḍaṛlbiḍa, : "White House") is the largest city in Morocco and the country's econom ...

, Morocco, into a Jewish family of Italian origin that lived in

Tunisia ) , image_map = Tunisia location (orthographic projection).svg , map_caption = Location of Tunisia in northern Africa , image_map2 = , capital = Tunis , largest_city = capital , ...

before they settled in Morocco. When she was 17, she moved from Casablanca to Paris, France, where she eventually started her artistic career as a singer. Boccara also had a brother and a sister in show business, composers Jean-Michel Braque (born Roger Boccara) and Lina Boccara. Her son, Tristan Boccara, was born in the mid-1970s and also became a singer known as ''Goldinski'' (he is also a composer, pianist and arranger)

Career

In 1964, Boccara had submitted the song "Autrefois" ("In the past") to the

Eurovision Song Contest The Eurovision Song Contest (), sometimes abbreviated to ESC and often known simply as Eurovision, is an international songwriting competition organised annually by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU), featuring participants representing pr ...

selection panel, but she was unsuccessful. Five years later, at the

Eurovision Song Contest 1969 The Eurovision Song Contest 1969 was the 14th edition of the annual Eurovision Song Contest. It took place in Madrid, Spain, following the country's victory at the with the song "La, la, la" by Massiel. Organised by the European Broadcasting Uni ...

, held in Madrid, Spain, she represented France performing "

Un jour, un enfant "Un jour, un enfant" (; "A Day, a Child") is one of four winning songs in the Eurovision Song Contest 1969, this one being sung in French by Frida Boccara representing . The other three winners were Salomé representing with "Vivo cantando", L ...

" ("A day, a child") – with music by Émile Stern and text by

Eddy Marnay Edmond Bacri known by the professional name Eddy Marnay ( Algiers, 18 December 1920 – 3 January 2003), was a French songwriter. In his career, he wrote more than 4000 songs, including works for Édith Piaf, Frida Boccara and Céline Dion. H ...

. Her song shared first place along with the entries from the Netherlands, the UK, and Spain, the first and last time more than one country was declared winner. Songwriter Eddy Marnay was her professional partner (most of the songs performed by Boccara were written by him), but she also performed songs composed by

Jacques Brel Jacques Romain Georges Brel (, ; 8 April 1929 – 9 October 1978) was a Belgian singer and actor who composed and performed literate, thoughtful, and theatrical songs that generated a large, devoted following—initially in Belgium and France, l ...

Georges Brassens Georges Charles Brassens (; 22 October 1921 – 29 October 1981) was a French singer-songwriter and poet. As an iconic figure in France, he achieved fame through his elegant songs with their harmonically complex music for voice and guitar and a ...

Charles Aznavour Charles Aznavour ( , ; born Shahnour Vaghinag Aznavourian, hy, Շահնուր Վաղինակ Ազնավուրեան, ; 22 May 1924 – 1 October 2018) was a French-Armenian singer, lyricist, actor and diplomat. Aznavour was known for his dist ...

, Émile Stern,

Michel Legrand Michel Jean Legrand (; 24 February 1932 – 26 January 2019) was a French musical composer, arranger, conductor, and jazz pianist. Legrand was a prolific composer, having written over 200 film and television scores, in addition to many son ...

Michel Magne Michel Magne (20 March 1930 in Lisieux, Calvados, France – 19 December 1984 in Cergy-Pontoise, Val-d'Oise) was a French film and experimental music composer. Early life He was the fifth child in a family of eight. As young as age five, he ...

Nino Rota Giovanni Rota Rinaldi (; 3 December 1911 – 10 April 1979), better known as Nino Rota (), was an Italian composer, pianist, conductor and academic who is best known for his film scores, notably for the films of Federico Fellini and Luchino Visco ...

and

Mikis Theodorakis Michail "Mikis" Theodorakis ( el, Μιχαήλ "Μίκης" Θεοδωράκης ; 29 July 1925 – 2 September 2021) was a Greek composer and lyricist credited with over 1,000 works. He Film score, scored for the films ''Zorba the Greek (film) ...

. "Cent mille chansons" ("A hundred thousand songs") was recorded in 1968 and earned her a

gold disc Music recording certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped, sold, or streamed a certain number of units. The threshold quantity varies by type (such as album, single, music video) and by nation or territory (see ...

, while "Un jour, un enfant" (1969) earned her a

platinum disc Music recording certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped, sold, or streamed a certain number of units. The threshold quantity varies by type (such as album, single, music video) and by nation or territory (see ...

and "Pour vivre ensemble" ("To live together", 1971) earned her another gold. Other of her famous songs include "Cherbourg avait raison" (1961), "Aujourd'hui" (1965), " Le moulins de mon cœur" (1969), "L'enfant aux cymbales" (1969), "Belle du Luxembourg" (1969), "La croix, l'étoile et le croissant" (1970), "Venise va mourir" (1970), "Trop jeune ou trop vieux" (1971), "Valdemosa" (1976), "L'année où Piccoli jouait ''Le choses de la vie''" (1978), "Un monde en sarabande" (1979) and "La prière" (1979). In the late 1960s, she also recorded "Un pays pour nous", a song that was a French version of " Somewhere" (from the musical ''

West Side Story ''West Side Story'' is a musical conceived by Jerome Robbins with music by Leonard Bernstein, lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, and a book by Arthur Laurents. Inspired by William Shakespeare's play ''Romeo and Juliet'', the story is set in the mid-1 ...

'').

Leonard Bernstein Leonard Bernstein ( ; August 25, 1918 – October 14, 1990) was an American conductor, composer, pianist, music educator, author, and humanitarian. Considered to be one of the most important conductors of his time, he was the first America ...

, who composed the original melody, declared that Boccara's version was his favorite.

Later years and death

Boccara renewed her links with Eurovision by participating in the French national finals of – performing "Un enfant de France" – and – with "Voilà comment je t'aime". However, neither song was selected. She died in 1996 in Paris, France, aged 55, from a

pulmonary infection Lower respiratory tract infection (LRTI) is a term often used as a synonym for pneumonia but can also be applied to other types of infection including lung abscess and acute bronchitis. Symptoms include shortness of breath, weakness, fever, cou ...

, after a decline in health.

Discography

* 1959: ''"Baccara 9" n° 17'' (VA compilation, EP)—''Mes frères/ La chanson d'Orphée'' * 1960: ''L'orgue des amoureux''/''Le doux caboulot'' (super 45 RPM, Festival) * 1960: ''Verte campagne''/''Quand la valse est là''/''Le grand amour''/''Depuis ce temps-là'' (super 45 RPM, Festival) * 1961: ''La Seine à Paris''/''Les amours du samedi''/''Les Bohémiens''/''Jenny'' (super 45 RPM) * 1961: ''On n'a pas tous les jours 20 ans''/''Berceuse tendre''/''Les nuits''/''Les yeux de maman'' (super 45 RPM, Totem) * 1961: ''Cherbourg avait raison''/''Comme un feu''/''Un jeu dangereux''/''Tiens, c'est Paris'' (super 45 RPM, Festival) * 1962: ''Les trois mots''/''Aujourd'hui je fais la fête''/''Je veux chanter''/''Je ne peux plus attendre'' (super 45 RPM, Festival) * 1962: ''Le ciel du port''/''Les portes de l'amour''/''Ballade pour un poète''/''D'abord je n'ai vu'' (super 45 RPM, Festival) * 1962: ''Un premier amour''/''Bruxelles''/''L'homme de lumière''/''Les Pas'' (super 45 RPM, Festival) * 1962: ''Java des beaux dimanches''/''Les Javas''/''Rose de sang''/''Quien sabe'' (''Qui peut savoir'') (super 45 RPM, Festival) * 1963: ''Moi je n'avais pas compris''/''J'ai peur de trop t'aimer''/''On les a attendus''/''Rien a changé'' (super 45 RPM, Festival) * 1963: ''Souviens-toi des Noëls de là-bas''/''Donna''/''Johnny Guitar''/''Ballade pour notre amour'' (super 45 RPM, Festival) * 1964: ''Autrefois''/''Chaud dans mon cœur''/''Le souffle de ma vie''/''Je suis perdue'' (super 45 RPM, Festival) * 1965: ''Tous les enfants''/''Aujourd'hui''/''Plus jamais''/''Un jour'' (super 45 RPM, Festival) * 1967: ''Frida Boccara'' (1961–1965 compilation, 33 RPM, MusiDisc) * 1969: ''Un jour, un enfant'' (33 RPM, Philips) * 1969: ''Les vertes collines'' (33 RPM, Philips, only released in Brazil) * 1970: ''Au pays de l'arbre blanc'' (33 RPM, Philips) * 1971: ''Pour vivre ensemble'' (33 RPM, Philips) * 1971: ''Place des Arts 71'' (live in Montreal, double 33 RPM, Philips, reissued in CD format in 2006 only in Canada) * 1971: ''So ist das Leben''/''Er wird dir dankbar sein'' (45 RPM, Polydor, only released in Germany) * 1972: ''Rossini et Beaumarchais'' (33 RPM, Philips) * 1972: ''Greatest Hits'' (compilation, 33 RPM, Philips, only released in the Netherlands) * 1974: ''Je me souviens'' ("Mia malinconia" and "Je me souviens", instrumental version, from '' Amarcord'' by

Federico Fellini Federico Fellini (; 20 January 1920 – 31 October 1993) was an Italian film director and screenwriter known for his distinctive style, which blends fantasy and baroque images with earthiness. He is recognized as one of the greatest and most i ...

, 45 RPM, Deram) * 1975: ''Oriundi'' (33 RPM, London) * 1976: ''Valdemosa – Oublier'' (33 RPM, Philips) * 1978: ''An Evening With Frida Boccara'' (live at

Dallas Brooks Hall Dallas Brooks Hall was an Australian events venue in East Melbourne, Victoria (Australia), Victoria. Built in 1969, the building was named after the 19th Governor of Victoria, Dallas Brooks. It was designed by the architecture firm Godfrey and Sp ...

, Melbourne, 2 LP, Philips) * 1978: ''L'année où Piccoli jouait "Les choses de la vie"'' (33 RPM, Philips) * 1979: ''Un monde en sarabande'' (33 RPM, Philips) * 1980: ''Un enfant de France''/''Écrit dans la pierre'' (45 RPM, Philips) * 1983: ''Dis-leur''/''Aime-moi'' (45 RPM, Kébec-Disc in Canada and Ariola in France) * 1984: ''Cent mille chansons'', Série grandes vedettes (33 RPM compilation, Philips) * 1988: ''Témoin de mon amour'' (33 RPM, Productions Guy Cloutier, only released in Canada) * 1989: ''Expression'' (CD compilation, Polygram, 23 tracks) * 1993: ''Master série'' (CD compilation, Polygram, 16 tracks, only released in Québec) * 1994: ''Un jour, un enfant'' (CD compilation, Spectrum Music / Karussell France) * 1997: ''Frida Boccara'' (CD compilation, Podis / Polygram France, 23 tracks) * 1999: ''Un jour on vit'' (CD, Disques Yvon Chateigner) * 1999: ''Ses premiers succès'' (CD compilation, Disques Yvon Chateigner) * 2003: ''Canta en español'' (CD compilation, Divucsa Music SA, only released in Spain) * 2005: ''Live Place-des-Arts de Montréal'' (CD, XXI-21 / Universal Canada, only released in Canada) * 2006: ''Un sourire au-delà du ciel'' (CD, Édina Music – Nocturne) * 2007: ''La grande Frida Boccara, l'ultime compilation'' (CD compilation, XXI-21 / Universal Canada, 25 tracks, only released in Canada) * 2008: ''Un enfant de France'' (CD, Édina Music – Nocturne) * 2010: ''Les grandes années – 1972–1988'' (three-CD box set, Marianne Mélodie) * 2010: ''Collection chanson française'' (CD compilation, Disques Mercury)

External links

*
The Biography of Frida Boccara at "Blog Officiel de Frida Boccara"

The Discography of Frida Boccara at Discogs.com

Spanish Discography of Frida Boccara

The Grave of Frida Boccara: Cimetière parisien de Bagneux – 63ème division

Site officiel d'Eddy Marnay

{{DEFAULTSORT:Boccara, Frida 1940 births 1996 deaths 20th-century French Jews 20th-century French women singers Burials at the Cimetière parisien de Bagneux Deaths from respiratory tract infection Dutch-language singers English-language singers from France Eurovision Song Contest entrants of 1969 Eurovision Song Contest winners Eurovision Song Contest entrants for France French jazz singers French people of Italian-Jewish descent German-language singers Italian-language singers Musicians from Casablanca People of Tuscan descent Philips Records artists Pieds-Noirs Russian-language singers Spanish-language singers of France UNICEF Goodwill Ambassadors Jewish jazz musicians