Les Variations was a French
rock
Rock most often refers to:
* Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids
* Rock music, a genre of popular music
Rock or Rocks may also refer to:
Places United Kingdom
* Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...
band from the late 1960s to mid-1970s, that sang in
English
English usually refers to:
* English language
* English people
English may also refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England
** English national ide ...
and was known for its
rock guitar
The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected str ...
-
based music. Its
three members were
born in
Morocco
Morocco (),, ) officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is the westernmost country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It overlooks the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria t ...
and were of
Jewish origin. They were France's first band to headline the famed
Olympia Theatre, the first to tour America, the first to sign with a US label and the first to achieve hit records in America. On their last two albums, ''Moroccan Roll'' (1974) and ''Cafe de Paris'' (1975), their compositions, arrangements and lyrics contained sounds and stories of
North African
North Africa, or Northern Africa is a region encompassing the northern portion of the African continent. There is no singularly accepted scope for the region, and it is sometimes defined as stretching from the Atlantic shores of Mauritania in t ...
and
Jewish
Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...
Sephardic culture as well as the
Hebrew
Hebrew (; ; ) is a Northwest Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Historically, it is one of the spoken languages of the Israelites and their longest-surviving descendants, the Jews and Samaritans. It was largely preserved ...
songs of the band members’ youth growing up in North Africa. With this sound, they introduced a new rock fusion which is now referred to as Moroccanroll music, which is played throughout North Africa and has influenced many western rock bands over the past four decades.
History
Three of the original four members were
Moroccan Jews. Joe Leb sang vocals, Marc Tobaly played guitar, and
Isaac “Jacky” Bitton was on drums. The fourth member, Jacques “Petit Pois” Grande, who played bass, is of Italian heritage. In 1971, Leb was briefly replaced by French singer
Michel Chevalier
Michel Chevalier (; 13 January 1806 – 18 November 1879) was a French engineer, statesman, economist and free market liberal.
Biography
Born in Limoges, Haute-Vienne, Chevalier studied at the ''École Polytechnique'', obtaining an engineerin ...
. In 1975, Leb was later replaced by Tunisian born
Robert Fitoussi.
Les Variations was formed in 1966 by Marc Tobaly's older brother Alain, who became the band's manager. That year they began touring throughout Europe as a great live performance band, singing songs in English of their favorite artists, such as
Little Richard,
Chuck Berry
Charles Edward Anderson Berry (October 18, 1926 – March 18, 2017) was an American singer, songwriter and guitarist who pioneered rock and roll. Nicknamed the " Father of Rock and Roll", he refined and developed rhythm and blues into th ...
,
Elvis Presley
Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977), or simply Elvis, was an American singer and actor. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Elvis Presley, one ...
and
The Rolling Stones
The Rolling Stones are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for six decades, they are one of the most popular and enduring bands of the album era, rock era. In the early 1960s, the Rolling Stones pioneered the g ...
, and in 1967, they began their recording career in Denmark with the release of ''Spics & Spack''. Returning to France in 1969, they signed with France's
EMI
EMI Group Limited (originally an initialism for Electric and Musical Industries, also referred to as EMI Records Ltd. or simply EMI) was a British Transnational corporation, transnational Conglomerate (company), conglomerate founded in March 1 ...
/
Pathé Records
Pathé Records was an international record company and label and producer of phonographs, based in France, and active from the 1890s through the 1930s.
Early years
The Pathé record business was founded by brothers Charles and Émile Pathé ...
, and forged a successful recording relationship. Les Variations were the first and certainly one of the best known rock groups from France, largely in part to their commercial record successes, their unabandoned concert and television performances, their unmatched media and press coverage, and their unique position of being the first French rock band to tour America, to sign with an American label and eventually pioneer a new style of rock music over their decade-long existence. Between 1969 and 1973, they released the bulk of their albums on Pathe Records. Their early recordings often mimicked traits of
The Rolling Stones
The Rolling Stones are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for six decades, they are one of the most popular and enduring bands of the album era, rock era. In the early 1960s, the Rolling Stones pioneered the g ...
,
The Who
The Who are an English rock band formed in London in 1964. Their classic lineup consisted of lead singer Roger Daltrey, guitarist and singer Pete Townshend, bass guitarist and singer John Entwistle, and drummer Keith Moon. They are considered ...
and
Led Zeppelin
Led Zeppelin were an English rock band formed in London in 1968. The group comprised vocalist Robert Plant, guitarist Jimmy Page, bassist/keyboardist John Paul Jones, and drummer John Bonham. With a heavy, guitar-driven sound, they are ci ...
.
In 1972, Alain Tobably formed a partnership with Doug Yeager and Charles Benanty of Applewood Productions in New York, and the band began the second phase of their career touring and recording in America. Their only French language recording, "Je Suis Juste Un Rock'n Roller", produced by Doug Yeager and the band and backed by soul sisters Angel & Sybil, was recorded in Cincinnati's 5th Floor Recording Studios, and became their biggest hit ever, reaching No. 7 in the French pop charts. In 1973, their popular album ''Take it or Leave It'' was recorded in Memphis's Ardent Studios with producer
Don Nix
Don Nix (born September 27, 1941, Memphis, Tennessee, United States) is an American songwriter, composer, arranger, musician, and author. Although cited as being "one of the more obscure figures in Southern soul and rock", he is a key figure in ...
.
In 1974, Les Variations became the first French rock band to sign with an American label,
Buddah Records
Buddah Records (later known as Buddha Records) was an American record label founded in 1967 in New York City. The label was born out of Kama Sutra Records, an MGM Records-distributed label, which remained a key imprint following Buddah's foun ...
while creating a more exotic and unique style reminiscent of their North African roots. Their pioneering introduction of sounds and styles taken from their
Moroccan heritages, was exemplified in the albums ''Moroccan Roll'' (1974, produced by Ralph Moss), and ''Cafe de Paris'' (1975, produced by
Lewis Merenstein & Michael Wendroff), which would influence rock bands in America, Europe and Africa for the next several generations. During the recording and subsequent touring of these Buddah albums, the band added the American keyboard player/singer Jim Morris; and for the next album (''Cafe de Paris'') and its tours, they added the French/Tunisian/singer/guitarist/composer
Robert Fitoussi and the French/Tunisian violinist of Arabic music, Maurice Meimoun. This 1975 album reached the Billboard Top 200 Album Charts in America, while their single "Superman, Superman", reached No. 36 in the U.S. Pop Charts. During this 1974–1975 period, they became the first French rock band to headline the famed
Olympia Theatre in Paris; and the only French band to ever headline the national American TV concert show ''
The Midnight Special'' and the national American radio concert special ''
King Biscuit Flower Hour
The ''King Biscuit Flower Hour'' was an American syndicated radio show presented by the D.I.R. Radio Network that featured concert performances by various rock music recording artists.
History
The program was broadcast on Sunday nights from 197 ...
''.
In the summer of 1975, after the band's national tour of America in support of their charted album, Robert Fitoussi choose to branch out on his solo career as
F. R. David
Elli Robert Fitoussi (born 1 January 1947), better known as F. R. David, is a French musician. He is best known for his 1982 hit single "Words".
Career
F. R. David was born Elli Robert Fitoussi in Menzel Bourguiba, then in the French protector ...
. Jacques Grande and Maurice Meimoun also left the band at that time. Les Variations reformed at their Cincinnati band house and studio with Tobaly, Bitton and Morris and the addition of Americans singer Carl Storie and bassist/singer
Albritton McClain
Albritton McClain (born March 19, 1952) is an American rock guitarist who is best known for being a member of Donnie Iris and the Cruisers. McClain played the bass guitar
The bass guitar, electric bass or simply bass (), is the lowest-pitc ...
. Unfortunately, as they finally were able to gain measurable success in America with their major tours and hit record, Les Variations gave their last concert at Philadelphia's Academy of Music on December 7, 1975, and disbanded two weeks later on December 21, 1975.
In 1977, Les Variations reformed for a historic recording session for CBS Records International. Jac Hammer, composer of many classic rock songs, such as "Great Balls of Fire," wrote an anthem the night Anwar Sadat flew to Israel to make peace. Three days later,
Richie Havens & Les Variations recorded "Shalom, Salem Aleicum" (produced by Charles Benanty, Doug Yeager and David Wilkes), which CBS released immediately throughout the Middle East, and it became a #1 hit in Israel, Egypt and Jordan.
Over the course of their career, Les Variations became the first French rock band to tour Europe, Africa and America. Over their ten years on the road they toured with many major acts of the era, including:
Bachman–Turner Overdrive
Bachman–Turner Overdrive, often abbreviated BTO, were a Canadian rock band from Winnipeg, Manitoba, founded by Randy Bachman, Robbie Bachman and Fred Turner in 1973. Their 1970s catalogue included five top-40 albums and six US top-40 sing ...
,
Kiss
A kiss is the touch or pressing of one's lips against another person or an object. Cultural connotations of kissing vary widely. Depending on the culture and context, a kiss can express sentiments of love, passion, romance, sexual attraction, ...
,
The Jimi Hendrix Experience
James Marshall "Jimi" Hendrix (born Johnny Allen Hendrix; November 27, 1942September 18, 1970) was an American guitarist, singer and songwriter. Although his mainstream career spanned only four years, he is widely regarded as one of the most ...
,
Cream
Cream is a dairy product composed of the higher-fat layer skimmed from the top of milk before homogenization. In un-homogenized milk, the fat, which is less dense, eventually rises to the top. In the industrial production of cream, this process ...
,
Yes,
Guess Who,
Taste
The gustatory system or sense of taste is the sensory system that is partially responsible for the perception of taste (flavor). Taste is the perception produced or stimulated when a substance in the mouth reacts chemically with taste receptor ...
,
Queen
Queen or QUEEN may refer to:
Monarchy
* Queen regnant, a female monarch of a Kingdom
** List of queens regnant
* Queen consort, the wife of a reigning king
* Queen dowager, the widow of a king
* Queen mother, a queen dowager who is the mother ...
,
Uriah Heep,
Rush,
Kraftwerk and
Aerosmith, to name a few.
In 1993, Maurice Meimoun died in Paris.
In 2009, a Tribute to Les Variations was presented before 250,000 fans at the L'Boulevard Rock Music Festival in Casablanca, Morocco, honoring the band as the Fathers of Moroccanroll music.
Les Variations bassist, Jacques "Petit Pois" Grande, died on June 16, 2011, from cancer, near his home of
Davis, California
Davis is the most populous city in Yolo County, California. Located in the Sacramento Valley region of Northern California, the city had a population of 66,850 in 2020, not including the on-campus population of the University of California, Davi ...
.
Discography
* ''Nador'' (1969)
* ''Take It or Leave It'' (1973)
* ''Moroccan Roll'' (1974)
* ''Cafe De Paris'' (1975)
Current members
* Laura Mayne – vocals (2012–)
* Marc Tobali – guitar (1966–1975 & 2012–)
* Franck Sitbon – keyboards (2012–)
* Philippe Balma – bass (2012–)
* Pierra Veuillot – drums (2012–)
Former members
* Jo Philippe Lebb – vocals (1966–1973)
*
Michel Chevalier
Michel Chevalier (; 13 January 1806 – 18 November 1879) was a French engineer, statesman, economist and free market liberal.
Biography
Born in Limoges, Haute-Vienne, Chevalier studied at the ''École Polytechnique'', obtaining an engineerin ...
– vocals (1971)
*
Robert Fitoussi (aka F. R. David) – vocals (1973–1975)
* Maurice Meimoun – violin (1975)
* Jacques Micheli – guitar (1966)
* Jean-Pierre "Rolling" Azoulay – guitar (1966)
*
Albritton McClain
Albritton McClain (born March 19, 1952) is an American rock guitarist who is best known for being a member of Donnie Iris and the Cruisers. McClain played the bass guitar
The bass guitar, electric bass or simply bass (), is the lowest-pitc ...
– guitar
* Jim Morris – keyboards (1974–1975)
* Guy de Baer – bass (1966)
* Jacques "Petit Pois" Grande – bass (1966–1975)
* Alain Suzan – bass (1972) ALAIN SUZAN NAISSANCE NICE 1945 CHANT BASS GROUP VARIATIONS GROUPE ALICE 1970 1972
*
Isaac "Jacky" Bitton – drums (1966–1975)
Other information
* Proud of his
Jewish
Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...
heritage, Bitton wore a noticeable
Star of David around his neck during concerts.
References
External links
Marc Tobaly's websiteLes Variations discographyat
Discogs
Discogs (short for discographies) is a database of information about audio recordings, including commercial releases, promotional releases, and bootleg or off-label releases. While the site was originally created with a goal of becoming the ...
{{DEFAULTSORT:Variations, Les
Musical groups established in 1968
French rock music groups
Musical groups from Paris