Michel Polnareff (born 3 July 1944,

Nérac Nérac (; oc, Nerac, ) is a commune in the Lot-et-Garonne department, Southwestern France. The composer and organist Louis Raffy was born in Nérac, as was the former Arsenal and Bordeaux footballer Marouane Chamakh, as was Admiral Francois D ...

Lot-et-Garonne Lot-et-Garonne (, oc, Òlt e Garona) is a department in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region of Southwestern France. Named after the rivers Lot and Garonne, it had a population of 331,271 in 2019.Russian Jewish immigrant from

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who worked with

Édith Piaf Édith Piaf (, , ; born Édith Giovanna Gassion, ; December 19, 1915– October 10, 1963) was a French singer, lyricist and actress. Noted as France's national chanteuse, she was one of the country's most widely known international stars. Pia ...

. He attended the

Cours Hattemer Cours Hattemer is a French private, secular school. It is independent of the state, and can follow its own teaching approach, which is structured and places great stress on repetition to drive home what has been learned. The school has many well-kn ...

, a private school. He learned the guitar, and after his studies, military service, and a brief time in insurance, he began to play his guitar on the steps of the Sacré Cœur.

Early successes

In 1965 Polnareff won a prize in Paris of recording at

Barclay Records Barclay is a French record company and label founded by Eddie Barclay in 1953. Eddie Barclay was a bandleader, pianist, producer, and nightclub owner. With his wife, Nicole, who was the vocalist in his band, he started Barclay. The catalogue inc ...

, but as part of the counterculture he turned down this opportunity. It was Lucien Morisse, then director at

Europe 1 Europe 1, formerly known as Europe n° 1, is a privately owned radio station created in 1955. Owned and operated by Lagardère Active, a subsidiary of the Lagardère Group, it is one of the leading radio broadcasting stations in France and its pr ...

, who made him sign with AZ. His first disc, ''

La Poupée qui fait non LA most frequently refers to Los Angeles, the second largest city in the United States. La, LA, or L.A. may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * La (musical note), or A, the sixth note * "L.A.", a song by Elliott Smith on ''Figur ...

'' (1966), was an unexpected success. Its new musical style and Polnareff's atypical image, crossed borders. During this period, he played concerts in

Brussels Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Bruss ...

for one week sharing the bill with

Jeff Beck Geoffrey Arnold Beck (born 24 June 1944) is an English rock guitarist. He rose to prominence with the Yardbirds and after fronted the Jeff Beck Group and Beck, Bogert & Appice. In 1975, he switched to a mainly instrumental style, with a focus ...

. In France he gained many hits such as "La Poupée qui fait non", "Love me, please love me", "Sous quelle étoile suis-je né?", "Ta-ta-ta-ta", " Âme câline" (Soul Coaxing), "Mes regrets", "Gloria", "Holidays", and "Tibili". Jimmy Page and

John Paul Jones John Paul Jones (born John Paul; July 6, 1747 July 18, 1792) was a Scottish-American naval captain who was the United States' first well-known naval commander in the American Revolutionary War. He made many friends among U.S political elites ( ...

performed on hit single "Holidays".

An atypical character

Polnareff also played with his image: black glasses, fancy trousers, and ambiguous provocations. His song ''L'Amour avec Toi'' could not be played before 10 pm because it was considered "pornographic" at the time in France (the song is mild by today's standards). From 1969 on, Polnareff was hugely successful: tours, music videos, hits. He also became the target of scandalmongers.

Depression and distance

Tragedy struck in September 1970, when his friend Lucien Morisse committed suicide. In the same time, he also suffered a relationship crisis. After a rest period in the Paris area, and long months in isolation healing from his depression, Polnareff gradually resumed touring. His health and his morale improved, but not his sight: he was forced to protect his eyes with thick, dark sunglasses. His problems didn't stop there. In 1972, a promotional poster for his 1972 Polnarevolution tour showed his naked buttocks. Although the scandal benefitted him commercially, it brought censorship and lawsuits.

Exile in the United States (1973–1984)

During a world tour, he learned that

Bernard Seneau Bernard (''Bernhard'') is a French and West Germanic masculine given name. It is also a surname. The name is attested from at least the 9th century. West Germanic ''Bernhard'' is composed from the two elements ''bern'' "bear" and ''hard'' "brave ...

, his manager, had run off with his money leaving him broke. Unable to pay his debts, and crushed by the death of his mother, he left France for the United States, where he lived in anonymity. He was joined by his friend, Annie Fargue who became his manager and stayed in this capacity for many years. In 1975, his song ''Jesus for Tonight'' made it onto the American Billboard. He also created the soundtrack for the exploitation rape drama ''

Lipstick Lipstick is a cosmetic product used to apply coloration and texture to lips, often made of wax and oil. Different pigments are used to produce color, and minerals such as silica may be used to provide texture. The use of lipstick dates back t ...

'' (1976), which starred American model

Margaux Hemingway Margaux Louise Hemingway (born Margot Louise Hemingway; February 16, 1954 – July 1, 1996) was an American fashion model and actress. She gained success as a supermodel in the mid-1970s, appearing on the covers of magazines including ''Cosmopo ...

and her sister Mariel. But his success in the United States was not as great as in France. Polnareff missed his fellow musicians and the French musical community. He developed a passion for computers. During the 1975 tour he performed in

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...

, and thousands of his French fans came over to see him. His forced exile did not prevent him from composing, and his albums had mixed success. In summer 1977, he released a new song called "Lettre à France"; it wasn't a song written for a girl called France but rather for his country that he missed a lot. The song was co-written by a friend of his, a successful writer in France, Jean-Loup Dabadie. Polnareff asked him to write lyrics, and Dabadie's idea was to write an imaginary letter to France, the country Polnareff had left. This song immediately became very popular in France. In 1978, he released the album titled "Coucou me revoilou", which wasn't particularly successful. It was the next album called ''

Bulles Bulles () is a commune in the Oise department in northern France. Population See also * Communes of the Oise department The following is a list of the 679 communes of the Oise department of France. The communes cooperate in the following ...

'' and released in 1981 that was very well received and proved that he was still hugely popular in France. In 1985, he released yet another album, "Incognito".

Return to France (1984–1994)

Polnareff made a surprise return to France in 1989. Without any promotion, "Goodbye Marylou" invaded the airwaves and became a hit. For a year and a half, Polnareff was locked up at Royal Monceau in Paris and recorded ''Kāma-Sūtra'', with

Mike Oldfield Mike may refer to: Animals * Mike (cat), cat and guardian of the British Museum * Mike the Headless Chicken, chicken that lived for 18 months after his head had been cut off * Mike (chimpanzee), a chimpanzee featured in several books and documen ...

adding some guitar parts. The album was released in February 1990, met with commercial success and marked Polnareff's true return with hits such as "Kâma Sûtra", "LNA HO" and "Toi et moi". Rumors spread about his health, and in 1994, he finally decided to have a cataract surgically (and successfully) removed to prevent him from becoming blind.

From The Roxy to Bercy : rebirth (1995–2006)

Polnareff returned to the United States and performed live (for the first time in ages) on 27 September 1995 at The Roxy in Sunset Boulevard with executive-producer / guitarist Dick Smith (Earth, Wind and Fire, Aretha Franklin) and Alex Acuña (Weather Report, Elvis Presley and Michael Jackson). The performance was released in 1996 as the ambitious live album ''Live at the Roxy''. The album achieved platinum certification in France. To mark this occasion, the channel

Canal + Canals or artificial waterways are waterways or engineered channels built for drainage management (e.g. flood control and irrigation) or for conveyancing water transport vehicles (e.g. water taxi). They carry free, calm surface flow und ...

devoted a special to him entitled "''À la Recherche de Polnareff''" ("In Search of Polnareff"), in which he appeared in military uniform (from whence his recent nickname "The Admiral" may come) and was interviewed in the desert by

Michel Denisot Michel Maurice Daniel Denisot (; born 16 April 1945)Michel Denisot
on ''premiere.fr''. is a F ...

. This was followed by an acoustic mini-concert in the middle of the California desert. Following the media attention in 1995 and 1996, Polnareff could have restarted his career as though nothing had happened. However, his fans still await, almost twenty years later, an album which may never come. However, some of his early songs became popular again, like "

" covered by

Mylène Farmer Mylène Jeanne Gautier (; born 12 September 1961), known professionally as Mylène Farmer (), is a Canadian-born French singer, songwriter, occasional actress, writer, and entrepreneur. Having sold more than 30 million records in France, she is ...

and Khaled (1996), and "On Ira Tous au Paradis", which became the theme song of

Restaurants du Cœur The Restaurants du Cœur (literally ''Restaurants of the Heart'' but meaning ''Restaurants of Love''), commonly known as the Restos du Cœur, is a French charity, the main activity of which is to distribute food packages and hot meals to those ...

in 1998. His 1977 hit "

Lettre à France "Lettre à France" is a single by French singer Michel Polnareff that was released in 1977. The artist had been living in California since 1973, in part due to financial problems. The song, whose title means "Letter to France" in English, is ab ...

" enjoyed a new success in 2004 following its inclusion on the French version of the ''

Star Academy ''Star Academy'', called ''Operación Triunfo'' ("Operation Triumph") in Spanish-speaking countries, is a highly successful television pop music talent contest with viewer voting and reality show elements. Format There are many versions of t ...

'' talent contest. On 22 November 2004, and again on 18 December 2005,

France 3 France 3 () is a French free-to-air public television channel and part of the France Télévisions group, which also includes France 2, France 4, France 5 and France Info. It is made up of a network of regional television services provi ...

broadcast a one and a half-hour documentary entitled "''Michel Polnareff Dévoilé''" ("Michel Polnareff Revealed"). It includes images from rare files mixed with interviews with media personalities like

Marc-Olivier Fogiel Marc-Olivier Fogiel (born July 5, 1969) is a French television and radio presenter and producer. Early life Marc-Olivier Fogiel was born on July 5, 1969 in Neuilly-sur-Seine, France. His father is a dentist; his mother was an estate agent who reti ...

Jacques Séguéla Ancient and noble French family names, Jacques, Jacq, or James are believed to originate from the Middle Ages in the historic northwest Brittany region in France, and have since spread around the world over the centuries. To date, there are over ...

, Jean-Luc Lahaye and

Frédéric Beigbeder Frédéric Beigbeder (; born 21 September 1965) is a French writer, literary critic and television presenter. He won the Prix Interallié in 2003 for his novel ''Windows on the World'' and the Prix Renaudot in 2009 for his book ''Un roman françai ...

explaining to the televiewers what Michel Polnareff represented for them and for France. Polnareff also revealed that he was working on a new album.

Return to the stage (2007)

On 12 May 2006, Michel Polnareff announced that he would be giving a series of concerts between 2 and 14 March 2007. Ticket sales rocketed, showing that Polnareff has not lost his gleam. On

Bastille Day Bastille Day is the common name given in English-speaking countries to the national day of France, which is celebrated on 14 July each year. In French, it is formally called the (; "French National Celebration"); legally it is known as (; "t ...

, 2007, Polnareff gave a free concert. In 2001, death rapper Necro sampled Polnareff's "Voyages" for his song "Light My Fire". English band The Shortwave Set sampled this song as well for their single "Is It Any Wonder?" in 2005. Masher (L)SD sampled "Sous Quelle E'toile Suis Je ne?" for his tune "Howards' Thinking Clearly", on the CD "That's CRAZY Music!" (2005) The 2004 Korean TV drama "Sorry, I love You" in Korean 미안하다, 사랑한다 ("Mi'an'ha'da, Sa'rang'han'da" or aka "MiSa") soundtrack largely drew from Polnareff songs like "Qui a tué Grand-Maman ?" and "ça n'arrive qu'aux autres". It was aired on channel KBS 2004/11/09~2004/12/28. The soundtrack was released in two commercial CDs.

In the studio (2010–2015)

In November 2013, Polnareff had sold in total 3,9 million albums and 4,9 million singles in France. In 2014, a documentary, called "Quand l'écran s'allume" pictured Polnareff, his partner Danyellah and their son Louka, in theatres first, and on TV a few months later. At the end of 2014, Polnareff started recording a new album.

New single and new tour (2015–2017)

On 8 December 2015, Polnareff announced the release of his new album in the first half of 2016 (between January and April 2016) and a new tour of 50 dates, mostly in France but also in Belgium and Switzerland, split into two legs : a Summer leg due to start on 30 April 2016 in Epernay and to end on 26 July 2016 (including a four-date stay at the Paris-Bercy Arena in early May 2016 and many appearances at Summer Festivals) and an Autumn leg due to start on 4 November 2016 and to end on 10 December 2016 in

Bordeaux Bordeaux ( , ; Gascon oc, Bordèu ; eu, Bordele; it, Bordò; es, Burdeos) is a port city on the river Garonne in the Gironde department, Southwestern France. It is the capital of the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region, as well as the prefectur ...

. On 18 December 2015, a week before Christmas, Polnareff released "L'Homme en rouge", the first single from his upcoming album and his first single since 2006 (only as a digital download and on streaming). "L'Homme en rouge" deals with

Santa Claus Santa Claus, also known as Father Christmas, Saint Nicholas, Saint Nick, Kris Kringle, or simply Santa, is a Legend, legendary figure originating in Western Christianity, Western Christian culture who is said to Christmas gift-bringer, bring ...

. In late April 2016, just before the beginning of the tour, Polnareff revealed that the new album was not finished yet, as he's still working on 3 of the 9 announced tracks due to appear on it, that he has planned to play live during the tour a new song from it entitled "Sumi" about his SM experience with a

geisha {{Culture of Japan, Traditions, Geisha {{nihongo, Geisha, 芸者 ({{IPAc-en, ˈ, ɡ, eɪ, ʃ, ə; {{IPA-ja, ɡeːɕa, lang), also known as {{nihongo, , 芸子, geiko (in Kyoto and Kanazawa) or {{nihongo, , 芸妓, geigi, are a class of female ...

Fukuoka is the sixth-largest city in Japan, the second-largest port city after Yokohama, and the capital city of Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan. The city is built along the shores of Hakata Bay, and has been a center of international commerce since ancie ...

, Japan and that a song he wrote about his son Louka – simply entitled "Louka's song" – will appear on the new album. In december 2016, before the last concert of his tour he suffered a double pulmonary embolism and had to cancel the end of his tour.

New album (2018)

On 3 October 2018, Polnareff announced the forthcoming release on 30 November 2018 of ''Enfin!'', his (28-year) long-awaited new studio album. The album received a warm reception from the press and the fans.

Personal life

He had many girlfriends, including his manager Annie Fargue. The two dated for over 20 years but were never married. In 2004, he met Danyellah, a French journalist and model. On 28 December 2010, Polnareff's girlfriend Danyellah gave birth to a boy, Louka, in Los Angeles; the baby was delivered by Polnareff. On 21 February 2011, Polnareff announced via a Facebook post that a DNA test had revealed that he was not the biological father of the child. A later post indicated that his girlfriend had disappeared with the baby. They were separated for a few months, but are now reunited with their son, Louka. They lived in a house in Palm Springs where Polnareff had his own recording studio.

Discography

In popular culture

Jean-Pierre Polnareff, a character in the Japanese manga series ''

JoJo's Bizarre Adventure is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Hirohiko Araki. It was originally serialized in Shueisha's ''shōnen'' manga magazine ''Weekly Shōnen Jump'' from 1987 to 2004, and was transferred to the monthly ''seinen'' manga ...

'', is named after Michel Polnareff.

Publications

* 1974: ''Polnaréflexions'' in collaboration with Jean-Michel Desjeunes, Editions Dire/Stock2 * 2004: ''Polnareff par Polnareff'' in collaboration with

Philippe Manœuvre Philippe Manœuvre (born 19 June 1954) is a French music journalist. He has been a radio and television presenter, specialized in rock music. He has been editor-in-chief for the magazine '' Métal Hurlant'' and was the editor-in-chief of the mu ...

, Editions Grasset et Fasquelle * 2013: ''Le Polnabook'', de Michel Polnareff, Editions Ipanéma * 2016: ''Spèrme'', de Michel Polnareff, Editions Plon

Bibliography

* Christian Eudeline, ''Derrière les lunettes'', ed. fayard, 2013 () * Benoît Cachi, ''Polnaculte : Michel Polnareff vu par ses auteurs et par lui-même'', ed. Tournon, 2007 () * Christophe Lauga, ''Polnareffmania'', ed. Scali, 2007 () * , ''Polnareff, la véritable histoire d'une légende'', ed. City, 2007 () *

Philippe Margotin Philippe is a masculine sometimes feminin given name, cognate to Philip. It may refer to: * Philippe of Belgium (born 1960), King of the Belgians (2013–present) * Philippe (footballer) (born 2000), Brazilian footballer * Prince Philippe, Count ...

, ''Polnareff'', ed. de la Lagune, 2007 () * Fabien Lecœuvre, ''Michel Polnareff'', ed. Vaderetro, 2004 ()

References

External links

Biography of Michel Polnareff
from

Radio France Internationale Radio France Internationale, usually referred to as RFI, is the state-owned international radio broadcaster of France. With 37.2 million listeners in 2014, it is one of the most-listened-to international radio stations in the world, along with ...

Official Web Site : Michel Polnareff (news, discography, photos...)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Polnareff, Michel 1944 births Living people People from Nérac French people of Jewish descent French people of Russian-Jewish descent French people of Ukrainian-Jewish descent French people of Breton descent French male singers French male guitarists French-language singers