Sacha Distel

{{Infobox musical artist

| background = person

| name = Sacha Distel

| image = Sacha distel4.jpg

| caption =

| birth_name = Alexandre Distel

| birth_date = {{birth date|df=yes|1933|01|29}}

| birth_place = Paris, France

| death_date = {{death date and age|df=yes|2004|07|22|1933|01|29}}

| death_place = Rayol-Canadel, France

| genre = {{hlist|Pop|rock|jazz}}

| occupation = {{hlist|Musician|singer|actor}}

| instrument = {{hlist|Guitar|vocals}}

| years_active = 1950–2004

}}

Alexandre "Sacha" Distel (29 January 1933 – 22 July 2004) was a French musician and singer who had hits with a cover version of "Raindrops Keep Falling on My Head" in 1970, which reached No 10 in the UK Charts,{{cite book |title=UK Hits Singles 1952-2004 |first=Graham |last=Betts |publisher=Collins |year=2004 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Ewk5AQAAIAAJ&q=distel |page=221 |isbn=978-0-0071-7931-2}}{{cite book |last1=Roberts |first1=David |title=British Hit Singles & Albums |date=2006 |publisher=Guinness World Records |location=London |isbn=978-1-9049-9410-7 |page=157 |edition=19th}} "Scoubidou", and "The Good Life". He was made Chevalier (Knight) of the Légion d'honneur in 1997.{{Cite journal |journal=JORF |volume=1997 |issue=1 |title=Ordre De La Legion D'honneur Décret du 31 décembre 1996 portant promotion et |date=1 January 1997 |page=29 |id=PREX9612816D |url=http://www.legifrance.gouv.fr/WAspad/UnTexteDeJorf?numjo=PREX9612816D |access-date=18 December 2014 }} He had also scored a hit as a songwriter when Tony Bennett recorded Sacha's song for "The Good Life" in 1963. It peaked at #18 on Billboard{{'}}s Hot 100 chart and Top 10 on the Easy Listening chart.

Career

Distel was the son of Russian-French émigré Léonide Distel who was born in Odessa, Ukraine and French-Jewish pianist Andrée Ventura (1902–1965), born in Constantinople.{{cite news |title=Sacha Distel |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/obituaries/1467623/Sacha-Distel.html |newspaper=The Daily Telegraph |location=London |access-date=27 November 2018 |date=22 July 2004}} His uncle was bandleader Ray Ventura.{{cite web |last1=Harris |first1=Craig |title=Sacha Distel |url=https://www.allmusic.com/artist/sacha-distel-mn0000276044 |website=AllMusic |access-date=27 November 2018}} After Ventura settled in Paris with his orchestra Les Collégiens, Distel gave up piano and switched to guitar.{{cite web |url=http://blogs.myspace.com/sachadistelofficiel |title=La découverte du bebop |website=Sacha Distel Official Myspace |access-date=2 July 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090803132856/http://blogs.myspace.com/sachadistelofficiel |archive-date=3 August 2009|df=dmy-all }}

During his career, Distel worked with Kenny Clarke, Jimmy Gourley, Lionel Hampton, Slide Hampton, Bobby Jaspar, Barney Kessel, John Lewis, Pierre Michelot, Bernard Peiffer, Henri Renaud, Fats Sadi, Art Simmons, Martial Solal, René Urtreger, and Barney Wilen.{{cite book |editor-last=Kernfeld |editor-first=Barry |title=The New Grove Dictionary of Jazz |year=2002 |publisher=Macmillan |location=New York |url=https://archive.org/details/newgrovedictiona0001unse_w1m0/page/618/mode/2up?q=distel |isbn=978-0-3336-9189-2 |page=619 |volume=1 |edition=2nd}}

As well as his musical career he also did some acting, primarily on French television. He had a cameo appearance in the 1960 film Zazie dans le Métro. He appeared in "Fallen Angels" by Noel Coward on British television in 1974.

Personal life

After Brigitte Bardot accepted Distel's invitation to his birthday party in Saint-Tropez in 1958, the two began a much-publicized relationship that lasted until 1959. In 1963, he married champion Olympic skier Francine Bréaud. Distel publicly stated that he remained faithful to his wife: "Anything I want in a woman I can get at home."{{cite news |last1=Leigh |first1=Spencer |title=Sacha Distel |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/obituaries/sacha-distel-550154.html |newspaper=The Independent |location=London |access-date=27 November 2018 |date=24 July 2005}}

Death

Distel died of cancer at the age of 71 on 22 July 2004 at his mother-in-law's home in Rayol-Canadel, near Saint-Tropez, France.{{cite news |url=http://www.theguardian.com/world/2004/jul/23/france.arts |title=Britain's favourite French crooner dies in St-Tropez |date=23 July 2004 |newspaper=The Guardian |location=London |access-date=24 August 2021}}