Editing Sacha Distel

{{Short description|French musician}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=November 2024}}
{{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-sur-Mer|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 music charts|UK Charts]],<ref>{{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}}</ref><ref name="Roberts">{{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}}</ref> "[[Scoubidou (song)|Scoubidou]]", and "[[The Good Life (1962 song)|The Good Life]]". He was made Chevalier (Knight) of the [[Légion d'honneur]] in 1997.<ref name="loh">{{Cite journal |journal=[[Journal Officiel de la République Française|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 }}</ref> 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 Hot 100|''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]].<ref name="telegraph obit">{{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}}</ref> His uncle was bandleader [[Ray Ventura (pianist)|Ray Ventura]].<ref name="Harris">{{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}}</ref> After Ventura settled in Paris with his orchestra Les Collégiens, Distel gave up piano and switched to guitar.<ref>{{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 }}</ref>

During his career, Distel worked with [[Kenny Clarke]], [[Jimmy Gourley]], [[Lionel Hampton]], [[Slide Hampton]], [[Bobby Jaspar]], [[Barney Kessel]], [[John Lewis (pianist)|John Lewis]], [[Pierre Michelot]], [[Bernard Peiffer]], [[Henri Renaud]], [[Fats Sadi]],  [[Art Simmons]], [[Martial Solal]], [[René Urtreger]], and [[Barney Wilen]].<ref name="New Grove">{{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}}</ref>

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. <ref name="ind obit" /> In 1963, he married champion Olympic skier [[Francine Bréaud]].<ref name="ind obit" /> Distel publicly stated that he remained faithful to his wife: "Anything I want in a woman I can get at home."<ref name="ind obit">{{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}}</ref>

==Death==
Distel died of cancer at the age of 71 on 22 July 2004 at his mother-in-law's home in [[Rayol-Canadel-sur-Mer|Rayol-Canadel]], near Saint-Tropez, France.<ref>{{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}}</ref>

==Discography==
* ''[[Afternoon in Paris (album)|Afternoon in Paris]]'' with [[John Lewis (pianist)|John Lewis]] ([[Atlantic Records|Atlantic]], 1957)
* ''Everybody Loves the Lover'' (Philips, 1961)
* ''From Paris with Love'' (RCA Victor, 1962)
* ''Les Filles Moi J'Aime Ca!'' (RCA, 1963)
* ''The Good Life'' (Kapp, 1969)
* ''Back to Jazz'' with Slide Hampton (La Voix de Son Maitre, 1969)
* ''Sacha Distel'' (Warner Bros., 1970)
* ''Close to You'' (Warner Bros., 1970)
* ''More and More'' (Warner Bros., 1971)
* ''Love Music'' (Polydor, 1973)
* ''Swing with Sacha Distel'' (Contour, 1973)
* ''Love Is All'' (Pye, 1976)
* ''Forever and Ever'' (Carrere, 1978)
* ''From Sacha with Love'' (Mercury, 1979)
* ''Amour Tout Court'' (DRG, 1982)
* ''My Guitar and All That Jazz'' (Pablo, 1983)
* ''Move Closer'' (Towerbell, 1985)
* ''Ecoute Mes Yeux'' (Arcade Music, 1998)
* ''But Beautiful'' (Mercury, 2003)

==References==
{{reflist}}

== External links==
*{{imdb name|nm0228457}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Distel, Sacha}}
[[Category:1933 births]]
[[Category:2004 deaths]]
[[Category:French jazz guitarists]]
[[Category:French male guitarists]]
[[Category:French male jazz musicians]]
[[Category:French male television actors]]
[[Category:French people of Jewish descent]]
[[Category:French people of Russian descent]]
[[Category:Knights of the Legion of Honour]]
[[Category:Musicians from Paris]]
[[Category:20th-century French guitarists]]
[[Category:20th-century French Jews]]
[[Category:20th-century French male singers]]
[[Category:Electrola artists]]