FRANCE: The French singer Sacha Distel, whose seductive good looks won him millions of female fans around the world, died yesterday, his record company said. Distel, who died aged 71 at the home of relatives in the south of France, had been ill for some time.
Universal Music France said on its website that Distel would be buried in private, according to his last wishes. LCI television said the singer would be buried on Saturday in the Paris region.
The epitome of a suave, sophisticated Frenchman, Distel enjoyed a career stretching over almost half a century, during which he worked with some of the biggest names in showbusiness in France, Britain and the United States.
Among the international stars he worked with were Liza Minnelli, Dizzy Gillespie, Quincy Jones and Dionne Warwick. He was also credited with launching the career of the British singer Petula Clark in France.
Son of an engineer and a mother who trained in the Paris Conservatory, Distel was also a composer of note, writing The Good Life, which was recorded by Tony Bennett and Frank Sinatra. His hit single, Raindrops Keep Falling On My Head topped the British charts for 34 weeks.
He was also an outstanding jazz guitarist, winning the title of best guitarist of the year from Jazz Hot and Jazz magazines.
And as befits someone with a reputation as one of the best-looking men in the world, Distel was also romantically linked to the 1960s icon of French female beauty, Brigitte Bardot.
Distel was awarded one of his country's highest honours, the Legion of Honour, in 1997.