Jean Sablon

Jean Sablon
Sablon Harcourt 1939 2.jpg
Sablon in 1939
Born
Jean Georges Sablon

(1906-03-25)25 March 1906
Died24 February 1994(1994-02-24) (aged 87)
Cannes, France
NationalityFrench nationality
EducationLycée Charlemagne
OccupationSinger, songwriter, actor
Years active1923–84
Known forJ'attendrai, C'est si bon, La Vie en rose, Les feuilles mortes, Sur le Pont d'Avignon, Melodie d'Amour, Syracuse, Je tire ma révérence, Vous qui passez sans me voir, C'est le printemps, Ce petit chemin
StyleChanson

Jean Sablon (Nogent-sur-Marne 25 March 1906 – Cannes 24 February 1994) was a French singer, songwriter and actor. He was one of the first French singers to immerse himself in jazz. The man behind several songs by such diverse names as Mireille, Jean Nohain and Charles Trenet, he was the first to use a microphone on a French stage in 1936. Star of vinyl and the radio, he left France in 1937 to make up a contract with NBC in the United States. His televised shows made him a huge star on American television. Henceforth the most international of French singers among his contemporaries, he became an ambassador of French songwriting and dedicated his career to touring internationally, often returning to France to appear on stage. His sixty-one year career came to an end in 1984.

Biography

Sablon was born in Nogent-sur-Marne, the son of a composer, with brothers and sisters who had successful careers of their own in musical entertainment.

A pupil at the Lycée Charlemagne in Paris, Jean Sablon dropped out, intending to study at the Conservatory of Paris. Too late, however, to apply for his year, he concentrated immediately on a professional singing career. He made his debut at the age of seventeen in an Operetta in Paris. It was in Operettas that he came to share the stage in 1923 first with Jean Gabin in "La Dame en Décolleté" and then with Charles Boyer and Falconetti in "Simili" in 1925.

1927 found him appearing in the review of "Au Temps de Gastounet" (by Rip) with Jacqueline Delubac. It was Paul Colin who created the first billboard for the young singer. After appearing in the Operetta "Lulu" with Fernand Gravey, he embarked on a transatlantic journey to Rio de Janeiro in the company of Milton[disambiguation needed] for the inauguration of the Copacabana Palace. In 1929, Jean Sablon recorded his first demo record for Columbia with Georges Van Parys, as well as sharing the stage in the Operetta "Vive Leroy" with Arletty, Dranem and Jacqueline Delubac and then "Music Hall" with Damia and Germaine Rouer. The following year, he appeared in "Cocktail 328" with Damia again, as well as making his first film, "Chacun sa Chance", the same year, with Jean Gabin who made his film debut with him.

Henri Diamant-Berger approached Sablon in 1931 for the making of Tante Aurélie alongside with his sister Germaine Sablon. That year, he was back on stage in La Revue Argentine, then Parade de Femmes with Carlos Gardel. It was in 1931 that he met Mireille, whose song "Couchés dans le foin" became a great success,the introduction being made by the editor Raoul Breton.

Other important encounter in 1931, Jean discovered the guitarist Django Reinhardt in "La Boîte à Matelots".

On stage, Jean appeared with Mistinguett at the Casino de Paris in "Paris qui brille" thanks to Oscar Dufrenne, who was a close friend of both artists.

1932 was a year rich in recordings for the record company Columbia. He was accompanied by Don Barretto, sang with his sister Germaine and was accompanied by the pianist and composer Mireille while interpreting songs from the operetta "Un Mois de Vacances", from which the song "Couchés dans le Foin" became a huge hit. In 1933, he was reunited with Reda Caire in an operetta, accompanied by Django Reinhardt, with whom he shared success in the recording studio at Columbia, who had initially been reluctant to take the costly risk of engaging Reinhardt who, as a guitarist, couldn't read music. Sablon thus became the first singer to have recorded with Django. He then embarked on another journey to America, Hollywood this time, with Mireille at the invitation of Ramon Novarro, famous for Ben Hur on the big screen. In Los Angeles, he gave a concert in front of a panoply of stars. Back in Paris, he created "Ce Petit Chemin".

It was in 1934 that Jean Cocteau encouraged Sablon to initiate a "tour de chant" (one man show), accompanied on the piano by Jean Wiener and Clément Doucet, at the Rococo, an establishment that belonged to Louis Moysès. The London cabaret Monseigneur invited him to perform there. His success ont the BBC radio with his trio (Django Reinhardt, André Ekyan and Alec Siniavine) was so considerable that the transmissions were often repeated and the programs of the radio station modified. Back in France, he appeared on the stage in Nice with Django Reinhardt and Joséphine Baker. He was also instrumental in the reopening of the venue Le Boeuf sur le Toit and gave recitals at the Rex and the Folies-Bergère in "Femmes en Folie". In 1935, he created the song "These Foolish Things" at the Boeuf sur le Toit.

In 1936, film "Le Petit Chemin" reunited Sablon with Mireille. Their interpretation of "Ce Petit Chemin" represented of sorts a preview of what was to come in video clips decades later. Sablon became the presenter of the radio show "Cadum Variétés", on which he also sang. Guests included Maurice Chevalier, Damia, Fernandel, Mistinguett, Yvette Guilbert, Albert Préjean, Henri Garat to name a few. He was also given a radio show, "The Magic Key". He then found himself at the Café de Paris in London for a show, returning to France for "Le Chant des Tropiques" at the Théâtre de Paris. It was at the Théâtre Mogador and then at Bobino that he created a scandal by using a microphone, the first to do so in France.

In 1937, he won the Grand Prix du Disque for the song "Vous qui passez sans me voir", written for him by Charles Trenet, Johnny Hess and Paul Misraki. That same year, contracted by the producers of The Magic Key, thanks to his success in France, he left again for New York and returned to the NBC studios. It was there that he made a few recordings in English, with celebrities such as Cole Porter and George Gershwin lending him their material, respectively "In the Still of the Night" and "Love walked In".

In Hollywood, Sablon was contracted to star in "The Story of Irene and Vernon Castle" with Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers. Due to production disagreements, he demanded the withdrawal of scenes in which he starred. The final version conserves merely his interpretation of the song "Darktown Strutters Ball". In the movie capital, he appeared at the Trocadero and presented and sang on the radio show Hollywood Hotel on which he attracted numerous big stars. In January 1939, he was in Montreal, where he produced songs, creating a swing version on "Sur Le Pont d'Avignon" which would go on to have a huge success. It was there that he met La Bolduc, whose technique of "turlutage" as well as her earthy songs impressed him greatly. It was thanks to Sablon that Charles Trenet and La Bolduc were introduced. In the 1940s, he animated the "Show Jean Sablon" on the Columbia Broadcasting System (CBS) radio and was accompanied by the American accordionist and songwriter John Serry Sr, with Toots Camarata as musical arranger. He returned to Paris to appear on the stage of the ABC and took part to television experiments. He returned to America to live in 1937. He was a star on Broadway and then Boston in the musical "Streets of Paris". The producer teamed him with Carmen Miranda, appearing for the first time outside of Brazil. He in turn starred in Brazil on shows at the Casino Atlantico in Rio de Janeiro.

From 1946 to 1947 the CBS radio network presented, The Jean Sablon Show. Sablon was accompanied by John Serry Sr. and an orchestra led by Paul Baron. Salvador Camarata served as the musical arranger for these broadcasts.[1][2][3][4]

On 30 March 1950, Jean Sablon recorded C'est si bon in London with Woolf Phillips and his Orchestra. On 23 November of the same year, he recorded the English version (lyrics by Jerry Seelen) in Buenos Aires with Emil Stern and his Orchestra.

Jean Sablon became one of the most widely acclaimed male French singers, considered second only in overall lifetime popularity to Maurice Chevalier. His records sold in the millions around the world and he is frequently referred to as the French equivalent of America's Bing Crosby. During his career, he recorded with some of the world's top musicians, including Django Reinhardt and Stéphane Grappelli. Sablon is credited with arranging Reinhardt's debut in a fashionable cabaret in 1933. He is also recognized for his talents as a lyricist and a composer. Sablon appeared in a number of motion pictures and television films performing as a vocalist or pianist, his last being in 1984 when he sang "April in Paris" in Mistral's Daughter, the popular American TV miniseries filmed in France.

Jean Sablon died in Cannes in 1994 and was buried in the Cimetière du Montparnasse in Paris.

Personal life

Jean Sablon was the son of composer Charles Sablon and the brother of composer André Sablon and singer and actress Germaine Sablon. The actor Jacques Sablon was his nephew.

Respects

Revues

Operettas

Musical theatre

  • 1923 : La Dame en décolleté, by Yves Mirande and Lucien Boyer, music by Maurice Yvain, Théâtre des Bouffes-Parisiens.
  • 1925 : Trois jeunes filles nues, by Yves Mirande and Albert Willemetz, music by Raoul Moretti, Théâtre des Bouffes-Parisiens.

Filmography

External links

References


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