Image copyright AFP
French singer France Gall, who rose to pop fame in the 1960s, has died at the age of 70 after suffering from cancer for two years.
She was taken to hospital near Paris last month for a severe infection.
Gall won the Eurovision Song Contest in 1965 representing Luxembourg with the song Wax Doll, Rag Doll (Poupée de cire, Poupée de son).
She enjoyed more international success in 1987 with her tribute to jazz legend Ella Fitzgerald, Ella, Elle l'a.
Gall was born in October 1947 into a musical family - her father was singer and songwriter Robert Gall, who penned songs for music legends Edith Piaf and Charles Aznavour, among others.
She was known for her childish smile and sweet voice and, in the words of Le Figaro website, "embodied the emancipation of French girls in the post-war era". Her career spanned 50 years and Culture Minister Françoise Nyssen described her as "a timeless icon of French song".
Image copyright AFP Image caption France Gall captured the spirit of the French pop scene of the 1960s
She was just 16 when her first single, Don't Be So Stupid (Ne Sois Pas Si Bête), sold some 200,000 copies.
But it was Gall's Eurovision victory with Poupée de cire - written by Serge Gainsbourg, one of the biggest figures in French popular music - that helped catapult her to fame and make her a star on France's Yé-yé (yeah yeah) pop scene, so-called because of its nod to English music at the time.
Her death comes a month after the loss of another giant of French music, Johnny Hallyday - widely seen as the leader of the Yé-yé singers.
Gall's collaboration with Gainsbourg later came under scrutiny, however, after she admitted she had been too young to fully understand the double meanings of some of his songs.
Image copyright AFP Image caption Gall said she did not fully understand the erotic nature of some of Gainsbourg's songs
One of her biggest hits was Les Sucettes (Lollipops), which tells the story of a girl who is "in paradise" every time "that little stick is on her tongue".
Once she realised its full meaning, Gall refused to perform the song and vowed never to work with Gainsbourg again.
Her 1987 album Babacar, which included her tribute to Ella Fitzgerald, saw her shoot to international fame.
There has been an outpouring of tributes to the singer on social media.
Eurovision praised Gall's contribution to the contest and credited her winning entry as being the first pop song to win the show.
The song "had a significant impact on the musical style of songs that were entered into the contest in the years that followed," it said in a statement.
French President Emmanuel Macron tweeted: "She leaves behind songs that everyone in France knows and set an example of a life devoted to others."
Gall had previously been diagnosed with breast cancer in the mid-1990s, not long after the death of her husband and fellow singer Michel Berger at the age of 44 in 1992. He had written the music and lyrics for her Babacar album.
She retired from her music career following the death of the eldest of her two children, Pauline, from cystic fibrosis in 1997. Gall spent the final years of her life working on various humanitarian projects.
Inspiration for original song later adapted as My Way, Gall won Eurovision song contest with Poupée de Cire, Poupée de Son in 1965
The French singer France Gall, who inspired the original version of the song that became a worldwide hit for Frank Sinatra as My Way, has died in a Paris hospital aged 70, her spokeswoman announced.
On learning of her death from an infection two years after she was diagnosed with cancer, the French president, Emmanuel Macron, tweeted: “She leaves behind songs that everyone in France knows, and set an example of a life devoted to others.”
The French culture minister, Françoise Nyssen, described her as “a timeless icon of French song”.
The song that became My Way was originally released in 1968 as Comme d’Habitude by singer-songwriter Claude François as a bleak reflection on the breakup of his affair with Gall.
In the original version, the final curtain was lowering on love, not on life as in the Sinatra version: the about-to-be-forsaken lover returns to an empty house, “as usual”, and retires “all alone ... in this big, empty bed”.
Facebook Twitter Pinterest France Gall appearing on French TV in 2012. Photograph: Francois Guillot/AFP/Getty Images
Gall, born into a musical family in 1947, recorded her first hit, Don’t Be So Stupid, when she was 16. In 1965, she won the Eurovision song contest, representing Luxembourg, with the Serge Gainsbourg song Poupée de Cire, Poupée de Son – beating the UK’s Kathy Kirby. A tribute to her was posted on the Eurovision website, and a tweet from the official Eurovision account expressed sorrow “on behalf of the entire Eurovision family”.
Gainsbourg later plunged Gall into controversy when she had a massive hit with his sexually suggestive song, Les Sucettes (Lollipops), complete with promotional images of her dressed in a skimpy bikini and licking a lolly. She said later she had been too young to understand the double entendre of the lyrics, and refused either to perform it or to work with Gainsbourg again.
Despite her success, Gall’s life was marked by tragedy. She had another major international hit in 1987 with the album Babacar – including the song Ella, elle l’a, her tribute to Ella Fitzgerald – with music and lyrics by her husband and musical partner Michel Berger, who died in 1992 aged 44. She retired from recording and performing in 1997, following the death from cystic fibrosis of their eldest child, Pauline. She devoted herself largely to humanitarian work until a comeback performance in a 2015 stage show based on her and her husband’s songs.
The rights to Comme d’Habitude were bought by the singer-songwriter Paul Anka after he heard it by chance while staying in Paris. He completely rewrote the English lyrics into an end-of-life boastful valediction, especially for Frank Sinatra, who released his version in 1969.
The French singer France Gall has died aged 70. She passed Sunday morning (7 January) in Paris.
Gall's representative confirmed the news in a statement, saying the singer died after an infection complication caused by cancer. AFP initially reported the death.
The singer had been hospitalised in December. She had previously been diagnosed with breast cancer in 1993, one year after her husband and fellow singer Michel Berger died from a heart attack.
Gall first came to the French public's attention with the song "Don't Be So Stupid" when she was just 16, the single selling 200,00 copies.
She went on to work with songwriter Serge Gainsbourg, Gall singing their song "Poupée de cire, poupée de son" at the Eurovision Song Contest in 1965, winning the competition for Luxembourg.
As a result, Gall found international fame, going on to have a successful singing career as a solo artist and eventually singing alongside Berger, helping revive his career.
Gall later retired from the music scene after the death of her daughter, Pauline, from Cystic Fibrosis in 1997. She later appeared in the 2007 documentary Tous Pour La Musique to mark the 15th anniversary of Berger's death.
French singer France Gall has died, the BBC reports. A representative confirmed the news in a statement posted on Gall’s website, writing that she passed away following a battle with cancer. She was 70 years old. Gall was born in Paris to her father, lyricist Robert Gall (who penned songs for Edith Piaf and Charles Aznavour), and her mother Cécile Berthier, who was a singer. Gall’s professional music career began at age 16, with her first single “Ne sois pas si bête.”
In her early career, Gall rose to fame as a yé-yé singer with songs written by Serge Gainsbourg, including “N'écoute pas les idoles” and “Laisse tomber les filles.” In 1965, she won the Eurovision Song Contest representing Luxembourg with the performance of her Gainsbourg's “Poupée de cire, poupée de son.” She later collaborated with other musicians like Giorgio Moroder and singer Michel Berger, whom she married in 1976. The two remained married until Berger’s death in 1992. Gall recorded and performed continuously until she announced her retirement in 1997 following the death of her daughter.
