Biography

Lara Fabian (born Lara Crokaert; January 9, 1970, Etterbeek, Belgium) is a Belgian-born international singer who also holds Canadian citizenship. Multilingual, she sings in French, Italian and Spanish, English, in all of which she is fluent. She has sold over 18 million records worldwide so far. She became a Canadian citizen in 1994 at the time she began her career in Quebec. Pure, her first succesfull album, was released in June 1997. Pure sold over two million copies in France alone and the album went platinum in less than two weeks. The album spawned several hit singles: "Tout", "Je t'aime", "Humana" and the anti-homophobia anthem "La Différence", each sold more than one million copies. Other hits: "Pas sans toi", "Tu t'en Vas", "Si tu m'aimes" et "Leila". She also sang Serge Lama's "Je suis malade".

Sacha Distel (29 January 1933 – 22 July 2004) was a French singer and guitarist who had hits with a cover version of the Academy Award-winning "Raindrops Keep Falling On My Head" (originally recorded by B. J. Thomas), "Scoubidou", and "The Good Life". He was born in Paris. He was one of the top jazz guitarists and chanson singers in France. A prolific recording artist, Distel recorded more than 200 tunes including his biggest hit, "Scoubidou," in 1958. In addition to appearing in several French films, he became one of France's most popular television actors. Distel inherited his love of music from his mother, who played piano, and an uncle, Ray Ventura, who was a renowned bandleader and composer. Trained by Henry Salvador, guitarist/singer for Ventura's orchestra, Distel was a featured soloist with his school orchestra by the age of 13. He established his early reputation as accompanist for French vocalist Juliette Gréco. Distel's compositions have been covered by a lengthy list of international artists including Archie Shepp, Tony Bennett, Bobby Darin, Billy Eckstine, Bobby Hackett, Shirley Horn, and Bireli Lagrene. He passed away in 2004 at the age of 71.