Guitar, Vocals, Composer (1933-2004)

Born Alexandre Distel on 29 January 1933 in Paris, Sacha Distel was the son of Russian-Jewish émigré Leonid Distel from Odesa, Ukraine, and French-Jewish pianist Andrée Ventura. His uncle was bandleader Ray Ventura, who settled in Paris with his orchestra Les Collégiens. By 17, Distel was one of France's most promising jazz guitarists. In 1953, he joined Lionel Hampton's big band during its first European tour. He recorded Afternoon in Paris (1957, Atlantic Records) with pianist John Lewis, featuring Barney Wilen on tenor saxophone and Percy Heath on bass. He worked with Dizzy Gillespie and Tony Bennett, and appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show in the late 1950s.

In 1958, Distel turned to singing and had his first hit with "Scoubidou". From 1958 to 1959, he had a highly publicised relationship with actress Brigitte Bardot. In the 1960s, he composed "La Belle Vie", which became "The Good Life" when recorded by Tony Bennett in 1963, reaching number 18 on Billboard's Hot 100 and number 27 in the UK. He married Olympic skier Francine Bréaud in 1963. In 1970, his cover of "Raindrops Keep Falling on My Head" reached number 10 in the UK charts. He became popular in Britain during the 1970s, hosted the Miss World contest in London, and had his own variety show on French television. In 1997, he was made Chevalier of the Légion d'honneur. Distel died in 2004, aged 71.