Moustique

Real name Michel Grégoire, singer Moustique was born in Paris on August 16, 1944. Growing up in the Bastille district, he discovered the rock'n'roll pioneers Little Richard, Gene Vincent and Jerry Lee Lewis, who were to influence his musical career. His musical career began in 1962 at Golf Drouot, where he had been a regular for several years. Noticed by artistic director Henri Leproux, he signed with the club's label, a subsidiary of the Barclay label, to record French adaptations of the R&B hits of the day. A finalist in the Golden Guitar Competition held in June 1963 at the Olympia in Paris, Moustique - nicknamed for his height - recorded a French version of the traditional "Stagger Lee" that year , alongside others such as "Je suis comme ça" ("My Way" by Eddie Cochran), "Anna" (Arthur Alexander) and "Good Golly Miss Molly" (Little Richard), on his first EP recorded with his group Les Bulldozers and released at the end of 1963. The following year, Les Downbeats accompanied him on the Joy Joy Joy EP, which, in addition to this gospel classic, included adaptations by Eddie Cochran ("Ne me fais plus souffrir", based on "Cut Across Shorty"), Ronnie Hawkins ("Baby Jean") and Ritchie Valens ("Donna"). After a performance at the Olympia, Moustique had the honor of opening for the Beatles at the Palais des Sports in Paris on June 20, 1965. Ten years later, he signed a final 45-tour tribute, "Mister Gene Vincent". Now a restaurateur and antique dealer, Moustique reappeared on stage from time to time, as he did on March 13, 1993 with Little Richard at the Palais des Sports in Ghent (Belgium).

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