Dick Rivers

Hervé Forneri was better known by his stage name Dick Rivers. A prolific artist with a long and industrious career, he was one of the main pioneers of rock & roll music in France. From an early age, Rivers was enthralled by rock & roll music which he heard at the American Army base situated in his home town. He was particularly inspired by Elvis Presley and took his stage name from a character played by Presley in the film 'Loving You' in 1957. Over the course of his career, he released 33 studio albums and three live albums. Rivers began his music career with the band Les Chats Sauvages in 1960 and was only 15 when the band released their first record. The band were best known for their single 'Twist à Saint-Tropez' and became one of the first bands, along with Les Chausettes Noires to play rock & roll in France. Rivers left Les Chats Sauvages after only a couple of years to pursue an extremely successful solo career. He signed for the record label Pathé-Marconi and his first solo album release was 'Je Suis Bien' in 1962. This was followed in 1964 and 1965 by the albums 'Rien Que Toi', 'Je Ne Suis Plus Rien Sans Toi' and 'J'ai Embrassé une Autre Fille' which were then re-released with extra tracks in 1966 and 1967 as 'Reminiscences of Vol. 1, 2 and 3'. In 1965, Rivers was the only French artist to be invited to perform with John Lennon and Paul McCartney on the TV programme 'The Music of John Lennon and Paul McCartney' at Granada Studios in Manchester, England. In 1966, he released the album 'Mister Pitiful', and then moved to Alabama in 1967 to work on perhaps his most acclaimed album 'The Dick Rivers Story' (1968). Whilst in America, Rivers worked with many renowned musicians and was delighted to meet Elvis, one of his musical heroes, in 1969. His final album of the 1960s was in 1969 and entitled 'L'Interrogation'. During the 1970s and 80s, Rivers became more experimental in his music and released several albums in English including 'Dick'n'roll' (1971), 'The Rock Machine' (1972) and 'Rockin' Along' (1972). He released a total of 16 solo albums in the 70s and 80s, and also re-joined Les Chats Sauvages for a 20th Anniversary album release called 'Love, Love, Love' in 1982. In the 1980s he also presented a show on Monte Carlo Radio which narrated the story of rock & roll. During the 1990s, Rivers released three more albums including the critically acclaimed 'Plein Soleil' in 1995 which many people consider to be one of the best French country rock albums. His career went from strength to strength with tours both in France and internationally. He also secured his first acting role in 'La Candide Madame Duff' in 1999. Three more albums followed from 2000, starting with 'Amoreux de Vous!' in 2001, 'Le Mauvais Joueur' in 2006 and 'L'Homme Sans Âge' in 2008. In 2011, Rivers celebrated his 50 year career with the release of the album 'Mister D' and in 2012, he joined the Verycords label to release his first live CD and DVD 'Gran Tour (Live at the Olympia)'. In 2014, his final album 'Rivers' was released. An influential performer with an impressive musical output, Rivers performed in a tour of 62 concerts called 'Âge Tendre' in 2018 along with other artists from the 1960s and 70s. He died of cancer on his 74th birthday, 24th April 2019. His single 'Nice Baie des Anges' from 1996, returned to the French Singles Chart at number 38 in the week of his death.

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