The soundtrack of winter 1976 sends heavy, watts and decibels at top speed. ACDC, Led Zeppelin, Eagles, Kiss, Rod Stewart. And yet, it is a romantic ballad that rises to the firmament of the hit parade: a simple feminine first name, “Michèle”, sung by Gérard Lenorman.
A first flirtation in ParisMichèle is 15 years old, he, the same age, he joins her by suburban train, the little grays of the seventies, heading to the Lycée Henri IV, or Fénelon or the Alsatian school, who knows, the author of the song, Didier Barbelivien, does not say it.
In this song “Michèle” emerges a fucking romanticism to break everything. Gérard Lenorman assumes!
In 1976, Gérard Lenorman was nicknamed “the little prince of song”, adored by fans, less so by radio programmers. And yes it’s another “Michelle” across the Channel, more pop, which makes British hearts beat. It does not matter, the very French “Michèle” succumbs one winter evening, the snow fell on the roofs of Paris and the career of Gérard Lenorman was launched with great fanfare from the TV set.
“Michelle” is a song that marked a whole generation of Parisiennes and Parisians named Patrick, Catherine, Christine, Pascal, Brigitte, Florence and Bruno. Lenorman, as a good comrade, has always lent his hits and for almost 50 years, we have been singing the praises of “Michèle”, like Grégoire, Barbelivien, Zazie or Alain Souchon.