In his book The color of ghosts (ed. Talents Editions), Jean-Jacques Debout gives himself up with an open heart. Known for his limitless frankness, the husband of Chantal Goya, once again does not take tweezers and recounts the countless anecdotes that have marked his life, and those of many other famous personalities who have crossed his path. And if we learn that Brigitte Bardot was unable to take care of her son, according to her words, we also discover behind the scenes of his surprising estrangement with Sylvie Vartan, that he loved so much. “Jean-Jacques is a traitor“, would have meant the singer.
“I saw Sylvie a lot at the timesays Jean-Jacques Debout who was one of the most faithful friends of Johnny Hallyday. I had a crush on her… Johnny, on the contrary, did not fail to say an unpleasant word about her as soon as he had the opportunity.. He didn’t mind!“And yet, when Jean-Jacques Debout begins to write for the one he loves so much, one evening”during dinner in the basement of the hotel in the pizzeria“, he “install Sylvie in front of Johnny“.”And there… All of a sudden, the Johnny no longer speaks to anyone. There’s only one for Sylvie. […] I immediately understood that I had lost the case. How can you blame him? Sylvie was a little French Marylin Monroe“, writes the husband of Chantal Goya. It was that evening that the couple so mythical of those Yéyé years was born.
I decided to cut ties.
But later in the book, the 82-year-old songwriter says he no longer has “hasno contact with Sylvie Vartan“. So what happened between them? Yet it is thanks to the mother of David Hallyday and Darina Scotti that Jean-Jacques Debout was able to participate in the tribute to the Madeleine, as he says. “Unfortunately, Sylvie did not appreciate one of my statements on televisionhe explains. She reproached me for having told the truth, since I had only transcribed Johnny’s confidences, about the marriages of artists who did not make him happy. I had explained that Johnny liked the fact that Laeticia was always with him, unlike his previous companions (Sylvie who was a singer, Nathalie Baye who was an actress…).”
Words that did not please Sylvie Vartan at all, according to the latter. “It drove her crazy and she immediately phoned Chantal saying: ‘Jean-Jacques is a traitor!’, one can read. Frankly, you who know the whole story since you are reading my book, I think I deserve all the names except that of traitor” After that, Jean-Jacques Debout therefore decided to “cut ties“.”And I don’t want to hear any more about Sylvie Vartan. I don’t even want to listen to the songs I wrote for her anymore. It’s not a matter of grudges, but she went too far“, loose the husband of Chantal Goya in The color of ghostss.