After Dinner Speakers: Charles Aznavour, Bay City Rollers, Anna Kournikova

Chahnour Varenagh Aznavourian, 22 May 1924, Paris, France. This premier singer-songwriter has carried the torch for the French chanson tradition for over six decades and remains one of popular music's last great stylists. He also established a film career as a leading character actor. Aznavour's parents fled from Armenia after the Turkish massacre. A later composition, "They Fell", expressed the bewilderment felt by all Armenians, and Aznavour has stated: "I am Armenian. Everybody figures out that I am a Frenchman because I sing in French, I act like a Frenchman and I have all the symptoms of a Frenchman." His father had a small restaurant but Aznavour himself was preoccupied with music. When aged only 15, he wrote a one-man show, and soon after adopted the stage name Aznavour. In 1942 he formed a performing and songwriting partnership with Pierre Roche and the duo had success in Canada between 1948 and 1950. Aznavour's first hit was the drinking song "J'ai Bu", recorded by Charles Ulmer. In 1950, Aznavour became a solo performer ("I was small and undistinguished, so I had to become rich and famous"). Aznavour often opened for Edith Piaf, who recorded several of his songs, including "Il Pleut" and "Le Feutre Tropez", as well as a translation of "Jezebel". "When I gave 'Je Hais Les Dimanches' to her, she laughed in my face and told me to give it to an existentialist singer", he recalled. "I took her at her word and gave it Juliette Greco. She said, 'You idiot! You've given my song to that girl. Now I'll have to record it to show her how to sing it.'' Aznavour has written numerous songs about ageing, notably "Hier Encore", which was translated into English by Herbert Kretzmer as "Yesterday When I Was Young". "Les Plaisirs Demodes" ("The Old-Fashioned Way") was an antidote to rock 'n' roll, but ironically in the movie And Then There Was None, the character he played was poisoned after singing it. His film appearances have included the title role in Franççois Truffaut's meritorious Shoot The Pianist (1960), and he has also featured in popular movies including Candy, The Adventurers and The Games. Matt Monro made the UK charts with the maudlin "For Mama", while Jack Jones recorded a tribute album, Write Me A Love Song, Charlie. In 1974 Aznavour had a UK number 1 of his own with "She", the theme for the ITV television series, The Seven Faces Of Woman. Although small (5 feet 3 inches), slight and with battered, world-weary features, he is nonetheless an imposing concert performer, acting his songs with the ability of a leading mime artist. Aznavour starred in the 1975 Royal Command Performance, and was parodied by UK comedy troupe the Goodies as Charles Aznovoice. He rarely records anything other than his own songs and his inventive compositions have included "You've Let Yourself Go", in which his woman is overweight and argumentative, "What Makes A Man" about a transvestite, "Pretty Shitty Days" about an English word that amused him, and the account of a disastrous wedding anniversary in "Happy Anniversary". His range encompasses novelty tunes, pastiches, ballads, bittersweet love songs, and narrative and character sketches. He has been quoted as saying, "Songs mature inside of me and then take their life on paper. A song may take me five minutes to write but it also takes 40 years of living." Through remaining active as a recording artist, Aznavour performed a series of farewell concerts at the Palais des Congrès in Paris between October and December 2000.