Richard Anthony

Richard Anthony (born Ricardo Anthony Btesh; 13 January 1938 – 19 April 2015) was an Egyptian-born French pop singer who had his greatest success in the 1960s and 1970s. As a child he lived in Egypt and Argentina, as well as studying at Brighton College in England. From 1951, he studied at Lycée Janson-de-Sailly and settled in Paris. He started studying law, but after his father's sudden death in 1956 became a door-to-door salesman to help support his family. He also began playing saxophone in Paris nightclubs.

In 1958, as Richard Anthony, he made his first recordings as a singer, initially recording French language versions of American pop hits. These included "Tu m'étais destinée" ("You Are My Destiny"), "Peggy Sue", and "Nouvelle vague" ("Three Cool Cats") which became successful in France. In the early 1960s he became one of the biggest French pop stars, with other hits including "Let's Twist Again", "C’est ma fête" ("It's My Party"), and "Et j'entends siffler le train" ("500 Miles"). He started recording at the Abbey Road Studios in England, and reached the UK singles chart with the English-language songs "Walking Alone" (No. 37, 1963) and "If I Loved You" (No. 18, 1964). One of his songs, "I Don't Know What To Do", arranged by Ivor Raymonde, was released in the US in 1965 by Motown Records on the V.I.P. label, making Anthony the first European artist to appear for that company. Ne boude pas (1962) - Take Five Faits pour s’aimer (1962) - Desafinado On twiste sur le locomotion (1963) – The Loco-Motion En écoutant la pluie (1963) – Rhythm of the Rain C’est ma fête (1963) – It's My Party Tchin tchin (1963) Donne-moi ma chance (1963) – Too Late To Worry Ce Monde (1964) – You're My World / Il mio mondo À présent tu peux t’en aller (1964) – I Only Want to Be with You À toi de choisir (1964) – Swinging on a Star La Corde au cou (1965) – I Should Have Known Better Je me suis souvent demandé (1965) Au revoir mon amour (1965) – Goodbye My Love Jamais je ne vivrai sans toi (1965) – You Don't Have to Say You Love Me The night (La nuit) (1965), by Salvatore Adamo Hello Pussycat (1966) – What's New Pussycat? La Terre promise (1966) – California Dreaming Sunny (1966) – Sunny Aranjuez, mon Amour (1967) inspired by Concierto de Aranjuez by Joaquín Rodrigo Le Grand Meaulnes (1967) – Le Grand Meaulnes, song inspired by a novel by the French author Alain-Fournier Inch'Allah (1967) in Arabic, by Salvatore Adamo Un homme en enfer (1968) L’Été (1968) Les Ballons (1968) – Little Arrows Le Sirop Typhon (1969) – Lily the Pink Les Petits Cochons (1969) L’An 2005 (1969) – In the Year 2525 Bien l’bonjour (1970) Na na hé hé espoir (1970) – Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Goodbye Il pleut des larmes (1970) – La Nave del Olvido Non stop (1977) – Don't Stop New York (1978) Señora la dueña (1970) – Lady D'Arbanville San Diego (1970) Et après (1971) by Salvatore Adamo Un soleil rouge (1971) Tibo (1971) Maggy May (1971) – Maggie May Sans toi (1972) – Without You Victoire je t’aime (1973) Marie-Jeanne (1973) Amoureux de ma femme (1974) – Nessuno mi può giudicare by Caterina Caselli Nathalie (1975) Chanson de dix sous (1975) – I Can't Stay Mad at You De la musique républicaine (1976) Voilà pourquoi je l’aime (1976) À l’aube du dernier jour (1977) Minuit (1980) – MemOry Los Angeles (1981) Elle m’attend (1983) T'aimer d’amour (1985) Barrière des générations (1990) Le rap pas innocent – Ronymix 98 (1998) Et je m'en vais – Then I Kissed Her Autant chercher à retenir le vent (1965) – Catch the Wind Je n'ai que toi – All by Myself Le soleil ne brille plus (1966) – The Sun Ain't Gonna Shine Anymore J'irai pleurer sous la pluie – Crying in the Rain Après toi – The Next Time Un papillon qui vole (1966) – Elusive Butterfly