Hallyday's father, Léon Smet (1908–1989), was Belgian; his mother, Huguette Clerc (1920–2007), was French. Born in Paris, Hallyday took his stage name from his aunt Desta's husband and dance partner Lee Hallyday, a pseudonym for Lee Ketcham, an expatriate Oklahoman, performer, and MC at the Café de Paris where Johnny began his singing career. Johnny was raised by Desta and Lee from a very young age, with Lee being his first manager. Johnny was always very loyal to Lee and secured him a permanent job as a producer and A&R man with his label, Philips Records until Lee's retirement and relocation back to Oklahoma.
His debut single, "Laisse les filles" was released on the Vogue label in March 1960. His first album, Hello Johnny, was released in 1960. In 1961 his cover of "Let's Twist Again" sold over one million copies, and was awarded a gold disc. It topped almost every European chart, although the track did not appear in the UK Singles Chart. He appeared on the American The Ed Sullivan Show with American singing star Connie Francis in a show that was taped at the Moulin Rouge nightclub in Paris. He also staged many appearances in the Paris Olympia under the management of the late Bruno Coquatrix. For their first concert, The Jimi Hendrix Experience opened for Johnny Hallyday in Évreux on 13 October 1966. Black-and-white footage, also from October 1966, exists of Hallyday partying with Hendrix, his manager Chas Chandler and others. There also is a widely published monochrome photograph of Hallyday walking somewhere in Paris in late May 1966 with Bob Dylan.
At the end of the 1960s, Hallyday made a string of albums with Mick Jones and Tommy Brown as musical directors, and Big Jim Sullivan, Bobby Graham and Jimmy Page as session musicians. These are Jeune Homme, Rivière... Ouvre ton Lit (a.k.a. Je suis né dans la rue) and Vie. On Je suis né dans la rue, Hallyday also hired both Peter Frampton and the Small Faces. Amongst their contributions are the songs Amen (Bang Bang), Reclamation (News Report), and Regarde Pour Moi (What You Will), which are variations of Small Faces and Humble Pie (Frampton's band) songs—tracks and they all play on the album. Often forgotten is Hallyday's non-LP single and EP track Que Je T'aime from the same sessions. By 1969 alone, his sales of records exceeded twelve million.
One of Hallyday's later concerts, 100% Johnny: Live à La Tour Eiffel in 2000, attracted an audience of 500,000 and 9.5 million television viewers (the show was broadcast live on French TV). In December 2005, Hallyday had his third number-one single in France, "Mon Plus Beau Noël" (after "Tous ensemble" and "Marie"), dedicated to his adopted daughter Jade. Shortly before announcing his retirement from touring, he released a blues-flavored album, Le Cœur d'un homme, on 12 November 2007. The album hit No. 1 in both France and French-speaking Belgium. In addition to the lead single "Always", Le Cœur d'un homme features "T'aimer si mal", a duet with bluesman Taj Mahal and "I Am the Blues", an English-language song written for Hallyday by U2's lead singer Bono. His next album, Ça ne finira jamais, released in 2008, another No. 1 on the French album chart, and its lead single, "Ça n'finira jamais", also reached No. 1. In 2008 he recorded a series of acoustic songs with French musician Drexl Jonez. Hallyday's most recent album, also a No. 1 hit in France, is Tour 66: Stade de France 2009, a live set recorded at Stade de France during his farewell tour with appearances by Drexl Jonez on the guitar.
French movie producers Michèle and Laurent Pétin introduced Johnny Hallyday to Hong Kong film director Johnnie To. Hallyday was cast as the main role of To's Vengeance after meeting with the director in early 2008. The shooting began in November 2008 and concluded in February 2009.
He was married for 15 years to popular Bulgarian-French singer Sylvie Vartan and the two were considered a "golden couple" for 20 years.
Hallyday completed 181 tours, had 18 platinum albums, and sold more than 110 million records worldwide, making him one of the world's best-selling artists of all time.
Hallyday remains largely unknown outside the Francophone world, thus earning the nickname "the biggest rock star you've never heard of" in English-speaking countries.
On December 5th, 2017 Hallyday died, at age 74, in Marnes-la-Coquette, France.
Hey Baby
Johnny Hallyday Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I want to know if you'll be my girl
Hey, hey hey baby!
I want to know if you'll be my girl
When I saw you walking down the street
I said that's a kind of girl I'd like to meet
She's so pretty, Lord she's fine
I'm gonna make her mine, all mine
Hey, hey hey baby!
I want to know if you'll be my girl
When you turned and walked away
Thats when I want to say
C'mon baby, give me a whirl
I want to know if you'll be my girl
Hey, hey hey baby!
I want to know if you'll be my girl
When you turned and walked away
Thats when I want to say
C'mon baby, give me a whirl
I want to know if you'll be my girl
Hey, hey hey baby!
I want to know if you'll be my girl
Hey, hey hey hey hey, baby
C'mon, baby now
The lyrics of Johnny Hallyday's Hey Baby tell the story of a man who sees a woman walking down the street and is immediately enchanted by her beauty. He wants to know if she will be his girl and sets out to pursue her. He thinks she is so pretty and fine, that he wants to make her all his own. In the chorus, he repeats his desire to know if she will be his girl.
As the woman turns and walks away, the man becomes more determined to catch her attention. He wants her to give him a chance, to "give [him] a whirl" and see if they have a connection. He repeats his request to know if she will be his girl and ends the song with a passionate plea for her to come to him.
While the song is essentially a love song, it is also a classic example of the rock and roll genre. The repetition of the chorus and the driving beat of the music are hallmarks of the style. Johnny Hallyday's gravelly voice adds to the sense of urgency and desire conveyed in the lyrics.
Overall, Hey Baby is a catchy, upbeat song that captures the joy and excitement of falling in love.
Line by Line Meaning
Hey, hey hey baby!
The singer is trying to get the attention of the girl he likes.
I want to know if you'll be my girl
The singer is expressing his interest in the girl and asking her out.
When I saw you walking down the street
The singer is reminiscing about the moment he first saw the girl.
I said that's a kind of girl I'd like to meet
The singer thought that the girl was attractive, and he wanted to get to know her.
She's so pretty, Lord she's fine
The singer is describing the physical attributes of the girl.
I'm gonna make her mine, all mine
The singer is declaring his intention to pursue a romantic relationship with the girl.
When you turned and walked away
The girl ignored the singer and walked away.
Thats when I want to say
The singer is expressing his regret for not having spoken to the girl when he had the chance.
C'mon baby, give me a whirl
The singer is asking the girl to reconsider and give him a chance.
Hey, hey hey hey hey, baby
The singer is trying to get the girl's attention again.
C'mon, baby now
The singer is urging the girl to make a decision and give him an answer.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: BRUCE CHANNEL, MARGARET COBB
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@grossac54
belle chanson et belle époque pas comme maintenant 🎼🎼
@joelleravet5721
J'Adore cette chanson.....Souvenirs d'une fabuleuse époque, avec l'insouciance de notre jeunesse....! Merci Johnny de nous avoir tant fait rêver....et ça continue ! Très belle vidéo avec Johnny et Sylvie, merveilleux souvenirs....! Merci Bernard ! Joëlle
@MokaMoka-sh1jk
Elle est jolie cette chanson, j'aime beaucoup, que de souvenirs. Et notre "Johnny" était superbe avec Sylvie. Merci, Bernard, bonne soirée, biz. 👏🎸🌠💐
@TheBenoitBernard
Merci Moka, douce nuit. Bisous.
@vpw22
Je me souviens de la pochette de JOHNNY sur une malle, premier disque de JOHNNY que mes parents m'ont offert. J'aurais dû l'écrire dans les annales car ils le détestait...
@TheBenoitBernard
J'adorais la pochette du 25 cm, moins celle du 45t. Bonne fin de soirée.
@supertchoupi
Mon papá aussi!