Michel Louvain
CM
Louvain in 2015
Background information
Birth nameMichel Poulin
Born(1937-07-12)July 12, 1937
Thetford Mines, Quebec, Canada
OriginCanadian
DiedApril 14, 2021(2021-04-14) (aged 83)
Montreal, Quebec, Canada
Occupation(s)Singer, television presenter
Years active1956–2021
Websitemichel-louvain.com

Michel Louvain, CM (July 12, 1937 – April 14, 2021)[1] was a Canadian singer most popular in the 1960s and 1970s.[2] He recorded many hit songs,[3][4] and also worked as a host for a variety of shows on television and radio.[2][5] In 1965 he was voted 'Mr. Radio–TV', Radio Canada's top show business personality, at the Gala des Artistes.[6]

Early life

Louvain was born Michel Poulin in Thetford Mines, Quebec, on July 12, 1937.[7][8] His father worked as a miner. Louvain first sang as a child in the choir at his local church. He was employed as a hardware store decorator during his adolescence. He consequently moved out of his hometown to pursue a full-time career in singing. He first relocated to Sherbrooke, before settling down in Montreal.[9]

Career

Louvain began working as a master of ceremonies at a hotel in Laval when he was 20 years old.[9] He was later signed to Apex Records in the 1960s.[10] His first hit was "Buenas Noches Mi Amor". Over the next 20 years, Louvain made many recordings, including the hit songs "La Dame en bleu" and "Je déclare l'amour au monde entier".[2] His recordings in French were sold internationally in Belgium.[11] His song "C'est Un Secret" reached #14 in the Canadian RPM Magazine Top 40, November 29, 1965.[12]

Louvain was the host of a succession of CFTM-TV (Montreal) and Radio-Canada TV variety shows.[2] His performances attracted mostly young female fans.[13] He first performed in nightclubs, and, when his following grew more mature, in entertainment theatres. In the 1980s, he staged grandiose music-hall shows, with female dancers and scenery, at the Place des Arts and across Quebec, including Autour du monde in 1984.[2]

Louvain was the subject of a documentary film by Claude Demers, entitled Ladies in Blue (Les dames en bleu).[14]

Later life

Louvain was appointed Knight of the National Order of Quebec in 2010.[9] Five years later, he was named a Member of the Order of Canada.[15][16] In 2017, as a celebration of his 80th birthday, Louvain set out on a concert tour. One of the concerts was at the Festival d'Été de Québec in Quebec City.[17][18] He released his 32nd album, La belle vie, in 2019. He was scheduled to tour throughout Quebec from September 2021, beginning in his hometown Thetford Mines.[19]

Louvain died in his sleep on the night of April 14, 2021, at the Hôpital de Verdun in Montreal. He was 83, and suffered from esophageal cancer, which he had been diagnosed with earlier that month.[1][9][19] Condolences included the Premier of Quebec François Legault, saying "the people of Quebec have lost an idol", and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau who described Louvain as "one of Quebec’s greatest singers".[9]

Louvain was gay, but rarely spoke about his private life on the record to the media.[20] He was in a 25-year relationship with Mario Théberge, although the couple did not officially marry until just a few days before Louvain's death in 2021.[20]

Discography

  • 1958: Michel Louvain[21][22]
  • 1959: Ici Michel Louvain[21][22]
  • 1961: Après minuit[22]
  • 1962: Michel Louvain chante ses succès[22]
  • 1962: Toi et moi[21][22]
  • 1964: Michel[22]
  • 1965: Aloha[22][23]
  • 1965: Cœur à chœur[22]
  • 1966: Un peu plus de chanson[21][22]
  • 1967: Formi... formidable[22]
  • 1968: Souvenirs exotiques[22]
  • 1969: Michel Louvain chante Marie[22]
  • 1973: Ma vie, c'est l'amour[22]
  • 1974: La Grande kermesse western[22]
  • 1974: La Dame en bleu[21][22]
  • 1978: En spectacle au Grand Théâtre de Québec[21][22]
  • 1979: En harmonie[22]
  • 1979: Message d'amour et de paix[22]
  • 1980: Michel Louvain 1980[22]
  • 1982: Michel Louvain: 1957–1982[22]
  • 1984: Michel Louvain[22]
  • 1986: Il faut s'aimer[22]
  • 1988: Noël avec vous[22]
  • 1988: L'Amour sera toujours l'amour[22]
  • 1989: Romantique[22]
  • 1993: Je déclare l'amour[22]
  • 1997: La collection Michel Louvain – Les grands succès[22]
  • 2002: Les Grands Succès[22]
  • 2007: Chante Noël[21]
  • 2015: Gentleman Crooner[21]

References

  1. 1 2 Gilbert, Mario (April 14, 2021). "Michel Louvain s'éteint à l'âge de 83 ans". Le Droit.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 Michel Louvain at The Canadian Encyclopedia.
  3. ↑ "Top Singles". RPM, Volume 4, No. 10. November 1, 1965
  4. ↑ "Tour de Chant". Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. December 5, 1960. p. 38. ISSN 0006-2510.
  5. ↑ "Tabloid Poll". Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. June 17, 1967. pp. 48–. ISSN 0006-2510.
  6. ↑ "French-Canadian show oo-la-la affair; Awards spark rhubarb". Billboard. October 30, 1965. p. 26. Retrieved June 16, 2010.
  7. ↑ Gilbert, Mario (April 15, 2021). "Quebec crooner Michel Louvain, who enthralled a generation of fans, dies at 83". Toronto Star. Retrieved April 16, 2021.
  8. ↑ "Michel Louvain n'est plus" (in Canadian French). Radio-Canada. April 14, 2021. Retrieved April 16, 2021.
  9. 1 2 3 4 5 Tomesco, Frédéric (April 15, 2021). "Obituary: Singer and TV host Michel Louvain was 'an idol' to Quebecers". Montreal Gazette. Retrieved April 15, 2021.
  10. ↑ "Disque artists win 2 top awards at Gala". Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. July 31, 1965. pp. 12–. ISSN 0006-2510.
  11. ↑ "Music Capitals of the World". Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. January 29, 1966. p. 28. ISSN 0006-2510.
  12. ↑ "RPM Top 40 Singles - November 29, 1965" (PDF).
  13. ↑ Montreal in the 50s: A Guide to Writing Historical Fiction. Olivia Makinson. November 26, 2014. p. 7. GGKEY:D46W0PNPZPF.
  14. ↑ Kelly, Brendan (December 22, 2014). "Claude Demers gets very personal in new documentary set in Verdun". The Gazette. Montreal. Retrieved December 27, 2014.
  15. ↑ "Four Nova Scotians among Order of Canada honourees". The Chronicle-Herald, July 1, 2015.
  16. ↑ "Seventeen Quebecers appointed to Order of Canada". Nathalie Laflamme, The Gazette (Montreal), July 1, 2015
  17. ↑ Lawlis, Jamie (July 16, 2017). "SPILL FESTIVAL REVIEW: FESTIVAL D'ÉTÉ DE QUÉBEC 2017". The Spill Magazine. Retrieved November 9, 2020.
  18. ↑ Josianne Desloges, "Michel Louvain et l'OSQ: le bonheur d'un crooner". Le Soleil, April 7, 2017.
  19. 1 2 "Singer Michel Louvain, a Quebec icon, dies at 83". CTV News Montreal. April 15, 2021. Retrieved April 17, 2021.
  20. 1 2 Lise Ravary, "Francophones mourn Michel Louvain, anglos say 'who?'". Montreal Gazette, April 19, 2021.
  21. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 "Michel Louvain – Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved April 15, 2021.
  22. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 "Biographie – Michel Louvain". Radio-Canada. Retrieved April 15, 2021. (in French)
  23. ↑ Philip Hayward (1999). Widening the Horizon: Exoticism in Post-war Popular Music. J. Libbey. p. 3. ISBN 978-1-86462-047-4.
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