Lucille Starr

Lucille Marie Raymonde Savoie (May 13, 1938 – September 4, 2020), known professionally as Lucille Starr, was a Canadian Franco-Manitoban / British Columbian singer, songwriter, and yodeler best known for her 1964 hit single, "Quand Le Soleil Dit Bonjour Aux Montagnes" ("The French Song") (When the sun says hello to the mountains).

Lucille Starr
Lucille Starr (1965)
Background information
Birth nameLucille Marie Raymonde Savoie
Born(1938-05-13)May 13, 1938
Saint Boniface, Manitoba, Canada
DiedSeptember 4, 2020(2020-09-04) (aged 82)
Las Vegas, Nevada, U.S.
GenresCountry
Occupation(s)Singer
songwriter
Yodeler
InstrumentsVocals, guitar, bass, mandolin
Years active1958–2020
LabelsAlmo International, A&M, Epic, Barry

Early life

Starr was born in Saint Boniface, Manitoba. She was raised in Port Coquitlam and Coquitlam's Francophone community of Maillardville, British Columbia, where she learned to play guitar, bass and mandolin.

Career

Savoie started her musical career with the local group Les Hirondelles. She met and married country singer Bob Regan, and, using the stage name Lucille Starr, she began performing with him as a country singing duo called "Bob & Lucille". Between 1958 and 1963 they released several 45 rpm records that were mainly covers of an eclectic mix of fashionable country, pop, rockabilly and folk songs of people such as Perry Como to Connie Francis. Their records met with modest success on the North American West Coast[1] and in 1963 they were signed by A&M Records in Los Angeles, California, with which they began recording as "The Canadian Sweethearts".

At A&M Records, Starr recorded a song called "The French Song" that was produced by Herb Alpert.[2] It was recorded in both French and English. In 1964, at a time when The Beatles dominated the music charts, "The French Song" was an international success that made Starr the first Canadian artist to have a record sell over a million copies.[3] The popularity of the song led to a tour of the United States and appearing on the Louisiana Hayride radio show and on Chicago radio station WLS (AM) popular National Barn Dance. Starr also sang on American television musical variety shows such as Shindig! and Hullabaloo, followed by tours of Pacific Rim countries, Australia, South Africa, and across Europe where she became a particular favorite in the Netherlands. The song sold over one million copies, and it was awarded a gold disc.[3]

In 1967, Starr and her Canadian Sweethearts duo signed a recording contract with Epic Records in Nashville, Tennessee.[4] Divorced from her husband, their musical collaboration ended in 1977. Although she never again had a hit of the magnitude of "The French Song", Starr enjoyed a long and prosperous career recording primarily in English but also in French and Spanish. For the most part she sang country music, becoming the first female inducted into the Canadian Country Music Association’s "Hall of Honor" in 1987.[5] A capable yodeler, she was hired to do the yodeling for the "Cousin Pearl" character on several segments of the hit TV series, The Beverly Hillbillies.

Back to You: the Life and Music of Lucille Starr, a jukebox musical with a script by Tracey Power, was performed at the Prairie Theatre Exchange in Winnipeg in November 2010.[6]

In her honour, a street in the city of Coquitlam, British Columbia was named "Lucille Starr Way".

Death

Starr died, in Las Vegas, Nevada, in the early morning hours of September 4, 2020. The announcement of her death was made on Facebook by fellow Canadian artist, Joyce Smith.[7]

Discography

Albums
Year Album Label
1964 The French Song A&M
1967 Say you love me
1968 In South Africa
1968 Greatest Hits A&M
1968 Remember Me CBS
1969 Lonely Street Epic
1971 Side by Side Harmony
1981 The Sun Shines Again[8] Starr
1988 Back to You Quality
1991 Songs of Love Intersound
Chansons D'Amour
Mississippi Koch

Singles
Year Single Chart Positions Album
CAN Country CAN AC CAN US Country US
1964 "The French Song" — — 12 — 54 The French Song
"Jolie Jacqueline" — — 24 — —
1965 "Crazy Arms" 5 — — — —
1967 "Too Far Gone" 1 — — 72 — Lonely Street
1968 "Is It Love?" — — — 63 — single only
1969 "Cajun Love" 1 — — — — Lonely Street
1970 "Dream Baby" (with Bob Regan) 28 — — 50 — singles only
"The French Song" (re-release) 39 14 — — —
1971 "Sock It to Satan" 42 — — — —
1981 "Power in Your Love" 37 — — — — The Sun Shines Again
1988 "The First Time I've Been in Love" 26 — — — — Back to You
"Back to You" 63 — — — —
1990 "Just the Way We Were" 99 — — — —

References
  1. Chuck Davis (January 1, 1997). The greater Vancouver book: an urban encyclopaedia. Linkman Press. p. 683. ISBN 978-1-896846-00-2.
  2. Lucille Star does single for A&M. Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. May 16, 1964. pp. 40–. ISSN 0006-2510.
  3. Murrells, Joseph (1978). The Book of Golden Discs (2nd ed.). London: Barrie and Jenkins Ltd. p. 183. ISBN 0-214-20512-6.
  4. Joseph Murrells (1978). The Book of Golden Discs. Barrie and Jenkins. p. 183. ISBN 978-0-214-20480-7.
  5. "Hall of Fame Inductees: Lucille Starr". Canadian Country Music Hall of Fame website
  6. Archived September 5, 2010, at the Wayback Machine
  7. "Manitoba-born country music queen Lucille Starr dies at 82". CBC.ca
  8. "Lucille Starr Artist Biography". AllMusic, by Sandra Brennan
  • Canadian Records: A Discography & Price Guide of Canadian 45's & LP's from 1955 to 1975, Andre Gibeault, 1987 (OOP)


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