Bézu

Bézu is a French singer and actor best known for "À la Queuleuleu," a Top Five hit in 1988 associated with the television show La Classe. Born André Bézu on July 24, 1943, in Tourcoing, Nord-Pas-de-Calais, France, he originally made a name for himself in the French cinema of the 1970s. He made his recording debut the following decade, beginning with a couple mid-'80s novelty singles written by Gérard Tempesti and Guy Lux that were released on the label TNR under the billing Bézu et la Grand St. Germain ("Ali Baba," "Moi Vouloir du Couscous," "Le Sex Symbol"). Bézu's breakout success came a few years later with "À la Queuleuleu," a Top Five hit on the French singles chart in early 1988. Released on Carrère in 1987 and associated with the French television show La Classe, "À la Queuleuleu" sparked a momentary surge of interest in Bézu, and so the previously released Bézu et la Grand St. Germain single "Ali Baba" was reissued in 1988. "Le Tortillard," the follow-up single to "À la Queuleuleu," was released in 1989 and was similarly styled yet fell flat, failing to rival the success of its predecessor. Subsequent releases such as the parodic hip-hop novelty "Le Rap aux Moules" in 1991 likewise proved unpopular. In later years best-of collections such as À la Queuleuleu (2001) surfaced from time to time, but for the most part, Bézu was remembered as something of a one-hit wonder. He died on February 7, 2007, in Paris, France. ~ Jason Birchmeier, Rovi