An undeniably successful singer, Claude François marked the 1960s and 1970s with titles such as Monday in the sun or Alexandria Alexandra. But the leading face of French song had also been talked about for his tumultuous relationships. After suddenly separating from France Gall, he rebuilt his life with the model Isabelle Forêt, aged 19 at that time. Leaving her life aside for her companion, she testified in the columns of Paris Matchappeared on May 11, 1979.
“He expected everything from me.” : Isabelle Forêt remembers her relationship with Claude François
In 1967, Claude François fell under the spell of the pretty Isabelle Forêt. The couple moved in together at Moulin de Dannemois and welcomed their two children, Marc and François. But their relationship did not last, the lovebirds finally separated five years later. From the magazine Paris Matchthe journalist testified, a year after the death of her ex-companion: “He expected everything from me: children he could love, I later gave them to him; a setting that smells like a cake coming out of the oven, in a word finding, when he returns from his tours, a haven of peace reminding him of family happiness“, she confided. The ex-model also spoke of the consequences of this relationship with the singer: “During all this time, imperceptibly, I became his thing, his blonde and pale but strong Polish woman, capable of moving the furniture to please him so that he could judge their effect. He often said : ‘You Isabelle, you are the strength, the health, the woman, the only one capable of giving me children.'”
“He would end up changing his image”: Claude François Jr talks about the reason that pushed Claude François to hide his brother from the public eye
Claude François and Isabelle Forêt welcomed their first son, Claude François Jr, in 1968 followed, a year later, by the birth of Marc: “If I had listened to it back then we would have had a lot“, confided the mother in the columns of Paris Match in 1979. But the singer hid his second son from the public eye for a long time; it was only in 1975 that he made the news official, when Marc was six years old. In the latest issue of Paris Matchdedicated to Claude François, published on Thursday October 24, 2024, his eldest son testifies: “His professional entourage had told him that by being too much of a dad in the spotlight, he would end up changing his image, by switching from boots to charentaises. But the fans weren’t fooled. They knew it. It didn’t last“. The artist had, for his part, mentioned other reasons when he revealed that he had a second son. He explained that he had hidden Marc to protect him from media harassment.
