He composed one of the greatest standards of French song. The musician Charles Dumont, to whom we owe “No, I regret nothing” by Édith Piaf, died on the night of Sunday November 17 to Monday November 18, 2024 in Paris, at the age of 95, announced his companion Florence to theAFP.
This singer-songwriter, who also collaborated with Barbra Streisand, died after a long illness at his home.
“Édith Piaf brought me into the world”
The career of this trained trumpeter took a major turn at the turn of the 1960s when he convinced the star Édith Piaf to perform one of his compositions, after having suffered several refusals. “No, I regret nothing” has since become an unforgettable La Môme standard, known throughout the world.
Read also: Deauville. Charles Dumont, still “in the light of Piaf”
“My mother gave birth to me but Édith Piaf brought me into the world”said the singer and pianist born in Cahors on March 26, 1929. “Without her, I would never have done everything I did, neither as a composer, nor as a singer”he assured during an interview withAFP in 2015. For Charles Dumont, this meeting will mark the beginning of a fruitful collaboration with Piaf, which will give birth to more than thirty pieces, including “Mon Dieu” and “Les floflons du bal”.
A crooner's career
Throughout his nearly sixty-year career, Charles Dumont also collaborated with Dalida and Tino Rossi and reconverted into a “crooner” at the end of the 1960s, abandoning his protest songs. He then released a series of albums where love took the lion's share… The album “Une femme” earned him the Charles-Cros Academy prize in 1973.
His last appearance on stage dates back to 2019 at the Eiffel Tower theater. “When you come back in front of an audience, who comes to see you as they did 20, 30 or 40 years ago and gives you the same welcome, then they give you back your 20 years”he said.
