Just recovered from pneumonia, Eddy Mitchell talks about the addictions and excesses that marked his life

After saying goodbye to the stage, Eddy Mitchell did not intend to retire. At 82, he is back with “Amigos”, his 40th album and a work soberly called “Autobiography”. A comeback temporarily interrupted at the end of October for “slight health reasons “. But his fans rest assured, Mr. Eddy – “Schmoll” for short – has thick skin. In the “portrait of the week” of “Sept à Huit” this Sunday, November 24, he reveals to Audrey Crespo-Mara the reasons for this setback: “I had pneumonia, that’s it”he says in the video visible at the top of this article.

His voice still slightly hoarse, he admits, his lungs “heavy smoker” have nothing to do with it. “Well yes, and for a long time. Since the age of 14”he says, before specifying: “I stopped a month ago. We’ll see.” The rocker thus followed the advice of doctors, and it does not seem to make him happy. “They say you shouldn’t smoke, you shouldn’t drink, you shouldn’t eat fatty foods. Well, you shouldn’t do anything.”he lists, while acknowledging that he follows “more or less” these recommendations.

There was no fun really. Instead of drinking a glass of water or fruit juice, I had a Scotch

Eddy Mitchell

In his memoirs, Eddy Mitchell compares his excesses to those of Johnny, an ephemeral rival during the Black Socks era, who became his great friend, but he smoked “two packages”, he insists. As for alcohol, even if he no longer drinks it, he remembers that it was more “a mania than anything else”. “There was no real fun. Instead of drinking a glass of water or a fruit juice, I had a Scotch”he brushes aside, omitting to specify that it was “one to two bottles of whiskey per day”.

This lover of life loved sharing these moments with Johnny, as can be seen in a video shown to him, where the two men laugh and sing together at the table. A moment he remembers very well: “It was during the Vieilles Canailles tour – a trio formed by the two singers and their third long-time friend, Jacques Dutronc -, it was in Clermont-Ferrand, he was in great shape. Besides, the doctors who were following him came to see me to thank me even though I had nothing to do with it. They told me : 'You gave him a wonderful time. He forgot he was on chemo. It's true, it was a lovely evening.” he remembers with nostalgia.

His role as a “too absent” father

Another central and essential character in Eddy Mitchell's life, his wife, Murielle, whom he loves “for over forty years”. It allowed him to break away from another addiction: gambling. “Poor thing, I woke her up when I came home around 6 a.m., 7 a.m. and I told her about my evening, which was not exciting, it must be said”he said. “On tour, I went there at four in the afternoon and they came to do my makeup and dress me there, I was going to sing and then there was the poker table waiting for me, so that ended around 6 a.m.he continues. An addiction that ended after an ultimatum from his wife: “She told me: 'either stop, or I'll leave'. Well, I chose”he says. Eddy also talks about his role as a father, which caused him to be absent a lot. “When I was young, I was on the road all the time, I was never there, so I didn’t see my children growing up. However, as I got older, I became a good father”he corrects.

A child from Belleville, Claude Moine (his real name) grew up with a father employed at the RATP, who repaired buses at night. He remembers a modest childhood. “The 15th of the month arrived on the 5th”he quips. But in this Parisian district, dear to his heart, there was wealth: “everyone got along perfectly”he wrote in his autobiography. Which is no longer the case today. The fault, according to him, is social networks. “Why would I need to know what the neighbor is doing, to know what the stupid thing is thinking? I don't really care. There is a spirit of conspiracy in all of this which is embarrassing”, he says with his biting tone.

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And when it comes to politics, Mr. Eddy loses a little of his composure. A clear supporter of the left, he believed in Mitterrand. Then abstained from voting for a long time, “because I felt like I had been tricked.” But he had “shame” for not having voted against Le Pen against Chirac. So, he voted for Macron against Marine Le Pen and takes responsibility for it. “It is better to have a Macron than a Le Pen in power. They are fascists. For me, they are Doctor Folamour. They are extremists who are ready to take action”he argues without mincing his words. For him, the real heroes are “ordinary people who get up at six in the morning to pay their electricity bills”. “Whatever our position, we are all cornered by taxes, by taxes, by this, by that, so at one point, we do: 'air'!”, he concludes. And like a snub, he reveals the epitaph that he would like to see inscribed on the vault he has reserved for the Saint-Tropez cemetery: “Do not disturb.”