Looking back on Sacha's early life it seemed inevitable that he would one day end up on the stage. Born in 1933, young Sacha began his career working in the music publishing company owned by his uncle, Raymond Ventura. When he was not at the office young Sacha spent his time learning to play guitar with an eccentric young musician who would also go on to become a big star: Henri Salvador. After honing his musical talent in the school jazz band, Sacha already had an eye on joining a serious group. And the opportunity came when his uncle Ray formed Ray Ventura et Les Collégiens. Sacha joined the white-jacketed, blue-tied brigade, swinging his way to fame with the rest of the group. Meanwhile, thanks to his uncle, Sacha went on to play with Loulou Gasté (Line Renaud's future husband) and Paul Misraki (who made his name as a top film music composer a few years later).

Sacha enjoyed the 50s to the hilt, hanging out on the Saint-Germain club scene at Le Tabou and Le Club St Germain and soaking up the carefree, hep cat ambience of the post-war years. By this point Sacha had already established a reputation for himself as a good guitarist and he was soon accompanying the likes of Juliette Gréco and Sarah Vaughan. But Sacha had ambitions of seeing his own name up in lights and was already thinking of abandoning the guitar to launch his own singing career. He would have to swallow his pride for a few years yet, however. When he enjoyed a brief fling with Brigitte Bardot in the mid-50s the whole nation was caught up in "Bardot-mania" and Sacha had to learn to live with the press dismissing him as the "little guitarist" trailing in the blonde bombshell's wake.

Sacha finally got to perform his debut concert in Algiers in 1958, bringing the house down with his famous version of "des pommes, des poires oui, mais des scoubidous ouahhh!" A series of equally light, fun-loving hits followed as Monsieur Cannibale, L'incendie à Rio and Scandale dans la famille all shot up the charts. Sacha continued his chart-topping success for another five years, but he was finally toppled from his pedestal when the French "yé yé" stars - Johnny Hallyday, Sylvie Vartan and Eddy Mitchell – arrived on the scene and rendered Monsieur Distel's charm old hat.