Charles Dumont was born in Cahors on 26 March 1929. He developed a passion for music at an early age, and studied at the Conservatoire in Toulouse. But he never quite got to grips with the rudiments of classical music. At the end of the Second World War, a teenage Charles discovered where his heart really lay when he heard the golden trumpet of Louis Armstrong. This proved to be a turning point in Charles's early career and, following in the footsteps of his musical idol, he took up the trumpet and formed his own amateur jazz band.

After graduating from the Conservatoire in the late 40s, Charles moved up to Paris where the jazz scene was beginning to explode in the smoke-filled cavern clubs of Saint-Germain-des-Prés. Charles was raring to go and blow his horn, but he was forced to go into hospital for what was to have been a benign operation on his tonsils. However, the operation went badly wrong and, much to his eternal regret, Charles had to abandon his precious trumpet. From this point on, he began casting about for another means of expressing his musical passion.

The 1950s: First contact with French Chanson

The organist at the Eglise Saint-Ambroise in Paris eventually took the young musician under his wing and taught him how to master the keyboard and work the art of harmony. Charles Dumont began to try his hand at writing his own compositions at this point and discovered he had a certain gift for it. Dumont went on to become a professional pianist, earning a living on the Paris club circuit. In the meantime, the young musician left the capital to do his military service. He also found time to get married and father two sons, Frédéric and Philippe.

Dumont's career finally took off around 1956/1957 when he started setting Francis Carco's poetry to music. Dumont also went on to team up with the talented musician Michel Vaucaire (husband of French singing star Cora Vaucaire) with whom he wrote a number of best-selling hits over the years. In short, Dumont began to make a name for himself in music circles and before long he found himself composing songs (occasionally under a pseudonym) for all the big stars of the day, including Dalida, Gloria Lasso, Luis Mariano, Tino Rossi and Lucienne Delyle. In 1958, Dumont released two singles in his own name, but neither took off with the record-buying public.

Vaucaire and Dumont had been trying to get their songs into the hallowed 'salon' of Edith Piaf. In October 1960, the pair finally managed to get the legendary 'chanson' diva to listen to one of their recent compositions, "Je ne regrette rien." Piaf was bowled over by what she heard and she performed the song in public for the first time at the Olympia a few days later. The song proved an instant hit with the audience and went on to become one of the most popular French 'chanson' classics of all time. "Je ne regrette rien" marked the beginning of a long and fruitful collaboration with Piaf which produced more than thirty 'chanson' classics including "Les Flonflons du bal" and "Mon Dieu." Piaf and Dumont's partnership moved on to a new level in 1962 when they wrote and recorded "Les Amants" together.

Dumont was completely lost after Piaf's death in 1963. He continued writing with Michel Vaucaire and even collaborated with Jacques ("Je m'en remets à toi" in 1964), but he remained disoriented for a while. Later in his career he would begin composing music for films (such as Jacques Tati's "Trafic" in 1971 and the television film "Michel Vaillant" in 1967). But for the meantime, following Piaf's advice, Dumont stepped behind the microphone and launched his own singing career again. In 1964, he went on to release his début album, "À faire l'amour sans amour." However, these remained lean years for the musician.

In 1967, Dumont reached a major turning point in his career. It was at this stage of proceedings that he met Sophie Makhno, a singer who had formerly been Barbara's personal secretary and was now working as artistic director at the CBS label. Makhno persuaded Dumont to modernise his style and break with the old-fashioned image that linked him to Piaf in the popular imagination. The pair put their heads together and set about writing a song that would break Dumont out of this mould. But the song "Ta cigarette après l'amour" (Your Cigarette After Making Love) was deemed too risqué for the time and banned from the French airwaves. But with the revolution of May '68 mentalities and social mores evolved and "Ta cigarette après l'amour" finally came out in 1970, scoring a major hit with the French public. Dumont could now launch the next stage of his career in a more personal light.

By 1971, Dumont was finally on the up and his fame had spread beyond French borders. Later that year, he would meet international star Barbra Streisand in the U.S. Impressed by his song "Le Mur," Streisand sought permission to record an English cover of it and ended up scoring a huge hit with her version "I've Been Here." In 1972, Dumont went on to release "Intimité", the first in what was to become a long series of albums on the theme of women and love. The following year, Dumont received critical recognition, winning the prestigious 'Prix Charles-Cros' for his album "Une femme." In 1974, he followed this with "Le Concerto pour une chanson" (an album fusing 'chanson', classical music and poetry) and in 1975 with "L'Or du temps."

1976 turned out to be a key year in Dumont's career. After releasing the album "Elle," he made a comeback on the live circuit at the age of 47 – and two successive nights at the Espace Cardin in October of that year turned him into a major star! In 1977, Dumont performed a successful month's run at the Théâtre de la Renaissance in parallel to the release of a new album entitled "Lettre à une inconnue." The single release from the album, "Une chanson," went on to score a phenomenal hit, selling 100,000 copies. "Une chanson" earned Dumont a gold disc and the "Prix spécial de la Sacem" (a prestigious award from the French songwriters and composers' association).

Dumont earned another gold disc in 1978 for his album "Les Amours impossibles" (which featured contributions from renowned French songwriters Sophie Makhno and Etienne Roda-Gil). Following this success, Dumont took to the stage at the legendary Parisian venue, the Olympia for a two-week run and ended up recording a double album there which was released in 1979. Dumont made his presence felt on the recording front in 1979, releasing a compilation and another studio album, "Ça nous ressemble." At Midem, the international record industry fair held in Cannes in January, the singer climbed up on stage to receive another gold disc for "Les Amours impossibles." Dumont re-emerged on the live front, too, in October '79, performing a series of 30 concerts in Paris at Bobino.

The 1980s: a passion for dance

In the early 80s, Dumont found himself in increasing demand to perform abroad and over the next few years he would flit off on European tours and also venture further afield to play concerts in Lebanon, Canada and Japan. In October 1980 and then again in September 1981, Dumont brought the house down again at the Olympia.

Meanwhile, Dumont kept up a hectic pace on the recording front, rushing in and out of the studio and releasing practically a new album every year. "Un homme tout simplement" (in 1980) was followed by "Les Chansons d'amour" (1981), "Aime-moi" (1982), and "Souviens-toi un jour" (a compilation of songs he had written for Piaf) in 1983. In 1984, Dumont staged "Passion," a mix of concerto, ballet and chanson at the Casino de Paris. The dancer Françoise Legrée joined him on stage, performing a piece choreographed by Attilio Labis. Later that year, Dumont mounted on stage again, this time to receive the 'Légion d'honneur' in his hometown of Cahors.

Dumont went on to release a new album, "Volupté," in 1985. Then, in the autumn of the following year he performed a recital at the Théâtre du Rond-Point Renault-Barrault with French actress Judith Magre. Dumont indulged his passion for dance again in 1987, working with the dancers Michael Denard and Françoise Legrée in a new show called "Symphonie Concerto."

Dumont then headed back to the studio again to record two new albums, "Libre" (in 1987) and "Le Bout du Monde" (in 1988). The following year he recorded a CD album in English and enjoyed the experience so much that he followed this in 1992 with "Pense à moi" (a double album recorded in Los Angeles).

2004: 50th anniversary concert

In 1990, Dumont made a major stage comeback at Bobino after releasing a new album entitled "Elle et lui." But, by this stage of his career, compilations and re-releases had overtaken the production of new studio albums. Dumont's success was no longer what it once had been. The singer soldiered on regardless. In 1994, Dumont recorded a new live album at the Casino de Paris. Two years later, in December 1996, he was back on stage again at the Olympia, celebrating the twentieth anniversary of his singing career.

A new studio album, "Pour une femme" appeared in 1998. Dumont, who was by now in his sixties, continued to perform a regular string of concerts. He received an enthusiastic welcome from the audience when he appeared at the Auditorium Saint-Germain for a three-week run in 1999 and his month-long run at the Théâtre de Dix heures in Paris in 2001 proved to be equally successful. In October 2002, Dumont brought the house down at an even bigger venue, performing at Le Palais des Congrès. Then, from November 2003 to March 2004, he returned to the small, intimate venues where he had performed in his early years, performing a series of "dinner concerts" at Le Don Camillo in Paris.

On 28 and 29 March 2004, Dumont took to the stage at Le Bataclan in Paris to celebrate fifty years in show business with his fans.

December 2004