Eric Toulis, Hervé Coury and Didier Morel hail from Paris and the surrounding region. Growing up in the swinging 60’s, these three passionate music fans were into the Beatles and the Rolling Stones almost as soon as they could walk. But in their teenage years the trio went on to discover a whole variety of musical styles and Les Escrocs’s sound has since been influenced by everything from soul and reggae to salsa and jazz, not forgetting a good dose of old French chanson (Boby Lapointe, Charles Aznavour, Damia, Michèle Torr etc.)

Eric (the group’s singer/songwriter), Hervé (on brass and wind instruments) and Didier (the quirky percussionist who has recycled just about every household object into percussion instruments) have created a melting-pot style from their widely diverse musical influences. The trio, who are in fact all talented multi-instrumentalists, started out busking on the underground and playing at parties, but soon went on to perform local gigs. For ten long years the group perfected their humourous lyrics and exuberant sound on the live circuit, before finally venturing into the recording studio in 1994.

Les Escrocs’s début album "Faites vous des amis", released on October 11 1994, proved an instant hit with the French public, largely thanks to the overwhelming success of the first single, "Assedic" ("Dole"). The group’s powerful tirade against unemployment was soon picked up by French radio stations and the single went on to receive massive airplay. By now Les Escrocs were beginning to establish themselves on the French music scene and, just before the release of the album, the group were invited to support singer Alain Souchon at the Zénith (October 4 - 6). Despite the fact that this was their first concert in a major Parisian venue, Les Escrocs brought the house down, their energy and enthusiasm sweeping through the 3,000-strong audience.

Continuing with the theme of socially-committed lyrics, the group’s second single, "Loukoum et camembert" (released in 1995) took a fervent stand against racism. Following the release of the single, Les Escrocs embarked upon an extensive tour, playing concerts across the country in small, obscure clubs and bars as well as at major Parisian venues. By now Les Escrocs were beginning to attract an increasing number of enthusiastic fans.

Les Escrocs’s second album, "C'est dimanche", was released on June 9 1997. This lively album, which featured two new English additions to the group (a drummer and bass-player), fused the exuberant sounds of Latin salsa and French ‘valse musette’ with Antillaise biguine and wild Gypsy rhythms. As for the lyrics, they were as sharply humorous and socially committed as ever, true to Les Escrocs’s philosophy of ‘telling it like it is’.

This bunch of brilliant self-taught musicians, who combine exuberant dance rhythms with social themes, look as if they have a long and successful career ahead of them.

It took a while before fans heard from Les Escrocs again. Indeed, the group were forced to (temporarily) retire from the forefront of the French music scene after their record label Virgin dropped them and Koury suffered a hand injury which prevented him from playing for a year. Given these two major setbacks Les Escrocs were forced to put the career they had launched in '94 on hold. Les Escrocs came storming back into the music news in February 2002, however, with a new album entitled "Six pieds sous terre" (Six Feet Under). This new album continued in much the same vein as the group's previous work, gently mocking certain aspects of French society and ironising about modern attitudes. The first single to hit French radios was "Je suis speed" – a song played to a deliberately slow tempo! The group accompanied their comic but thought-provoking lyrics with a catchy fusion of reggae, salsa and Gypsy rhythms played on their usual mix of accordion, synthesisers, harmonica, guitar and percussion. Les Escrocs hit the road again at the beginning of 2002 and brought the house down when they appeared at the "Printemps de Bourges" festival in April.

They were back on the Parisian stage of the Nouvel Essaion on September 17th to 27th before setting off for a French tour.

September 2003