Nino Ferrer

Italian-born French singer-songwriter, painter and author, 15 August 1934, Genoa, Italy – 13 August 1998, Saint-Cyprien, France.
Ferrer started playing double bass in a Jazz trio in the '50s, accompanying Richard Bennett (3) and Bill Coleman (2).
Perhaps best known in France for a string of comedic hits in the '60s and in Italy for RnB protest songs such as La Pella Nera, Ferrer had a complicated relationship with the music industry, feeling his public persona and recognition at odds with his artistic aspirations.
His 1975 classic Le Sud exemplifies this relationship: a million selling single in France, its success eclipsed the English language album it was taken from, Nino And Radiah, which only enjoyed cult status.
He continued releasing music during the '80s and '90s, often collaborating with Mickey Finn, became a French citizen in 1989 and committed suicide in 1998.