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Pagliaro, Michel
Michel Pagliaro, singer, songwriter (b at Montréal, 9 Nov 1948). Simply known as "Pag," Pagliaro was Québec's undisputed king of rock. Throughout the 1970s, he reigned supreme with a string of French and English hits and became the first Canadian artist to earn gold records in both languages.
Pagliaro started his career in the early 1960s playing guitar in numerous "Ye Ye" bands covering French versions of British and American hits. By 1966, he was fronting Les Chanceliers, who had several minor hits including "Le P'tit Poppy."
By 1968, Pag had embarked on a solo career - one that proved quite successful. In 1970, he had his first English hit with "Give Us One More Chance," followed by "Lovin' You Ain't Easy,""Rainshowers" and "What the Hell I Got." He had a huge hit in 1973 with "J'entends frapper," which became the biggest selling single in the history of the Québec music industry.
His numerous albums included Pagliaro (1971), Michel Pagliaro (1972), Pagliaro Live (1973), Pagliaro I (1975 ), Time Race (1977) and Bamboo Cuisine Kung Fu (1981).
By 1980, Pagliaro's success had waned and he left Montréal, moving first to Los Angeles and then to Paris, where he produced albums for various artists, including French singer-poet Jacques Higelin. He returned home in 1987 and kickstarted his career with the singles "Les Bombes" and "Dangereux," and the album, Sous peine d'amour (1988). Pagliaro continues to live and work in Montréal.
