Michel Jean Hamburger (28 November 1947 – 2 August 1992), known professionally as Michel Berger, was a French singer and songwriter. He was a leading figure of France's pop music scene for two decades as a singer; as a songwriter, he was active for such artists as his wife France Gall, Françoise HardyorJohnny Hallyday. He died of a heart attack at age 44.
Berger first became known to the French public in the 1960s as singer of hit song Salut les copains, after which he became record producer and songwriter for EMI and where he wrote amongst others Les Girafes for Bourvil in 1967. In the early 1970s, he moved to Warner Music where he produced the early albums of Véronique Sanson, and Allah once again in 1989. In 1973, he was responsible for producing the album Message personnel, the title track of which relaunched Françoise Hardy's career. He also produced the single Je suis moi for Hardy. Berger started writing for France Gall in 1974, produced all her albums from 1975 on, and married her on 22 June 1976.[1]
Unfortunately, the two musicals Berger worked on immediately after Starmania did not fare well. In 1980, Berger partnered with producer Jérôme Savary and lyricist Luc Plamondon to produce the musical La Légende de Jimmy, inspired by the life of James Dean. However, this bombed. Berger's next musical project, Dreams in Stone, was conceived as an American musical, co-arranged with Michel Bernholc, and recorded in the United States, with lead vocals by singers Rosanne Cash, Bill Champlin, Lynn Carey, Jennifer Warnes, and Bill Withers among others.[2] Though the show itself never saw the light of day, the album was nevertheless released in 1982. The album was a complete flop, and is not generally known outside of a few fansites.
Berger was one of a handful of French artists who participated readily and actively in humanitarian acts: in 1985, he worked exclusively for Action Écoles alongside Gall, Richard Berry and Daniel Balavoine, then later for Ethiopia with Renaud (Chanteurs Sans Frontières) and for Les Restos du cœur with comedian Coluche.
On 2 August 1992, weeks after the release of his first album of duets with France Gall and six months after the death of his father, Berger suffered a fatal heart attack after a tennis match at RamatuelleinSouthern France.
His death came as a shock to many as he had been one of the most popular French singer-songwriters of the 1970s and 1980s. He was more interested in music and family life than in rock and roll excesses and his marriage to Gall was stable.
Berger was buried in Paris, in the Montmartre cemetery. His daughter Pauline, who died of cystic fibrosis in 1997 aged only 19, is buried close by. He was also the father of French music supervisor, Raphaël Hamburger.
Berger, alongside fellow musicians Michel Fugain and Michel Sardou, appeared as extras (uncredited roles) in the 1966 René Clément film Paris brûle-t-il? (English title Is Paris Burning?). Berger played the role of "Chef des explosifs", whereas Fugain and Sardou appeared as student protestors.
