Lucille Starr

Lucille Starr
Lucille Starr (1965)
Background information
Birth name	Lucille Marie Raymonde Savoie
Born	(1938-05-13) May 13, 1938 (age 78)
Origin	St. Boniface, Manitoba, Canada
Genres	Country
Occupation(s)	Singer Songwriter Yodeler
Instruments	Vocals, guitar, bass, mandolin
Years active	1958–present
Labels	Almo International, A&M, Epic, Barry

Lucille Starr (born May 13, 1938) is a Canadian Franco-Manitoban / British Columbian singer, songwriter, and yodeler best known for her 1964 hit single, "Quand Le Soleil Dit Bonjour Aux Montagnes" ("The French Song").

Starr was born Lucille Marie Raymonde Savoie in St. Boniface, Manitoba. She was raised in Port Coquitlam and Coquitlam's Francophone community of Maillardville, British Columbia, where she learned to play guitar, bass and mandolin.

Savoie started her musical career with the local group Les Hirondelles. She met and married country singer Bob Regan, and, using the stage name Lucille Starr, she began performing with him as a country singing duo called "Bob & Lucille". Between 1958 and 1963 they released several 45 rpm records that were mainly covers of an eclectic mix of fashionable country, pop, rockabilly and folk songs of people such as Perry Como to Connie Francis. Their records met with modest success on the North American West Coast and in 1963 they were signed by A&M Records in Los Angeles, California, with which they began recording as "The Canadian Sweethearts".

At A&M Records, Starr recorded a song called "The French Song" that was produced by Herb Alpert. It was recorded in both French and English. In 1964, at a time when The Beatles dominated the music charts, "The French Song" was an international success that made Starr the first Canadian artist to have a record sell over a million copies. The popularity of the song led to a tour of the United States and appearing on the Louisiana Hayride radio show and on Chicago radio station WLS (AM) popular National Barn Dance. Starr also sang on American television musical variety shows such as Shindig! and Hullabaloo, followed by tours of Pacific Rim countries, Australia, South Africa, and across Europe where she became a particular favorite in the Netherlands. Selling sold over one million copies, it was awarded a gold disc.