Singer Albert Kassabi said “Bebert”the leader of the rock group Les Forbans who rose to fame in the 1980s, died after a long illness on Tuesday November 25 in the Paris region, at the age of 63, Michel Papain, one of the group’s founders and drummer, announced to Agence France-Presse (AFP) on behalf of the family.
Originally consisting of high school friends, the group was formed in Paris in 1978. Les Forbans achieved success with the title Sing!released in 1982. It is a French adaptation of Shout! Shout! (Destroy Yourself) by American singer Ernie Maresca, a rock’n’roll song released twenty years earlier. This hit propelled them onto the hit parade with almost two million copies sold. Since then, the song has remained a popular song standard.
With around ten albums and around fifty concerts per year recently, Les Forbans participated until 2014 in the tour. “ Age Tendre, a tour of idols »bringing together popular song figures from the 60s to the 90s. They celebrated the 40the the group’s birthday on the Olympia stage in 2018.
“We must not speak ill of anyone”
In December 2012, the group performed at the gala evening of the National Front’s national council, at Mutualité, in Paris. Albert Kassabi, however, denied supporting Marine Le Pen, and assured on France TV info that he does not support her “never choose”That ” we must not speak ill of anyone” and that his group had more than that “played a lot for the Communist Party.”
He justified this choice due to financial motivation. “We sent brochures and files everywhere, to city halls, cultural centers, political parties, workers’ councils… We received a good response from the National Front”he explained on info France TV, before adding: “We are just struggling to try to live, and even survive, and pay excessive taxes…”
In January 2021, Albert Kassabi demonstrated in Paris with the Patriots, the political party founded and chaired by Florian Philippot, against the health measures taken in France to fight the Covid-19 pandemic. “ Covid is shit, cinema is bad, in short it’s a joke”he told journalist Evelyne Thomas.
