Musicians Gérard Rinaldi (saxophone), Jean Sarrus (bass), Gérard Filippelli and Luis Rego (guitars) and Donald Rieubon (drums), united under the name Les Problèmes, made their singing debut in 1965, accompanying Pascal Danel, then Antoine on his album Antoine Rencontre les Problèmes. The group did more than just accompany him, writing and composing almost all the songs. Then came support slots for Françoise Hardy, Johnny Hallyday and Claude François. Donald Rieubon was forced to leave the group for military service, leaving his place to William Olivier, who was replaced by Jean-Guy Fechner. In contact with Aldo Maccione and his Brutos, an Italian parody group, Les Problèmes decided to follow the same path, that of humorous song, and renamed themselves Les Charlots. They built up an eclectic repertoire of Boris Vian covers, compositions such as "Paulette la reine des paupiettes" and songs parodying current hits. The Charlots' career took off again when they tried their hand at cinema with La Grande java in 1970, then teamed up with Claude Zidi for a series of popular hits: Les Bidasses en folie, Les Fous du stade and Les Bidasses s'en vont en guerre. Luis Rego left the company in 1971. Five years later, it was the turn of Jean-Guy Fechner and Gérard Filippelli, following a disagreement with their impresario. But the latter returned in 1977, and Les Charlots were once again successful in song, with "Biguine au biniou", "Chagrin d'labour" and "L'Apérobic". After new films from 1978 to 1984, they returned to the stage in 1988, under their original name Les Problèmes, alongside Antoine. In 1997, a sequel to Le Grand bazar was planned for the cinema, but the project fell through due to the illness of Gérard Rinaldi, who died of cancer on March 2, 2012. Jean Sarrus, Jean-Guy Fechner and Richard Bonnot reunited on stage to celebrate the group's 50th anniversary in 2015, while Gérard Filippelli, who had left the group for good in 1997, died at the age of 78 on March 30, 2021. The three surviving members recorded a new album, Y A Pas d'Âge Pour..., released in 2023. Two years later, two of them died: Jean Sarrus died of brain cancer on February 19, 2025 at the age of 79, followed by Richard Bonnot on October 28, 2025 at the age of 67.
