A singular figure in French rock, Gérard Blanchard combined the energy of his rock musette with the humor of Boby Lapointe and the realist chanson of 19th-century bellowing. This former punk from the Touraine region put all his gouaille into the famous "Rock Amadour ", released in 1981. A single that sold almost two million copies and an album, Troglo Dancing, were promising, but were not followed by success. After two more disappointing albums, Gérard Blanchard rose to new heights with Amour de Voyou in 1987 and the success of "Elle voulait revoir sa Normandie". Also a painter and cartoonist, Gérard Blanchard then became a little more serious, abandoning parody for a humor that liked to make teeth grind. The albums Moteur la Vie (1989), Clochard Milliardaire (1991) and Branle Poumon (1994) bear witness to this evolution, which was not widely followed by the general public. In 2011, Gérard Blanchard released the albums La Peau du Cancre and G. Blanchard Chante G. Brassens, in tribute to one of his role models.
