Les Variations

Les Variations were leaders of the French hard rock and blues scene of the late 1960s and early 1970s. Formed in the autumn of 1966 by musicians of Moroccan origin, the group included singer Jo Leb, guitarist Marc Tobaly, and drummer Isaak ‘Jacky’ Bitton along with Italian bassist Jacques Grande (aka ‘P'tit Pois’). The group was put together by Marc Tobaly’s brother Alain, who became their manager. After winning a talent competition organized by the Golf Drouot in Paris, the group traveled to Germany and Scandinavia, where they recorded the single “Spicks and Specks” / "Mustang Sally” before returning to Paris to take part in a TV show with The Who and Small Faces. Released in 1970 on the Pathé/EMI label, Nador, their first all-English album, followed the single "Come Along" and was widely acclaimed for the hits "Free Me" and "What a Mess Again." The tour that followed, opening for the likes of Johnny Hallyday, Led Zeppelin, and Steppenwolf, ventured as far as the US. While on tour in America, the band stopped off in Memphis, Tennessee where producer Don Nix recorded their second album, Take It or Leave It (1973), in the same psychedelic hard rock and blues vein as their debut. Following the success of the French-language single "Je suis juste un rock'n'roller" (1973), which reached number 7 in the charts, their next album Moroccan Roll (1974) broadened Les Variations' musical spectrum with the participation of Moroccan musicians and Tunisian violinist Maurice Meimoun. Despite the group's popularity, lead singer Jo Leb - who had already fallen out with the band in the middle of a 1971 tour - left Les Variations for good after some friction with the other members. He was replaced by Robert Fitoussi, who went on to enjoy major solo success under the name F. R. David. Fitoussi took part in the recording in New York of the band's fourth and final album, Café de Paris (1975), before the group split up. Les Variations, who left a lasting mark on the French rock scene, reunited for a one-off Paris concert in 2006. This was followed by a returned to the studio for the album Variations & Marc Tobaly (2008). In 2012, a year after Jacques Grande's death (June 16, 2011), a final reunion was held with Native singer Laura Mayne and Marc Tobaly surrounded by new musicians. A founder of the group and the only core member to appear in all the various line-ups, Marc Tobaly died on March 10, 2024, at the age of 74.