SURVIVAL (Jacky CHALARD)

Despite his appearances at the Bus Palladium and other places in Paris or Province, Vince didn't get away from his mystical period. His hair was very long and he took himself for a Christ. People started to gossiping about him. They even announced that he was dead, and he even received an invitation. Word had it that he had been attacked by a gang Asians and thrown in the Thames then saved at the last minute by some passerby. However Vince was still there, a little more tired and it showed on him, but he was still alive.

Impresario's without any gualons want to 'take him on', showing him off like a wild animal, second rate galas and dodgy concerts, only thinking of selling his name, which despite all of his setbacks had stayed a name of great esteem in the heart of the public. People even told that when Vince didn't want to go on stage, he was beaten.

Luckily fans were watching over him. They organise a real sort of kidnapping to bring him back to Paris. They got him back in a terrible stade: broken teeth, scar on his cheek, broken fingers.

To survive in the capital, clear-minded in his distress, Vince rebecame Brian Maurice Holden and did the washing up in a restaurant called Le Pro-Nobis at La Contrescarpe, and sang for the customers at the end of the night with the pianist of the restaurant : Jacky Guerard for whole band.

When you imagine the amount of film-makers looking for subjects about rock n' roll, they would be better off finding some inspiration on the life and the likes of Vince, who is whithout a doubt more authentic than the load of tripe we've had up untill now. The reality of Vince's life goes waybeyond and passed the fiction.

Well surrounded however, he regained his strength and reappeared on stage at the Palace in the first act before the film "The Story of Elvis"; backed by the rock revival band : Matchbox. The Parisian public were surprised and shattered by his performance. Jean-Charles Smaine contacted me and asked me to get together regular backing group ready to start a series of concerts.

We've been working together between 1981 and 1983, and I remember that Vince was able to do a fantastic show in front of 20 persons in a small club down deep in France, as he can wreck himself in front of 2000, like he did for the Big Beat SHow at the Olympia .

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