A celebrity of some importance in France, Eddy Mitchell began his career in the late '50s with the rock & roll group Les Chaussettes Noires ("the Black Socks"). Mitchell went solo after a few hits with the group in the early '60s, and over the ensuing decades, embraced several styles of American music. He investigated soul in the '60s and country-rock in the '70s before evolving into an all-encompassing big-band entertainer in the '80s, which allowed him to revisit his older material while still branching out further for new recordings. In the '80s, Mitchell became equally well known as an actor and radio personality, but managed to balance these new endeavors with his singing career. He continued to record into the 2000s.