News

May 2023

Richard here, whilst Michele is away on the high seas.

As you can imagine with Michele being away, not much has been happening in the world of Matt Monro. However, I expect that on her return she will start publicity for the forthcoming 4 CD set of the Complete EMI Recordings 1971 – 1984.  – See Michele’s news from last month below.

There are a few other things going on behind the scenes. We hope soon to be able to issue the last 4 titles in the Complete Capitol download/streaming collection, this will include the re-issue of the “We’re Gonna Change The World” LP (issued as Close to You in the USA) for the first time in decades plus three new compilations pulling together all the non-album tracks, singles and rarities, including new stereo mixes and one previously unreleased recording which was assumed lost. What the track is and how it came to be re-discovered will be revealed in good time!  It is still the estate’s wish that the Capitol albums get a CD release, but that is down to Universal.

I’m sure you have noticed the lack of new material on Matt’s You Tube channel, we have a few items left to add, but clearing further items is currently proving to be more difficult. We can’t put just any clips we like on the channel. We have to license all clips from copyright owners. The BBC and the main ITV archives have been fantastically helpful, but unfortunately other rights holders are less interested in striking a deal, preferring the material to sit on a shelf and not be made available ever again. This is not just in the UK but in the USA and Australia where licensing costs are astronomical.  Aviator will continue to work behind the scenes. We never give up!

Michele will be back next month  – I’ve left last month’s news below.

Richard

April 2023

Well, I have to say it was a very quiet month but importantly my brother and his wife got back to England safely and have had numerous hospital appointments. On a more upbeat note the orthopedic surgeon in England is very happy with the surgery Chandrika had but it will be a long haul until her mobility is fully recovered. It didn’t help that one of the drugs they gave her here had an adverse reaction and her poor body ballooned up and was covered with blisters. Thank goodness for anti-histamines, lol.

 

MATT MONRO – THE COMPLETE EMI RECORDINGS 1971 – 1984

A little over 2 years ago Richard approached Cherry Red with the idea for a new project based on tracks that belong to Warner. They loved the idea and set about licensing the material. Despite the fact that Richard and I submitted a list of the tracks we were to use and proof that Warner owned the majority, it has taken two years to wade through the legal department’s red tape. We thought we had clearance last year but then another hurdle was put in place.

Now at long last Warners has cleared the project so with a sigh of relief it looks as if we are about to go forward with a 4-CD set called ‘The Complete EMI Recordings 1971-1984’. As usual, Richard has done a stellar job with the remastering and the notes tell the whole story of how these tracks came to fruition.  You will see that the front cover has changed a little since last month. We found this fabulous picture of Matt taken by our good friend Neil Dalrymple.

Here is the new front cover and everything you need to know about the new set.

Featuring four full albums, 15 singles, out-takes, and rarities

Plus previously unreleased live recordings and alternate mixes.

With the remixed version of ‘The Other Side Of The Stars’ LP.

And ‘The Long And Winding Road’ and ‘If I Never Sing Another Song’ albums on CD for the first time.

Track Listing

DISC ONE

1 Singin’ In The Rain
2 First Of May
3 Michelle
4 Didn’t We
5 Speak Softly Love
6 Bridge Over Troubled Water
7 I Am
8 Curiouser And Curiouser
9 Ethel Baby (Mr Wonderful)
10 Till Then My Love
11 The Me I Never Knew
12 Sarah’s Coming Home
13 Time to Go
14 O My Child
15 Only Friends
16 Mama Packed A Picnic Tea
17 Isn’t It A Pity
18 Love Story – (NEW MIX)
19 This Way Mary
20 Wish Now Was Then
21 Didn’t We (Alt Arrangement)
22 How Can I Live Without Your Love
23 Historia De Amor (Love Story) – (NEW MIX)
24 Let The Train Take The Strain (Jingle)
Tracks 1 – 12 From the album For The Present

DISC TWO

1 Let There Be Love – (NEW MIX)
2 What A Wonderful World – (NEW MIX)
3 When You Wish Upon A Star – (NEW MIX)
4 Over The Rainbow – (NEW MIX)
5 For All We Know – (NEW MIX)
6 Let Me Sing And I’m Happy – (NEW MIX)
7 Be My Love – (NEW MIX)
8 Chattanooga Choo Choo – (NEW MIX)
9 I Love You Because – (NEW MIX)
10 No Regrets – (NEW MIX)
11 You’re Sensational – (NEW MIX)
12 I’m Glad I’m Not Young Anymore – (NEW MIX)
13 Yesterday When I Was Young – (NEW MIX)
14 It’s That Time Again – (NEW MIX)
15 I Am In Life
16 There Ya Go
17 What A Wonderful World (Take 2)
18 Let There Be Love (Take 2)
19 Let Me Sing And I’m Happy (Take 1)
20 Yesterday When I Was Young (Alternate Vocal)
21 I’m Glad I’m Not Young Anymore (Take 4)
22 Amour Habla Me Dulcemente
Tracks 1 – 12 From the album The Other Side of the Stars

DISC THREE

1 Happy
2 You And Me Against The World
3 Only Once
4 Did It Happen
5 Sunday Kind Of Woman
6 I Can’t Stop Loving You
7 I Close My Eyes And Count To Ten
8 All The Wishing In The World
9 The Auction
10 Ready Steady Go
11 Friend, Lover, Woman, Wife
12 The Long And Winding Road
13 I’ve So Much To Be Thankful For
14 Did It Happen (Early Version)
15 And You Smiled
16 How Could I Ever Leave You
17 Darling Come Home Soon
18 So Little Time
19 The Little Things
20 One Last Try
21 Darling Come Home Soon (Early Mix) *
22 And You Smiled (Spanish) *
23 The Wonder Of Woolworths (Jingle)
24 Zal (Jingle)
Tracks 1 – 12 From the album The Long And Winding Road

DISC FOUR

1 With These Hands
2 You Light Up My Life
3 Answer Me
4 I Think I’m Getting Over You
5 When A Child Is Born
6 If I Never Sing Another Song
7 May Each Day
8 Morning Has Broken
9 By Her Side
10 Mary’s Boy Child
11 The Last Farewell
12 The Touch Of Your Love
13 Alone Am I
14 The Precious Moments
15 Diana
16 Be My Lady
17 Memory
18 You Bring Out The Best In Me
19 I Don’t Want To Run Your Life
20 If They Could See Me Now (Live) *
21 You Are My Sunshine / You Are The Sunshine Of My Life (Live) *
Tracks 1 – 11 From the album If I Never Sing Another Song

It can be pre ordered directly from Cherry Red using this link

https://www.cherryred.co.uk/product/matt-monro-the-complete-emi-recordings-1971-1984-4cd/

 

Amazingly it appears that dad’s last album ‘Stranger in Paradise: The Lost New York Sessions’ has slipped through the cracks of several fans who were unaware of its release. The first CD is brand new material recorded with just a five-piece band and the second features dad’s more familiar titles remastered of course by the fabulous Richard Moore.

Nearly two years ago I found out that a few albums available to upload were inferior in quality compared to what is available in sound today so after airing my complaints Universal gave the go-ahead. Richard mastered them within weeks, and now at last someone has finally pushed a button which has made them live. The remastered downloads of 8 of his 9 original Capitol albums now appear on all good download and streaming sites.  The 9th LP alongside singles and rarities will be following soon.

Don’t forget to visit dad’s very own YouTube channel – https://www.youtube.com/c/MattMonroOfficial

The Channel features rare television performances of dad and the channel still has all the ones you may have missed by not visiting yet. It’s all totally free and if you subscribe, the site will send you a reminder every time something new is added. Aviator, who manage the site for us, are currently negotiating with other rights owners, no easy task, but we hope to add to the channel again soon.

If you haven’t had the chance yet do check out ‘The Boy From Shoreditch’ the four-part audio documentary Richard and I made to celebrate dad’s special 90th birthday, then it is a must for any MM fan. The programmes were written and narrated by myself and feature an intimate portrait of the man behind the voice, drawing on previously un-broadcast interviews, extremely rare recordings previously thought lost, interviews with his family and friends and messages from some of his more famous fans.  You can find all four parts here:-

The Boy From Shoreditch

I can’t believe that another birthday is imminent and I’m very excited to be travelling to Birmingham to meet up with my gorgeous son for the weekend. As you might remember my car was written off the day before my birthday last year so it was a pretty grim time so this year, I’m not taking any chances…. I’m taking the train, lol

Having had a wonderful cruising season last year, I am hoping this year will be equally buoyant although I have no dates set as yet. Before Covid, I was booked up to 15 months in advance but since the ships have started running again, everything is last minute.

I’m boarding Ambassador’s Ambience on 14 April and if I’m lucky I hope to enjoy some warmer weather. It’s the same itinerary that I did last October and I’m delighted. I rarely get off the ship because of my limited mobility but that has never bothered me. The ship is fabulous, the crew were amazing, the food was awesome and the passengers pleasant… the ports are just an added bonus. The only place I will make a beeline for is Kusadasi in Turkey. The shopping is amazing, full of the highest quality replicas of designer wear and last year I had to buy another case to bring all my purchases back. I did go slightly over the top but I do have birthdays and Christmas covered for the next two years, lol. This next shopping expedition will cover 2025/2026

I had planned to write a series of six books that effectively would be port guides for people with special needs but in the aftermath of covid, too many businesses have closed throughout Europe and all the work I had done became almost obsolete and I would have had to start from scratch again. Unfortunately, the immediate future with cruising is uncertain in many ways and despite the fact that the virus isn’t what they consider newsworthy anymore, it is still rampant and affecting all types of industry. The cruise lines are trying to play it down but on all the sailings did last year every one of them had cases onboard. Most lines have done away with testing before you board which I think is remiss especially as it costs them nothing but it’s all a matter of perception and by playing it down, they feel bookings will go up. A friend of mine travelled last year with me. We hadn’t seen each other in three years so excitement was at fever pitch but four days before the end of the cruise she caught the virus, was confined to her cabin and taken separately off the ship from the other passengers so I didn’t even get to say goodbye to her. Because we both don’t frequent bars and hadn’t got off the ship, the only place she could have caught it was the dining room and once covid was confirmed other cases escalated. Although it has been said that people get it much milder now, if you are of a certain age with underlying health conditions it could still prove fatal. I’m afraid I am one of those people that still wear a mask if I go out and isolate myself from most people because with my illness I can’t afford to take a chance.

I look forward to catching up with you in May although Richard will be posting for me as I will still be away. In the meantime, stay safe and keep spreading the MM legacy.

 

Much love

Michele xx