‘Fred Flange’ made Monro
QUESTION
Did Peter Sellers rescue the career of singer Matt Monro, who was set to return to being a bus driver?
MY dad, Matt Monro, had huge hits in the 1950s and 1960s with Born Free, On Days Like These, From Russia With Love and Portrait Of My Love. But his music career nearly ended before it ever got going.
He was known for his effortless baritone, which earned him the nickname ‘the singer’s singer’, and for his humble beginnings.
Born Terence Edward Parsons on December 1, 1930, in Shoreditch, East London, Dad worked as a road sweeper, longdistance lorry driver and bus driver before finding fame.
He released Blue And Sentimental in 1957 to critical acclaim, but within two years work had dried up. He was dropped by record labels Decca and Fontana so he walked down Tin Pan Alley every day looking for demo work, which paid £5 a time, and did the odd radio broadcast and jingles for the likes of Camay soap.
Dad thought his singing career was over and got an interview for a job with Harris paintbrushes. But Mum made him cancel, saying he had to look the part and act as if he had plenty of work as a performer so that when the phone rang he was ready to go – and thankfully, it did ring.
The Beatles’ record producer George Martin was working with Peter Sellers on his album Songs For Swingin’ Sellers, a spoof of the hit Sinatra album Songs For Swingin’ Lovers. Martin wrote the opening song and, though Peter couldn’t sing very well, it was thought he could do a decent impression of Sinatra.
However, Sellers was doubtful he could pull it off so, instead, Martin decided to find someone with a voice like Sinatra. He’d heard of Dad from his Decca days and decided he would fit the bill.
Dad didn’t want to do it. He felt if he was being asked to emulate the world’s greatest singer then why didn’t he have a record contract. Mum talked him into it.
Dad laid down the demo, Sellers listened to it, then told Martin his own voice wasn’t up to it and suggested they use Dad’s version on the album, but credit him as – Fred Flange!
On the record’s release, the Press hyped the story of the unknown singer and suddenly Matt Monro was in big demand.
George Martin rang him a few weeks later and said: ‘I think we should make some music together.’ Dad was signed to Parlophone and the rest is history.
The full story can be found in my biography of Dad, The Singer’s Singer: The Life And Music Of Matt Monro.
Dad’s latest album, Stranger In Paradise: The Lost New York Sessions, came out on March 13 and went straight to No.8 in the album charts – not bad for someone who’s been gone for 35 years.
Michele Monro, Telford, Shropshire.
QUESTION
What happens to birds during a hurricane?
BIRDS have a variety of strategies for dealing with storms. They can leave the area, fly ahead of, or into, the storm or take shelter.
In the case of intense localised weather events, such as tornadoes, avoidance is the only option. Many bird species can hear lowfrequency sound and detect changes in barometric pressure so can predict a storm.
Non-migratory birds may simply fly out of the storm’s path or seek shelter in branches or tree cavities. They may instinctively crouch or huddle, tucking their bills into their feathers, minimising exposure to conditions.
Birds seen clinging to branches or wires in windy conditions may appear to be holding on for dear life, but this is their natural resting position.
Talons naturally close and lock; their feet release only if the bird flexes its muscles.
The Atlantic hurricane season coincides with autumn migration, so many birds face these powerful storms head on.
Research using wind tunnels by Western University’s Advanced Facility for Avian Research in Canada demonstrated that whitethroated sparrows bring forward their autumnal migratory departure date in response to falling barometric pressure, but not falling temperatures.
They delay their spring migratory departure in response to falling temperature, but not falling barometric pressure.
In 2005, Hurricane Wilma swept up a flock of North American chimney swifts and deposited them hundreds of miles away in Western Europe.
And a number of these rare visitors were spotted in Kerry, Cork and Wexford.
Irene Harris, via email.
QUESTION
Judas was paid 30 pieces of silver for identifying Christ to the authorities. What was its value then and what would the value be today?
FURTHER to earlier answers, there are a number of ancient coins scattered throughout Europe in churches and museums, inevitably purporting to be from the 30 pieces of silver paid to Judas for his actions.
Perhaps the most elegant – and the most mysterious – of these is an early 4th Century BC ten drachm silver coin from Syracuse in Sicily.
While it was known to exist, its
OIS THERE a question to which you have always wanted to know the answer? Or do you know the answer to a question raised here? Send your questions and answers to: Charles Legge, Answers To Correspondents, Irish Daily Mail, Embassy House, Herbert Park Lane, Ballsbridge, Dublin 4. You can also fax them to 0044 1952 510906 or you can email them to charles.legge@dailymail.ie. A selection will be published but we are not able to enter into individual correspondence. whereabouts was a puzzle for centuries but today it can be seen in Limerick’s Hunt Museum, as part of the collection of John and Gertrude Hunt.
Mike Roycroft, Nenagh, Co. Tipperary.
QUESTION
How did apothecary develop into chemist and finally pharmacist?
FURTHER to the earlier answer on this topic, the establishment of the Pharmaceutical Society in 1841 set the scene for the development of the profession.
In February of that year, a British House of Commons Bill to reform the medical profession was introduced. It would have made it illegal for a chemist or druggist to recommend medicines or to give advice on how they were taken.
The chemists and druggists, led by Jacob Bell, complained to parliament that the Bill would give a monopoly to apothecaries, raising prices of medicines and disadvantaging the poor. As a result, the Bill was not passed.
They formed the Pharmaceutical Society of Great Britain on April 15 that same year.
At the first meeting of the governing council, it was agreed to ensure a uniform system of education and qualification as a pharmaceutical chemist and systemic regulation of the profession.
A royal charter was granted in 1843. In 1898 the title ‘Royal’ was granted.
The modern pharmacist has expert knowledge of the action and uses of medicines and how they are formulated and produced to ensure quality, safety and maximum effectiveness. Qualification to practise requires a university degree, 52 weeks of relevant experience and the passing of a registration examination.
John Ferguson, Haywards Heath, West Sussex.