| Tour by Matt Cardle | |
 | |
| Associated album | Letters |
|---|---|
| Start date | February 28, 2012 |
| End date | March 29, 2012 |
| No. of shows | 23 |
| Matt Cardle concert chronology | |
The Letters Tour was the debut concert tour by Matt Cardle in support of his debut solo album. It included 23 dates across the UK and Ireland in early 2012. The tour sold out [1] causing an extra date to be added. It received largely positive reviews.
The tour was announced on 24 October 2011 [2] with tickets on general sale on 28 October. A second date in Dublin was added due to the first selling out. The tour began on 28 February 2012 in Wales. He performed all of the album tracks on the first two shows, as well as "Run For Your Life" B-side "Lost & Found". On the third show into the tour he took "Reflections" out of the set list and added a cover of "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face", [3] a song which he'd received high praise for on The X Factor. [4]
As well as playing acoustic and electric guitar himself, Cardle had a live band backing him, the same band he plays with for promotional appearances and gigs. They are Remy Mallett on bass, Lorenzo De Feo on lead guitar, pianist Paul Bullen and Tom Peters on drums. The support act on the tour was Kyle Parry on the first two dates and Roxanne Emery thereafter.
The tour received largely positive reviews. Becca Longmire from Entertainment Wise said "Cardle’s voice is amazing, a real natural talent" and "few people seem to be able to portray such emotion through their music, but with Matt it just seemed natural." [5] Amy Senior of Mancunian Matters said "His voice is faultless and his guitar skills more than just a stage novelty and yet unlike most talent show finalists his presence is down to earth and unrehearsed." [6] Lucy Needham of Retford Today said "Matt shows off his impressive vocal range as he skips between notes with incredible ease." [7] Fraser Wilson from the Nottingham Post said "time dragged during the opening section of his 70-minute show" but "the singer turned things around in style with a handful of pitch-perfect ballads...you could truly understand why so many people picked up their phones and voted for him." [8]
Daniel Cairns from AAA Music wrote "everyone is shown that he has more to offer than just being an X Factor winner." [9] Backstage Pass said he "shows his lack of natural confidence between songs but tonight is about music and music alone. His songs are powerful - his impeccable voice could stand alongside anyone and not be embarrassed." [10] Jackie Davies of South Wales Argus said "his ballads sit equally well alongside the more upbeat, rock inspired numbers" and "he is a natural and affable performer." [11]
Encore:
| Date | City | Country | Venue |
|---|---|---|---|
| February 28, 2012 | Rhyl | Wales | Rhyl Pavilion |
| February 29, 2012 | |||
| March 1, 2012 | York | England | York Barbican |
| March 3, 2012 | Cambridge | Cambridge Corn Exchange | |
| March 4, 2012 | Oxford | Apollo New Theatre | |
| March 5, 2012 | Birmingham | Symphony Hall | |
| March 7, 2012 | Nottingham | Nottingham Royal Concert Hall | |
| March 8, 2012 | Bournemouth | O2 Academy Bournemouth | |
| March 10, 2012 | Swindon | Oasis | |
| March 11, 2012 | Portsmouth | Portsmouth Guildhall | |
| March 12, 2012 | Southend | Cliffs Pavilion | |
| March 14, 2012 | Liverpool | Royal Liverpool Philharmonic | |
| March 15, 2012 | Glasgow | Scotland | O2 Academy Glasgow |
| March 16, 2012 | Newcastle | England | Newcastle City Hall |
| March 18, 2012 | Belfast | Northern Ireland | Waterfront Hall |
| March 19, 2012 | Dublin | Ireland | Olympia |
| March 20, 2012 | |||
| March 22, 2012 | Manchester | England | O2 Apollo Manchester |
| March 24, 2012 | Cardiff | Wales | St David's Hall |
| March 25, 2012 | Bristol | England | Colston Hall |
| March 26, 2012 | Plymouth | Plymouth Pavilions | |
| March 28, 2012 | Brighton | Brighton Dome | |
| March 29, 2012 | London | Hammersmith Apollo |
David Sneddon is a Scottish singer, songwriter, musician and music producer of contemporary pop music. He began his career performing on stage and television, singing lead roles in stage musicals in Glasgow. In 2002, he won the first series of BBC One music competition Fame Academy. He released his first single "Stop Living the Lie" in 2003 which was a UK number one hit single selling over 250,000 copies, making it Britain's twelfth-highest selling single of 2003. Sneddon's debut album Seven Years – Ten Weeks was released in April 2003 and reached number 5 in the UK Albums Chart. He achieved three more UK Singles Chart singles – "Don't Let Go", "Best of Order", and "Baby Get Higher". His song "Baby Get Higher" was a hit on the dance floor for Almighty Records and a chart hit for VanVelzen in 2006, and also for Emin Agalarov.
Andrew Abraham is a British singer. He was the runner-up in the second UK series of TV talent show The X Factor in 2005 to Shayne Ward, and also represented the United Kingdom in the Eurovision Song Contest 2008.
"Many of Horror" is an alternative rock song written by Simon Neil of Scottish band Biffy Clyro for their fifth studio album Only Revolutions. The song was released as the fourth single from the album on 18 January 2010. The song was recorded at Ocean Way Recording, Hollywood, California and mastered at Masterdisk. The lyrics of the song concern Neil's wife and family. Jacknife Lee, who previously remixed "Silhouettes" for the Biffy Clyro and Sucioperro side project Marmaduke Duke, recorded a remix for the song.
The Wanted are a British-Irish boy band consisting of group members Max George, Siva Kaneswaran, Jay McGuiness and Nathan Sykes; former member Tom Parker died in 2022. The group was formed in 2009 and signed a worldwide contract to Universal Music, Island Records and Mercury Records, and was managed by Scooter Braun.
Matthew Sheridan Cardle is an English singer and songwriter. Cardle was born in Southampton and grew up in Halstead, Essex. Cardle has been involved in music since his early teens and has been a member of two different bands; Darwyn and Seven Summers. Cardle rose to fame after winning the seventh series of The X Factor, and received a £1 million recording contract with Syco Music and later signed a deal with Columbia Records.
Letters is the debut studio album by English singer-songwriter and guitarist Matt Cardle. It was released on 14 October 2011 through Syco Music, Sony Music and Columbia Records. Cardle worked with various songwriters on the album including Eg White and James Walsh. He co-wrote all the tracks except for his X Factor winner's single, "When We Collide" and the single "Run for Your Life", written by Gary Barlow.
"Run for Your Life" is a song by the British singer-songwriter Matt Cardle. It was released on 9 October 2011 as the lead single from his first studio album, Letters (2011). The song was written and produced by Gary Barlow, and was the last song that Cardle recorded for the album. It reached number 6 on the UK Singles Chart.
The X Factor in the UK has been subject to much controversy and criticism since its launch in 2004. This has included allegations of conflict of interest, voting irregularities and overcharging, product placement for sponsors, staging scenes, use of pitch correction technology, and exploiting vulnerable contestants. The series has also been criticised for developing singers as marketable products rather than creative individuals. As of April 2020, there have been fifteen completed series broadcast on the ITV network, as well as spin-offs The X Factor: Celebrity (2019) and The X Factor: The Band (2019).
"Starlight" is a song by British singer-songwriter Matt Cardle. It was written by Matt Cardle, Ash Howes, Richard Stannard and Seton Daunt. It was released in the UK as the second single from his debut studio album, Letters on 4 December 2011.
"Amazing" is a song by British singer-songwriter Matt Cardle, released as the third single from his debut studio album, Letters, on 19 February 2012. The song was co-written by Tom Leonard, Martin Harrington, Ash Howes, Richard Stannard and Cardle himself. The single was backed with an all-new track, "All Is Said", as well as a live version of "Slowly", and a studio version of his cover of "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face".
The Pink Friday: Reloaded Tour was the second concert tour and debut arena tour by Trinidadian recording artist Nicki Minaj to support her second studio album Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded and its re-release Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded – The Re-Up. It followed her first concert tour, Pink Friday Tour, which was extended with the Reloaded Tour due to high demands with fans wanting her to tour their cities.
The Fire is the second studio album released by English musician Matt Cardle. The album was released on 26 October 2012, via SO What? Recordings, a subsidiary of Silva Screen Records, alongside the lead single, "It's Only Love". The Fire was primarily written by Cardle, but also writing credits from by Eg White, Jack McManus, Jamie Hartman, James Walsh and others. The album produced a second single, "Anyone Else", released on 31 December 2012. Cardle also made a video for the song "Lately", although not released as a single.
James Arthur is an English singer and songwriter. He rose to fame after winning the ninth series of The X Factor in 2012. His debut single, a cover of Shontelle's "Impossible", was released by Syco Music after the final, and debuted at number one on the UK Singles Chart. Since then, it has gone on to sell over 2.5 million copies worldwide, making it the most successful winner's single in the show's history.
"Change Your Life" is a song by British girl group Little Mix from their debut studio album, DNA (2012). The track was written by the group members, Ash Howes, and its producers Richard Stannard and Tim Powell. Being the first song Little Mix wrote together as a group, it was inspired by their experiences as contestants on the eighth UK series of The X Factor and their fans. The lyrics, according to group member Jade Thirlwall, are about feeling better about yourself and making something of your life. It is a midtempo pop ballad with piano and violin accompaniment, and brief drum and bass breaks.
The X Factor is a British television music competition to find new singing talent. The tenth series began airing on ITV on 31 August, and finished on 15 December 2013. Dermot O'Leary returned to present the main show on ITV and Caroline Flack was back to present spin-off show The Xtra Factor on ITV2, along with comedian Matt Richardson, who replaced Olly Murs. Flack also presented backstage segments during the live shows. Louis Walsh, Gary Barlow and Nicole Scherzinger returned as judges for their respective tenth, third and second series, with Sharon Osbourne returning to replace Tulisa after five series away. This was Barlow's final series as a judge. Osbourne and Scherzinger also departed the series, but reprised their roles as judges with Walsh again in series 13 and series 14.
The Big Reunion is a 2013 series of concerts featuring British pop groups Five, 911, Atomic Kitten, Honeyz, Liberty X and Blue, and Irish group B*Witched. The groups, who were big names in the UK pop music scene in the late 1990s and early 2000s, reunited for the ITV2 reality-documentary series The Big Reunion, a show which follows them meeting again for the first time in a decade and rehearsing ahead of their comeback performance.
The Glassheart Tour was the second headlining concert tour by British recording artist Leona Lewis. It was launched in support of her third studio album, Glassheart (2012). Announced on 8 October 2012, with an initial run of sixteen dates in the United Kingdom, the Glassheart Tour was extended to include five dates in Germany and one in Switzerland. English singer-songwriter Ryan Keen served as the support act. It marks the first time that Lewis has performed material in Europe as part of a headline tour; her previous tour The Labyrinth (2010), only visited the UK.
The Unplugged Tour was an eight date concert tour by Matt Cardle. In contrast to his previous tours, the Letters Tour and promotional tours, it was not specifically in support of his most recent album, rather a set of songs from both his albums and other tracks that have meant a lot to him. It was the first he had done without the backing of a full live band. Cardle played acoustic guitar for the majority of the songs, but had the addition of Paul Bullen on keyboard for the middle portion of the set and the encore. No other instrumentation was used. All dates sold out.
The discography of the English singer and songwriter Matt Cardle consists of four studio albums, one live album, seventeen singles and eleven music videos.
Porcelain is the third studio album released by English musician Matt Cardle. The album was released on 25 October 2013 in Ireland, and on 28 October in the United Kingdom. Recording locations include London, Los Angeles and New York. It is primarily written by Cardle but, as with his previous albums, he worked with various songwriters, including Conner Reeves and American R&B artist Brian McKnight. Cardle has also produced the album and played the majority of the instruments.