| "My Kind of Girl" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Single by Matt Monro | ||||
| from the album My Kind of Girl | ||||
| B-side | "This Time" | |||
| Released | 1961 | |||
| Recorded | 1961 | |||
| Genre | Traditional pop | |||
| Length | 2:48 | |||
| Label | Parlophone | |||
| Songwriter(s) | Leslie Bricusse | |||
| Matt Monro singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
"My Kind of Girl" is a 1961 song originally released by Matt Monro. Monro's version reached number 5 on the UK's Record Retailer chart, while a version by Frank Sinatra and Count Basie reached number 35 the following year.
"My Kind of Girl" was first released by Matt Monro, and was written by Leslie Bricusse. [1] [2] In February 1961, the British music magazine NME reported that Monro had won ITV's A Song for Britain with "My Kind of Girl"; [3] however, according to his daughter Michele's autobiography [4] Matt Monro: The Singer's Singer, Monro came second in this, although the song would later win an Ivor Novello award for "The Most Performed Work of the Year". [1] [5] Shortly after the result was announced, Monro, George Martin and Johnnie Spence sped into the studio to record the song but had to record the song's B-side, "This Time", beforehand since Spence had left it until late to hand Vic Fraser the score for the record and the copyist had not finished copying the parts for the orchestra. [2]
The song spent 14 weeks on the Billboard Hot 100, reaching No. 18, [6] making Monro the first British artist to reach the US top 20 since Laurie London did so with "He's Got the Whole World (In His Hands)" in 1958. [5] The song also spent 12 weeks on the UK's Record Retailer chart, reaching No. 5 and becoming Monro's second entry on that chart, [7] while reaching No. 6 on Billboard 's Easy Listening chart. [8] The song was ranked No. 84 on Billboard 's end of year "Hot 100 for 1961 - Top Sides of the Year". [9]
Steve Lawrence, who took Monro's first entry on to the American charts, nearly recorded this record as the follow-up but decided not to use a second one of Monro's records. Both records were awarded a gold disc. [5] "My Kind of Girl" also lent its name to an album of the same name, also released in 1961. [10]
Frank Sinatra covered the song for his 1962 album Sinatra–Basie: An Historic Musical First . [11] This version was released as a single, and spent six weeks on the UK's Record Retailer chart, reaching No. 35. [12] To commemorate what would have been Sinatra's hundredth birthday, The Official Charts Company compiled a list of the top forty highest selling records by Sinatra; "My Kind of Girl" came in at number 38. [13]
Dean Martin sang the song on his show "The Dean Martin Show". He also included the song as part of his set at the Lake Tahoe performance on July 27, 1962 in California.
Sammy Davis Jr. released a version of the song on his 1964 album Sammy Davis Jr. Salutes the Stars of the London Palladium . [14] Nat King Cole, Perry Como, Tom Jones, John Gary and Guy Mitchell also recorded the song.
Michael Bublé sang a cover as background music to the advert for his fragrance, "By Invitation". [15] Bublé's version appeared on his 2016 album Nobody but Me . [16]
This is a list of notable events in music that took place in the year 1962.
"Fly Me to the Moon", originally titled "In Other Words", is a song written in 1954 by Bart Howard. The first recording of the song was made in 1954 by Kaye Ballard. Frank Sinatra's 1964 version was closely associated with the Apollo missions to the Moon.
Michael Steven Bublé is a Canadian singer and songwriter. Born in Burnaby, British Columbia, he is often credited for helping to renew public interest and appreciation for traditional pop standards and the Great American Songbook. Bublé has sold over 75 million records worldwide, and won numerous awards, including five Grammy Awards and fifteen Juno Awards.
Matt Monro was an English singer. Known as "The Man with the Golden Voice", he performed internationally during his 30-year career. AllMusic has described Monro as "one of the most underrated pop vocalists of the '60s", who "possessed the easiest, most perfect baritone in the business".
"That's Life" is a popular song written by Dean Kay and Kelly Gordon and first recorded in 1963 by Marion Montgomery. The song has an uplifting message that, despite the ups and downs in life, one should not give up but keep positive, because soon one will be "back on top."
Sinatra–Basie: An Historic Musical First is a 1962 studio album by Frank Sinatra, arranged by Neal Hefti.
"Don't Sleep in the Subway" is a song written by Tony Hatch and Jackie Trent and recorded by British singer Petula Clark, for whom it was an April 1967 single release.
"Summer Wind" is a 1965 song, originally released in Germany as "Der Sommerwind" and written by Heinz Meier and German language lyrics by Hans Bradtke. Johnny Mercer re-wrote the song into English along the same themes as the original, which talked of the changing of the seasons using the Southern European sirocco wind as a metaphor. In America, it was first recorded by Wayne Newton and subsequently by Bobby Vinton and Perry Como.
"Softly, as I Leave You" is a popular Italian song, originally titled Piano, composed by Tony De Vita with Italian lyrics by Giorgio Calabrese, and English lyrics by Hal Shaper.
"(Love Is) The Tender Trap" is a popular song composed by Jimmy Van Heusen, with lyrics by Sammy Cahn.
Frank Sinatra's musical career began in the swing era in 1935, and ended in 1995, although he did briefly retire in 1971, before returning to music in 1973. Sinatra is one of the most influential music artists of the 20th century, and has sold 150 million records worldwide, making him one of the best-selling music artists of all-time. Rock critic Robert Christgau called Sinatra "the greatest singer of the 20th century". In addition to his music career, Sinatra was also a successful film actor, having won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his role as Private Angelo Maggio in From Here to Eternity (1953).
"Let There Be Love" is a popular song with music by Lionel Rand and lyrics by Ian Grant, published in 1940.
Nothing but the Best is a 2008 compilation album by American singer Frank Sinatra. All the tracks on this album are recordings made when Sinatra was on his own Reprise label, thus the first track, "Come Fly with Me" is not the 1957 Capitol version. Other notable differences are "Strangers in the Night" has an extended fade out and the first cymbal hit is cut from the beginning of the "Theme from New York, New York".
Sinatra Reprise: The Very Good Years is a 1991 single disc compilation taken from the four disc box set The Reprise Collection, a 1990 box set by the American singer Frank Sinatra. For many years, this was the only collection of Sinatra's Reprise work on one disc until 2008's collection Nothing But The Best. The Very Good Years reached #98 on the Billboard Top 200 album charts in 1991.
Frank Sinatra: The Reprise Years is a 36 disc boxed set by American singer Frank Sinatra.
"This Love of Mine" is a popular American song that was first recorded in 1941 by Tommy Dorsey and His orchestra, with a vocal by Frank Sinatra. Sinatra wrote the words and Sol Parker and Hank Sanicola wrote the music.
"Portrait of My Love" is a song written by Norman Newell and Cyril Ornadel, which was released by Matt Monro in 1960, and was an international hit for Steve Lawrence in 1961.
Nobody but Me is the ninth studio album by Canadian singer Michael Bublé. The album was released on October 21, 2016, by Reprise Records. It features three original songs co-written by Bublé, including the lead single "Nobody but Me", and nine cover versions.
Johnnie Spence, born John Spence Abrahams, sometimes spelt Johnny Spence, was a British musical arranger, director, and orchestra leader. He is credited with the arrangements and musical direction of numerous records and television light entertainment works throughout the 1960s and 1970s, and was nominated for an Emmy Award for Outstanding Achievement in Music Direction of a Variety, Musical or Dramatic Program for his work on the 1969 television series This Is Tom Jones.
Songs for Swingin' Sellers is the second studio album by the English actor, comedian and singer Peter Sellers. Released on EMI's Parlophone label in December 1959, the album was produced by George Martin with musical direction from Ron Goodwin and features a series of comic sketches showcasing Sellers' satirical humour and mimicry. The album was titled as a play on Frank Sinatra's Songs for Swingin' Lovers! and much of its contents pointedly satirises popular culture, with musical parodies of Sinatra and Lonnie Donegan among the tracks. Sellers plays a variety of roles alongside contributions from the comic character actress Irene Handl and the singer Matt Monro. A critical and commercial success, the album reached number three in the UK Albums Chart and Martin's elaborate production has been cited as an artistic forerunner to his work with the Beatles.