The Man from Delmonte (band)

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The Man from Delmonte
Origin Manchester, England
Genres Indie pop
Years active1986–1990; 2025
Labels Ugly Man
Bop Cassettes
Vinyl Japan
Past membersMike West
Sheila Seal
Martin Vincent
Howard Goody

The Man from Delmonte are an independent band from Manchester, England, formed in the mid-1980s.

Contents

History

Band members included Mike West (vocals and acoustic guitar), Sheila Seal (bass), Martin Vincent (guitar and harmonica), and Howard Goody (drums). [1]

The band members had little in common with most Manchester bands. Goody was a graduate of Winchester School of Art. Vincent had been an art critic and painter. Seal, a Glaswegian, was a classically trained musician who had run an art gallery. West, who wrote the songs, was the Australian-born son of the author Morris West. [2]

The band played many gigs at the Boardwalk club, in Manchester, where they recorded their Big Noise live album in 1989.

They took their name from a series of 1980s television advertisements for Del Monte fruit juices, featuring the "man from Del Monte". In these, the man would visit villages to sample their fruit juices, to see if they were good enough to be included in his company's drinks. The tagline, shouted jubilantly by a villager on approval was, "The man from Del Monte, he say 'Yes!'". [3]

At one point they were managed by journalist Jon Ronson. [4]

After they split up in 1990, some members continued as Surfurbia. [3] West moved to New Orleans to pursue a solo career in the early 1990s.

The band reformed in 2024 to play gigs in the UK in February and April 2025. [5] [2]

Discography

Chart placings shown are from the UK Indie Chart. [1]

Singles

Albums

References

  1. 1 2 Lazell, Barry (1997). Indie Hits 1980–1999. Cherry Red Books. ISBN   0-9517206-9-4.
  2. 1 2 Key, Iain (15 October 2024). "The Man From Delmonte return!". Louder Than War .
  3. 1 2 Strong, Martin C. (2003) The Great Indie Discography, Canongate, ISBN   1-84195-335-0, p. 406
  4. Ronson, Jon [@jonronson] (26 December 2024). "Happy Xmas. This is my old friend Mike West from The Man From Delmonte, a great band I managed in the '80s. They've reformed for the first time in 32 years. I'll introduce them on stage at The Band on the Wall in Manchester, and here's news of other shows:" (Tweet). Retrieved 6 January 2025 via Twitter.
  5. Maloney, Carl (11 October 2024). "THE MAN FROM DELMONTE, THEY SAID YES! AND ARE BACK! | RGM : REYT GOOD MAGAZINE DISCOVER THE LATEST MUSIC NEWS, REVIEWS, AND INTERVIEWS FROM THE BEST NEW ARTISTS". rgm.press.