Matt at the pub
Posted: Fri Jun 20, 2008 4:16 pm
My good friend has just told me a story about Matt before he was famous.
"By the way, if i haven't told you before, I knew Matt Monro personally. He used to drive the 14 bus in London, and would come in the Favourite pub, which was at the terminus in Hornsey Rise, where my late sister lived. Him and I and my brother Chris always used get up and give a song. Matt's name at the time was Terry something, I can't quite remember. He was a very modest guy. He'd come in regularly, order a pint, sing about two songs, backed by the pub's piano and drums, and then get back into his bus outside. No gimmicks, no outlandishness, just simply a great voice, which we congratulated him on many times. We were more extrovert, although he he did compliment me once when I sang Song of Songs. (Mario Lanza and Perry Como recorded it)
He would always sing the classy songs like, Embraceable You, My Funny Valentine, Someone To Watch Over Me. You know, Gershwin, Rodgers& Hart stuff.
I always remember he would often sing a song called, Met a Girl In Calico from the 1940's. I'd never heard it before but he sang it really great in laid back style."
"By the way, if i haven't told you before, I knew Matt Monro personally. He used to drive the 14 bus in London, and would come in the Favourite pub, which was at the terminus in Hornsey Rise, where my late sister lived. Him and I and my brother Chris always used get up and give a song. Matt's name at the time was Terry something, I can't quite remember. He was a very modest guy. He'd come in regularly, order a pint, sing about two songs, backed by the pub's piano and drums, and then get back into his bus outside. No gimmicks, no outlandishness, just simply a great voice, which we congratulated him on many times. We were more extrovert, although he he did compliment me once when I sang Song of Songs. (Mario Lanza and Perry Como recorded it)
He would always sing the classy songs like, Embraceable You, My Funny Valentine, Someone To Watch Over Me. You know, Gershwin, Rodgers& Hart stuff.
I always remember he would often sing a song called, Met a Girl In Calico from the 1940's. I'd never heard it before but he sang it really great in laid back style."
Matt was called Terry Parsons in those days, Chris 
specially the personal friend bit, as Chris is only 49 now and Matt would be 78, but can see now that it was Chris's friend who was the personal friend of Matt's when Matt was driving a No 14 bus : 
? 
