Matt Monro
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Matt Monro (December 1 1932 - February 7, 1985) was a ballad singer of the 1960s, sometimes known as "the British Sinatra". He was born Terence Parsons in Shoreditch, London. Affectionately nicknamed "the singing bus driver" (because his occupation prior to achieving fame was driving the Number 27 bus from Highgate to Teddington), he got his first break in 1956 when he became a featured vocalist with the BBC Show Band. An important influence on his early career was pianist Winifred Atwell, who became his mentor and provided him with his stage name.
In 1960, he released the major hit single "Portrait Of My Love" which established him as star. The following year, he was named Top International Act by Billboard magazine. His subsequent hits included "My Kind Of Girl" (1961), "Softly As I Leave You" (1962) and the title song from the James Bond film From Russia With Love (1963). In 1964, he represented the United Kingdom at the Eurovision Song Contest in Copenhagen, Denmark. Singing "I Love the Little Things", he finished second behind Italy's 16-year-old Gigliola Cinquetti. His had a major hit with a cover of The Beatles' "Yesterday" in 1965 and in 1966 sang the title song for the film, Born Free.