Chris Montez
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| Chris Montez | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Ezekiel Christopher Montanez |
| Born | January 17, 1943 |
| Origin | Los Angeles, California |
| Genre(s) | Rock, MOR, international |
| Occupation(s) | Singer |
| Instrument(s) | Guitar, vocals |
| Years active | 1962 — present |
| Label(s) | A&M Records, Monogram, Columbia |
| Website | chrismontez.com |
Chris Montez (born Ezekiel Christopher Montanez, January 17, 1943, Los Angeles, California, the last of twenty children)[citation needed], is a Mexican American singer.
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[edit] Early life
Montez grew up in Hawthorne, California, influenced by the Latino flavored music of his community and the success of Ritchie Valens.
In 1962, he recorded the single, "Let's Dance" on Monogram Records. It went to #4 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in the U.S. and to #2 on the UK Singles Chart.
Although Montez toured with Clyde McPhatter, Sam Cooke, The Platters, and Smokey Robinson and the Miracles [1], there were no more hits for Montez until four years later. This was despite The Beatles opening a London concert for him while performing with Tommy Roe. [2] It was once speculated that John Lennon started a fight with Montez at a London bar, when Lennon allegedly poured a beer over Montez' head.[citation needed]
[edit] 1966 comeback
Montez returned to the recording studio in 1965, this time at A&M Records. Montez was searching for the same rock and roll formula that would replicate the success of "Let's Dance". During a recording session, A&M co-founder Herb Alpert suggested that Montez try a different approach: a Middle of the road, soft ballad sound.
"Call Me" (a Tony Hatch composition) was the first single released from his 1966 A&M album, The More I See You. The title single from the album, sung in a soft, very high tenor range and played on primarily adult-formatted radio stations, confused some disc jockeys, who were unfamiliar with Montez's past work. When announcing the song, the DJs would often refer to Montez as a female.[citation needed] But by the time the album was released, Montez' pictures on the front and back of the jacket cleared up any mystery surrounding his gender, as explained in the album's notes on the back of the record jacket.
The More I See You album yielded three Top 40 singles for Montez: The title cut, plus "Call Me" and "There Will Never Be Another You".
[edit] Later years
Montez recorded three more albums for A&M: Time After Time, Foolin' Around, and Watch What Happens. None of these albums mirrored the success of The More I See You. The title cut "Time After Time", did reach #36 on the Billboard Hot 100, but no other hits followed. Following the release of Watch What Happens in 1968, Montez left A&M Records.
In November 1972, Montez charted a Latin hit in Brazil: "Loco por ti (Crazy About You)".[citation needed]
Montez resurfaced in 1974 at CBS Records, with the release of a new LP, The Best of Chris Montez, a mix of both old and new recordings.
Montez recorded one more album for CBS: Raza: Ay No Digas, which did well internationally, but failed to make an impact in the U.S. His final album, with exclusively Spanish-language material, was Cartas de Amor, released on the independent label AYM in 1983.
[edit] Montez today
Montez today continues to perform, mainly to foreign audiences, but still maintains a series of concert dates Stateside. Most of his American appearances in 2007 were in Branson, Missouri.
Currently, Montez performs in the 8:00pm "Original Stars at American Bandstand" show at Dick Clark's American Bandstand Theater in Branson. He performs on stage along with Fabian, Bobby Vee, Brian Hyland and The Chiffons. [1]
[edit] Chart singles
- "Let's Dance" (1962) #4 U.S., #2 UK
- "Some Kinda Fun" (1962) #43 U.S.
- "Call Me" (1966) #22 U.S., #2 U.S. AC
- "The More I See You" (1966) #16 U.S., #2 U.S. AC
- "There Will Never Be Another You" (1966) #33 U.S., #4 U.S. AC
- "Time After Time" (1966) #36 U.S., #12 U.S. AC
- "Because of You" (1967) #71 U.S., #25 U.S. AC
- "The Face I Love" (1968) #15 U.S. AC
- "Love Is Here To Stay" (1968) #38 U.S. AC
