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Artist
Mike Sammes
12+ albums
easy listening
about
Michael William "Mike" Sammes (19 February 1928 – 19 May 2001) was an English musician and vocal session arranger, performing backing vocals on pop music recorded in the UK from 1955 to the 1970s. Born in Reigate, Surrey, Sammes was the son of pioneer photographer and film-maker Rowland Sammes. He began his interest in music by learning the cello and played in the school orchestra at Reigate Grammar School. He then worked briefly for the music publisher, Chappell & Co. in London. After national service in the RAF in the late 1940s, he worked a variety of jobs until a fellow musician, Bill Shepherd, convinced him to form a group called The Coronets. This male vocal group recorded some covers of current hits for Columbia Records and did some back-up work for the Big Ben Banjo Band, but Shepherd lost interest. Sammes, however, was greatly interested in the work and saw the business opportunities it provided. After bringing together the core group of singers in 1955, the ensemble was soon working four sessions a day, six days a week. They did back-ups for all the major and minor British singers, soundtrack and radio work, and thousands of radio jingles. Under the name of 'The Mike Sammes Singers' they recorded seven albums between 1962 and 1988. In addition, they performed on numerous albums for Disneyland Records. Among the many hit singles featuring the Mike Sammes Singers are "No Other Love" (Ronnie Hilton), "A Handful of Songs" (Tommy Steele), "Why?" and "Strawberry Fair"
