The Les Reed Strings

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Leslie David Reed OBE (24 July 1935 – 15 April 2019) was an English songwriter, arranger, musician and light orchestra leader. His major songwriter partners were Gordon Mills, Barry Mason and Geoff Stephens, although he penned songs with many others such as Roger Greenaway, Roger Cook, and Johnny Worth. Allmusic noted that "Reed's sixty or more major hits have earned numerous gold discs, Ivor Novello Awards and, in 1982, the British Academy Gold Badge of Merit. In the mid-1960s, it was unusual for a British singles chart not to list a Les Reed song". Reed was born and grew up in Woking, Surrey. He was an accomplished musician by the age of fourteen, playing the piano, accordion and vibraphone. He studied at the London College of Music before joining the Willis Reed Group, with whom he toured for four years. Having been called up for National Service, he played piano and clarinet in the Royal East Kent Military Band. In 1959, Reed joined The John Barry Seven as pianist. In the mid-1960s, he began a successful songwriting partnership with Geoff Stephens which yielded such hits as "Tell Me When", a hit for The Applejacks; "Here It Comes Again" for The Fortunes; "Leave A Little Love" for Lulu; and "There's a Kind of Hush", a 1967 success for Herman's Hermits. During 1964, Reed penned "It's Not Unusual" with ex-Viscounts member and Tom Jones' manager Gordon Mills, which gave Jones a UK number one. Reed also arranged and played piano on the song. Around this time Reed struck up

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