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Geoff Morrow

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
For the actor, seeJeff Morrow.

Geoff Morrow
Birth nameGeoffrey Stanton Morrow
Born(1942-05-16)16 May 1942(age 82)
London, England
Occupation(s)Songwriter, producer
Years active1964–present

Geoffrey Stanton "Geoff" Morrow(born 16 May 1942, inLondon,England)[1]is a Britishsongwriterandbusinessman.His compositions have been recorded byButterscotch(of which he was a member),Sandie Shaw,[2]the Carpenters,[3]Elvis Presley,[4]Johnny Mathis,[5]Jessie J,[6]Barry Manilow[7]and many other musicians.

Biography

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Many of his early compositions were co-written byDavid Martinand/orChris Arnold,with whom he also recorded, both as the songwriting and production trioArnold, Martin and Morrowand under thesoft rockband name ofButterscotch.[8]Fellow songwriter and producerPhil Wainmanplayed the drums for Butterscotch.

Morrow and Arnold's first big songwriting success was "In Thoughts of You",which was taken to the top ten of theUK Singles ChartbyBilly Furyin 1965.[9]All three songwriters composed "Annabella", which was originally recorded in the UK byDave Deewithout chart success,[10]but which reached the US charts via a cover version byHamilton, Joe Frank & Reynoldsin 1971.[11]The writers themselves (as Butterscotch) scored another top twenty UK hit with "Don't You Know (She Said Hello)"in 1970[12]which reached number 17 on the UK chart - a rating which belies its enduring popularity on oldies radio. The flip side of that single "The Closer to You" also proved to be very popular with some listeners.

The Arnold, Martin and Morrow team wrote four songs forElvis Presleybetween 1969 and 1973. One, "Let's Be Friends," made the title track of a1970 budget compilation album.[13]

They went on to compose and produce a number of more or less successful songs throughout the early to mid-1970s, including "There's a Whole Lot of Loving"which providedGuys 'n' Dollswith a UK #2 hit in 1974; they also wrote and/or produced the group's follow-up hits. Although the Guys 'n' Dolls hits all appeared on Peter Shelley's Magnet label, in about 1975 the team started their own record label named "AMMO" - and several releases on that label achieved moderate success in the UK. The team also wrote "Can't Smile Without You",made famous byBarry Manilow.[7]

Morrow established Geoff Morrow Music.[14]One record company was sold toRCAand the other toEMI.In 1990, he bought theManchester Opera HouseandPalace Theatre,Manchester.[citation needed]He was a director and major shareholder of Caesars Palace,Luton.[citation needed]His latest,A Legendary Romance,[15]produced by Laurence Myers, successfully "tried out" inNew Hampshire.[16]He has also written several screenplays includingDon't Go Breaking My Heart.Morrow collaborated with David Simmons to stage two plays. These wereObits,a series of sketches based on obituaries, featuring characters including Enid Blyton,Ernie WiseandHitler;andThe Boy Who Was Woody Allen,which has been adapted into a full-scale musical comedy,Being Woody Allen,and was produced byMichael Gradeand Michael Linnit in 2017.[17]

See also

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References

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  1. ^"Check Company: Geoffrey Stanton Morrow".Check Company.Retrieved20 October2015.
  2. ^"I Must Be Lucky – Sandie Shaw | Song Info".AllMusic.Retrieved20 October2015.
  3. ^"Can't Smile Without You – Carpenters | Song Info".AllMusic.Retrieved20 October2015.
  4. ^"Little Bit of Green – Elvis Presley | Song Info".AllMusic.Retrieved20 October2015.
  5. ^"You Saved My Life – Johnny Mathis | Song Info".AllMusic. 27 January 2015.Retrieved20 October2015.
  6. ^"Jessie J – Who You Are (CD, Album)".discogs. 24 July 2011.Retrieved20 October2015.
  7. ^abSteve Huey."Can't Smile Without You – Barry Manilow | Song Info".AllMusic.Retrieved20 October2015.
  8. ^"Butterscotch (2) Discography".discogs.Retrieved20 October2015.
  9. ^"Official Chart History".Officialcharts.Retrieved20 October2015.
  10. ^"Dave Dee – Annabella / Kelly – Fontana – UK – 6007 021".45cat. 14 January 2014.Retrieved20 October2015.
  11. ^"Annabella (song by Hamilton, Joe Frank & Reynolds) • Music VF, US & UK hits charts".Musicvf. 28 August 1971.Retrieved20 October2015.
  12. ^"Official Chart History".Officialcharts.Retrieved20 October2015.
  13. ^"Elvis Presley – Let's Be Friends (Vinyl, LP, Album)".discogs. 26 October 1970.Retrieved20 October2015.
  14. ^Geoff Morrow Music, Open corporation15 December 2020
  15. ^"A Legendary Romance (New Musical)".Ron H. Stephenson. Archived fromthe originalon 4 March 2016.Retrieved20 October2015.
  16. ^"An Inside Look at New Hampshire's New London Barn Playhouse".Nhmagazine. 1 September 2015.Retrieved20 October2015.
  17. ^"Our Business – Gate Ventures".Gateplc.Retrieved21 September2018.
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