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TONY D'AMATO (1931-2006)

Tony D'Amato, who passed away on 7 July after a lingering illness, was Mantovani's record producer between 1964 and 1975. But there was much more to the man than just that bald statement. He was one of the more intelligent men to be connected with the record industry, and according to veteran Decca producer Hugh Mendl, he was over qualified for the job he did, but it suited him to live in the London area and work for Decca while the company was at its zenith in the 1960s.

Tony was sent over from the States to begin the famous Phase 4 label series in 1961. It encompassed some revolutionary recording techniques, and you could be sure that anything on that label was of the highest quality.

Tony was born in New York in January 1931 to a family of immigrant Italians and attended James Munro High in that city. Bright and ambitious, he moved onto the Juilliard School of Music for two years but was then drafted into the US Marine Corps until 1954. He graduated from New York University cum laude with a degree in music. Awarded a scholarship at Brandeis University, he emerged with a Master's Degree in music. He married his wife of 48 years, Gabrielle, in 1958 and down the years they brought up five daughters, Luisa, Jennie, Tania, Joanna and Antonia.

In the autumn of 1958 he joined London Records, the American arm of English Decca, and began to learn the record industry from top to bottom under the guidance of the knowledgeable Marty Wargo. After arriving in England he lived in Bagshott, Surrey, and was part of the Decca scene until he quit in 1978. In 1964 he became Mantovani's record producer, and they had a very friendly relationship until Monty retired from active duty in 1975. The full story of Tony's association with Mantovani (and how he was able to be of great service to him on several occasions) is told in my recent Mantovani biography. Suffice it to say here, that the pair came up with several fine albums, among them "Mantovani Magic" and "Mr Music" from 1966, "Mantovani/Hollywood" from 1967, "The Mantovani Touch" (1968) and "From Mantovani With Love" (1970). There were also some good recordings made in Paris, after Monty began recording there in 1971. But Tony's favourite

Mantovani album of all was the Phase 4 production (with Frank Lee) of "Kismet" in September 1963 with a host of singing stars and a chorus directed by Mike Sammes. I know that he listened to this album again shortly before his death, and it was a source of great comfort to him.

With his vast knowledge of music there were many classical recordings produced for Decca and some independent ones, too. Among the colleagues he worked with closely were arrangers Roland Shaw and Johnny Keating (who was a special friend and who visited him in Coram, Long Island, only recently), and recording luminaries Stanley Black, Ronnie Aldrich, Maurice Larcange and Frank Chacksfield. On leaving Decca Tony worked in Winnipeg, Canada, for a while, then settled in Long Island where he helped maintain the touring Mantovani Orchestra, originally formed with Tony's assistance in 1981.Although Tony recognised that the orchestra's sound could never exactly reproduce the Mantovani Sound (as the inspiration behind it was no longer alive), he felt it important to keep the maestro's name before the public. Down the years it toured a host of countries under various conductors and at the end of last year was on the road again, performing a variety of Christmas numbers.

Hugh Mendl remembers Tony fondly. In an aside on hearing of his passing, he told me that he always imagined Tony as a manipulator of the machine of life. Tony was most enthusiastic about producing a biography about Monty, gave much encouragement and provided more than a few anecdotes which were eagerly alighted upon. His life at Decca was not always easy - he was regarded with much suspicion in the early years as a "pushy American" - and he once told me that he had two main moods at Decca, a tranquil one around Monty and a confrontational one at Decca House. Bandleader Edmundo Ross described this latter mood as being that of a "china closet bull." But Tony was perceptive and resourceful and didn't suffer fools gladly.

He is survived by "Gabby", their five daughters, nine grandchildren and his brother Roger. His funeral took place at Coram on 11 July 2006 and was attended by members of the Mantovani family.

Colin MacKenzie

Author of Mantovani biography, ""Mantovani, A Lifetime In Music"