1. History

2. Members
    Timmy Matley  Mark Franks  Lachie Chapman  Mike Crawshaw  Darren Everest 

3. Discography
    Albums  Singles 

4. References

5. External links

The Overtones are a UK based vocal harmony group. They were discovered by a Warner Bros. Records' talent scout while working as decorators in a shop near Oxford Street, singing during their tea break.^[1] Their debut album Good Ol' Fashioned Love entered the UK Albums Chart at #16 in November 2010. However, after the re-release of the album in March 2011, it propelled to #4. They have sold in excess of 500,000 copies of their first album.

History

The boys were originally in a band called DYYCE, which then reformed as Lexi Joe, which formed the basis of The Overtones. With four members originally – Mark Franks, Mike Crawshaw, Darren Everest and Timmy Matley – the band had been performing for several years.^[2] The four all shared an interest in the doo-wop genre of the 1950s mixed with R&B and modern pop music. Their voices bear strong resemblance to a 1980s doo-wop boyband, 14 Karat Soul. After auditioning on The X Factor in 2009, as Lexi Joe, they were rejected from the final top 24. Later, they met Lachie Chapman, discovered similar tastes in music and reformed themselves as a five-piece band, under the name of The Overtones.^[2] Everest then had the idea of starting a painting and decorating company so that the five could practice together while working.^[2] It was while painting a shop near Oxford Street in London that the band were discovered by a talent scout,^[1][2] whilst singing "The Longest Time". They have since signed a 5-album deal with Warner Bros. Records.^[2]

The debut album from The Overtones features a number of original tracks written by the band, including their first single "Gambling Man" as well as the title track "Good Ol' Fashioned Love" and "Carolyn". In 2010 they made a number of high-profile public appearances, supporting Peter Andre on tour,^[2] and performing at Stockport's Christmas lights switch-on^[3] and at the Abbey Park fireworks display in Leicester.^[4] They have also made a number of television appearances, including on This Morning.^[5]

On 13 March 2011, they were the house band for week 10 on the ITV show Dancing on Ice. On 1 June 2011 they were the house band for the third semi-final on the ITV show Britain's Got More Talent. In November 2011, they performed on The Saturday Night Show when presenter Brendan O'Connor had to hold up a curtain after a "terrible mishap occurred in the RTÉ studio".^[6] The incident, available on YouTube, was nominated for the "Brown Trousers Moment" award at the 2011 Erics.^[7]

On 29 September 2012 they appeared on an episode of Red or Black? being part of a round by using a handkerchief in their performance. On 9 December 2012 they appeared as special guest performers in the final episode of series 9 The Xtra Factor.

In mid 2013, they announced the release date of their third album, Saturday Night at the Movies. It was released on 4 November 2013.

In early 2014, The Overtones went on a UK tour, stopping in Belfast, Northern Ireland on 20 February.^[8]

They toured with Sir Cliff Richard in Germany, May 2014.^[9]

In November 2014, The Overtones announced the release of their fourth studio album, Sweet Soul Music. It was released on 27 February 2015, with a brief tour commencing in June. Their fifth album and first Christmas album, Good Ol' Fashioned Christmas, was released on 27 November 2015, with a Christmas tour following in the UK.

In 2016, The Overtones toured with stage show That's Entertainment, a show featuring music from the 1930s, 1940s and 1950s. Later in 2016, The Overtones announced on their Facebook page that they would be touring from November to December, with their Christmas with The Overtones Tour. On 21 November 2016, Matley announced via Twitter that he would not be joining the rest of the band on tour due to having been diagnosed with skin cancer in September 2016.^[10] As he progressed through his treatment, Matley returned for the band's touring commitments in 2017 and the five-piece began recording their sixth studio album.

Matley died on 9 April 2018 from multiple traumatic injuries sustained in a fall from a balcony.^[11] The band cancelled most of their touring commitments in order to grieve for Matley's death, before returning to the studio to complete the album as a four-piece. The album The Overtones was released on 19 October 2018 on the band's own label GamblingMan Records, including one track with previously recorded vocals by Timmy Matley.

Members

Timmy Matley

Timothy Thomas Matley (16 February 1982 – 9 April 2018) was from Cork, Ireland. He was the lead singer of the band, and sometimes joined the middle harmonies.

Matley entered into performing arts at the age of 14, and at 16 years old he travelled to London to audition for a performing arts school. Matley left Ireland when he was 17, as he did not enjoy college. He went travelling before deciding to get involved with songwriting and singing. In October 2014, Matley took part in the BBC Great British Sewing Bee for Children In Need, winning the show.^[12][13] Matley was diagnosed with stage three malignant melanoma in 2016. He died in April 2018, aged 36, after falling from a 13th floor balcony in east London. A coroner's investigation concluded that he had taken crystal meth prior to the incident.^[11][14]

Mark Franks

Mark Robert Franks (born 9 May 1977) comes from Sale, Greater Manchester. He sings the middle harmony sections in their songs.

Franks attended the Royal Ballet School from age 11 to 16. He was a professional dancer for 10 years before joining The Overtones. Franks has released some of his 1980s remixes under his "DJ Rescue Rangerz" name on Soundcloud.{{cn|date=October 2018}}

Lachie Chapman

Lachlan Alexander Chapman (born 7 February 1981) comes from Manly, New South Wales, Australia. He is the bass singer.

Chapman left Australia on his 25th birthday, and travelled to England in the hope of becoming an actor. Back in Australia he has a dog called Matilda. In early 2016, Chapman appeared in Channel 4 comedy series Crashing.{{cn|date=October 2018}}

Mike Crawshaw

Michael Crawshaw (born 12 February 1980) comes from Bristol. He sings the middle harmonies.

Crawshaw grew up in Bedminster, with his family moving to Kingswood when he was 16. He attended Cheddar Grove School, Bedminster Down Comprehensive School and St Brendans Sixth Form College, where he got his first taste of singing in an amateur production of Jesus Christ Superstar. He performed with operatic societies in Bristol before moving to London to pursue his singing career.^[15] His favourite song is "Superstition" by Stevie Wonder.{{cn|date=October 2018}}

Darren Everest

Darren Everest (born 30 May 1981) comes from Essex. He is the falsetto voice of the band.

Everest, a West Ham United supporter, had originally wanted to be a footballer, and had played for Leyton Orient and Southend United. After falling ill with glandular fever, he was forced to stop playing for a year and took up singing.^[16]

Discography

Albums

Singles

References

External links

• Official website
• The Overtones Germany - First official Fansite

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