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Martin David Fry (born 9 March 1958) is an English singer, songwriter, composer, musician, and record producer. Fry's music career spans more than 40 years. He came to prominence in the early 1980s as co-founder and lead singer of the pop band
ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Television ...
, which released six singles that entered the top 20 charts in the United Kingdom during the 1980s, including "
Tears Are Not Enough "Tears Are Not Enough" is a 1985 charity single recorded by a supergroup of Canadian artists, under the name Northern Lights, to raise funds for relief of the 1983–85 famine in Ethiopia. It was one of a number of such supergroup singles reco ...
", "
Poison Arrow "Poison Arrow" is a song by English new wave band ABC, released as the second single from their debut studio album, ''The Lexicon of Love'' (1982). The single was released in the United Kingdom on 15 February 1982 on 7" and 12", with the sam ...
", " The Look of Love", "
All of My Heart "All of My Heart" is a song by English new wave and synth-pop band ABC, from their debut studio album, ''The Lexicon of Love'' (1982). It was released as a single in the UK on 27 August 1982 and peaked at No. 5 on the UK Singles Chart. The B- ...
", " That Was Then but This Is Now" and "
When Smokey Sings "When Smokey Sings" is a song by English pop band ABC, released as the first single from their fourth studio album, ''Alphabet City'' (1987). The lyrics and title of the song are a tribute to R&B and soul singer Smokey Robinson. In the Unite ...
". He is the only member who has been with ABC throughout its entire history and is currently its only official member.


Early years

Martin David Fry was born on 9 March 1958 in Stretford, Lancashire (now part of the
Metropolitan Borough of Trafford Trafford is a metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England, with an estimated population of 235,493 in 2017. It covers Retrieved on 13 December 2007. and includes the area of Old Trafford and the towns of Altrincham, Stretford, Urm ...
in
Greater Manchester Greater Manchester is a metropolitan county and combined authority, combined authority area in North West England, with a population of 2.8 million; comprising ten metropolitan boroughs: City of Manchester, Manchester, City of Salford, Salford ...
) and grew up in nearby
Bramhall Bramhall is a suburban area in the Metropolitan Borough of Stockport, Greater Manchester, England. Historically in Cheshire, it had a population of 17,436 at the 2011 Census.Bramhall South and Bramhall North Wards History The Anglo-Saxon m ...
,
Stockport Stockport is a town and borough in Greater Manchester, England, south-east of Manchester, south-west of Ashton-under-Lyne and north of Macclesfield. The River Goyt and Tame merge to create the River Mersey here. Most of the town is within ...
, alongside his younger brother Jamie, who later went on to join the
indie rock Indie rock is a Music subgenre, subgenre of rock music that originated in the United States, United Kingdom and New Zealand from the 1970s to the 1980s. Originally used to describe independent record labels, the term became associated with the mu ...
band
Earl Brutus Earl Brutus were a British indie rock band that emerged in the 1990s. They were formed in 1993 by Nick Sanderson, Rob Marche (formerly of JoBoxers and If?), Jamie Fry (formerly of World of Twist) and Stuart Boreman. Boreman left after the re ...
. Fry was editing a fanzine titled ''Modern Drugs'' in 1978, and first met future ABC band members Mark White and Stephen Singleton while interviewing them for an article in the fanzine. White and Singleton, then fronting an
electronic Electronic may refer to: *Electronics, the science of how to control electric energy in semiconductor * ''Electronics'' (magazine), a defunct American trade journal *Electronic storage, the storage of data using an electronic device *Electronic co ...
band called
Vice Versa References

Additional references * * {{Latin phrases Lists of Latin phrases, V ca:Locució llatina#V da:Latinske ord og vendinger#V fr:Liste de locutions latines#V id:Daftar frasa Latin#V it:Locuzioni latine#V nl:Lijst van Latijns ...
, invited Fry to join their band to play additional keyboards.


ABC

With Fry in place as lead singer and lyricist, Vice Versa changed their name to ABC and changed their sound to a contemporary pop style that at that time led them to be categorised with bands like
Duran Duran Duran Duran () are an English Rock music, rock band formed in Birmingham in 1978 by singer and bassist Stephen Duffy, keyboardist Nick Rhodes and guitarist/bassist John Taylor (bass guitarist), John Taylor. With the addition of drummer Roger ...
,
Spandau Ballet Spandau Ballet () were an English new wave band formed in Islington, London, in 1979. Inspired by the capital's post-punk underground dance scene, they emerged at the start of the 1980s as the house band for the Blitz Kids, playing "European D ...
and
the Human League The Human League are an English synth-pop band formed in Sheffield in 1977. Initially an experimental electronic outfit, the group signed to Virgin Records in 1979 and later attained widespread commercial success with their third album ''Dare' ...
. Between 1982 and 1991, ABC recorded six
studio album An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as Digital distribution#Music, digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early ...
s (''
The Lexicon of Love ''The Lexicon of Love'' is the debut studio album by English pop band ABC. It was released on 21 June 1982 by Neutron Records in the United Kingdom, by Mercury Records in the United States and Japan, and by Vertigo Records in Canada and Euro ...
'', '' Beauty Stab'', '' How to Be a ... Zillionaire!'', ''
Alphabet City Alphabet City is a neighborhood located within the East Village in the New York City borough of Manhattan. Its name comes from Avenues A, B, C, and D, the only avenues in Manhattan to have single-letter names. It is bounded by Houston St ...
'', '' Up'' and ''
Abracadabra ''Abracadabra'' is a magic word, historically used as an incantation on amulets and common today in stage magic. Etymology ''Abracadabra'' is of unknown origin, but according to the ''Oxford English Dictionary'', its first known occurrence ...
'') and released a greatest hits compilation album, '' Absolutely''. During this time, the band went through numerous personnel changes, with Fry and Mark White being its only permanent members. Following the ''Zillionaire'' album, ABC temporarily fell from prominence while Fry was being treated for
Hodgkin's lymphoma Hodgkin lymphoma (HL) is a type of lymphoma, in which cancer originates from a specific type of white blood cell called lymphocytes, where multinucleated Reed–Sternberg cells (RS cells) are present in the patient's lymph nodes. The condition wa ...
, an uncommon
cancer Cancer is a group of diseases involving abnormal cell growth with the potential to invade or spread to other parts of the body. These contrast with benign tumors, which do not spread. Possible signs and symptoms include a lump, abnormal b ...
. ABC disbanded in 1991, with White retiring from music to pursue an interest in
Reiki is a Japanese form of energy healing, a type of alternative medicine. Reiki practitioners use a technique called ''palm healing'' or ''hands-on healing'' through which a " universal energy" is said to be transferred through the palms of the ...
therapy. Fry continued to work with
EMI EMI Group Limited (originally an initialism for Electric and Musical Industries, also referred to as EMI Records Ltd. or simply EMI) was a British Transnational corporation, transnational Conglomerate (company), conglomerate founded in March 1 ...
in the months thereafter but was axed from the label before his solo material could be released. Fry resurrected the ABC name in 1997 for the album ''
Skyscraping ''Skyscraping'' is the seventh studio album by English pop band ABC, released in March 1997 by Blatant and Deconstruction. The album was produced as a homage to lead singer Martin Fry's several musical heroes, including David Bowie, Roxy Musi ...
'', a homage to several of his musical heroes, including
David Bowie David Robert Jones (8 January 194710 January 2016), known professionally as David Bowie ( ), was an English singer-songwriter and actor. A leading figure in the music industry, he is regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the ...
,
Roxy Music Roxy Music are an English rock music, rock band formed in 1970 by Bryan Ferry—who became the band's lead vocalist and principal songwriter—and bassist Graham Simpson (musician), Graham Simpson. The other longtime members are Phil Manzanera ...
and the
Sex Pistols The Sex Pistols were an English punk rock band formed in London in 1975. Although their initial career lasted just two and a half years, they were one of the most groundbreaking acts in the history of popular music. They were responsible for ...
. The album was a collaboration with
Glenn Gregory Glenn Peter Gregory (born 16 May 1958) is an English singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist whose music career spans more than 40 years. He came to prominence in the early 1980s as co-founder and lead singer of the new wave and synthpop b ...
of
Heaven 17 Heaven 17 are an English new wave and synth-pop band that formed in Sheffield in 1980. The band were a trio for most of their career, composed of Martyn Ware (keyboards) and Ian Craig Marsh (keyboards) (both previously of the Human League), an ...
and
Honeyroot Honeyroot is an ambient dance collaboration between Glenn Gregory and Keith Lowndes, signed to the independent record label Just Music. Career The project had its origins in the 1997 album, ''Skyscraping'', by ABC. As ABC was essentially Ma ...
's Keith Lowndes. The band has toured extensively and performed live at events such as the 2001
Night of the Proms Night of the Proms is a series of concerts held annually in Belgium (since 1985), the Netherlands, Germany and Luxembourg. Regularly there are also shows in France, Spain, Austria, Switzerland, Poland, Denmark, the United States and Sweden. The co ...
, where Fry was supported by a 72-piece orchestra and 50-piece choir. In 2008, Fry released a new ABC album titled ''
Traffic Traffic comprises pedestrians, vehicles, ridden or herded animals, trains, and other conveyances that use public ways (roads) for travel and transportation. Traffic laws govern and regulate traffic, while rules of the road include traffic ...
''. In April 2009, Fry and original drummer David Palmer performed ''The Lexicon of Love'' album live at the
Royal Albert Hall The Royal Albert Hall is a concert hall on the northern edge of South Kensington, London. One of the UK's most treasured and distinctive buildings, it is held in trust for the nation and managed by a registered charity which receives no govern ...
in
London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
. The band was accompanied by the
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
Concert Orchestra.
Anne Dudley Anne Jennifer Dudley (née Beckingham; born 7 May 1956) is an English composer, keyboardist, conductor and pop musician. She was the first BBC Concert Orchestra's Composer in Association in 2001. She has worked in the classical and pop genre ...
of
Art of Noise Art of Noise (also The Art of Noise) were an English avant-garde synth-pop group formed in early 1983 by engineer/producer Gary Langan and programmer J. J. Jeczalik, along with keyboardist/arranger Anne Dudley, producer Trevor Horn, and music ...
fame, who arranged and played keyboards on the original record, conducted the
Royal Albert Hall The Royal Albert Hall is a concert hall on the northern edge of South Kensington, London. One of the UK's most treasured and distinctive buildings, it is held in trust for the nation and managed by a registered charity which receives no govern ...
performance. Fry and Palmer (as ABC) toured the U.S. as part of the 2009 'Regeneration Tour', which also featured
Terri Nunn Terri is an alternative spelling of Terry. It is a common feminine given name and is also a diminutive for Teresa. Notable people with the name include: *Terri Allard (born 1962), American country/folk singer/songwriter *Terri S. Armstrong, Amer ...
of
Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...
, Wang Chung and the
Cutting Crew Cutting Crew are an English rock band formed in London in 1985. They are best known for their debut album ''Broadcast'' and hit single, " (I Just) Died in Your Arms". History 1985–1986: Formation While still in his teens, Nick Van Eede (b ...
. In April 2016, a single with a music video, "Viva Love" was released as a teaser for ''
The Lexicon of Love II ''The Lexicon of Love II'' is the ninth studio album by English band ABC. It was released on 27 May 2016 on Virgin EMI, eight years after their previous album ''Traffic''. After a performance of ABC's studio album ''The Lexicon of Love'' in concer ...
'' album. The album entered the
UK Albums Chart The Official Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales and (from March 2015) audio streaming in the United Kingdom. It was published for the first time on 22 July 1956 and is compiled every week by the Official Charts C ...
at No. 5, the band's highest chart position since 1982 and first top 10 entry since 1990.


Other work

Besides working with ABC, Fry has also recorded and toured with other artists. *In 1989, Fry recorded a song called "Mythical Girl" with Arthur Baker for Baker's album ''Merge'', a project that included songs with various artists, including ''Love Is the Message'' featuring
Al Green Albert Leornes Greene (born April 13, 1946), better known as Al Green, is an American singer, songwriter, pastor and record producer best known for recording a series of soul hit singles in the early 1970s, including " Take Me to the River", ...
. *Together with Mark White, Fry co-wrote and produced a couple of songs on Paul Rutherford's 1989 solo album '' Oh World'', including the single " Get Real". *In 1997, Fry contributed to
David Arnold David Arnold (born 23 January 1962) is a British film composer whose credits include scoring five James Bond films, as well as ''Stargate'' (1994), '' Independence Day'' (1996), ''Godzilla'' (1998) and the television series ''Little Britain'' ...
's '' Shaken and Stirred: The David Arnold James Bond Project'', an album made up of re-recordings of
James Bond The ''James Bond'' series focuses on a fictional British Secret Service agent created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels and two short-story collections. Since Fleming's death in 1964, eight other authors have ...
movie themes featuring vocals by contemporary artists. The song Fry performed was the theme of '' Thunderball'' *In 2005, Fry embarked on an extensive UK tour with
Tony Hadley Anthony Patrick Hadley (born 2 June 1960) is an English pop singer. He rose to fame in the 1980s as the lead singer of the new wave band Spandau Ballet and launched a solo career following the group's split in 1990. Hadley returned to the ban ...
, former lead singer of popular 1980s new wave band
Spandau Ballet Spandau Ballet () were an English new wave band formed in Islington, London, in 1979. Inspired by the capital's post-punk underground dance scene, they emerged at the start of the 1980s as the house band for the Blitz Kids, playing "European D ...
. Highlights of the tour were released on CD and DVD compilations, both titled ''Tony Hadley vs. Martin Fry''. The DVD is available in Europe, but has yet to be released in
NTSC The first American standard for analog television broadcast was developed by National Television System Committee (NTSC)National Television System Committee (1951–1953), Report and Reports of Panel No. 11, 11-A, 12–19, with Some supplement ...
format. *Fry appeared in the
BBC Television BBC Television is a service of the BBC. The corporation has operated a public broadcast television service in the United Kingdom, under the terms of a royal charter, since 1927. It produced television programmes from its own studios from 193 ...
program ''
Just the Two of Us Just or JUST may refer to: __NOTOC__ People * Just (surname) * Just (given name) Arts and entertainment * ''Just'', a 1998 album by Dave Lindholm * "Just" (song), a song by Radiohead * "Just", a song from the album ''Lost and Found'' by Mudvayne ...
'' in 2006. This was a
reality television Reality television is a genre of television programming that documents purportedly unscripted real-life situations, often starring unfamiliar people rather than professional actors. Reality television emerged as a distinct genre in the early 19 ...
competition in the style of ''
Strictly Come Dancing ''Strictly Come Dancing'' (informally known as ''Strictly'') is a British dance contest show in which celebrities partner with professional dancers to compete in mainly ballroom and Latin dance. Each couple is scored by a panel of usually 4 ...
'', but this time with contestants (one celebrity being a famous singer, the other celeb being a novice) judged upon their singing skills as part of a duet. He was teamed with TV presenter
Gaby Roslin Gaby Roslin (born 12 July 1964) is an English television and radio presenter who rose to fame co-presenting ''The Big Breakfast'' on Channel 4 between 1992 and 1996. Roslin also presented the '' Children in Need'' charity telethons on the BBC ...
and they were eliminated in the first show after battling the team of
Nicky Campbell Nicholas Andrew Argyll Campbell, OBE (born Nicholas Lackey, 10 April 1961) is a Scottish broadcaster and journalist. He has worked in television and radio since 1981 and as a network presenter with BBC Radio since 1987. Early life Campbell wa ...
and
Beverley Knight Beverley Knight (born Beverley Anne Smith, 22 March 1973) is an English recording artist and musical theatre actress. She released her first album, '' The B-Funk'', in 1995. Heavily influenced by American soul music icons such as Sam Cooke an ...
. *Fry was featured extensively in the 2006 VH1 mini-series ''100 Greatest Songs of the 80's''. When asked, Fry said that he hoped ABC's 1982 single " The Look of Love" would land a coveted slot in the top 10. Despite his wish, the song was ranked No. 43. *Fry worked on several songs for the 2007 movie ''
Music and Lyrics ''Music and Lyrics'' is a 2007 American musical romantic comedy-drama film written and directed by Marc Lawrence. It focuses on the relationship that evolves between a former pop music idol (of the fictional band PoP!) and an aspiring writer as ...
'' starring
Hugh Grant Hugh John Mungo Grant (born 9 September 1960) is an English actor. He established himself early in his career as both a charming, and vulnerable romantic lead and has since transitioned into a dramatic character actor. Among his numerous a ...
and
Drew Barrymore Drew Blythe Barrymore (born February 22, 1975) is an American actress, director, producer, talk show host and author. A member of the Barrymore family of actors, she is the recipient of several accolades, including a Golden Globe Award and a ...
. Fry also served as Grant's vocal coach for the movie. *Fry toured the U.S. in the summer of 2008 with the Regeneration Tour 2008, a show that also featured
the Human League The Human League are an English synth-pop band formed in Sheffield in 1977. Initially an experimental electronic outfit, the group signed to Virgin Records in 1979 and later attained widespread commercial success with their third album ''Dare' ...
as the headliners,
Belinda Carlisle Belinda Jo Carlisle ( ; born August 17, 1958) is an American singer. She gained fame as the lead vocalist of the Go-Go's, the most successful all-female rock band of all time, and went on to have a prolific career as a solo artist. Raised in ...
,
A Flock of Seagulls A Flock of Seagulls are an English new wave band formed in Liverpool in 1979. The group, whose best-known line-up comprised Mike Score, Ali Score, Frank Maudsley and Paul Reynolds, hit the peak of their chart success in the early 1980s. The ...
, and
Naked Eyes Naked Eyes are an English new wave band"All Eyes on Pete Byrne", ''Newsday'', 15 October 2013 that rose to prominence in the early 1980s. The band had four US top 40 singles. The group's first hit, "Always Something There to Remind Me", was ...
.


Personal life

On 19 July 2012, Fry received an honorary
Doctor of Music The Doctor of Music degree (D.Mus., D.M., Mus.D. or occasionally Mus.Doc.) is a higher doctorate awarded on the basis of a substantial portfolio of compositions and/or scholarly publications on music. Like other higher doctorates, it is granted b ...
degree from the
University of Sheffield , mottoeng = To discover the causes of things , established = – University of SheffieldPredecessor institutions: – Sheffield Medical School – Firth College – Sheffield Technical School – University College of Sheffield , type = Pu ...
for his contribution of more than 30 years to music. The following day, his daughter, Nancy received her degree from the Department of Sociological Studies from the same university. As of 2016, he has been married to his wife Julie for more than 30 years.


Discography

ABC


Citations


External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Fry, Martin 1958 births 20th-century English singers 21st-century English singers 20th-century English musicians 21st-century English musicians ABC (band) members English new wave musicians English record producers English songwriters English tenors Living people Male new wave singers Musicians from Greater Manchester People educated at Bramhall High School People from Bramhall Sophisti-pop musicians Synth-pop singers