His songs have been recorded by some of the world’s greatest music icons – including Tom Jones, Rod Stewart, Barbra Streisand and Elvis! But now legendary songwriter Barry Mason, who wrote the classic hit song ‘Delilah’, has written another original song – this time for Christmas!
Barry Mason – a gold, platinum and five-time Ivor Novello award winner – has written the catchy “You & Me & Our Christmas Tree” in a bid to offer the public a fresh, fun and festive song this year.
Barry collaborates with the award-winning Abertillery born singer-pianist Ross Leadbeater, who is delighted to be following the success of his acclaimed debut EP Great British Songbook with an upbeat Christmas single.
Ross will also be appearing on his own shpw on BBC Radio Wales over the Christmas season. Andy Howells recently put questions to Ross about the new single.
Has 2017 been a busy year for you Ross?
Yes, 2017 has been a crazy year for me. I’ve been on the road a lot with my own show and touring the EP. Been to places as far away as Beijing, Budapest and Blackwood! Some great gigs though!
Ross Leadbeateris releasing a Christmas single written by the legendary Barry Mason who has composed hits for Sir Tom Jones and Englebert Humperdinck.
Your latest collaboration is a Christmas song with the composer Barry Mason, how did that come about?
I met Barry though the Great British Songbook project. He is a legend of the music industry and one of our greatest songwriters. He is now in his 80s and still writing songs. He told me that he had a new and original Christmas song. He sent me a demo and I loved it. It’s very catchy!
Barry, of course wrote the legendary track Delilah which was a huge hit for Tom Jones in 1968, what’s it like working with such an icon?
Amazing – he is a real song writing legend and a lovely down to earth guy too!
Do you have any favourites of Barry’s compositions yourself?
I love Delilah of course which he wrote for Tom Jones, and The Last Waltz which was a huge hit for Engelbert Humperdinck.
The song even has a few references to people like Bing Crosby and Michael Buble, do you have artist / album that’s a go-to for you when the Christmas season beckons.
Christmas is a great time for music and I love all styles of music. The Michael Buble Christmas album is a must, but I also love the classics – Bing’s White Christmas and of course Shaky Steven’s Merry Christmas Everyone.
Do you have any forthcoming shows or appearances we can look out for?
Yes, I will be performing at City Hall in Cardiff this Friday (Friday 15th December) with Aled Jones and Lloyd Macey from this year’s X Factor. I’ve also just recorded my Christmas special for BBC Radio Wales which goes out on Boxing Day and New Year’s Day. We’ve got some great guests on that too!
What’s your Christmas wish for 2018?
Oh…that’s a good question. Not really thought about that but it will probably involve more live gigs and some recordings. For now, though, I’m just looking forward to a rest over the holiday season!
- “You & Me & Our Christmas Tree” is available for pre-order on iTunes and Amazon from 24th November and will be released on December 15th on Tryfan Records.
- You can catch Ross Leadbeater’s Radio Show on BBC Radio Wales on Boxing Day and New Years Eve. For more details: http://www.rossleadbeater.com