Tony Hatch

He was born Anthony Peter Hatch in Pinner, North London, on 30 June 1939. . Encouraged by his musical abilities, his mother — also a pianist — enrolled him in the London Choir School in Bexley, Kent when he was ten. Instead of continuing at the Royal Academy of Music, he left school in 1955 and found a job with Robert Mellin Music in London's Tin Pall Alley.

Hatch started notching up successes as a songwriter in the early '60s, including Garry Mills' "Look for a Star." His most significant role in straight British rock music was as producer during the Searchers' 1963-66 commercial prime, a span which saw them ring up all of their big hits.  Hatch also wrote their second British hit single, "Sugar and Spice," under the pseudonym Fred Nightingale.

Hatch left his biggest imprint, however, on the big international hits by Petula Clark in the mid '60s.  In addition to producing, Hatch was vital to Clark as a songwriter, supplying, either as sole author or co-writer (sometimes with Clark herself), much of her best material: "Downtown," "My Love," "I Know a Place," "Call Me," and "A Sign of the Times," are all Hatch compositions. Hatch also deserves a good deal of credit for putting Clark in the international spotlight to begin with. In 1964, Clark was on the verge of giving up on maintaining her stardom in England, in favor of focusing her efforts on France (where she was very big, and often recorded in the French language). Clark came to France to play her some songs to consider recording for the English speaking market, and wasn't able to come up with anything Petula liked until, out of desperation, he played a composition influenced by American soul, although he didn't think Clark was a suitable artist for it. This was, of course, "Downtown; " Clark loved it, recorded it, and her career revived in England, the single also becoming her first American hit.

Hatch had a fair amount of success with a singer-songwriter  Jackie Trent. Trent and Hatch also began writing together, getting a #1 British hit with "Where Are You Now (My Love)" in 1965. The Hatch-Trent songwriting team couldn't come up with other big British hits for Trent, but did pen some hits for Clark, such as "Colour My World" and "Don't Sleep in the Subway." Moody balladeer Scott Walker had a British hit with Hatch-Trent's "Joanna." Hatch also recorded some duets with Trent and made some instrumental recordings under his own name.

In the '70s, Hatch and Trent wrote a couple of musicals that had London runs, and eventually moved to Australia. Hatch also wrote some television music, including work for the British soap opera "Crossroads" and the theme song to "Neighbors.