Lance Fortune
English pop singer (1940–2025)
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Christopher Morris (4 January 1940 – 29 May 2025), known by the stage name Lance Fortune, was an English pop singer.
Life and career
Christopher Morris was born in Birkenhead, Cheshire, England on 4 January 1940.[1] Morris was classically trained on piano.[2] He formed a rock and roll group called the Firecrests while a student at Birkenhead School, and served as lead vocalist; they recorded the songs "That'll Be the Day", "I Knew From the Start", and "Party", but were strictly a local attraction.[3] After leaving University early, Morris was discovered by impresario Larry Parnes while working and singing at the 2i's Coffee Bar in London.[1] Parnes gave him the stage name Lance Fortune, a name he had previously considered for another artist he signed in 1959, Georgie Fame.[1][4] The newly named Fortune signed to Pye Records as a solo artist,[2] and released four singles, two of which became hits in the UK Singles Chart in 1960. "Be Mine" reached No. 4, whilst the follow-up, "This Love I Have For You" was a Top 30 hit.[2][5]
In April 1960, Fortune and Jerry Keller replaced Eddie Cochran on Gene Vincent's then current UK tour, after Cochran's untimely death in a road accident.[6]
In the 1960s, Fortune joined a group called the Staggerlees.[7]
Fortune died on 29 May 2025, at the age of 85.[8]
Releases
- "Be Mine" / "Action" (Pye Records, 1960) UK No. 4[9]
- "All on My Own" / "This Love I Have For You" (Pye, 1960) – B-side UK No. 26[9]
- "I Wonder" / "Will You Still be My Girl" (Pye, 1960)
- "Who's Gonna Tell Me?" / "Love Is the Sweetest Thing" (Pye, 1961)