Al Chantrey has been writing and recording songs from the age of 10. Starting to perform professionally at the age of fifteen he has entertained an audience of all ages for over twelve years.
Being best known for his ballads, he has also proven that he can jump in to almost any genre. Stirring rockers, pop, country, folk and blues, to name but a few. He is labeled as a Soul artist, undoubtedly due to his emotionally high vocals and heartfelt and deep lyrics.
Al Chantrey was born in 1981, and since the tender age of five has been influenced by his love of music which has led him to become one of the world’s most ‘unique’ singer/songwriters. After hearing Jim Diamond (Who had hits with ‘I Should Have Known Better’, ‘Hi Ho Silver’ and ‘I Won’t Let You Down’ with Ph.D) singing ‘Hi Ho Silver’ in 1986, Al decided that he wanted to be in music.
At the age of fifteen, he started writing and composing his own songs, and not long after he started performing to keen audiences and won himself a number of dedicated fans. His first live public performance was at a talent contest in 1997 which he won, after performing three songs. In 2000 he entered a showcase at which he performed the song “In My Heart”, which was written by Al’s mother, Anne, in memory of his brother who passed away in 1994. The showcase won him his first manager and many more enthusiastic fans who were immediately hooked on his powerful vocal range and emotional stage presence. Al’s music has gone on to become extremely popular with young, middle-aged and older people, with his versatile styles ranging from soft-rock, pop, soul, blues and even country. “He can please anyone! and he can even sound different in every song he sings!” said a producer from England. But it isn’t just his Music which attracts fans, but also his sincere and extremely approachable personality. His love for people is as strong as his love for his music. Al’s love of performing to an audience kept him busy between 2000 and 2004 when he performed in such events as self arranged concerts, variety shows and of course his own gigs. He has also performed with bands and was part of a duo called ‘Back2Back’ in the later part of 2004.
His love for music also urged him to enter the business side of it when he formed an entertainment and production company with friend, Alan Bryson. Their company was also the label for Al’s 2005 EP ‘Waiting For Your Call’ which featured some of Al’s finest songs. In recent times, Al has began working mainly ‘online’, on websites such as YouTube. He has also co-written with other artists and written songs for numerous people.
Al has put tours and concerts on hold to concentrate on recording and promoting his work. A lot of his material can be found on websites such as YouTube.
Al’s debut album ‘On the Line’, was released in February of 2008 exclusively online at iTunes, Rhapsody, Napster, emusic and many more. The album featured fan favorites such as, ‘Waiting For Your Call’, ‘Start Up My Heaven’, ‘Rainbow on the Wall’ and many more.
Al is also the writer and performer of the theme song from the public access and internet variety series, “The Happy Show!”
For the past 2 years, as well as continuing his solo career, Al has been working with fellow singer-songwriter Gavin McMahon in the duo McMahon & Chantrey. They released their debut album '5 Thousamd Years' in 2010 and spent the last year writing new material which has lead to their newest album 'Same Street....Different Town' which is a mix of Soul, Blues, Folk and various other styles.
