Born Ezekiel Christopher Montanez in Los Angeles, California, Montez was brought up in Hawthorne, California. His early musical influences included the latino music played and performed by residents of his neighborhood, as well as Ritchie Valens. After the release of the highly successful "Let's Dance" on Monogram Records, Montez spent several years touring with artists such as Sam Cooke, The Platters, and Smokey Robinson and The Miracles, as well as The Beatles, then relatively unknown outside of Liverpool.
Early in 1963, Montez would score another hit with "Some Kinda Fun". Reaching #43 on the charts, the song utilized the same catchy keyboard instrumentation as did "Let's Dance"; fittingly, both were million sellers, and were awarded gold discs. 1963 also saw the release of Montez's only album on Monogram, Let's Dance and Have Some Kinda' Fun!!!. Shortly before Monogram folded, Montez was paired up with Kathy Young, releasing two singles as the duo Chris & Kathy, most notably surf rock classic "Shoot That Curl". While at Monogram, Montez wrote, or co-wrote, several of his own songs, such as "Chiquita Mia", "Let's Do the Limbo" and "No No No".
Two years later, Montez was practically a non-entity in the music business; however, Herb Alpert, co-founder of A&M Records, cordially invited Montez to resume his recording career at A&M. When Montez attempted to replicate his earlier rock 'n' roll success, however, Alpert personally suggested that Montez try a different approach: a middle of the road, soft ballad sound. While not particularly interested in changing his style of music, Montez decided to trust Alpert's instincts.
"Call Me", a cover version of a Petula Clark song, was the first single from his 1966 album, The More I See You / Call Me, earning Montez his biggest hit in years, eventually reaching #22. The song has since become an easy listening standard. The album's title cut, Montez's second single, was a source of confusion for certain radio disc jockeys who were unfamiliar with Montez' past as a rocker; when back-announcing the song, they would often refer to Montez as being female, likely owing to Montez's falsetto singing style. This confusion would be cleared up by the time the album, bearing Montez's pictures on the front and back sleeve, was released.
Montez would record three more albums for A&M: Time After Time (1966), Foolin' Around (1967), and Watch What Happens (1968). Although quite stylistically similar to his first hit album on A&M, they failed to mirror its success, although Time After Time's title cut and "Because of You" both managed to crack the Hot 100. In 1968, Montez departed from A&M on a three-year sabbatical. In 1972, Montez released a big hit single in Brazil, "Loco por ti". By this time, he had returned to his rock roots, albeit with more noticeable pop influence than before.
Two years later, now with CBS Records, Montez released The Best of Chris Montez, a compilation consisting of both old and new material, the newer bearing little to no resemblance to his past hits. While at CBS, he released one more album: Raza: Ay no digas, which fared well in international markets but failed to make an impact in the US. In 1983, Montez released his final album, Cartas de Amor, all of its songs being sung in Spanish. Although his recording career appears to be behind him, Montez is still an active musician, performing to mostly foreign audiences.
In 2008, Frozen Pictures announced plans to make a documentary on Montez's life and career, El viaje musical de Ezekiel Montanez: The Chris Montez Story. The film, focusing on Montez's multi-faceted musical career and considerable influence, has been previewed at several film festivals, but has not seen domestic release.
All You Had to Do
Chris Montez Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
That you found somebody new
All you had to do was tell me
But instead you were untrue
All you had to do was love me
Half as much as I love you
All you had to do was love me
The lips I thought were only mine
Were kissing someone new
The love I thought was solely mine
Will prove to be unture
All you had to do was tell me
Though it would have made me sad
If you only would have told me
Then it wouldn′t hurt so bad
Then it wouldn't hurt so bad
The lyrics to Chris Montez's song "All You Had to Do" is about heartbreak and betrayal. The song conveys the message that honesty is the best policy in a relationship. The singer is hurt because his partner has found someone new but did not have the courage to tell him. He believed that if his partner had been honest and upfront, it would have saved him from the pain of finding out.
The lyrics suggest that the singer was deeply in love with his partner but his partner did not reciprocate the love. Instead, they were unfaithful and did not have the same level of commitment towards the relationship. The lines, "All you had to do was love me, half as much as I love you, all you had to do was love me, but instead I was your fool" demonstrate the singer's vulnerability and the deception that he was a fool to believe that his partner was truly in love with him.
In conclusion, the song "All You Had to Do" conveys the message that honesty and communication are essential elements in a healthy relationship. The lyrics express the pain and disappointment of the singer who was betrayed by his partner.
Line by Line Meaning
All you needed to do was be honest and inform me
The person should have been truthful and let me know that they had found someone else.
All you needed to do was be honest and inform me
Instead of being deceitful, you just had to let me know the truth and be honest with me.
All you needed to do was genuinely love me
If the person had loved me even a little bit like I love them, we would have had a wonderful relationship.
But instead, you took advantage of my love
The other person didn't reciprocate the same love, and they took advantage of my feelings.
The lips I thought were only mine
The kisses I believed were only for me were shared with someone new.
Were kissing someone new
The person I loved shared their kisses with someone else, which hurt me deeply.
The love I thought was solely mine
I believed that I was the only person the other person loved, but they proved to be untrue to me.
Will prove to be untrue
The other person will show that their love for me was not genuine.
All you needed to do was tell me
If only the other person had been truthful, it would have still been sad, but at least the pain wouldn't have been so intense.
If only you would have been honest with me
If only the person had communicated with me honestly, the consequences would not have been so severe.
Then it wouldn't hurt so bad
If only the other person had chosen honesty, the pain of heartbreak would not have been so intense.
Writer(s): De Vorzon, Montez
Contributed by Layla R. Suggest a correction in the comments below.