Maltese people are not ones to shy away from good entertainment and the islands' appreciation of popular and vibrant 80s singer and entertainer Sonny Monte comes as no surprise.

Sonny Monte, whose real name was Saviour Balzan, achieved nationwide fame for his appearances on local TV show Sibtijiet Flimkien. Think Ant and Dec’s Saturday Night Live, but in Maltese.

One of Malta’s top entertainers, Sonny also worked at several big venues, most notably the Dragonaro Casino, where he was employed as a resident singer.

Unfortunately, Sonny met a tragic end one February night in 2003 after falling into a building site opposite what is now Mater Dei Hospital while he was driving through Dun Karm Psaila Street in Birkirkara. The singer was heavily mourned, with many calling it a great loss for the local music industry.

Musician Jon Lucas Woodenman remembers Sonny: “Sonny Monte, he’s got the schpeel, you know he can talk…the gift of the gab,” Jon narrates in a filmed interview about the late singer. 

He continues that Sonny: "...could walk into the room and take it over and start talking. He can, he had this personality, it’s a big persona and that’s why cabaret suited him. But musically he was neither here or there, he used to miss keys and forget lines, he was all over the place, but he was very entertaining. That’s his magic!” Jon says.

Relive Sonny’s magic in this clip from ‘80s TV show Sibtijiet Flimkien:

What a character!