Popular musicians who have written film music

[djdave]

Several popular musicians have written film music over the years.



Here's a short list for people to peruse and add to:



Bob Dylan - Pat Garrett And Billy The Kid

Paul McCartney - The Family Way

Francis Monkman (Sky and Curved Air) - The Long Good Friday

Randy Newman - various

Randy Eidelman - various

Paul Anka - The Longest Day March

Queen - Flash Gordon

John Barry (the John Barry 7) - various

Bert Kaempfert (orchestra leader) - A Man Could Get Killed (from which the music to the song Strangers In The Night comes)

Johnny Dankworth - Modesty Blaise

Duke Ellington - Anatomy Of A Murder



Any other ideas?

[DB7]

Nobody holds a candle to Burt Bacharach - were do you start selecting his compositions tho Raindrops Keep Fallin on my Head would be up there.

[Quiller]

Henry Mancini?

[djdave]

name='DB7']Nobody holds a candle to Burt Bacharach - were do you start selecting his compositions tho Raindrops Keep Fallin on my Head would be up there.

Bacharach is certainly a good example of a musician who has had a dual career: a film composer and a popular song writer (with long-time lyricist partner Hal David)

name='Quiller']Henry Mancini?

Mancini started playing in orchestras/big bands before he began composing his film music. But he also had - like Bacharach - a dual career: in his case, releasing LPs of covers of exisiting orchestral music.



Both brilliant, of course

[bottle07]

Peter Gabriel -



Birdy; The Last Temptation of Christ (his masterpiece IMO), Rabbit Proof Fence

[dylan]

Eric Clapton - various inc Nil By Mouth.



Robbie Robertson - various inc Easy Rider.



Modern Jazz Quartet - Various.



Miles Davis - Various.



D.

[Quiller]

We should all be shot for not mentioning ROY BUDD! He was a musician before he started films. His music for films is much better than his reputation.

[spinalman]

Peter Gabriel -



Birdy; The Last Temptation of Christ (his masterpiece IMO), Rabbit Proof Fence

Birdy is an intersting one in that Alan Parker asked to use his favourite tracks but with them remixed without the vocals. i don't think there was any written specifically for Birdy - but it is still a superb soundtrack -a favourite of mine. I'll look out for last Temptation.



Joe Jackson did "Tucker" and 'Mike's Murder"

and Bjork did Dancer in the Dark soundtrack.

[Freddy]

A popular 30 minute film often discussed on here is Les Bicyclettes de Belsize.(1969)

One of the songs featured is 'Gentlemen of the Park' sung by the group Episode Six who comprised of among others Roger Glover (founder member) and Ian Gillan. In July 1969 they both became part of Deep Purple. Episode Six also contributed to the soundtrack of Twisted Nerve.



Later when Gillan formed the Ian Gillan Band he was joined by keyboard player

Colin Towns who was with him from 1976 to 1983 when Gillan went on to join Black Sabbath. Towns was then able to concentrate on tv and film, his many many compositions include Pie in the Sky; Cadfael; Capitol City; Doc Martin and many more.

I urge you to look at his website, it gives great details of the films and tv he has done and it has jogged my memory of some fine tv.



Unofficial Colin Towns Website - Home Page



Interestingly the first keyboard player of the Ian Gillan Band was Mike Moran (75-76) who also went on to film and tv compositions such as New Tricks, Taggart and Time Bandits.



regards



Freddy

[Freddie Freeloader]

Check this out tomorrow afternoon.

Should be interesting.



http://www.bbc.co.uk/6music/shows/freakzone/index.shtml

[djdave]

name='Quiller]We should all be shot for not mentioning [B]ROY BUDD[/B']! He was a musician before he started films. His music for films is much better than his reputation.

Yes, indeed. Budd was a respected jazz pianist who - along with his small jazz combo - toured the pubs and clubs of London and the South east in the 60s.



I'm quite a fan of his film music. I got into it via 1971's classic Get Carter. That main theme....how cool is that? Then I saw 1971's Kidnapped - also with Michael Caine - and the beautifully haunting music he wrote for it. And I was hooked.



The way Budd got into film music is interesting...basically, he lied through his teeth. He'd wanted to score films for a while: a film called Soldier Blue was coming up, so he got together some lesser-known film music from existing film composers and passed it off as his own. He got the commission and never looked back......

[Quiller]

Dave, I'd heard that story, too. I think it was the Bernard Herrmann bits that got him the job! lol



Diamonds is one of his scores I've always wanted to hear. I've only heard the title track, and it has an amazing beat to it. Very seventies. Budd died too young I think.



Kidnapped - pity about the film! Good god, it's bad, but the music is great. Donald Pleasence is about the only good think in that film.

[Freddie Freeloader]

Here's the tracklist for this afternoon's Freak Zone.

Some very familiar stuff but new things (to me) from Italy.

The show can be listened to over the next seven days



http://www.bbc.co.uk/6music/shows/freakzone/index.shtml



MOST RECENT SHOW - SUNDAY*23 JULY

SOUNDTRACK: Space Odyssey 2001

Overture: Atmospheres

Main Title: Also Sprach Zarathustra

The Blue Danube Excerpt

Jupiter & Beyond

Gayane Ballet Suite (Adagio)



UNIVERSITY OF THE STRANGE

Morricone - Matto, Caldo, Soldi, Morto...Girotondo******

I Marc 4 - On The Rain

Berto Pisano - To Jean

Piero Piccioni - Black Flower

Alessandroni - Spiagge Assure



SOUNDTRACK: Ascenseur Pour L'Echafaud

Generique

L'Assassinat De Carala

Sur L'Autoroute

Julien Dans L'Ascenseur

Florence Sure Les Champs-Elysees

Diner Au Motel

Evasion De Julien

Visite Du Vigile

Au Bar Du Petit Bac

Chez Le Photographe Du Motel

Nuit Sur Les Champs-Elysees



SOUNDTRACK: Tangerine Dream: The Sorcerer

Main Title

Search

The Call

Creation

Vengeance

The Journey

Grind

Rain Forest

Abyss



SOUNDTRACK: Once Upon A Time In The West

Once Upon A Time In The West

As A Judgement

Farewell To Cheyenne

The Transgression

The First Tavern

The Second Tavern

Once Upon A Time In The West Reprise

Man With A Harmonica

A Dimly Lit Room



SOUNDTRACK: The Wicker Man

The Wicker Man

Corn Rigs 1 & 3

Landlord's Daughter

Festival Photos

Loving Couples

Willow's Song

Maypole Song

Beetle

Ruined Church Sequence

Corn Rigs 4 & Fire Leap

Fireleap & Reprise

Graveyard Sequence - Tinker Of Rye

Tinker Of Rye pt 2

Festival

Masks

Summer Is A Coming In



Fred

[Freddy]

Paul Simon: The Graduate.



The opening with Sounds of Silence memorable.



Freddy

[steereomono]

Good choice Freddy - "The Graduate" used popular music in an effective, cinematic manner,

something that is sadly lacking today when any tune seems to be stuck on at random.



Anyway, before the "Grumpy Old Man" syndrome fully kicks in

here's another Beatley one:

George Harrison: Wonderwall (1968)



Rumblefish (1983) by Stewart Copeland

also from that year is Mark Knopler's co-write with fellow

(uncredited) band member Guy Fletcher on "Local Hero"



All the Right Noises (1971) is by Melanie.

also from 1971 is Ray Davies' "Percy".



And for a good pop-psyche soundtrack there's Mike Hugg/Manfred Mann's "Up the Junction" (1968)

[bottle07]

Cat Stevens - Harold and Maude



But I'm not sure if he wrote the songs especially for the movie or if Ashby used already existing songs like he did in Coming Home. Does anybody know?

[shead]

Hey,

How about Lalo Schifrin? He played with Dizzy Gillespie (should I rephrase that) for some time and a noted jazz musician in his own right. Although I think he wrote the music for an Argentinian film El Jefe in 1959.



And would you count Andy Fairweather Low for singing in Scream and Scream Again?

[djdave]

Hey,

How about Lalo Schifrin? He played with Dizzy Gillespie (should I rephrase that) for some time and a noted jazz musician in his own right. Although I think he wrote the music for an Argentinian film El Jefe in 1959.





Between leaving Argentina and arriving in Hollywood, Schifrin played jazz in Paris for a while...how unbelievably cool is that?

[penfold]

The very wonderful Richard Thompson (Britain's greatest living guitarist, electric or acoustic IMHO) has written a few, the latest and best being for Werner Herzog's Grizzly Man...

[penfold]

And I just remembered....one of the more sought-after soundtrack LP's in the folk-rock orbit is for the wonderfully named Swedish Fly Girls from 1972 (Yes, it is as dodgy as it sounds) but the music was put together by Manfred Mann and heavily features Sandy Denny on four or five tracks...it's better than the film...allegedly...