John Barry: Making 007 Look Good
When I first read the awful news that one of the finest composers of film scores ever, John Barry, had passed away today at the age of 77, the one theme that kept playing in my mind was The Lion in Winter (1968). This is strange, because it is not one of my favorites and Barry is after all primarily remembered for his James Bond scores, which I love. But it’s a sign of the fact that Barry was so much more than just 007’s favorite songwriter.
Barry’s career covered four decades; his first score (Never Let Go) was written in 1960, his last (Enigma) in 2001. He worked on 12 James Bond films as a composer, usually writing both the score and the title song. On the first film, Dr. No, Barry simply delivered the main title theme… but that little assignment became the single most famous and beloved piece of music he ever wrote… or at least worked on because the credit famously goes to Monty Norman. Barry quickly matured into a very versatile composer, who knew when to take advantage of his previous career as a jazz musician (the ’60s Bond scores were often quite jazzy) and when to write more conventionally arranged orchestral pieces. Some of his best non-Bond work was awarded with Oscars. He won four of them for the following scores: Born Free (1966), The Lion in Winter, Out of Africa (1985) and Dances With Wolves (1990). He also won one for Best Original Song (“Born Free”, co-written with Don Black). His theme for the short-lived TV series The Persuaders (1971) has become a classic.
In the clip above, you can hear pieces of music from several of Barry’s many outstanding soundtracks. He died of a heart attack and will be missed… especially perhaps by David Arnold, himself a Bond composer with six of those scores behind him. Having learned from the master, and continued to work in his tradition, Arnold is now a valuable part of the 007 family and will hopefully be hired again for the next movie. If he is, I’m sure he’ll once again look to John Barry for inspiration.
Published by Stefan Hedmark 2011-01-31 15:18
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