Ron Goodwin (1925-2003) - Daring war-time heroics

Ron Goodwin's list of film credits is not as large as some, but once heard, his themes tend to be indelibly etched on the memory. This is especially true of "633 Squadron" which so eloquently speaks of soaring planes swooping and turning in the air. Of course it is no coincidence that he also scored The "Battle of Britain" and other action-oriented war films. If you include "Those Magnificent Men in Their Flying Machines", that's a total of 3 films with a flying theme! His military music is full of marches, many with a Brass Band sound, but he has also underscored a number of comedy films. It has been said that Goodwin chose the rhythm of the "633 Squadron" theme based on using "633" as a formula for the number of beats. It's not an exact match but it might be true that this provided the inspiration!

The Battle of Britain score has an interesting story behind it. Initially William Walton was commissioned to do the score, at the suggestion of Laurence Olivier who played a role in the movie and whose Shakespearean film roles had music by Walton. Walton set to work and produced some great music with a little help from Malcolm Arnold (himself no stranger to film music) but the music was too short. Ron Goodwin was then asked to do the score and most of the final film has Goodwin's music, with the exception of some of the spectacular air battle scenes for which Walton's music was retained. This musical combination is extremely effective, with most of the movie having a traditional heroic mood, and the aerial scenes with an eerie almost documentary feel. Recently released is a deluxe edition CD which has both the final soundtrack by Goodwin, and Walton's largely unused score. This can be found at Amazon.com and Amazon.co.uk.

Goodwin also scored the four Miss Marple movies (all the titles begin with "Murder" of course) by director George Pollock starring Margaret Rutherford as Agatha Christie's sleuth. He also scored several British based films including the two Morecambe and Wise movies. Goodwin has also composed a large number of concert pieces, including marches and orchestral suites in a "light music" vein. Examples of the latter include his "Drake 400 Suite" commissioned to commemorate Sir Francis Drake's return to Plymouth, where Goodwin was born (there are 6 movements depicting facets of the area's sea-faring traditions), and his "New Zealand Suite" which is inspired by sights from around the islands to which Goodwin was a frequent visitor. Ron Goodwin was also involved in a music project called "The Beatles Concerto". The composer John Rutter crafted a Piano Concerto by arranging and adapting a medley of Beatles songs in the standard classical form with 3 movements. The work was recorded by the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra (of course) and Goodwin mixed and mastered the recording.

Alfred Hitchcock originally contracted Henry Mancini for his film "Frenzy", but then he fired Mancini in favour of Goodwin. (The DVD "making of" documentary gives a brief excerpt from Mancini's rejected opening music, and it is available on one of Mancini's albums.) Interestingly the opening scene is an aerial shot moving up the River Thames past Tower Bridge and Goodwin is certainly no stranger to aerial music. Hitchcock viewed this film as his (hopefully) triumphant return to England from the US, and this opening scene and its music has a triumphant British feel to it. After a body is found, the music returns and represents the hustle and bustle of the Covent Garden fruit and vegetable market. Then the film and the music turn much darker as we find out more about the murders and the suspects.

Films by Ron Goodwin:

• The Day of the Triffids
• Lancelot and Guinevere
• Those Magnificent Men in their Flying Machines
• Monte Carlo or Bust
• The Trap - whose theme has been used extensively on TV, especially for the "London Marathon" coverage
• Frenzy - Goodwin delivers a cracking Hitchcock film score
• The Trials of Oscar Wilde
• Village of the Damned
• One of our Dinosaurs is missing
• That Riviera Touch - with Morecambe and Wise
• The Magnificent Two - and Morecambe and Wise again
• I'm All Right Jack - with Peter Sellers
• Battle of Britain - some of the final soundtrack contributed by Sir William Walton
• Where Eagles Dare - a very effective soundtrack with more (almost James Bond type) heroics
• 633 Squadron - with that unforgettable soaring theme
• The Spaceman and King Arthur
• Murder She Said
• Murder at the Gallop
• Murder Most Foul
• Murder Ahoy

TV work by Ron Goodwin:

• Beauty and the Beast - some work on this fantasy series

Ron Goodwin Recommendations:

• Battle of Britain - at Amazon.com and Amazon.co.uk
• 633 Squadron - at Amazon.com and Amazon.co.uk
• The Film Music of Ron Goodwin (with tracks from "Battle of Britain", "633 Sqadron", "Frenzy", "The Trap" and many more films)- at Amazon.com and Amazon.co.uk
• Those Magnificent Men and Their Flying Machines - at Amazon.com and Amazon.co.uk

Ron Goodwin died on 8th January 2003. Even when well into his 70s, Goodwin was still active in the music world, regularly conducting concerts of classical and film music (his own and others). His activities and recordings were well documented on his own web-site RonGoodwin.co.uk and one can only hope that the site will remain and continue to promote his music.