About the Book
Everybody knows John Altman’s music, but not so many people know his name. Yet he is one of the most prolific composers, conductors and arrangers in history and his saxophone playing has been heard live and on record with many great names. In this vivid account of over fifty years in the world of popular music, Altman explains why he is the ‘Hidden Man’, whose scores include such well-known film sequences as ‘Always Look on the Bright Side of Life’ from Life of Brian, which he arranged, conducted and whistled; the tank chase through St. Petersburg in the James Bond movie Goldeneye and the ship sinking in Titanic, with the orchestra playing on deck.
In all, he has composed the music for over 50 movies, and won most major film awards in his long and distinguished career. His orchestrations can be heard in film scores by legends like Elmer Bernstein and Jule Styne, and he was musical director for several television series, notably Miss Marple, starring Joan Hickson, as well as Peak Practice, in which his music can be heard in every episode. His television and recording work included all the arrangements for the Grammy-nominated Rutles, and there are plenty of stories of his half-century of collaboration with members of the Monty Python team, and Neil Innes. As an arranger/conductor he has worked on hit records for numerous stars, among them Rod Stewart, George Michael, Tina Turner, Barry White, Diana Ross, Björk, and Alison Moyet. As a saxophonist, flautist and clarinet player he has performed with an equally stellar list of musicians, and the book includes many tales of life on the road during his early days with Hot Chocolate and Van Morrison.
John Altman has also found time to write, produce and arrange over 4,000 commercials worldwide, and another example of his subtle influence is his theme for the ‘Sheila’s Wheels’ advertisement, which was being whistled and hummed all over Britain during its run on television, yet it’s likely nobody knew its composer. Such anonymity coupled with universally-known themes is why Monty Python’s Terry Gilliam named Altman the ‘Hidden Man’.
In this entertaining, fast-paced memoir you will discover how Ingrid Bergman smiled at his back; how a Beatle always greeted him by singing one of his musical phrases; how he tried in vain to persuade Nick Drake to continue performing in public; how he reduced Freddy Mercury to helpless laughter; how he got Pierce Brosnan his big movie break; how he sat with Charlie Chaplin watching a movie that hadn’t been seen for a quarter of a century (with a running commentary from the great man himself); how he sang over a mobile phone to James Cameron and the cast of Titanic; how he inspired a five-year-old George Michael to become a musician; how he was the Wailers’ tour guide around London, and how Tina Turner made him a cup of tea. One of the most poignant parts of the story is how he mentored the young Amy Winehouse, but she is just one of the many dazzling musicians who have worked alongside the Hidden Man.
Table of Contents:
Preface
1 All in the Family
2 School Days
3 We’re Jamming
4 Some Legends 1
(Peter Green, Nick Drake, John Martyn, Harry Nilsson, Tim Hardin, Tim Buckley, Muddy Waters, Jimi Hendrix)
5 The London Beat
6 Forty Eight Years (and counting) of Python
7 Whispering Wheels, You Sexy Thing, Muhammad Ali, and Freddie Mercury and the sausages
8 BBC, Early Commercials, Bowie, Dietrich, Jule Styne and early Van
9 Sir Van the Man
10 Some More Legends 2
(Paul Kossoff, Bob Marley, Peter Cook, Dudley Moore, John Ogdon, Spike Milligan, Mick Jagger, George Harrison)
11 An Intrusion and an Explanation
12 Records
13 Television
14 Movies (1)
15 Some More Legends 3
(Classic Movie and Jazz Stars including Orson Welles, Ava Gardner, Fred Astaire, Chet Baker)
16 Movies (2)
17 Commercials
18 Going Live
19 LA Life
20 Amy
21 Some More Legends 4
(Michael Jackson, Quincy Jones, Prince, Mike Stoller, Mark Ronson, Sacha Baron Cohen)
22 What was that all about?
23 Shanghai, Honeymoons and Chat Shows (or how I came to be on a massage table next to Rafa Nadal), Paris, and Vladivostok
24 Awards and Recognition
25 The Ones That Got Away
26 Today and Beyond
