Paul Buckmaster Paul Buckmaster

Born: London, England

Biography:
Born into a musical family (his mother was a classical pianist), Paul Buckmaster played cello from the age of four, and graduated from the Royal Academy of Music. He began his career by playing and composing for various jazz ensembles in and around London, notably the Third Ear Band, before being hired to work as an arranger for David Bowie's "Space Oddity" album in 1969. Further collaborations with artists as varied as Elton John, Miles Davis, Harry Nilsson, Carly Simon, the Rolling Stones, Lionel Ritchie, Patti LaBelle, Tori Amos, Paula Abdul, Alannah Myles, Ozzy Osborne, Julian Cope, Stevie Nicks and Celine Dion made Buckmaster one of the most respected and sought-after arrangers and conductors in pop music throughout the 1970s and 80s. Buckmaster's first foray into film came in 1971 when he composed the scores for the Lewis Gilbert's "Friends" and Roman Polanski's "The Tragedy of Macbeth", the latter with the Third Ear Band. However, despite his good reputation, scoring assignments proved less than forthcoming: almost fifteen years after his debut, Buckmaster scored his only really high profile film - Terry Gilliam's "Twelve Monkeys" (1995), for which he adapted music by tango legend Astor Piazzolla into his own score. Other notable works include the TV series "Frank's Place", "Matlock", "Eerie Indiana" and "Peter Pan and the Pirates", and the features "Midnight Crossing" (1988), "Elvis" (1990), "The Rainbow Warrior" (1992), "Once Upon A Time When We Were Coloured" (1996), and the action thriller "Most Wanted", his last cinema release to date. Buckmaster has not scored a film since 1999, but remains active in the pop and rock world.

Filmography:
Mean Streak (1999), Most Wanted (1997), The Maker (1997), Murder in Mind (1997), Once Upon A Time When We Were Coloured (1996), Twelve Monkeys (1995), Out of Sync (1995), Cosa Nostra: The Last Word (1994), Family Prayers (1993), Simple Justice: The Thorogood Marshall Story (1993), The Rainbow Warrior (1992), T-Bone and Weasel (1992), Captive (1991), Eerie Indiana (1991), Love and Curses... and all that Jazz (1991), Pink Lightning (1991), Reason for Living: The Jill Ireland Story (1991), Diving In (1990), Elvis (1990), Peter Pan and the Pirates (1990), Midnight Crossing (1988) Frank's Place (1987), Matlock (1986), Son of Dracula (1974), Friends (1971), Macbeth (1971).

Highest Grossing Films as at end of 2005 (adjusted for inflation):
Twelve Monkeys ($80.7m), Most Wanted ($8.6m)

Awards:
1972 BAFTA Awards – Nominee, Anthony Asquith Award for Film Music – Macbeth

Most Wanted Twelve Monkeys


Home Page | Reviews A-M | Reviews N-Z | Composers | Links

Site copyright © 1997-2006, Jonathan Broxton/Movie Music UK. This page copyright © 2006. All rights reserved. The reviews and articles contained herein may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the prior written authority of the author. Some artwork and multimedia material are © various record labels and artists. All photos, multimedia and album artwork used are for non-profit making, promotional purposes, and no copyright infringement is intended.