RIP Ronnie Hazlehurst

[matgb]

There are times when you don't even know how great someone is until you read their obituary. Sometimes, it's a name you've never heard before, and then you find out what they did. It's weird, but reading a list of the theme tunes that Ronnie Hazlehurst wrote was just so evocative, they came to me, and I don't normally remember music on tap. My childhood, in so many ways. Here's an edited highlights:

# Are You Being Served?
# The Fall and Rise of Reginald Perrin
# Last of the Summer Wine
# To the Manor Born
# Yes Minister

And, because, y'know, TV tribute time, I bring you the three best (in my opinion, and hey, my journal, so that's what counts.YouTube - Yes Minister Intro:

YouTube - BBC Are you being served? 70s intro:

YouTube - Last Of The Summer Wine:

Yes Minister obviously an all-time great show, but the credits to each of the above are so memorable they good in and of themselves, regardless of your opinion of the show. What struck me in the BBC PM tribute was how varied they were. Ah well.

Comments

[pmoodie.livejournal.com]

RIP indeed.

It's always sad when someone has such an impact on popular culture but they don't receive the recognition they deserve until they die. :(

[matgb]

Worth observing that SB knew the name instantly—I'm particularly bad at series credits, I still get surprised at some of the stuff Andy Hamilton wrote, let alone more obscure names.

[pmoodie.livejournal.com]

I'm very good at faces and voices - "that's the guy that was in such-and-such" - but not so good at names.

So I knew Ronnie was a TV theme composer, but couldn't have told you which programmes he did if you hadn't listed them. :(

[blue-condition.livejournal.com]

Ronnie H. truly was the sound of the seventies. Don't forget the Two Ronnies theme tune, either.

[matgb]

I actually found Ronnies to post here as well, but watched three vids and none grabbed me. YMMV I guess.

[caramel-betty.livejournal.com]

The one that got me when it was on the news yesterday was the Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'Em theme tune. Also Ronnie Hazlehurst, but possibly the most bizarre thing I've ever heard of being done for a theme tune - basing it on the name of the series in Morse code (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Some_Mothers_Do_'Ave_'Em#Theme_Tune).

[rhythmaning.livejournal.com]

I know I've posted this elsewhere - but how could you possibly miss out Blankety Blank?!

[anisiriusmagus.livejournal.com]

RIP Ronnie.

Like SB, I knew who he was when I heard the news of his passing. I wonder how many of the shows he wrote the music for owed a certain amount of popularity to their theme tunes?