Order of the British Empire
Grand Cross's star of the Order of the British Empire
Awarded by the Sovereign, on the advice of the Government
Type	Award
Motto	For God and the Empire
Day	NA
Eligibility	British nationals or anyone who makes an impact on the UK
Awarded for	A national order of merit
Status	Currently constituted
Sovereign	Queen Elizabeth II
Grand Master	Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh
Principal Commander	Sovereign
Grades (w/ post-nominals)	Knight/Dame Grand Cross (GBE) Knight/Dame Commander (KBE/DBE) Commander (CBE) Officer (OBE) Member (MBE)
Former grades	NA
Statistics
Established	1917
First induction	ND
Last induction	ND
Total inductees	ND
Distinct recipients	ND
Precedence
Next (higher)	Royal Victorian Order
Next (lower)	Varies, depending on rank
Ribbons: civil (upper), military (lower)

MBE as awarded in 1918

Lieutenant General Sir Robert Fulton, KBE

Dame Jane Goodall, DBE

Joan Armatrading, MBE, born in Saint Kitts

The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom.^[1][2] The Order is composed of five classes in civil and military divisions. In descending order of seniority, these are:

• Knight or Dame Grand Cross of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (GBE), see Knight Grand Cross.^[a]
• Knight Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (KBE) or Dame Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (DBE)
• Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (CBE)
• Officer of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (OBE)
• Member of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (MBE)

Only the highest two ranks automatically cause an individual to become a knight or dame, an honour allowing the recipient to use the title "Sir" (male) or "Dame" (female) before their first name (though men can be knighted separately from this and other Orders of Chivalry). Honorary knighthoods, given to individuals who are not nationals of a realm where Queen Elizabeth II is Head of State, permit use of the honour as a post-nominal but not as a title before their name. Awards in the Order of the British Empire in the Commonwealth Realms were discontinued with the establishment of national systems of honours and awards such as the Order of Australia, the Order of Canada and the New Zealand Order of Merit. Foreign recipients are classified as honorary members of the Order they receive, and do not contribute to the numbers restricted to that Order as full members do.

There is also a related British Empire Medal, whose recipients are not members of the Order, but who are nonetheless affiliated with the Order. The British Empire Medal has not been used in the United Kingdom or its dependencies since 1993,^[3] but is still used by the Cook Islands and by some other Commonwealth nations.

The Order's motto is For God and the Empire. It is the most junior of the British orders of chivalry, and the largest, with over 100,000 living members worldwide.^[2]

History[link]

King George V founded the order to fill gaps in the British honours system:

• the Most Honourable Order of the Bath honoured only senior military officers and civil servants;
• the Most Distinguished Order of St Michael and St George honoured diplomats; and
• the Royal Victorian Order honoured those who had personally served the Royal Family.

In particular, King George V wished to honour the many thousands of people who had served in numerous non-combatant capacities during the First World War. Originally, the Order included only one division; however, in 1918, soon after its foundation, it was formally divided into Military and Civil Divisions.^[4]

This order has a more democratic character than the Order of the Bath or the Order of St Michael and St George, and in its early days was not held in high esteem. However, this has changed over the years.

Several past American statesmen and diplomats who have performed service for, or on behalf of, the United Kingdom have been given the designation of Knight Commander of the order. However, since membership requires swearing allegiance to a foreign head of state (currently Queen Elizabeth II), the title is officially considered "honorary", and the person is not entitled to be referred to as Sir or Dame. Occasionally the media incorrectly refer to foreign recipients with the prefix title, an example being Bob Geldof KBE, a Republic of Ireland citizen.

Composition[link]

The British monarch is Sovereign of the Order, and appoints all other members of the Order (by convention, on the advice of the Government). The next most senior member is the Grand Master, of which there have been three: Edward, Prince of Wales (1917–1936), Queen Mary (1936–1953), and the current Grand Master, The Duke of Edinburgh (since 1953).

The Order is limited to 300 Knights and Dames Grand Cross, 845 Knights and Dames Commander, and 8960 Commanders. There are no limits applied to the total number of members of the fourth and fifth classes, but no more than 858 Officers and 1464 Members may be appointed per year. Appointments are made on the advice of the governments of the United Kingdom and some Commonwealth realms. By convention, female judges of the High Court of Justice are created Dames Commander after appointment, while male judges become Knights Bachelor.

Although the Order of the British Empire has by far the highest number of members of the British Orders of Chivalry, there are fewer appointments to knighthoods than in other orders. Most Knights Commander are honorary members or British citizens living abroad, with only a handful being residents of the United Kingdom.^{[citation needed]} The grade of Dame Commander, on the other hand, is the most common grade of dame in the British honours system, and is awarded in circumstances in which men would be created Knights Bachelor.

Most members are citizens of the United Kingdom or the limited number of Commonwealth realms without their own national system of honours and awards. Citizens of other countries, however, may be admitted as "honorary members". They do not count towards the aforementioned numerical limits, and are not formally addressed as "Sir" or "Dame". They may be made full members if they subsequently become citizens of Commonwealth realms. See List of honorary British Knights.

At the foundation of the Order, the "Medal of the Order of the British Empire" was instituted. In 1922, it was renamed the "British Empire Medal". Recipients, who are not members of the Order itself, are grouped into the Civil and Military Divisions. Only junior government and military officials are awarded the medal; senior officials are directly appointed to the Order of the British Empire. The United Kingdom's Government has not recommended the awarding of the medal since 1992, although some Commonwealth realms continue the practice.

The Order has six officials: the Prelate, the Dean, the Secretary, the Registrar, the King of Arms, and the Usher. The Bishop of London, a senior bishop in the Church of England, serves as the Order's Prelate. The Dean of St Paul's is ex officio the Dean of the Order. The Order's King of Arms is not a member of the College of Arms, as are many other heraldic officers. The Usher of the Order is known as the Gentleman Usher of the Purple Rod; he does not – unlike his Order of the Garter equivalent, the Gentleman Usher of the Black Rod – perform any duties related to the House of Lords.

If one is appointed to a higher class within the order, one must return one's existing insignia in exchange for the more senior one, and cease using the junior post-nominal letters. Some people, however, have been appointed to both divisions, such as Dame Kelly Holmes, who has been appointed an MBE in the military division and a DBE in the civil division, and is therefore known as "Dame Kelly Holmes, DBE, MBE (Mil.)".^{[citation needed]}

Gallantry[link]

From 1940, a person could be appointed a Commander, Officer or Member of the Order of the British Empire for gallantry, for acts of bravery (not in the face of the enemy) which were below the level required for the George Medal, with the grade being determined by the same criteria as usual and not by the level of gallantry (and with more junior people instead receiving the British Empire Medal). Oddly, this meant that it was awarded for lesser acts of gallantry than the George Medal, but, as an Order, was worn before it and listed before it in post-nominal initials. From 14 January 1958 these awards were designated the Order of the British Empire for Gallantry.^[5] Any individual made a member of the Order for gallantry could wear an emblem of two crossed silver oak leaves on the same riband, ribbon or bow as the badge. It could not be awarded posthumously and was effectively replaced in 1974 with the Queen's Gallantry Medal. If a recipient of the Order of the British Empire for Gallantry was promoted within the Order, whether for gallantry or otherwise, they continued to also wear the insignia of the lower grade with the oak leaves.^[6] However, they only used the post-nominal letters of the higher grade.

Vestments and accoutrements[link]

Female appointees may wear their insignia on a bow, as displayed in this image of Bessie Rischbieth, the Australian social reformer

Members of the Order wear elaborate costumes on important occasions (such as quadrennial services and coronations), which vary by rank (the designs underwent major changes in 1937):

• The mantle, worn only by Knights and Dames Grand Cross, was originally made of yellow satin lined with blue silk, but is now made of purple satin lined with pearl-grey silk. On the left side is a representation of the star (see below).
• The collar, also worn only by Knights and Dames Grand Cross, is made of gold. It consists of six medallions depicting the Royal Arms, alternating with six medallions depicting the Royal and Imperial Cypher of George V ("GRI", which stands for "Georgius Rex Imperator"). The medallions are linked with gold cables depicting lions and crowns.

On certain "collar days" designated by the Sovereign, members attending formal events may wear the Order's collar over their military uniform, formal day dress, or evening wear. When collars are worn (either on collar days or on formal occasions such as coronations), the badge is suspended from the collar. Collars are returned upon the death of their owners, but other insignia may be retained.

At less important occasions, simpler insignia are used:

• The star is an eight-pointed silver star used only by Knights and Dames Grand Cross and Knights and Dames Commander. It is worn pinned to the left breast. Varying in size depending on class, it bears a crimson ring with the motto of the Order inscribed. Within the ring, a figure of Britannia was originally shown. Since 1937, however, the effigies of George V and his wife Queen Mary have been shown instead.
• The badge is the only insignia used by all members of the Order. Until 1937, it was suspended on a purple ribbon, with a red central stripe for the military division; since then, the ribbon has been rose-pink with pearl-grey edges, with the addition of a pearl-grey central stripe for the military division. Knights and Dames Grand Cross wear it on a riband or sash, passing from the right shoulder to the left hip. Knights Commander and male Commanders wear the badge from a ribbon around the neck; male Officers and Members wear the badge from a ribbon on the left chest; all females other than Dames Grand Cross wear it from a bow on the left shoulder. The badge is in the form of a cross patonce (having the arms growing broader and floriated toward the end), the obverse of which bears the same field as the star (that is, either Britannia or George V and Queen Mary); the reverse bears George V's Royal and Imperial Cypher. Both are within a ring bearing the motto of the Order. The size of the badges varies according to rank: the higher classes have slightly larger badges. The badges of Knights and Dames Grand Cross, Knights and Dames Commander and Commanders are enamelled with pale blue crosses and crimson rings; those of Officers are plain gold; those of Members are plain silver.
• The British Empire Medal is made of silver. On the obverse is an image of Britannia surrounded by the motto, with the words "For Meritorious Service" at the bottom; on the reverse is George V's Imperial and Royal Cypher, with the words "Instituted by King George V" at the bottom. The name of the recipient is engraved on the rim. This medal is nicknamed "the Gong", and comes in both a full-sized and miniature versions – the latter for formal white-tie and informal black-tie occasions.
• A lapel pin for everyday wear was first announced at the end of December 2006, and is available to recipients of all levels of the Order, as well as to holders of the British Empire Medal. The pin design is not unique to any level. The pin features the badge of the Order, enclosed in a circle of ribbon of its colours of pink and grey. Lapel pins must be purchased separately by a member of the Order at the fixed price of £19.50.^[7] The creation of such a pin was recommended in Sir Hayden Phillips' review of the honours system in 2004,^[8].

• 

  Grand Cross's mantle

• 

  Member's badge, obverse and reverse

• 

  Close up of star on mantle

• Mbe full 05-02-2010.jpg

  Full MBE including ribbon and case in which the MBE was presented.

Order of the British Empire ribbon bars
	Civil	Military
1917–1935
Since 1936		110px

Chapel[link]

The chapel of the order is in the far eastern end of the crypt of St Paul's Cathedral, but it holds its great services upstairs in the main body of the cathedral. (The Cathedral also serves as the home of the chapel of The Most Distinguished Order of St Michael and St George.) Religious services for the whole Order are held every four years; new Knights and Dames Grand Cross are installed at these services. The chapel was dedicated in 1960.

Precedence and privileges[link]

A Knight or Dame may display the circlet of the Order on the coat of arms, with the badge of the Order suspended from it.^[b]

Members of all classes of the Order are assigned positions in the order of precedence. Wives of male members of all classes also feature on the order of precedence, as do sons, daughters and daughters-in-law of Knights Grand Cross and Knights Commander; relatives of Ladies of the Order, however, are not assigned any special precedence. As a general rule, individuals can derive precedence from their fathers or husbands, but not from their mothers or wives (see order of precedence in England and Wales for the exact positions).

Knights Grand Cross and Knights Commander prefix "Sir", and Dames Grand Cross and Dames Commander prefix "Dame", to their forenames.^[c] Wives of Knights may prefix "Lady" to their surnames, but no equivalent privilege exists for husbands of Dames. Such forms are not used by peers and princes, except when the names of the former are written out in their fullest forms. Male clergy of the Church of England or the established Church of Scotland do not use the title "Sir" as they do not receive the accolade (i.e., they are not dubbed "knight" with a sword), although they do append the post-nominal letters.

Knights and Dames Grand Cross use the post-nominal "GBE", Knights Commander "KBE", Dames Commander "DBE", Commanders "CBE", Officers "OBE" and Members "MBE". The post-nominal for the British Empire Medal is "BEM".

Knights and Dames Grand Cross and Knights and Dames Commander who are not citizens of Commonwealth realms can be awarded honorary titles but do not receive the accolade and are not entitled to the prefix "Sir" or "Dame", but may still use the post-nominal abbreviations. For example, American Bill Gates was made a Knight Commander, but is not entitled "Sir Bill" or "Sir Bill Gates", although he may use the title "Bill Gates, KBE". Bob Geldof, KBE received a knighthood in 1986 and although he is often referred to as "Sir Bob", he is not a citizen of a Commonwealth realm and he is not entitled to use the prefix "Sir". If recipients later become citizens of Commonwealth realms, then they are usually made substantive members of the Order, and are entitled to begin using the Sir prefix. For example, Irish broadcaster Terry Wogan was appointed an honorary KBE in 2005. He subsequently took dual British and Irish nationality, was made a substantive member, and is now entitled to use the name "Sir Terry Wogan".^[9]

Knights and Dames Grand Cross are also entitled to be granted heraldic supporters. They may, furthermore, encircle their arms with a depiction of the circlet (a circle bearing the motto) and the collar; the former is shown either outside or on top of the latter. Knights and Dames Commander and Commanders may display the circlet, but not the collar, surrounding their arms. The badge is depicted suspended from the collar or circlet.

Criticism[link]

The order has attracted some criticism for its connection with the idea of the British Empire.^[10] Benjamin Zephaniah, a British Jamaican poet, publicly rejected an OBE in 2003 because, he claimed it reminded him of "thousands of years of brutality". He went on to say: "It reminds me of how my foremothers were raped and my forefathers brutalised."^[11]

Others^[who?] have declined honours, but, at the request of the Prime Minister's office, did not reveal the fact until some years later.^{[citation needed]} In 2004, a House of Commons Select Committee recommended changing the name of the award to the "Order of British Excellence" and changing the rank of "Commander" to "Companion", as the former was said to have a "militaristic ring".^[10][12]

A notable person to decline the offer of an Order of the British Empire was the author C. S. Lewis (1898–1963), who had been named on the last list of honours by George VI in December 1951 but declined so as to avoid association with any political issues.^[13][14]

The members of The Beatles were made MBEs in 1965. John Lennon justified the comparative merits of his investiture by comparing military membership in the order: "Lots of people who complained about us receiving the MBE received theirs for heroism in the war – for killing people... We received ours for entertaining other people. I'd say we deserve ours more." Later, Lennon returned his MBE insignia on 25 November 1969 as part of his ongoing peace protests.^[15] Other criticism centres on the claim that many recipients of the Order are being rewarded with honours for simply doing their jobs, they claim that the civil service and judiciary receive far more orders and honours than leaders of other professions.^[10]

Chin Peng, long-time leader of the Malayan Communist Party, was granted the OBE for his share in fighting against the Japanese during World War II, in close cooperation with the British commando Force 136. It was withdrawn by the British government (and became undesirable for Chin Peng himself) when the Communist leader headed his party's guerrilla insurgency against the British in the Malayan Emergency.^[16]

See also[link]

• British honours system
• Knight Bachelor
• List of Dames Commander of the Order of the British Empire
• List of Dames Grand Cross of the Order of the British Empire
• List of honorary British Knights
• List of Knights Grand Cross of the Order of the British Empire
• United Kingdom order of precedence

Footnotes[link]

Notes

References

External links[link]

• Honours, Decorations & Awards UK Government
• The London Gazette lists recipients of honours
• Cambridge University Heraldic and Genealogical Society, (2002), "The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire"
• Galloway, Peter (1996). The Order of the British Empire. Central Chancery of the Orders of Knighthood. ISBN 0-907605-65-6. 
• "Knighthood and Chivalry" (1911). Encyclopædia Britannica, 11th ed. London: Cambridge University Press
• Velde, F. R. (2003). "Order of Precedence in England and Wales
• The Chapel of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire by Frederic Hood, with a foreword by Prince Philip
• Search recommendations for the Order of the British Empire on The UK National Archives' website
• The Chapel of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire – OBE Chapel Exterior detail

John Edward Thaw, CBE (3 January 1942 – 21 February 2002) was an English actor, who appeared in a range of television, stage and cinema roles, his most popular being police and legal dramas such as Redcap, The Sweeney, Inspector Morse and Kavanagh QC.

Early life[link]

Thaw came from a working class background, having been born in Longsight, Manchester, Lancashire then moved to nearby Gorton to parents John and Dorothy (née Ablott). His father was a long distance lorry driver. He had a difficult childhood as his mother left him when he was seven years old and he didn't see her again until 12 years later. His younger brother, Raymond Stuart "Ray" emigrated to Australia in the mid-1960s.^[1]

Thaw grew up in the Burnage area of the city, and attended Ducie Technical High School for Boys. Thaw entered the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art at the age of 16, where he was a contemporary of Tom Courtenay.^[2]

Career[link]

Soon after leaving RADA he made his stage début in A Shred of Evidence at the Liverpool Playhouse and was awarded a contract with the theatre. His first film role was a bit part in the 1962 adaptation of The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner starring Tom Courtenay and he also acted on-stage opposite Sir Laurence Olivier in Semi-Detached (1962) by David Turner. He appeared in several episodes of the BBC police series Z-Cars in 1963–64 as a detective constable with an unusual drink problem - he had a glass head, so couldn't take the alcohol so often part of the copper's work. Between 1964 and 1966 he appeared as the central role of hard-nosed military policeman, Sgt John Mann, in two series of the ABC Weekend Television/ITV production Redcap. He was also a guest star in an early episode of The Avengers. In 1967 he appeared in the Granada TV/ITV series, Inheritance, alongside James Bolam and Michael Goodliffe, as well as appearing in TV plays such as The Talking Head and episodes of series such as Budgie, where he played against type (opposite Adam Faith) as an effeminate failed playwright with a full beard and a Welsh accent.

Thaw will perhaps be best remembered for two roles: the hard-bitten Flying Squad detective Jack Regan in the Thames Television/ITV series (and two films) The Sweeney (1974 – 1978), which established him as a major star in the United Kingdom, and as the quietly spoken, introspective, well-educated and bitter detective Inspector Morse (1987 – 1993, with specials from 1995 – 1998 and 2000). Starring alongside Kevin Whately as the put upon Detective Sergeant Lewis, Morse became a cult character—"a cognitive curmudgeon with his love of classical music, his vintage Jaguar and spates of melancholy".^[3] Morse became one of the UK's most loved TV series; the final three episodes, shown in 2000, were seen by 18 million people, about one third of the British population.^[4] He won "Most Popular Actor" at the 1999 National Television Awards and won two BAFTA awards for his role as Morse.

He subsequently played liberal working class Lancastrian barrister James Kavanagh in Kavanagh QC (1995 – 1999, and a special in 2001). Thaw also tried his hand at comedy with two sitcoms—Thick as Thieves (London Weekend/ITV, 1974) with Bob Hoskins and Home to Roost (Yorkshire/ITV, 1985 – 1990). Thaw is best known in America for the Morse series, as well as the BBC series A Year in Provence with Lindsay Duncan.

During the 1970s and 1980s, Thaw frequently appeared in productions with the Royal Shakespeare Company and Royal National Theatre. He appeared in a number of films, including Cry Freedom, where he portrayed the conservative South African justice minister Jimmy Kruger, for which he received a BAFTA nomination for Best Supporting Actor, and Chaplin alongside Robert Downey Jr. for director Richard Attenborough.

Thaw also appeared in the TV adaptation of the Michelle Magorian book Goodnight Mister Tom (Carlton Television/ITV). It won "Most Popular Drama" at the National Television Awards, 1999.^[5] In September 2006, Thaw was voted by the general public as number 3 in a poll of TV's Greatest Stars.^[5]

Personal life[link]

In 1964, Thaw married Sally Alexander (a theatre stage manager), but they divorced four years later.^[6] He met actress Sheila Hancock in 1969 on the set of a London comedy So What About Love?.^[7] She was married to fellow actor Alexander "Alec" Ross, and after Thaw professed his love to Hancock, she told him that she would not have an affair.^[7] After the death of her husband (from oesophageal cancer) in 1971, Thaw and Hancock married on 24 December 1973 in Cirencester,^[7][8] and he remained with her until his death in 2002 (also from oesophageal cancer).^[9]

Thaw had three daughters (all of whom are actresses): Abigail "Abs" Thaw from his first marriage, Joanna "Jo" Thaw from his second, and he also adopted Sheila Hancock's daughter Melanie Jane "Ellie" from her first marriage.^[6][10] Melanie legally changed her name from Ross to Thaw.^[7]

Thaw was a lifelong supporter of the Labour Party.^[11] Thaw was appointed a Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (CBE) in March 1993 by Queen Elizabeth II.^[12] In September 2006, Thaw was voted by the general public as number 3, after David Jason and Morecambe and Wise, in a poll of TV's 50 Greatest Stars for the past 50 years.^[13]

Illness and death[link]

A heavy drinker,^[7] and a smoker from the age of 12,^[10] Thaw was diagnosed with cancer of the oesophagus in June 2001.^[14][15] He underwent chemotherapy in hope of overcoming the illness, and at first seemed to be responding well to the treatment, but in early January 2002 was told that the cancer had spread.^[16]

He died on 21 February 2002,^[10] seven weeks after his 60th birthday, the day after he signed a new contract with ITV,^[17] and the day before his wife's birthday. At the time of his death he was living at his country home, near the villages of Luckington and Sherston in Wiltshire,^[18] and was cremated at Westerleigh Crematorium in South Gloucestershire in a private service.^[19] A memorial service was held on 4 September 2002 at St Martin-in-the-Fields church in Trafalgar Square, attended by 800 people including Prince Charles and Cherie Blair.^[20]

Honours and awards[link]

• 1989 British Academy Award
• 1992 British Academy Award
• 1994 CBE
• 1998 "Most Popular Actor" - National TV Awards
• 1998 "Special Recognition Award" - National TV Awards
• 1999 "Most Popular Actor" - National TV Awards
• 2001 BAFTA fellowship

Performances[link]

References[link]

Bibliography[link]

• Hancock, Sheila (2004). The Two of Us: My Life with John Thaw. London: Bloomsbury. ISBN 978-0-7475-7020-2

John Thaw.The Biography.Stafford Hildred and Tim Ewbank.London:Andre Deutsch.ISBN 0 233 99475 0

External links[link]

• John Thaw at the Internet Movie Database

This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (June 2008)

Joe Bataan (also spelled Bataán) (born 1942 in Spanish Harlem, New York City ^[1][2]) is a Filipino-African American Latin soul musician from New York.

Early life and career[link]

Joe Bataan was born Bataan Nitollano and grew up in the 103rd St. and Lexington Ave. part of East Harlem where he briefly led the Dragons, a local Puerto Rican street gang, before being sent to the Coxsackie Correctional Facility to serve time for a stolen car charge. His father was Filipino and his mother was African American

Upon his release in 1965, he turned his attention to music and formed his first band, Joe Bataan and the Latin Swingers. Bataan was influenced by two musical styles: the Latin boogaloo and African American doo-wop. Though Bataan was neither the first nor only artist to combine doo-wop-style singing with Latin rhythms, his talent for it drew the attention of Fania Records. After signing with them in 1966, Bataan released "Gypsy Woman," in 1967. (The title track is a Latin dance cover of "Gypsy Woman" by The Impressions.) He would, in full, release eight original titles for Fania which included the gold-selling "Riot!". These Fania albums often mixed energetic Latin dance songs, sung in Spanish, with slower, English-language soul ballads sung by Bataan himself. As a vocalist, Bataan's fame in the Latin music scene at the time was only rivaled by Ralfi Pagan.

Disagreements over money with Fania head Jerry Masucci led Bataan to eventually leave the label. While still signed to Fania however, Bataan secretly started Ghetto Records, a Latin music label which got its initial funding from a local gangster, George Febo. Bataan produced several albums for other artists, including Papo Felix, Paul Ortiz and Eddie Lebron.

In 1973, he helped coin the phrase "salsoul," lending its name to his first post-Fania album. Along with the Cayre brothers, he co-founded Salsoul label, though later sold out his interest. He recorded three albums for Salsoul and several singles, including "Rap-O Clap-O," from 1979 which became an early hip hop hit. After his 1981 album, "Bataan II," he retired from music-making to spend more time with his family and ended up working as a youth counselor in one of the reformatories he himself had spent time in as a teenager. In 2005, Bataan broke his long hiatus with the release of "Call My Name," a well-received album recorded for Spain's Vampisoul label.

Bataan is also the father of Asia Nitollano, winner of the Pussycat Dolls Present: The Search for the Next Doll

In the 2006 video game, Driver Parallel Lines, Joe Bataan's song Subway Joe was included in the soundtrack.

In early 2009, Joe Bataan was featured in the Kenzo Digital-produced "beat cinematic" City of God's Son. Bataan was featured as the narrator of the story, paying the part of an older Nas reflecting upon his youth in the street with cohorts Jay-Z, Ghostface Killah, Biggie and Raekwon.

Discography[link]

• 1967 Gypsy Woman (Fania 340)
• 1968 Subway Joe (Fania 345)
• 1968 Riot! (Fania 354)
• 1969 Poor Boy (Fania 371)
• 1970 Singin' Some Soul (Fania 375)
• 1971 Mr. New York & The East Side Kids (Fania 395)
• 1972 Sweet Soul (Fania 407)
• 1972 Saint Latin's Day Massacre (Fania 420)
• 1972 Live From San Frantasia (unreleased, Fania 432)
• 1973 Salsoul (Mericana)
• 1975 Afro-Filipino (Salsoul/Epic Records)
• 1980 Mestizo (Salsoul)
• 1981 II (Salsoul)
• 1997 Last Album, Last Song (Bataan Music)
• 2004 Call My Name (Vampisoul)
• 2009 King of Latin Soul (Vampisoul)

References[link]

External links[link]

• Joe Bataan official site
• Joe Bataan interview by Pete Lewis, 'Blues & Soul' July 2009
• Interview by Michael 'The Dood' Edwards 'UK Vibe' June 2009
• RBMA Radio On Demand - Melbourne Marvels - Joe Bataan (Suss'D)
• Joe Bataan article in the LA Weekly, 15 December 1999
• Joe Bataan interview
• Joe Bataan interview, from APEX Express radio program, KPFA FM, Berkeley, California (MP3)
• TheSoulGirl.com
• Light in the Attic
• Joe Bataan - Call My Name on AnthologyRecordings.com
• City of God's Son
• Part one of a Video Interview with Joe Bataan on Salsa-Central.com
• Joe Bataan Live in Europe

See also[link]

• Filipino hip hop

Sir George Martin CBE
Sir George Martin, 2007
Background information
Birth name	George Henry Martin
Born	(1926-01-03) 3 January 1926 (age 86)
Origin	Highbury, London, England
Genres	Rock, pop, classical
Occupations	Record producer, arranger, composer, musician, conductor
Instruments	Oboe, piano, keyboards
Years active	1950–present
Labels	EMI, Parlophone
Associated acts	The Beatles, Wings, America, Cilla Black, Jeff Beck

Sir George Henry Martin CBE (born 3 January 1926) is an English record producer, arranger, composer, conductor, audio engineer and musician. He is sometimes referred to as "the Fifth Beatle"—a title that he has described as "nonsense"—in reference to his extensive involvement on each of The Beatles' original albums.^[1] He is considered one of the greatest record producers of all time, with 30 number one hit singles in the UK and 23 number one hits in the USA.

Influenced by a range of musical styles, encompassing Cole Porter and Johnny Dankworth, he attended the Guildhall School of Music and Drama from 1947 to 1950, studying piano and oboe. Following his graduation, he worked for the BBC's classical music department, then joined EMI in 1950. Martin produced comedy and novelty records in the early 1950s, working with the likes of Peter Sellers and Spike Milligan.

In a career spanning over six decades, Martin has worked in music, film, television and live performance. He has also held a number of senior executive roles at media companies and contributes to a wide range of charitable causes, including his work for the Prince's Trust and the Caribbean island of Montserrat.

In recognition of his services to the music industry and popular culture, he was made a Knight Bachelor in 1996.

Early years[link]

When he was six, Martin's family acquired a piano that sparked his interest in music.^[2] At eight years of age, Martin persuaded his parents that he should take piano lessons, but those ended after only eight lessons because of a disagreement between his mother and the teacher. After that, Martin explained that he had just picked it up by himself.^[3] As a child he attended several schools, including a "convent school in Holloway", St. Joseph's elementary school in Highgate, and St Ignatius' College in Stamford Hill, to which he won a scholarship.^[4] When war broke out and St. Ignatius College students were evacuated to Welwyn Garden City, his family left London and he was enrolled at Bromley Grammar School.^[4]

Despite Martin's continued interest in music, and "fantasies about being the next Rachmaninov", he did not initially choose music as a career.^[6] He worked briefly as a quantity surveyor and then for the War Office as a Temporary Clerk (Grade Three) which meant filing paperwork and making tea.^[7] In 1943, when he was seventeen, he joined the Fleet Air Arm of the Royal Navy and became a pilot and a commissioned officer. The war ended before Martin was involved in any combat, and he left the service in 1947.^[8] Encouraged by Sidney Harrison (a member of the Committee for the Promotion of New Music) Martin used his veteran's grant to attend the Guildhall School of Music and Drama from 1947 to 1950, where he studied piano and oboe, and was interested in the music of Rachmaninov and Ravel, as well as Porter and Dankworth. Martin's oboe teacher was Margaret Eliot (the mother of Jane Asher, who would later have a relationship with Paul McCartney).^[9][10][11] On 3 January 1948—while still at the Academy—Martin married Sheena Chisholm, with whom he had two children, Alexis and Gregory. He later married Judy Lockhart-Smith on 24 June 1966, and they also had two children, Lucy and Giles.^[12]

Parlophone[link]

The Beatles’ first LP—produced by Martin.

Following his graduation, he worked for the BBC's classical music department, then joined EMI in 1950, as an assistant to Oscar Preuss, the head of EMI's Parlophone Records from 1950 to 1955. Although having been regarded by EMI as a vital German imprint in the past, it was then seen as a joke and only used for EMI's insignificant acts.^[9][13] After taking over Parlophone when Preuss retired in 1955, Martin spent his first years with the record label recording classical and Baroque music, original cast recordings of hit plays, and regional music from around the British Isles.^[14][15]

Martin also produced numerous comedy and novelty records. In the early 1950s, he worked with Sellers, and thus came to know Milligan, with whom he became a firm friend, and best man at Milligan's second marriage: "I loved the Goon Show, and issued an album of it on my label Parlophone, which is how I got to know Spike."^[16] The album was Bridge On The River Wye. It was a spoof of the film The Bridge on the River Kwai, being based on the 1957 Goon Show An African Incident. It was intended to have the same name as the film, but shortly before its release, the film company threatened legal action if the name was used. Martin edited out the 'K' every time the word 'Kwai' was spoken, with Bridge on the River Wye being the result. The album included Milligan, Sellers, Jonathan Miller and Peter Cook, playing various characters.^[17][18]

Other comedians Martin worked with included Joan Sims, Rolf Harris, Flanders and Swann and Shirley Abicair.^[19] Martin worked with the Vipers Skiffle Group, with whom he had a number of hits. In early 1962, under the pseudonym "Ray Cathode", Martin released an early electronic dance single, "Time Beat"—recorded at the BBC Radiophonic Workshop—in much the same style as the Doctor Who theme tune. As Martin wanted to add rock and roll to Parlophone's repertoire, he struggled to find a "fireproof" hit-making pop artist or group.^[20]

As a producer Martin recorded the two-man show featuring Michael Flanders and Donald Swann called At the Drop of a Hat, which sold steadily for twenty-five years, although Martin's breakthrough as a producer came with the Beyond the Fringe show, which starred Peter Cook, Dudley Moore, Alan Bennett and Jonathan Miller. Martin's work transformed the profile of Parlophone from a "sad little company" to a very profitable business.^[21]

The Beatles[link]

Martin was contacted by Sid Coleman of Ardmore & Beechwood, who told him about Brian Epstein, the manager of a rock band he had met. He thought Martin might be interested in the group, even though they had been turned down by Decca Records among other major British labels. Until that time, although he'd had considerable success with the comedy records and a number 1 hit with the Temperance Seven, Martin had had only minor success with pop music, such as "Who Could Be Bluer" by Jerry Lordan, and singles with Shane Fenton and Matt Monro. After the telephone call by Coleman, Martin arranged a meeting on 13 February 1962 with Brian Epstein.^[22] Martin listened to a tape recorded at Decca, and thought that Epstein's group was "rather unpromising", but liked the sound of Lennon and McCartney's vocals.^[23]

After another meeting with Epstein on 9 May at the Abbey Road studios, Martin was impressed with Epstein's enthusiasm and agreed to sign the unknown Beatles to a recording contract without having met them or seen them play live.^[24] The contract was not what it seemed, however, as Martin would not sign it himself until he had heard an audition, and later said that EMI had "nothing to lose," as it offered one penny for each record sold, which was split amongst the four members.^[25] Martin suggested to EMI (after the release of "From Me to You") that the royalty rate should be doubled without asking for anything in return, which led to Martin being thought of as a "traitor in EMI".^[26]

The Beatles auditioned for Martin on 6 June 1962, in studio three at the Abbey Road studios.^[27] Ron Richards and his engineer Norman Smith recorded four songs, which Martin (who was not present during the recording) listened to at the end of the session. The verdict was not promising, however, as Richards complained about Pete Best's drumming, and Martin thought their original songs were simply not good enough.^[24] Martin asked the individual Beatles if there was anything they personally did not like, to which George Harrison replied, "Well, there's your tie, for a start." That was the turning point, according to Smith, as John Lennon and Paul McCartney joined in with jokes and comic wordplay that made Martin think that he should sign them to a contract for their wit alone.^[28]

The Beatles' first recording session with Martin was on 4 September, when they recorded "How Do You Do It", which Martin thought was a sure-fire hit even though Lennon and McCartney hated it.^[29] (He was correct: Gerry & the Pacemakers's version, which Martin produced, spent three weeks at No. 1 in April 1963 before being displaced by "From Me to You".) Richards complained about new-member Ringo Starr's drumming on the next song, "Love Me Do", and so on 11 September, they re-recorded "Love Me Do" with Andy White. Starr was asked to play tambourine and maracas, and although he complied, he was definitely "not pleased".^[30] (Martin would later praise Starr's drumming, calling him "probably ... the finest rock drummer in the world today.")^[31] "Love Me Do" peaked at number 17 in the British charts, so on 26 November 1962 Martin recorded "Please Please Me", which he only did after Lennon and McCartney had almost begged him to record another of their original songs. Martin's crucial contribution here was to tell them to speed up what was initially a slow ballad. After the recording Martin looked over the mixing desk and said, "Gentlemen, you have just made your first number one record".^[32][33] Martin directed Epstein to find a good publisher—as Ardmore & Beechwood had done nothing to promote "Love Me Do"—telling Epstein about three publishers who, in Martin's opinion, would be fair and honest, which led them to Dick James.^[34]

As arranger[link]

Abbey Road Studios, where Martin recorded Parlophone's artists.

Martin's musical expertise helped fill the gaps between the Beatles' raw talent and the sound they wanted to achieve. Most of the Beatles' orchestral arrangements and instrumentation (as well as frequent keyboard parts on the early records) were written or performed by Martin in collaboration with the band.^[35] It was Martin's idea to put a string quartet on "Yesterday", against McCartney's initial reluctance.^[35][36] Martin played the song in the style of Bach to show McCartney the voicings that were available.^[37] Another example is the song "Penny Lane", which featured a piccolo trumpet solo. McCartney hummed the melody he wanted, and Martin wrote it down in music notation for David Mason, the classically trained trumpeter.^[38]

Martin's distinctive arranging work appears on many Beatles recordings. For "Eleanor Rigby" he scored and conducted a strings-only accompaniment inspired by Bernard Herrmann. On a Canadian speaking tour in 2007, Martin said his "Eleanor Rigby" score was influenced by Herrmann's score for the Alfred Hitchcock thriller, Psycho.^[39] For "Strawberry Fields Forever", he and recording engineer Geoff Emerick turned two very different takes into a single master through careful use of vari-speed and editing.^[40] For "I Am the Walrus", he provided a quirky and original arrangement for brass, violins, cellos, and the Mike Sammes Singers vocal ensemble.^[41][42][43] On "In My Life", he played a sped-up Baroque piano solo.^[44] He worked with McCartney to implement the orchestral 'climax' in "A Day in the Life" and he and McCartney shared conducting duties the day it was recorded.^[45]

He contributed less-noted but integral parts to other songs, including the piano in "Lovely Rita",^[46] the organs and tape loop arrangement that create the Pablo Fanque circus atmosphere that Lennon requested on "Being for the Benefit of Mr. Kite!" (both Martin and Lennon played organ parts for this song), and the orchestration in "Good Night".^[47][48][49] The first song that Martin did not arrange was "She's Leaving Home", as he had a prior engagement to produce a Cilla Black session, so McCartney contacted arranger Mike Leander to do it. Martin was reportedly hurt by this, but still produced the recording and conducted the orchestra himself.^[50] Martin was in demand as an independent arranger and producer by the time of The White Album, so the Beatles were left to produce various tracks by themselves.^[51]

Martin arranged the score for the Beatles' film Yellow Submarine^[52] and the James Bond film Live and Let Die, for which Paul McCartney wrote and sang the title song.^[53]

As composer[link]

Martin has composed film scores since the early 1960s, including the instrumental scores of the films Yellow Submarine and Live and Let Die, as well as being a producer and arranger. He also composed Adagietto for Harmonica & Strings for Tommy Reilly, Theme One for BBC Radio 1, and Magic Carpet for The Dakotas.

[edit] The Beatles Anthology

Martin oversaw post-production on The Beatles Anthology (which was originally entitled "The Long and Winding Road") in 1994 and 1995, working again with Geoff Emerick.^[54] Martin decided to use an old 8-track analogue deck to mix the songs for the project—which EMI found out an engineer still had—instead of a modern digital deck. He explained this by saying that the old deck created a completely different sound, which a new deck could not recreate.^[54] He also said the whole project was a strange experience for him (with which McCartney agreed) as they had to listen to themselves chatting in the studio, 25–30 years previously.^[54]

Martin stepped down when it came to producing the two new singles reuniting McCartney, Harrison and Starr, who wanted to overdub two old Lennon demos. Martin had suffered a hearing loss, and left the work to writer/producer Jeff Lynne of ELO fame.^[55][56]

[edit] Cirque du Soleil and Love

In 2006, Martin and his son, Giles Martin, remixed 80 minutes of Beatles music for the Las Vegas stage performance Love, a joint venture between Cirque du Soleil and The Beatles' Apple Corps Ltd.^[57] A soundtrack album from the show was released that same year.^[58]

Other artists[link]

Martin has produced recordings for many other artists, including contemporaries of the Beatles, such as Matt Monro, Cilla Black, and Gerry & The Pacemakers, as well as The King's Singers, the band America,^[59] guitarist Jeff Beck, sixties duo Edwards Hand, Ultravox, country-singer Kenny Rogers, Cheap Trick and Yoshiki Hayashi of X Japan.^[60][61]

Martin also worked with the Mahavishnu Orchestra and Gary Glitter. He worked with Glitter before he was famous, and recorded several songs with him in the 1960s under the name of "Paul Raven". He also produced the 1974 album The Man In The Bowler Hat for the eccentric British folk-rock group Stackridge.^[62] Martin worked with Paul Winter on his (1972) Icarus album, which was recorded in a rented house by the sea in Marblehead, Massachusetts. Winter said that Martin taught him "how to use the studio as a tool", and allowed him to record the album in a relaxed atmosphere, which was different from the pressurised control in a professional studio.^[63] In 1979 he worked with Ron Goodwin to produce the album containing The Beatles Concerto, written by John Rutter. In 2010, Martin was the executive producer of the hard rock debut of Arms of the Sun, an all-star project featuring Rex Brown (Pantera, Down), John Luke Hebert (King Diamond), Lance Harvill, and Ben Bunker.^[64]

In 1995, Martin contributed the horn and string arrangement for the song "Latitude" on Elton John's "Made in England" album, which was recorded at Martin's AIR Studios London.

Associated Independent Recording (AIR)[link]

Within the recording industry, Martin is noted for going independent at a time when many producers were still salaried staff—which he was until The Beatles' success gave him the leverage to start, in 1965, Associated Independent Recording, and hire out his own services to artists who requested him. This arrangement not only demonstrated how important Martin's talents were considered to be by his artists, but it allowed him a share in record royalties on his hits.^[65] Today, Martin's Associated Independent Recording (AIR) remains one of the world's pre-eminent recording studios.^[66] Martin later opened a studio on the Caribbean island of Montserrat, in 1979.^[12] This studio was destroyed by Hurricane Hugo ten years later.^[67]

Music from James Bond series[link]

Martin has also directly and indirectly contributed to the main themes of three films in the James Bond series. Although Martin did not produce the theme for the second Bond film, From Russia with Love, he was responsible for the signing of Matt Monro to EMI just months prior to his recording of the song of the same title.^[68]

Martin also produced two of the best-known James Bond themes. The first was "Goldfinger" by Shirley Bassey in 1964.^[69] The second was "Live and Let Die" by Paul McCartney and Wings for the film of the same name. He also composed and produced the film's score.^[70]

Books and audio retrospective[link]

In 1979, he published a memoir, All You Need is Ears (co-written with Jeremy Hornsby), that described his work with the Beatles and other artists (including Peter Sellers, Sophia Loren, Shirley Bassey, Flanders and Swann, Matt Monro, and Dudley Moore), and gave an informal introduction to the art and science of sound recording. In 1993 Martin published Summer of Love: The Making of Sgt Pepper (published in the USA as With a Little Help from My Friends: The Making of Sgt Pepper, co-authored with William Pearson),^[71][72] which also included interview quotations from a 1992 South Bank Show episode discussing the album. Martin also edited a 1983 book called Making Music: The Guide to Writing, Performing and Recording.

In 2001, Martin released Produced by George Martin: 50 Years In Recording, a six-CD retrospective of his entire studio career, and in 2002, Martin launched Playback, his limited-edition illustrated autobiography, published by Genesis Publications.^[73]

TV feature film[link]

In 2011 a 90-minute documentary feature film co-produced by the BBC Arena team, Produced by George Martin, aired to critical acclaim for the first time in the UK. It combines rare archive footage and new interviews with, among others, Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr, Jeff Beck, Cilla Black and Giles Martin.