Alan Hawkshaw
A prolific British composer, arranger, and session musician, Alan Hawkshaw created a widely-heard body of work without ever achieving any sort of celebrity, a situation which suited him just fine. Although he was a member of the Shadows, played keyboards with everyone from David Bowie to Donna Summer, and even scored a number one dance hit in the U.S., Hawkshaw's most enduring contributions were in the form of library music, which was licensed extensively across film and television from the late-1960s onward. By the time of his death in 2021, his theme songs to British programs like Countdown, Grange Hill, and the Channel 4 News remained intimately familiar to many.
Born in Leeds, Hawkshaw's professional music career began in the early-'60s when he joined the rock group Emile Ford and the Checkmates, playing on their hit single "Counting Teardrops." Eventually he immersed himself in the London music scene where he became a popular session musician, playing keys for artists like David Bowie and the Hollies and forming a short-lived studio band called the Mohawks whose 1968 song "The Champ" has been widely sampled, particularly in the hip-hop world. Heading into the '70s, Hawkshaw became a member of the Shadows and throughout the decade played on recordings by Serge Gainsbourg, Cliff Richard, Donna Summer, Olivia Newton-John, and many others. Despite his immense talent, he had no real desire for the spotlight and preferred to work in the background, composing music and playing a support role for other.
Although he appeared as a player on countless records, his real bread and butter came from composing and recording music for publisher Keith Prowse's KPM library. The wealth of instrumental music Hawkshaw made for KPM could be heard in a variety of facets from television programs like The Dave Allen Show and On the Move to American auteur Radley Metzger's late-'70s erotic films. Beginning in 1978, British soap opera Grange Hill adopted one of his library songs as its theme and a few years later, Channel 4 News did the same. The Channel 4 game show Countdown also used a Hawkshaw piece as its iconic "Chimes" jingle and he could be heard on hundreds of commercials as well. Hawkshaw even operated in the disco sphere where he managed to top the U.S. dance charts with 1979's "Here Comes That Sound Again" by his studio band Love De-Luxe.
He later formed the charitable organization the Alan Hawkshaw Foundation to support underprivileged music students. Just prior to his death from pneumonia in October 2021, Hawkshaw was awarded both a British Empire Medal and a Leeds fellowship.
© Timothy Monger /TiVo
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Kpm 1000 Series: Hot Wax
Brian Bennett, John Fiddy, Alan Hawkshaw
Jazz - Erschienen bei KPM 1000 LP Series am 01.01.1976
24-Bit 48.0 kHz - Stereo -
Kpm 1000 Series: The Big Beat
Keith Mansfield, Alan Hawkshaw
Jazz - Erschienen bei KPM 1000 LP Series am 01.07.1969
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Kpm 1000 Series: Synthesis
Jazz - Erschienen bei KPM 1000 LP Series am 01.01.1974
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Kpm 1000 Series: Friendly Faces
Jazz - Erschienen bei KPM 1000 LP Series am 01.01.1973
24-Bit 48.0 kHz - Stereo -
Kpm 1000 Series: Big Business / Wind of Change
Keith Mansfield, Alan Hawkshaw, David Snell
Jazz - Erschienen bei KPM 1000 LP Series am 01.07.1973
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Kpm 1000 Series: Music for a Young Generation
Alan Parker, Alan Hawkshaw, Peter Gosling
Jazz - Erschienen bei KPM 1000 LP Series am 01.03.1971
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Kpm 1000 Series: The Road Forward
Jazz - Erschienen bei KPM 1000 LP Series am 01.01.1977
24-Bit 48.0 kHz - Stereo -
Kpm 1000 Series: Beat Industrial
Alan Parker, Alan Hawkshaw, Johnny Hawksworth
Jazz - Erschienen bei KPM 1000 LP Series am 01.01.1972
24-Bit 48.0 kHz - Stereo -
Kpm 1000 Series: Flute for Moderns
Alan Parker, Alan Hawkshaw, Joe Haider
Jazz - Erschienen bei KPM 1000 LP Series am 01.01.1972
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Kpm 1000 Series: Move with the Times
Jazz - Erschienen bei KPM 1000 LP Series am 01.04.1973
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
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Synthesizer and Percussion
Jazz - Erschienen bei Themes International Vinyl Series am 01.01.1974
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Kpm 1000 Series: Beat Incidental
Alan Hawkshaw, Keith Mansfield
Jazz - Erschienen bei KPM 1000 LP Series am 01.04.1969
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
The Rock Machine
Jazz - Erschienen bei Themes International Vinyl Series am 01.01.1974
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Kpm 1000 Series: Soul Organ Showcase
Alan Hawkshaw, Keith Mansfield
Jazz - Erschienen bei KPM 1000 LP Series am 01.01.1968
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Kpm 1000 Series: Speed and Excitement
Johnny Pearson, Keith Mansfield, Alan Hawkshaw
Jazz - Erschienen bei KPM 1000 LP Series am 01.10.1970
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Serious Business
Alan Hawkshaw, Zack Laurence, Andy Hayles
Soundtracks - Erschienen bei Music House - Industry am 15.04.1991
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Things to Come
Mike Moran, Alan Parker, Alan Hawkshaw
Jazz - Erschienen bei Themes International Vinyl Series am 01.01.1976
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Movie Images
Soundtracks - Erschienen bei Music House - Drama am 01.10.2001
24-Bit 48.0 kHz - Stereo -
Hawk's Hammond Lounge
Jazz - Erschienen bei Music House - Entertainment am 22.02.2000
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Kpm 1000 Series: Arp Odyssey
Jazz - Erschienen bei KPM 1000 LP Series am 01.01.1975
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo