John Barry Honored with a Plaque in City of York
By David Pegram
Composer John Barry, who was known for scoring many James Bond films, was honored with a blue plaque, outside his boyhood home, in York, England.
Barry died in 2011, at the age of 77. His widow and son attended the unveiling ceremony.
The plaque stated:
"JOHN BARRY (PENDERGRAST)born 1933, died 2011lived here as a boyComposer and MusicianAcademy Award Winnerfor his film music"
Barry actually won Oscars for four of his film scores: Born Free, The Lion in Winter, Out of Africa, and Dances with Wolves. Of course, Barry is also well-known for the twelve James Bond films that he scored. He served as composer on the first seven James Bond films: Dr. No, From Russia With Love, Goldfinger, Thunderball, You Only Live Twice, and On Her Majesty’s Secret Service. He then went on to score The Man with the Golden Gun, Moonraker, Octopussy, A View to a Kill, and then The Living Daylights.
Barry was also the composer for several “Bond songs,” three of which he collaborated with singer Shirley Bassey: “Goldfinger,” “Moonraker,” and “Diamonds Are Forever.” His main theme for On Her Majesty’s Secret Service (1969), rather than a title song, was the featured music for the title sequence.
In 1999, Barry was awarded OBE (Order of the British Empire) for his contributions to music. According to the BBC, David Fraser, of York Civic Trust, said: “(Barry’s) musical skill did not come out of nowhere, his mother was a concert pianist and his father originally ran a cinema showing silent films and his father often had film stars to visit.”