IT’S A SQUARE WORLD [26.4.61] BBC
Not content with his commitment to “Maigret” Grainer also appears to have signed on for a three year stint as incidental music director for this pioneering surrealist comedy sketch show starring founder Goon Show member Michael Bentine.
The pilot of "Square" was broadcast on 16.9.1960 and received an encouraging response but this good start was quickly followed by a serious personal medical emergency that took Bentine out of action for months so the first series did not commence transmission until 26.4.61 [01]
Most of the episodes in the seven series of “It’s A Square World” [1961 - 1964] appear to have escaped the BBC video tape recycling purge of the 1960s and 70s but there is no indication by the powers that be when or if a "Best Of" DVD collection will ever be released.
In the handfull of “Square World” programs currently available for review the brief opening credits lead in instrumental was changed slightly for each episode and this may have been a feature of the shows complete run. Grainer's signature tune appears to have always been played in full at the end.
On 2nd November 1961 Grainer made an amusing appearance in the program as an attention seeking pianist accompanying an earnest male singer trying to hold his own against three helium voiced cartoon figures squeaking “Me and My Shadow”. It was definitely not "High Art", in the conventional sense of the term anyhow, but that was the point and a preview of the irreverent social attitudes to come throughout the 1960s. Again, painful personal experience, this time in the form of his previous stint with the Allen Brothers, would have enabled Grainer to be the right person with the right experience at the right time.
Working for "Square" would have required a well developed sense of humour as music parodies seem to have been a regular feature each week. In the 9th November 1961 episode there is a lengthy battle sequence involving two armies fighting each other with orchestral instruments and sounds - lots of opportunities for Grainer incidental music there.
Closing acknowledgment was given in early episodes of Square World to “Ron Grainer and the Square Seven” who, presumably, were his studio band for this brief. The 3rd May 1962 episode carried the credit ”Incidental music and Square Seven directed by Ron Grainer”.
Because of a lack of comprehensive access to back copies of Radio Times [for an Australia based blogger anyhow] it is difficult to discover exactly when Grainer left Bentine's lateral world view but by 26th December 1963 the formidable Harry Rabinowitz was being listed as the programs music director. [02]
COMEDY PLAYHOUSE [15.12.61] BBC
A much loved Grainer theme was "Happy Joe" the come out and play tune he created for Comedy Playhouse. This program was a collection of stand alone situation humour pilots which occasionally, when the characters had strong audience appeal, turned into long running series.
Although Grainer was responsible for the programs theme many of the shows that went on to become hits had an individual signature tune for their pilot and follow up episodes written by another composer.
It is worth noting that the early TV version of the credits instrumental emphasised the inspiration Grainer had taken from the sound effect of a manual typewriter while later studio recordings greatly reduced this arrangment reference.
Comedy Playhouse commenced its first 14 year 120 episodes run in late 1961 [3] and counted among its most successful finds Steptoe and Son, Till Death Us Do Part, All Gas And Gaitors, Are You Being Served and The Last of The Summer Wine.
In 2014 and 2016 Comedy Playhouse was revived after a 40 year break "in order to persuade more comedians to work for the broadcasters flagship BBC1 channel" in a less high profile time slot. [4] It is not known how the ratings went but as only three programs were made in each of the two modern era seasons it is easy to assume that perhaps the lack of 60s and 70's level character actors made success difficult to achieve.
IMDb states Grainer provided incidental music for thirteen plays [a 14th IMDb listing "All Gas and Gaitors" has no credited Grainer imput in the video] but going on the half dozen or so home recorded episodes occassionally available on the web Grainers contribution was slight and mainly scene change functional which was suitable for the dialogue driven scripts.
TERMINUS [1961 / British Transport Films / no release date available]
A BAFTA award winning black and white television documentary exploring various events in a typical day on London's Waterloo railway station. Highlight is a moving scene where a small boy is separated from his mother on the platform and wanders distressed until a kindly policeman takes him to the station manager's office where there is a typewriter keyboard to play on. The boys mother soon answers a public announcement that a lost child has been found and mother and son are reunited.
Not content with his commitment to “Maigret” Grainer also appears to have signed on for a three year stint as incidental music director for this pioneering surrealist comedy sketch show starring founder Goon Show member Michael Bentine.
The pilot of "Square" was broadcast on 16.9.1960 and received an encouraging response but this good start was quickly followed by a serious personal medical emergency that took Bentine out of action for months so the first series did not commence transmission until 26.4.61 [01]
Most of the episodes in the seven series of “It’s A Square World” [1961 - 1964] appear to have escaped the BBC video tape recycling purge of the 1960s and 70s but there is no indication by the powers that be when or if a "Best Of" DVD collection will ever be released.
In the handfull of “Square World” programs currently available for review the brief opening credits lead in instrumental was changed slightly for each episode and this may have been a feature of the shows complete run. Grainer's signature tune appears to have always been played in full at the end.
On 2nd November 1961 Grainer made an amusing appearance in the program as an attention seeking pianist accompanying an earnest male singer trying to hold his own against three helium voiced cartoon figures squeaking “Me and My Shadow”. It was definitely not "High Art", in the conventional sense of the term anyhow, but that was the point and a preview of the irreverent social attitudes to come throughout the 1960s. Again, painful personal experience, this time in the form of his previous stint with the Allen Brothers, would have enabled Grainer to be the right person with the right experience at the right time.
Working for "Square" would have required a well developed sense of humour as music parodies seem to have been a regular feature each week. In the 9th November 1961 episode there is a lengthy battle sequence involving two armies fighting each other with orchestral instruments and sounds - lots of opportunities for Grainer incidental music there.
Closing acknowledgment was given in early episodes of Square World to “Ron Grainer and the Square Seven” who, presumably, were his studio band for this brief. The 3rd May 1962 episode carried the credit ”Incidental music and Square Seven directed by Ron Grainer”.
Because of a lack of comprehensive access to back copies of Radio Times [for an Australia based blogger anyhow] it is difficult to discover exactly when Grainer left Bentine's lateral world view but by 26th December 1963 the formidable Harry Rabinowitz was being listed as the programs music director. [02]
COMEDY PLAYHOUSE [15.12.61] BBC
A much loved Grainer theme was "Happy Joe" the come out and play tune he created for Comedy Playhouse. This program was a collection of stand alone situation humour pilots which occasionally, when the characters had strong audience appeal, turned into long running series.
Although Grainer was responsible for the programs theme many of the shows that went on to become hits had an individual signature tune for their pilot and follow up episodes written by another composer.
It is worth noting that the early TV version of the credits instrumental emphasised the inspiration Grainer had taken from the sound effect of a manual typewriter while later studio recordings greatly reduced this arrangment reference.
Comedy Playhouse commenced its first 14 year 120 episodes run in late 1961 [3] and counted among its most successful finds Steptoe and Son, Till Death Us Do Part, All Gas And Gaitors, Are You Being Served and The Last of The Summer Wine.
In 2014 and 2016 Comedy Playhouse was revived after a 40 year break "in order to persuade more comedians to work for the broadcasters flagship BBC1 channel" in a less high profile time slot. [4] It is not known how the ratings went but as only three programs were made in each of the two modern era seasons it is easy to assume that perhaps the lack of 60s and 70's level character actors made success difficult to achieve.
IMDb states Grainer provided incidental music for thirteen plays [a 14th IMDb listing "All Gas and Gaitors" has no credited Grainer imput in the video] but going on the half dozen or so home recorded episodes occassionally available on the web Grainers contribution was slight and mainly scene change functional which was suitable for the dialogue driven scripts.
TERMINUS [1961 / British Transport Films / no release date available]
A BAFTA award winning black and white television documentary exploring various events in a typical day on London's Waterloo railway station. Highlight is a moving scene where a small boy is separated from his mother on the platform and wanders distressed until a kindly policeman takes him to the station manager's office where there is a typewriter keyboard to play on. The boys mother soon answers a public announcement that a lost child has been found and mother and son are reunited.
The child’s open emotions during his crises are captured quite graphically by the cameraman while Grainer’s strangely suitable military march underscore in this scene helps evoke the feeling of a relentless stream of commuters passing by the five year old boy uncaring of his plight.
Little boy lost on railway platform scene from Terminus
Grainer contributed two songs written with lyricists Julian Cooper and Michael Raper as well as various modern jazz flavoured pieces of background music. IMDb says "Petite Valse de Concert" an [uncredited] composition by Roger Barsotti is apparently also included in the score.
John Schlesinger the writer of Terminus later went on to direct the award wining films Far From The Madding Crowd [1967], Midnight Cowboy [1969] and Marathon Man [1976] [05]
MISCELLANEOUS PROJECTS [1961]
An undated unsourced biographical document held in the Australian National Library Archives [with a passing mention of Grainer "at present taking master classes in conducting from Sir Eugene Goussens"* says his projects for [presumedly] 1961 included playing early European instruments such as the Hecklephone, Shaum and Tervor Comporium on late night BBC epilogue programs dramatising Bible stories and performing on the Virginal keyboard for a recording of Shakespearean plays aimed at the American market.
There is also mention, without any other details, of an earlier Harpsichord and Base arranged Pas-De-Deux for an unnamed Covent Garden Ballet choreographer, a forthcoming "Jazz Ballet to be performed in London in October" with choreography "by a brillilant young American called Leo Kharibian" [then appearing in the stage musical West Side Story], a soundtrack for a BOAC documentary and general orchestral conducting work for the BBC. [06]
* "In 1961, the year before Sir Eugene Gossens died Grainer asked him if would give some private lessons in conducting. 'I had always conducted my own music for recordings but I felt that I had so much more to learn and needed brushing up".
Grainer said 'Gossens had always been my mentor. In Sydney when I had composed my first works I had always received the most helpful and constructive criticism from him. There was a violin sonata, some song settings and an orchestra work that he had seen. He was so generous with his help I went along in London for about 20 lessons ... he gave me more help then any other musician and his death was to many of us the greatest loss' [07]
1961 References:
[01] Michael Bentine "The Reluctant Jester"Corgi Books 1993 p355-360
[02] Radio Times Dec 21- 27 1963
[03] Radio Times # 1987 Dec 9 -15 1961 p55
[04] The Independent 18.3.2014
[05] web "John Schlesinger" IMDb]
[06] "Biography Ronald Erle Grainer" Australian National Library document
[07] "Move Over Rodgers" Australian Women's Weekly 5 August 1964 p9
