John Baker, who died 28 years ago today at the far too young an age of 59, was a musician and composer most readily known for his 11 year stint (1963 - 1974) at the BBC Radiophonic Workshop. His work, with it's combination of traditional instrumentation with more unusual musique concrète techniques and sound sources -twanged rulers, pouring liquid, etc - is amongst the most easily identifiable of all the Workshop composers as, with Baker's jazz sensibilities never far from the surface, his compositions are often significantly lighter, catchier and more playful than those of his colleagues.
After leaving the Workshop in 1974 Baker never composed again and lived quietly until his death from liver cancer in 1998 which makes the body of work made in those 11 short years all the more remarkable.
The album below - along with Volume 2 which featured his soundtrack, library and advertising work - was released by Trunk Records in July and August of 2008 having been compiled by Alan Gubby of the great Revbjelde, head honcho of Buried Treasure where he released another album of Baker's music, 'The Vendetta Tapes' which I heartily recommend tracking down.
For those that would like to learn more about this fascinating composer the release page for the two Trunk albums features a lovely little biography written by Baker's brother, Richard that shines an illuminating light on the man behind and beyond the music.
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