Michael philip batt, lvo born 6 february 1949 is an english singersongwriter, musician, arranger, record producer, director, conductor and former deputy chairman of the british phonographic industry. Apr 14, 2020 this is the trailer from the old version. Note nuthanger farm is a real place, like all the other places in the book. Death violent, disturbing death is ever present, portrayed in a manner that. Michael philip mike batt born 6 february 1949, southampton, england is a british songwriter, musician, producer and deputy chairman of the british phonographic industry. Watership down came together scans of the original music cue sheet from watership down can be seen here 6 pages there has been much confusion in britain about who composed the music score for watership down.
Watership down is a 1978 british animated adventuredrama film, written, produced and. The wombles were a british novelty pop group, featuring musicians dressed as the characters from childrens tv show the wombles, which in turn was based on the childrens book series by elisabeth beresford. Tales from watership down begins with some of the great folk stories well known to all rabbits. If you find and correct errors in the text, please. The opening for the watership down tv series, a three season, thirtynine. Death violent, disturbing death is ever present, portrayed in a manner that is. May 05, 2015 in 1978, art garfunkel was tapped to sing bright eyes, written by mike batt, a song largely considered to be the theme song of the animated version of watership down.
Having achieved substantial international success as a solo artist he is particularly known in the uk for creating the wombles pop act, writing many hits including the charttopping bright eyes. With its naturalistic handdrawn animation, dreamily expressionistic touches, gorgeously bucolic. The album, featuring batt with the sydney symphony orchestra was released on epic as a mike batt solo album. It was financed by a consortium of british financial institutions. Watership down will continue without him because hes given the rabbits of watership down all of his strength and speed and hopefully cleverness, too. Actually, there were probably battles and summer music festivals, since those are everywhere. With this passion project, screenwriterproducerdirector martin rosen brilliantly achieved what had been thought nearly impossible. I loved the movie as a child, art garfunkels haunting voice singing mike batts beautiful bright eyes still brings tears to my eyes.
Originally released on october 19 1978, the film was an immediate success and it became the sixth most popular film if 1979 at the british box office. Hats off to mike batt for continuing the excellence in telling this wonderful story in music. Released on 19 october 1978, the film was an immediate success and it became the sixthmost. For instance, they could build an awesome palace of a rabbit hole like cowslips. This recording comes highly recommended and for any watership down fan its a must. It is heard in the film in the scene where fiver goes to look for his brother hazel after he is shot. The book was put back on the shelf, never to be touched again. Dec 28, 2016 no matter what he did before or since, he will forever be associated with watership down. Richard adams, author of the original novel is reported to have hated the song. Abebooks, an amazon company, offers millions of new, used, and outofprint books. Now richard adams returns, to tell us what happened to the rabbits after their defeat of general woundwort. The soundtrack to the wonderful watership down animated film, is one of the greatest soundtracks, if not the greatest original soundtrack ever composed.
Then we listen in as dandelion, the rabbits master storyteller, relates the thrilling. It doesnt really give you enough of an idea of how phenomenally fab it is because its flat. Watership down tv series watership down wiki fandom. It was written for the soundtrack of the 1978 british animated adventure drama film watership down. Exciting, funny, suspenseful and unlike any animated feature ever made, watership down is a favorite around the savant household. With john hurt, richard briers, ralph richardson, michael graham cox. On watership down written by mike batt taken from the album a classical tale released 24th july 2015. Mike batt watership down series soundtrack lyrics and. Bright eyes is a song written by mike batt and performed by art garfunkel. For those who might be confused, the watership down soundtrack on this album, is the tv series soundtrack, not the movie version that was by angela morley, except bright eyes which was written by mike batt. Aug 05, 1996 tales from watership down is a collection of legends and short stories that flesh out the history of the rabbits of watership down and continue their story after the events of the original novel. It was produced with the participation of the canadian television fund. Watership down with friends and royal philharmonic orchestra for the same titled animated series. Watership down is a britishcanadian animated fantasy childrens television series, adapted from the novel of the same name by richard adams.
Bright eyes watership down art garfunkel mike batt on. Cane, their little girl lucy and their farmhands are fictitious and bear no intentional resemblance to any persons known to me. Art garfunkels hit song bright eyes was written by songwriter mike batt. Originally released on 19 october 1978, the film was an immediate success and it became the sixth most popular film of 1979 at the british box office.
His consistent track record of success includes production, composition and conducting on project. Also ill be talking to german media promo folks about the release in germany of my forthcoming double cddigital album mike batt. He ran down the field and over the brook to the cattle wade. It was used in the soundtrack of the 1978 british animated adventure drama film watership down and the. The opening for the watership down tv series, a three season, thirtynine episode series which ran from 1999 to 2001 and is based on the book by richard adams. I secured an interview spot for myself on noel edmonds saturday morning show swapshop, where i knew the producer because i had composed the theme music. When at last hazel had got him back to the ditch, he refused at first to go underground and hazel had almost to push him down the hole. Mike batt was born on february 2, 1950 in southampton, hampshire, england. Dec 16, 2019 he wrote the song bright eyes for the animated film version of watership down. The wombles theme tune may be his most successful composition to date, but with a career spanning 45 years mike batts contribution to the music industry has been nothing short of phenomenal.
Songwriter and record producer mike batt wrote the series theme tune and went on to perform and write many successful albums and singles as the wombles with other collaborators. Book depository books with free delivery worldwide. We showed a clip from watership down and ran a competition, and i gave away some soft toy rabbits from the merchandisers of the film. Watership down composer mike batt orders rabbit cull.
It was a coproduction of alltime entertainment of the united kingdom and decode entertainment of canada, and produced by martin rosen, the director of the 1978 feature film adaptation. For some, watership down will trigger the earworm bright. Watership down was one of this centurys bestloved works of imaginative literature. But you do, he went on, not waiting for contradiction. Written by mike batt for watership down at the request of director martin rosen, the song relates to the transition into death highlighted by the close shave of hazel, a rabbit character in the. A picture book adaptation was also produced, titled the watership down film picture book. A cover of the song was later used in the television series of the. Recorded by art garfunkel, it reached number 1 in the uk singles chart and was number one in six countries. Ralph bakshi, who earned some industry notoriety with the first xrated animated feature in the history of cinema, fritz the cat 1972, also brought his version of the lord of the rings 1978 to the big screen. Check out watership down suite by mike batt on amazon music. Mike batt wrote the phantom of the opera, the ride to agadir and bright eyes. Mike batt is a multifaceted singer, songwriter, musician and producer whose.
Watership down wasnt the only ambitious animated adaptation to be released. A group of rabbits flee their doomed warren and face many dangers to find and protect their new home. Ive put off reading richard adams watership down for a long while as a result of this. Rearranged as a pop song from its original form in the film, the track appears on british and european versions of garfunkels 1979 fate for breakfast and on the us versions of his 1981 album scissors cut.
Watership down is named after a real location in england that is, frankly, pretty boring. In 1978, art garfunkel was tapped to sing bright eyes, written by mike batt, a song largely considered to be the theme song of the animated version of watership down. Mike batt is one of britains bestknown songwritercomposers. As the animated classic turns 40, ed power speaks to director martin rosen and explores the films legacy. There were no battles there, no famous speeches, no ipod factories or summer music festivals. Here there was a delay, for fiver surrounded on all sides by the quiet summer evening became helpless and almost paralyzed with fear. Matt lucas to star with philip quast and john partridge in mike batts new recording of the hunting of the snark songwriter and entrepreneur mike batt today announced the first signings in his forthcoming allstar lineup for the first ever fulllength recording of his score to the west end show the hunting of the snark, based on the. Adamss bestselling book, which grapples with themes of political upheaval and ecological destruction through the stor. Rearranged as a pop song from its original form in the film, the track appears on british and european versions of garfunkels 1979 fate for breakfast and on the us. Mike batt originally did please dont fall in love, suddenly, a winters tale, caravan song and other songs. It was used in the soundtrack of the 1978 british animated adventure drama film watership down and the later television series of the same name. We showed a clip from watership down and ran a competition, and i gave away some soft toy rabbits from the. Readers digest published an article, the week of the films opening, describing how malcolm williamson composed the score. It so fascinated my youngest son when he was 11 years old, that he read the rather thick book from cover to cover, an important first literary experience.
It was finached by a constortium of british financial institutions. Watership down suite by mike batt on amazon music amazon. Born in southampton in 1949, mikes family moved away before returning to winchester when he was 12, just before he began attending what was then. Mike batt covered please dont fall in love, suddenly, a winters tale, caravan song and other songs. Richard adams, the author of the beloved 1972 childrens novel watership down, passed away this week at the age of ninetysix. He is known for his work on miss potter 2006, the phantom of the opera 2004 and just like heaven 2005. Mike batt and his contribution to the cultural landscape. Watership down composer mike batt orders rabbit cull daily.
He is best known for creating the wombles pop act, writing the charttopping bright eyes, and discovering katie melua. Watership down is a 1978 british animated adventuredrama film, written, produced and directed by martin rosen and based on the 1972 novel by richard adams. English arranger, producer, and songwriter whose early success came courtesy of the childrens television program the wombles. The opening uses the song bright eyes, written by mike batt and. Warners dvd of watership down is a fine entertainment. For some, watership down will trigger the earworm bright eyes, as written and composed by mike batt of. It was used in the soundtrack of the 1978 british animated adventure drama film watership down and the later television series of the same name it is heard in the film in the scene where fiver goes to look for his brother hazel after he is shot the song relates to the transition from life to death.
The whole book has been about hazel founding a new home for rabbits, and the epilogue seals the deal. No matter what he did before or since, he will forever be associated with watership down. Welcome to the official mike batt facebook profile. Watership down composer mike batt has rabbits shot in cull on his estate. Favorites for nearly 100 years, these classic novels follow the adventures of the spirited redhead anne shirley, who comes to stay at green gables and wins the hearts of everyone she meets. Watership down is a 1978 british adventure drama animated film writen, produced and directed by martin rosen and based on the book by richard adams. Licensed to youtube by merlin dramatico entertainment, and 3 music rights societies. The show was a combination of music, mime, dance, acting and animation, telling the story of a young man in the far distant future where love has been genetically eradicated. Unique in the annals of animated films, watership down is a serious, even grim tale that many will find relentless and depressing and others will find poetic and moving. Watership down is a 1978 british animated film directed by martin ros rand based on the novel watership down by richard adams. Featuring music from malcolm williamson the queens official composer who sadly passed away last year, angela morley, and mike batt, this is some of the most moving and touching music you.
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