Keith Forsey
Encyclopedia
Keith Forsey is an English
soundtrack
composer
, drummer
, songwriter
and record producer
.
's Captain Scarlet
, but hit makers across Europe in their own right, scoring hits in Germany and Spain on RCA Victor Records
.
As drummer and long-time associate of producer Giorgio Moroder
, Forsey can be heard on several albums of Donna Summer
before 1981. He co-wrote several songs on the albums Bad Girls
, The Wanderer and I'm a Rainbow. Forsey also formed a dance band called TRAX with Moroder's co-producer Pete Bellotte
and produced two dance albums.
Forsey's drum sound was the mainstay of many Moroder productions during the 1970s including Sparks
' album No. 1 in Heaven
, Get on the Funk Train by Munich Machine (Moroder/Bellotte's house band
), as well as various other studio/disco acts based in Munich
at this time such as Boney M.. He also played on Moroder's Son of My Father, along with the as yet undiscovered, Donna Summer.
Forsey was also well-known as the producer for Billy Idol
. Forsey began working with Idol in the '70s when he was lead singer for UK Punk band Generation X
and stayed with him into his solo career, producing the albums Billy Idol
, Rebel Yell
, Whiplash Smile
, Charmed Life and Devil's Playground
.
Forsey also produced other notable '80s albums such as Pictures for Pleasure
, the debut album from the then-16 year old Austin guitarist Charlie Sexton
, and the Psychedelic Furs
hit album Mirror Moves
.
Forsey is perhaps most famous as the producer of movie soundtracks, including Flashdance
, Beverly Hills Cop II
and The Breakfast Club
. Forsey co-wrote the #1 worldwide hit single, "Don't You (Forget About Me)
", together with Steve Schiff, for the band Simple Minds
in 1985. He additionally wrote Donna Summer's "Hot Stuff". He also produced The Donnas
' cover of the Generation X song "Dancing with Myself", and the Simple Minds album Good News from the Next World
in 1995.
English people
The English are a nation and ethnic group native to England, who speak English. The English identity is of early mediaeval origin, when they were known in Old English as the Anglecynn. England is now a country of the United Kingdom, and the majority of English people in England are British Citizens...
soundtrack
Soundtrack
A soundtrack can be recorded music accompanying and synchronized to the images of a motion picture, book, television program or video game; a commercially released soundtrack album of music as featured in the soundtrack of a film or TV show; or the physical area of a film that contains the...
composer
Composer
A composer is a person who creates music, either by musical notation or oral tradition, for interpretation and performance, or through direct manipulation of sonic material through electronic media...
, drummer
Drummer
A drummer is a musician who is capable of playing drums, which includes but is not limited to a drum kit and accessory based hardware which includes an assortment of pedals and standing support mechanisms, marching percussion and/or any musical instrument that is struck within the context of a...
, songwriter
Songwriter
A songwriter is an individual who writes both the lyrics and music to a song. Someone who solely writes lyrics may be called a lyricist, and someone who only writes music may be called a composer...
and record producer
Record producer
A record producer is an individual working within the music industry, whose job is to oversee and manage the recording of an artist's music...
.
Biography
Forsey's first recordings were as the younger member of the group The Spectrum, better known for the end title theme for Gerry AndersonGerry Anderson
Gerry Anderson MBE is a British publisher, producer, director and writer, famous for his futuristic television programmes, particularly those involving specially modified marionettes, a process called "Supermarionation"....
's Captain Scarlet
Captain Scarlet
Captain Scarlet may refer to:*Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons, 1960s marionette-based science-fiction TV series*Gerry Anderson's New Captain Scarlet, 2000s CGI remake of the 1960s series...
, but hit makers across Europe in their own right, scoring hits in Germany and Spain on RCA Victor Records
RCA Records
RCA Records is one of the flagship labels of Sony Music Entertainment. The RCA initials stand for Radio Corporation of America , which was the parent corporation from 1929 to 1985 and a partner from 1985 to 1986.RCA's Canadian unit is Sony's oldest label...
.
As drummer and long-time associate of producer Giorgio Moroder
Giorgio Moroder
Hansjörg "Giorgio" Moroder is an Italian record producer, songwriter and performer based in Los Angeles. When in Munich in the 1970s, he started his own record label called Oasis Records, which several years later became a subdivision of Casablanca Records...
, Forsey can be heard on several albums of Donna Summer
Donna Summer
LaDonna Adrian Gaines , known by her stage name, Donna Summer, is an American singer/songwriter who gained prominence during the disco era of the 1970s. She has a mezzo-soprano vocal range. Summer is a five-time Grammy winner and was the first artist to have three consecutive double albums reach...
before 1981. He co-wrote several songs on the albums Bad Girls
Bad Girls (album)
Bad Girls is the seventh studio album by American pop singer Donna Summer, released April 25, 1979 on Casablanca Records. Originally issued as a double album, it incorporates such musical styles as disco, soul, and rock...
, The Wanderer and I'm a Rainbow. Forsey also formed a dance band called TRAX with Moroder's co-producer Pete Bellotte
Pete Bellotte
Peter J. Bellotte is a British songwriter and record producer, most famous for hismain body of work with Donna Summer alongside his partner Giorgio Moroder...
and produced two dance albums.
Forsey's drum sound was the mainstay of many Moroder productions during the 1970s including Sparks
Sparks (band)
Sparks is an American rock and pop band formed in Los Angeles in 1968 by brothers Ron and Russell Mael , initially under the name Halfnelson...
' album No. 1 in Heaven
No. 1 In Heaven
-Personnel:* Chris Bennett - Backing Vocals* Keith Forsey - Drums* Ron Mael - Keyboards, Synthesiser, Vocals* Russell Mael - Vocals* Jack Moran - Backing Vocals* Giorgio Moroder - Synthesiser, Vocoder, Producer* Dan Wyman - Synthesiser Programming...
, Get on the Funk Train by Munich Machine (Moroder/Bellotte's house band
House band
For the British band that existed from 1984-2001, see The House BandA house band is a group of musicians, often centrally organized by a band leader, who regularly play an establishment. It is widely used to refer both to the bands who work on entertainment programs on television or radio, and to...
), as well as various other studio/disco acts based in Munich
Munich
Munich The city's motto is "" . Before 2006, it was "Weltstadt mit Herz" . Its native name, , is derived from the Old High German Munichen, meaning "by the monks' place". The city's name derives from the monks of the Benedictine order who founded the city; hence the monk depicted on the city's coat...
at this time such as Boney M.. He also played on Moroder's Son of My Father, along with the as yet undiscovered, Donna Summer.
Forsey was also well-known as the producer for Billy Idol
Billy Idol
William Michael Albert Broad , better known by his stage name Billy Idol, is an English rock musician. A member of the Bromley Contingent of Sex Pistols fans, Idol first achieved fame in the punk rock era as a member of the band Generation X...
. Forsey began working with Idol in the '70s when he was lead singer for UK Punk band Generation X
Generation X (band)
Generation X was a British punk rock band, formed on 21 November 1976 by Billy Idol, Tony James and John Towe.-History:...
and stayed with him into his solo career, producing the albums Billy Idol
Billy Idol (album)
Billy Idol is the full-length solo debut by Billy Idol . Preceded in June 1982 by the hit-single "Hot in the City", the album was released in July 1982. After the next single from the album, "White Wedding", entered the Top 40 a year later, Billy Idol was reissued with the addition of the earlier...
, Rebel Yell
Rebel Yell (album)
Rebel Yell is the second album by British punk rock artist Billy Idol, released in 1983. It was very successful with four singles on the U.S. Hot 100 charts, while the album reached #6 on the U.S. Billboard 200 album charts...
, Whiplash Smile
Whiplash Smile
Whiplash Smile is Billy Idol's third full-length album. Released in 1986, it was supported by the singles "To Be a Lover", "Sweet Sixteen", and "Don't Need a Gun"...
, Charmed Life and Devil's Playground
Devil's Playground (album)
-Chart performance:-Personnel:*Billy Idol — vocals*Steve Stevens — guitar*Stephen McGrath — bass*Derek Sherinian — keyboards*Brian Tichy — percussion, drums*Julian Beeston — drum programming...
.
Forsey also produced other notable '80s albums such as Pictures for Pleasure
Pictures for pleasure
Pictures for Pleasure, released in 1985, is the first studio album released by singer/guitarist Charlie Sexton. The album was the first solo effort by the 16-year old musician who had already secured a reputation as a skilled guitarist....
, the debut album from the then-16 year old Austin guitarist Charlie Sexton
Charlie Sexton
Charles Wayne Sexton is an American guitarist, singer and songwriter best known for the 1985 hit Beat's So Lonely and as the guitarist for Bob Dylan's backing band from 1999 to 2002 and since 2009...
, and the Psychedelic Furs
Psychedelic Furs
The Psychedelic Furs are an English rock band founded in 1977. Led by singer Richard Butler and his brother Tim on bass guitar, the Psychedelic Furs are one of the many acts spawned from the British post-punk scene...
hit album Mirror Moves
Mirror Moves
Mirror Moves is the fourth studio album by the English rock band The Psychedelic Furs, recorded and released in 1984. Vince Ely had left the group, leaving three original Furs and Keith Forsey taking on production and drum duties...
.
Forsey is perhaps most famous as the producer of movie soundtracks, including Flashdance
Flashdance
Another song used in the film, "Maniac", was also nominated for an Academy Award. It was written by Michael Sembello and Dennis Matkosky, and was inspired by the 1980 horror film Maniac. The lyrics about a killer on the loose were rewritten so that it could be used in Flashdance...
, Beverly Hills Cop II
Beverly Hills Cop II
Beverly Hills Cop II is a 1987 action-comedy film starring Eddie Murphy and directed by Tony Scott. It is the first sequel in the Beverly Hills Cop series. Murphy returns as Detroit police detective Axel Foley, who returns to Beverly Hills, California to track down a joint robbery/gun-running ring...
and The Breakfast Club
The Breakfast Club
The Breakfast Club is a 1985 American teen drama film written and directed by John Hughes. The storyline follows five teenagers as they spend a Saturday in detention together and come to realize that they are all deeper than their respective stereotypes.-Plot:The plot follows five students at...
. Forsey co-wrote the #1 worldwide hit single, "Don't You (Forget About Me)
Don't You (Forget About Me)
"Don't You " is a song known for its being in the soundtrack to the film The Breakfast Club and performed by the band Simple Minds in 1985. The songwriters were producer Keith Forsey "Don't You (Forget About Me)" is a song known for its being in the soundtrack to the film The Breakfast Club and...
", together with Steve Schiff, for the band Simple Minds
Simple Minds
Simple Minds are a Scottish rock band who achieved worldwide popularity from the mid-1980s to the early 1990s. The band produced a handful of critically acclaimed albums in the early 1980s and best known for their #1 US, Canada and Netherlands hit single "Don't You ", from the soundtrack of the...
in 1985. He additionally wrote Donna Summer's "Hot Stuff". He also produced The Donnas
The Donnas
The Donnas are an American all-female rock band from Palo Alto, California. They draw inspiration from The Ramones, The Runaways, AC/DC, Bachman–Turner Overdrive and Kiss. Rolling Stone has stated that "the Donnas offer a guileless take on adolescent alienation; they traffic in kicks, not...
' cover of the Generation X song "Dancing with Myself", and the Simple Minds album Good News from the Next World
Good News from the Next World
Good News from the Next World is Simple Minds' tenth studio album, released in 1995.The album garnered moderate commercial success. It was not badly received among critics in the United States...
in 1995.
Awards
- 1984 Academy Award - "Best Music, Original Song": "Flashdance...What a Feeling" (Forsey/Giorgio MoroderGiorgio MoroderHansjörg "Giorgio" Moroder is an Italian record producer, songwriter and performer based in Los Angeles. When in Munich in the 1970s, he started his own record label called Oasis Records, which several years later became a subdivision of Casablanca Records...
/Irene CaraIrene CaraIrene Cara is an American singer and actress. Cara won an Academy Award in 1984 in the category of Best Original Song for co-writing "Flashdance... What a Feeling." She is also known for her recording of the song "Fame", and she also starred in the 1980 film Fame.She married Hollywood stuntman...
). He was also nominated for a BAFTA Film Award. - 1984 Golden Globe awardGolden Globe AwardThe Golden Globe Award is an accolade bestowed by the 93 members of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association recognizing excellence in film and television, both domestic and foreign...
- "Best Original Song - Motion Picture": "Flashdance...What a Feeling" (Forsey/Moroder/Cara) - 1984 Grammy AwardGrammy AwardA Grammy Award — or Grammy — is an accolade by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the music industry...
- "Best Album of Original Score Written for a Motion Picture or Television Special": Flashdance. Shared between all composers: Forsey, Giorgio Moroder, Irene Cara, Shandi Sinnamon, Ronald Magness, Doug Cotler, Richard Gilbert, Michael Boddicker, Jerry Hey, Phil Ramone, Michael Sembello, Kim Carnes, Duane Hitchings, Craig Krampf, Dennis Matkosky - 1986 Grammy Award - "Best Album of Original Score Written for a Motion Picture or Television Special": Beverly Hills Cop. Shared between all composers: Forsey, Marc Benno, Harold Faltermeyer, Micki Free, Jon Gilutin Hawk, Howard Hewett, Bunny Hull, Howie Rice, Sharon Robinson, Danny Sembello, Sue Sheridan, Richard Theisen, Allee Willis
- 1988 ASCAP Award - "Most Performed Songs from Motion Pictures": Beverly Hills Cop II (Forsey/Harold FaltermeyerHarold FaltermeyerHarold Faltermeyer is a German musician, keyboardist, composer and record producer.He is recognized as one of the composers/producers who best captured the zeitgeist of 1980s synth-pop in film scores...
/Bob SegerBob SegerRobert Clark "Bob" Seger is an American rock and roll singer-songwriter, guitarist and pianist.As a locally successful Detroit-area artist, he performed and recorded as Bob Seger and the Last Heard and Bob Seger System throughout the 1960s...
). He was also nominated for a BAFTA. Forsey was also nominated for an Academy Award for 'Best Music, Original Song' for: "ShakedownShakedownShakedown may refer to:* Shakedown , a type of plastic deformation* Shakedown or a shakedown cruise, a period of testing undergone by a ship, airplane or other craft...
".