Martin Armiger
Encyclopedia
John Martin Armiger is an Australian musician, record producer
and film/TV composer. He was singer-songwriter and guitar
ist with Melbourne
-based rock band, The Sports
during 1978–1981, which had Top 30 hits on the Kent Music Report
Singles Chart with, "Don't Throw Stones" (1979), "Strangers on a Train" (1980) and "How Come" (1981); and top 20 albums with, Don't Throw Stones (#9, 1979), Suddenly (#13, 1980) and Sondra (1981).
Armiger was musical director for Australian Broadcasting Corporation
(ABC) TV series, Sweet and Sour
, in 1984 and was record producer on the related soundtrack album
s as well as performing and songwriting. Since 2004, Armiger is Head of Screen Composition at the Australian Film Television and Radio School
(AFTRS).
, UK in 1949, his father played double bass
and piano
and sang in local bands; his mother played piano and sang. The family migrated to Australia when he was a child and lived in Elizabeth
South Australia
. Armiger studied at Flinders University
in Adelaide
and completed his Bachelor of Arts
(Honours) course in 1974. His younger brothers, Keith Armiger, Andrew Armiger and Michael Armiger are also musicians and have been members of The Immigrants (1978–1980) in Elizabeth, 10000 Guitars (1985–1987) in Melbourne and Armiger Brothers in Sydney, as well as having separate musical careers. Youngest brother Chris Armiger joined the Armiger Brothers and they have recorded with Martin, who also produced
.
By the early 1970s, Armiger decided to make music his career, and over a period of several months made a concentrated push to bring his guitar playing to a standard that would assist this aim. Armiger moved to Melbourne
, Victoria
and involved himself in the music scene, playing guitar in local bands. In 1975 he joined, The Toads, with Andrew Bell, Randy Bulpin, Jane Clifton
, Eric Gradman, Jenny Keith, Buzz Leeson and Eddie van Rosendaal. Also in 1975, Armiger composed music for A Night in Rio, a stage musical
at Melbourne's Pram Factory, and the score for Pure Shit
(aka Pure S), a feature film directed by Bert Deling. In 1976 he was a band member of The Bleeding Hearts, with Gradman, Rick Grossman
, Keith Shadwick, Huk Treloar, Laurie Tunnecliffe, Geoff Warner and Chris Worrall. The band appeared at Melbourne venues such as The Kingston Hotel & The Tiger Lounge (Hotel) where Armiger played a white Fender Stratocaster. He then joined pub-rockers
, The High Rise Bombers, during 1977–1978, the line-up included Armiger (guitar
, vocals, songwriter), Lee Cass (bass guitar
), Chris Dyson (guitar), Sally Ford (saxophone
, songwriter), Paul Kelly
(vocals, guitar, songwriter), John Lloyd (drums
) and Shadwick (saxophone). Dyson was replaced by Chris Langman (guitar, vocals) in early 1978 and in August, Armiger left for The Sports
, Ford left for The Kevins, and Kelly formed Paul Kelly and the Dots with Langman and Lloyd. High Rise Bombers had recorded two tracks "She's Got It" and "Domestic Criminal" which eventually appeared on the 1981 compilation
The Melbourne Club by various artists on Missing Link Records
.
on vocals, Ed Bates on guitar, Robert Glover on bass guitar, Jim Niven on piano and Paul Hitchins on drums. Andrew Pendlebury joined on guitar in August 1977, in August 1978 Bates was replaced by Armiger. According to music journalist
, Ian McFarlane, Cummings had ousted Bates in favour of Armiger who had a "more commercial outlook".
The Sports had local chart success in the late 1970s and early 1980s with Top 30 hits on the Kent Music Report
Singles Chart with, "Don't Throw Stones" (1979), "Strangers on a Train" (1980) and "How Come" (1981); and top 20 albums with, Don't Throw Stones (#9, 1979), Suddenly (#13, 1980) and Sondra (1981). "Strangers on a Train" was written by Armiger. The band broke up in 1981 and Cummings went on to a solo career.
' debut album, Talk
, released on Mushroom Records
in March. In 1982, he produced a mini-LP
, Club of Rome, and a single, "Ululation (Here It Comes Again)" for The Kevins which included Sally Ford, another former bandmate. In the early 1980s, Armiger moved to New South Wales
, he continued to produce records and also composed and played music for film
s and TV.
From 2 July 1984, Australian Broadcasting Corporation
(ABC) broadcast a 20-episode, weekly pop music / drama TV series, Sweet and Sour
. Armiger was musical director for Sweet and Sour and also provided backing vocals, lead guitar, bass guitar, keyboards, drums and lyrics; he also produced the two soundtrack album
s, Sweet & Sour - TV Soundtrack and Sweet & Sour Volume Two, and three singles, "Sweet and Sour" (which peaked at #13 on the Australian National Singles Chart
), "Glam to Wham" and "No Focus". Also in 1984, Armiger joined Stephen Cummings Band on guitar and vocals, and in August produced the debut solo album, Senso, released on Regular Records, with the related single, "Gymnasium" which peaked at #27. In 1987, Armiger composed music for ABC TV series, Stringer and in April 1988, he produced the related album, Always Got the Blues, released by singers, Kate Ceberano
and Wendy Matthews
, which included his songwriting effort "Stringer"; the album reached #4 on the national chart. Young Einstein
was the 1988 film by Yahoo Serious
, Armiger composed the score (with William Motzing) and won the Australian Film Institute Award
for 'Best Original Music Score'. Armiger was composer for Come in Spinner
, an ABC TV series in 1989, and produced the soundtrack, Come in Spinner in 1990, by Vince Jones
and Grace Knight
, which peaked at #4 on the ARIA Album Charts
. Armiger provided the inspiration for the Screen Music Awards established by the Australian Guild of Screen Composers (AGSC) in 1992. He was subsequently AGSC president for seven years. In 1993, he produced, Seven Deadly Sins, another soundtrack, for the ABC TV drama series, Seven Deadly Sins.
The Sports reformed for the Mushroom 25 Live
anniversary concert on 14 November 1998, at the Melbourne Cricket Ground
(MCG), but Armiger was unable to perform due to a broken leg. Armiger composed the news theme for the ABC which has been in use on ABC1
since early 2005. Since 2004, Armiger is Head of Screen Composition at the Australian Film Television and Radio School
(AFTRS). In 2006, Flinders University
recognised Armiger's contributions to the music industry as a recipient of their 'Distinguished Alumni Awards'. In October 2009, Armiger was called as an expert witness for a Federal Court
hearing on a plagiarism
claim against Colin Hay
and Ron Strykert
as writers of the 1981 Men at Work
hit single "Down Under" which peaked at #1 in Australia, United Kingdom and United States—the flute riff is claimed to be from "Kookaburra Sits in the Old Gum Tree
". Armiger stated that the flute riff had the same melody as "Kookaburra" but gave a different impression in "Down Under" and it was debatable whether the flute riff was the hook.
The High Rise Bombers
or co-producer:
Party Girls (1995)
Where Angels Fear to Tread (1996)
Wild Ones (1997)
Thank God He Met Lizzie
aka The Wedding Party (1997)
The Great Stumble Forward (1998)
Ketchup (1998)
Two Girls & a Baby (1998)
David Carradine's Martial Arts Adventure (1999)
House Gang (1999)
Fetch (1999)
Powderburn (1999)
Hard Knox (2001)
The Secret Life of Us
(2001)
Hildegarde aka Hildegarde: A Duck Down Under (2001)
Marking Time
(2003)
The Surgeon (2006)
Clubland aka Introducing the Dwights (2007)
Australasian Performing Right Association
(APRA) recognises excellence by composers and songwriters with the APRA Awards
presented annually since 1982.
|-
| rowspan="2"| 1995 || Cody
|| rowspan="2" | Most Performed Television Theme ||
|-
| Flowers and the Wide Sea ||
APRA-AGSC Screen Music Awards
These awards are presented annually since 2002 by APRA in conjunction with Australian Guild of Screen Composers (AGSC) for television and films scores and soundtracks. Separate AGSC Awards were inaugurated in 1992 upon the inspiration of Armiger.
|-
| 2004 || Marking Time
|| Best Music for a Mini-Series or Telemovie ||
Australian Film Institute Awards
Australian Film Institute
(AFI) recognises excellence in film work with the Australian Film Institute Awards
(AFI Awards) presented annually since 1958.
|-
| 1986 || Young Einstein
|| Best Original Music Score ||
Australian Recording Industry Association Awards
Australian Recording Industry Association
(ARIA) recognises excellence in recorded musical work with the ARIA Music Awards
(ARIAs) presented annually since 1987
.
|-
| 1995
|| Fornicon || Best Original Soundtrack / Cast / Show Recording ||
Countdown Awards
Countdown was an Australian pop music TV series on national broadcaster ABC-TV
from 1974–1987, it presented music awards from 1979–1987, initially in conjunction with magazine TV Week
but then independently. The Countdown Music and Video Awards were succeeded by the ARIA Awards.
|-
| 1984 ||Martin Armiger || Best 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...
and film/TV composer. He was singer-songwriter and guitar
Guitar
The guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
ist with Melbourne
Melbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
-based rock band, The Sports
The Sports
The Sports were a popular Australian rock group that performed and recorded between 1976 and 1981.Based in Melbourne, Victoria, the group released a number of successful singles and albums. Their sound fitted well with both 1970s British pub rock bands and British New Wave...
during 1978–1981, which had Top 30 hits on the Kent Music Report
Kent Music Report
The Kent Music Report was a weekly record chart of Australian music singles and albums which was compiled by music enthusiast David Kent from May 1974 through to 1998...
Singles Chart with, "Don't Throw Stones" (1979), "Strangers on a Train" (1980) and "How Come" (1981); and top 20 albums with, Don't Throw Stones (#9, 1979), Suddenly (#13, 1980) and Sondra (1981).
Armiger was musical director for Australian Broadcasting Corporation
Australian Broadcasting Corporation
The Australian Broadcasting Corporation, commonly referred to as "the ABC" , is Australia's national public broadcaster...
(ABC) TV series, Sweet and Sour
Sweet and Sour (TV series)
Sweet and Sour is an Australian television series which screened on the Australian Broadcasting Corporation in 1984. It was created by Tim Gooding and Johanna Pigott and was produced internally for the ABC by Jan Chapman...
, in 1984 and was record producer on the related soundtrack album
Soundtrack album
A soundtrack album is any album that incorporates music directly recorded from the soundtrack of a particular feature film or television program. In some cases, not all the tracks from the movie are included in the album; however there are rare cases of songs in the trailers that do not appear in...
s as well as performing and songwriting. Since 2004, Armiger is Head of Screen Composition at the Australian Film Television and Radio School
Australian Film Television and Radio School
The Australian Film, Television and Radio School is the Australian national centre for professional education and advanced training in film, television, radio and digital media. The School is an Australian Commonwealth government statutory authority...
(AFTRS).
Early years
Martin Armiger was born in Hitchin, HertfordshireHertfordshire
Hertfordshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England. The county town is Hertford.The county is one of the Home Counties and lies inland, bordered by Greater London , Buckinghamshire , Bedfordshire , Cambridgeshire and...
, UK in 1949, his father played double bass
Double bass
The double bass, also called the string bass, upright bass, standup bass or contrabass, is the largest and lowest-pitched bowed string instrument in the modern symphony orchestra, with strings usually tuned to E1, A1, D2 and G2...
and piano
Piano
The piano is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It is one of the most popular instruments in the world. Widely used in classical and jazz music for solo performances, ensemble use, chamber music and accompaniment, the piano is also very popular as an aid to composing and rehearsal...
and sang in local bands; his mother played piano and sang. The family migrated to Australia when he was a child and lived in Elizabeth
Elizabeth, South Australia
Elizabeth is a northern suburb of Adelaide, South Australia. It is located in the City of Playford.-History:Elizabeth was established in 1955 as part of a planned satellite town by the South Australian Housing Trust on rural land between the older towns of Salisbury and...
South Australia
South Australia
South Australia is a state of Australia in the southern central part of the country. It covers some of the most arid parts of the continent; with a total land area of , it is the fourth largest of Australia's six states and two territories.South Australia shares borders with all of the mainland...
. Armiger studied at Flinders University
Flinders University
Flinders University, , is a public university in Adelaide, South Australia. Founded in 1966, it was named in honour of navigator Matthew Flinders, who explored and surveyed the South Australian coastline in the early 19th century.The university has established a reputation as a leading research...
in Adelaide
Adelaide
Adelaide is the capital city of South Australia and the fifth-largest city in Australia. Adelaide has an estimated population of more than 1.2 million...
and completed his Bachelor of Arts
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
(Honours) course in 1974. His younger brothers, Keith Armiger, Andrew Armiger and Michael Armiger are also musicians and have been members of The Immigrants (1978–1980) in Elizabeth, 10000 Guitars (1985–1987) in Melbourne and Armiger Brothers in Sydney, as well as having separate musical careers. Youngest brother Chris Armiger joined the Armiger Brothers and they have recorded with Martin, who also produced
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...
.
By the early 1970s, Armiger decided to make music his career, and over a period of several months made a concentrated push to bring his guitar playing to a standard that would assist this aim. Armiger moved to Melbourne
Melbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
, Victoria
Victoria (Australia)
Victoria is the second most populous state in Australia. Geographically the smallest mainland state, Victoria is bordered by New South Wales, South Australia, and Tasmania on Boundary Islet to the north, west and south respectively....
and involved himself in the music scene, playing guitar in local bands. In 1975 he joined, The Toads, with Andrew Bell, Randy Bulpin, Jane Clifton
Jane Clifton
Jane Clifton is a Gibraltar-born actress and singer who lived as a child in Cardiff, Wales. In 1961 she emigrated to Perth, Australia. Her best known acting role is probably that of tough prison bookie Margo Gaffney in Prisoner...
, Eric Gradman, Jenny Keith, Buzz Leeson and Eddie van Rosendaal. Also in 1975, Armiger composed music for A Night in Rio, a stage musical
Musical theatre
Musical theatre is a form of theatre combining songs, spoken dialogue, acting, and dance. The emotional content of the piece – humor, pathos, love, anger – as well as the story itself, is communicated through the words, music, movement and technical aspects of the entertainment as an...
at Melbourne's Pram Factory, and the score for Pure Shit
Pure Shit
Pure Shit is a 1975 Australian drama film directed by Bert Deling. When the film premiered at Melbourne’s Playbox in May 1976, the Vice Squad raided the theatre...
(aka Pure S), a feature film directed by Bert Deling. In 1976 he was a band member of The Bleeding Hearts, with Gradman, Rick Grossman
Richard Grossman (musician)
Richard Grossman is an Australian rock musician who has played bass guitar for two iconic bands Divinyls and Hoodoo Gurus. Hoodoo Gurus iconic status on the Australian rock scene was acknowledged when they were inducted into the 2007 ARIA Hall of Fame. For Grossman, this was his second Hall of Fame...
, Keith Shadwick, Huk Treloar, Laurie Tunnecliffe, Geoff Warner and Chris Worrall. The band appeared at Melbourne venues such as The Kingston Hotel & The Tiger Lounge (Hotel) where Armiger played a white Fender Stratocaster. He then joined pub-rockers
Pub rock (Australia)
Pub rock is a style of Australian rock and roll popular throughout the 1970s and 1980s, and still influencing contemporary Australian music today....
, The High Rise Bombers, during 1977–1978, the line-up included Armiger (guitar
Guitar
The guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
, vocals, songwriter), Lee Cass (bass guitar
Bass guitar
The bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
), Chris Dyson (guitar), Sally Ford (saxophone
Saxophone
The saxophone is a conical-bore transposing musical instrument that is a member of the woodwind family. Saxophones are usually made of brass and played with a single-reed mouthpiece similar to that of the clarinet. The saxophone was invented by the Belgian instrument maker Adolphe Sax in 1846...
, songwriter), Paul Kelly
Paul Kelly (musician)
Paul Maurice Kelly is an Australian rock music singer-songwriter, guitarist, and harmonica player. He has performed solo, and has led numerous groups, including the Dots, the Coloured Girls, and the Messengers. He has worked with other artists and groups, including associated projects Professor...
(vocals, guitar, songwriter), John Lloyd (drums
Drum kit
A drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
) and Shadwick (saxophone). Dyson was replaced by Chris Langman (guitar, vocals) in early 1978 and in August, Armiger left for The Sports
The Sports
The Sports were a popular Australian rock group that performed and recorded between 1976 and 1981.Based in Melbourne, Victoria, the group released a number of successful singles and albums. Their sound fitted well with both 1970s British pub rock bands and British New Wave...
, Ford left for The Kevins, and Kelly formed Paul Kelly and the Dots with Langman and Lloyd. High Rise Bombers had recorded two tracks "She's Got It" and "Domestic Criminal" which eventually appeared on the 1981 compilation
Compilation album
A compilation album is an album featuring tracks from one or more performers, often culled from a variety of sources The tracks are usually collected according to a common characteristic, such as popularity, genre, source or subject matter...
The Melbourne Club by various artists on Missing Link Records
Missing Link Records
Missing Link Records is a record store in Melbourne, Australia. The shop first opened in 1971, but was then called Archie and Jughead's, named after the comic. The shop's co-founders, David Pepperell and Keith Glass, established the shop as a much-needed rock record shop...
.
The Sports
The Sports had formed in Melbourne in 1976 and included, Stephen CummingsStephen Cummings
Stephen Donald Cummings is an Australian rock singer-songwriter and writer. He was lead singer of Melbourne-based rock band, The Sports, during 1976–1981, followed by a solo career which has met with critical acclaim but has had limited commercial success...
on vocals, Ed Bates on guitar, Robert Glover on bass guitar, Jim Niven on piano and Paul Hitchins on drums. Andrew Pendlebury joined on guitar in August 1977, in August 1978 Bates was replaced by Armiger. According to music journalist
Music journalism
Music journalism is criticism and reportage about music. It began in the eighteenth century as comment on what is now thought of as 'classical music'. This aspect of music journalism, today often referred to as music criticism , comprises the study, discussion, evaluation, and interpretation of...
, Ian McFarlane, Cummings had ousted Bates in favour of Armiger who had a "more commercial outlook".
The Sports had local chart success in the late 1970s and early 1980s with Top 30 hits on the Kent Music Report
Kent Music Report
The Kent Music Report was a weekly record chart of Australian music singles and albums which was compiled by music enthusiast David Kent from May 1974 through to 1998...
Singles Chart with, "Don't Throw Stones" (1979), "Strangers on a Train" (1980) and "How Come" (1981); and top 20 albums with, Don't Throw Stones (#9, 1979), Suddenly (#13, 1980) and Sondra (1981). "Strangers on a Train" was written by Armiger. The band broke up in 1981 and Cummings went on to a solo career.
Record producer and music composer
While a member of The Sports, Armiger produced "Beatnik Twist" as a single for Johnny Topper in 1979. In 1981, he produced three tracks on former High Rise Bombers bandmates, Paul Kelly & the DotsPaul Kelly (musician)
Paul Maurice Kelly is an Australian rock music singer-songwriter, guitarist, and harmonica player. He has performed solo, and has led numerous groups, including the Dots, the Coloured Girls, and the Messengers. He has worked with other artists and groups, including associated projects Professor...
' debut album, Talk
Talk (Paul Kelly album)
Talk is the debut album by Australian rock group Paul Kelly and the Dots and was originally released on 30 March 1981 by Mushroom Records and re-released in 1990. Jo Jo Zep & The Falcons leader Joe Camilleri produced seven of the eleven tracks with the rest produced by either Martin Armiger or...
, released on Mushroom Records
Mushroom Records
Mushroom Records is an Australian recoJrd company formed by Michael Gudinski and Ray Evans in Melbourne in 1972. After its sale in 1998, it merged into Festival Mushroom Records. From 2005 to 2009, it is one of the record labels operated by Warner Bros...
in March. In 1982, he produced a mini-LP
Extended play
An EP is a musical recording which contains more music than a single, but is too short to qualify as a full album or LP. The term EP originally referred only to specific types of vinyl records other than 78 rpm standard play records and LP records, but it is now applied to mid-length Compact...
, Club of Rome, and a single, "Ululation (Here It Comes Again)" for The Kevins which included Sally Ford, another former bandmate. In the early 1980s, Armiger moved to New South Wales
New South Wales
New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...
, he continued to produce records and also composed and played music for film
Film
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
s and TV.
From 2 July 1984, Australian Broadcasting Corporation
Australian Broadcasting Corporation
The Australian Broadcasting Corporation, commonly referred to as "the ABC" , is Australia's national public broadcaster...
(ABC) broadcast a 20-episode, weekly pop music / drama TV series, Sweet and Sour
Sweet and Sour (TV series)
Sweet and Sour is an Australian television series which screened on the Australian Broadcasting Corporation in 1984. It was created by Tim Gooding and Johanna Pigott and was produced internally for the ABC by Jan Chapman...
. Armiger was musical director for Sweet and Sour and also provided backing vocals, lead guitar, bass guitar, keyboards, drums and lyrics; he also produced the two soundtrack album
Soundtrack album
A soundtrack album is any album that incorporates music directly recorded from the soundtrack of a particular feature film or television program. In some cases, not all the tracks from the movie are included in the album; however there are rare cases of songs in the trailers that do not appear in...
s, Sweet & Sour - TV Soundtrack and Sweet & Sour Volume Two, and three singles, "Sweet and Sour" (which peaked at #13 on the Australian National Singles Chart
Kent Music Report
The Kent Music Report was a weekly record chart of Australian music singles and albums which was compiled by music enthusiast David Kent from May 1974 through to 1998...
), "Glam to Wham" and "No Focus". Also in 1984, Armiger joined Stephen Cummings Band on guitar and vocals, and in August produced the debut solo album, Senso, released on Regular Records, with the related single, "Gymnasium" which peaked at #27. In 1987, Armiger composed music for ABC TV series, Stringer and in April 1988, he produced the related album, Always Got the Blues, released by singers, Kate Ceberano
Kate Ceberano
Kate Ceberano is an Australian singer. She achieved success in the soul, jazz and pop genres as well as in her brief forays into musicals with Jesus Christ Superstar and film...
and Wendy Matthews
Wendy Matthews
Wendy Joan Matthews is an Australian adult alternative pop singer originally from Canada who has been a member of Models and Absent Friends and is a solo artist...
, which included his songwriting effort "Stringer"; the album reached #4 on the national chart. Young Einstein
Young Einstein
Young Einstein is an Australian comedy film directed by and starring Yahoo Serious, released in 1988.-Plot:Albert Einstein, the son of an apple farmer in Tasmania in the early 1900s, splits a beer atom with a chisel in order to add bubbles to beer, discovers the theory of relativity and travels to...
was the 1988 film by Yahoo Serious
Yahoo Serious
Yahoo Serious , born Greg Pead , is an Australian film actor, director and score composer. He is best known for his 1988 comedy Young Einstein. He also created Reckless Kelly in 1993 and Mr. Accident in 2000...
, Armiger composed the score (with William Motzing) and won the Australian Film Institute Award
Australian Film Institute Awards
The Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts Award, known as the AACTA Award , is an accolade presented annually by the Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts . The awards recognize excellence of professionals in the film industry and television industry, including directors,...
for 'Best Original Music Score'. Armiger was composer for Come in Spinner
Come In Spinner
Come In Spinner is an Australian novel by Dymphna Cusack and Florence James, originally published in 1951, and set in Sydney, Australia at the end of the second World War.The title refers to a phrase used in the Australian gambling game of two-up....
, an ABC TV series in 1989, and produced the soundtrack, Come in Spinner in 1990, by Vince Jones
Vince Jones
Vince Jones is an Australian jazz artist. He is a singer, songwriter, and trumpet/flugelhorn player. His music includes both original music and new contemporary versions of jazz standards. His themes are often love, inequity, injustice, peace and anti-greed.He attributes his love of jazz to...
and Grace Knight
Grace Knight
Grace Knight is an English-born, Australian vocalist, saxophone player and songwriter. She was a mainstay of Indie pop group Eurogliders during the 1980s which formed in Perth. Knight later became a solo jazz singer and musician based in Sydney...
, which peaked at #4 on the ARIA Album Charts
ARIA Charts
The ARIA charts are the main Australian music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling singles and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA commenced compiling its own charts in-house from the week ending 26 June...
. Armiger provided the inspiration for the Screen Music Awards established by the Australian Guild of Screen Composers (AGSC) in 1992. He was subsequently AGSC president for seven years. In 1993, he produced, Seven Deadly Sins, another soundtrack, for the ABC TV drama series, Seven Deadly Sins.
The Sports reformed for the Mushroom 25 Live
Mushroom 25 Live
Mushroom 25 Live is a live album, video and DVD by various Australian musicians and was recorded at the Mushroom 25 Concert held on Saturday 14 November 1998, at the Melbourne Cricket Ground...
anniversary concert on 14 November 1998, at the Melbourne Cricket Ground
Melbourne Cricket Ground
The Melbourne Cricket Ground is an Australian sports stadium located in Yarra Park, Melbourne and is home to the Melbourne Cricket Club. It is the tenth largest stadium in the world, the largest in Australia, the largest stadium for playing cricket, and holds the world record for the highest light...
(MCG), but Armiger was unable to perform due to a broken leg. Armiger composed the news theme for the ABC which has been in use on ABC1
ABC1
ABC1 was a United Kingdom based television channel from Disney using the branding of the Disney owned American network, ABC.The channel initially launched exclusively on the British digital terrestrial television platform Freeview on 27 September 2004. On 10 December 2004 it was launched on...
since early 2005. Since 2004, Armiger is Head of Screen Composition at the Australian Film Television and Radio School
Australian Film Television and Radio School
The Australian Film, Television and Radio School is the Australian national centre for professional education and advanced training in film, television, radio and digital media. The School is an Australian Commonwealth government statutory authority...
(AFTRS). In 2006, Flinders University
Flinders University
Flinders University, , is a public university in Adelaide, South Australia. Founded in 1966, it was named in honour of navigator Matthew Flinders, who explored and surveyed the South Australian coastline in the early 19th century.The university has established a reputation as a leading research...
recognised Armiger's contributions to the music industry as a recipient of their 'Distinguished Alumni Awards'. In October 2009, Armiger was called as an expert witness for a Federal Court
Federal Court of Australia
The Federal Court of Australia is an Australian superior court of record which has jurisdiction to deal with most civil disputes governed by federal law , along with some summary criminal matters. Cases are heard at first instance by single Judges...
hearing on a plagiarism
Plagiarism
Plagiarism is defined in dictionaries as the "wrongful appropriation," "close imitation," or "purloining and publication" of another author's "language, thoughts, ideas, or expressions," and the representation of them as one's own original work, but the notion remains problematic with nebulous...
claim against Colin Hay
Colin Hay
Colin James Hay is a Scottish-Australian musician, who made his mark during the 1980s as lead vocalist of the Australian band Men at Work, and later as a solo artist.- Early life and Men at Work :...
and Ron Strykert
Ron Strykert
Ronald "Ron" Graham Strykert is an Australian guitarist, known for playing lead guitar for the reggae inspired 1980s band, Men at Work....
as writers of the 1981 Men at Work
Men at Work
Men at Work are an Australian rock band who achieved international success in the 1980s. They are the only Australian artists to have a simultaneous #1 album and #1 single in the United States . They achieved the same distinction of a simultaneous #1 album and #1 single in the United Kingdom...
hit single "Down Under" which peaked at #1 in Australia, United Kingdom and United States—the flute riff is claimed to be from "Kookaburra Sits in the Old Gum Tree
Kookaburra (song)
"Kookaburra" is a popular Australian nursery rhyme and round about the Kookaburra , written by Marion Sinclair .-Composition:...
". Armiger stated that the flute riff had the same melody as "Kookaburra" but gave a different impression in "Down Under" and it was debatable whether the flute riff was the hook.
Discography
- Main article: The Sports discography | Stephen Cummings Band discography
The High Rise Bombers
- "She's Got It", "Domestic Criminal" on The Melbourne Club – various artists (1981, Missing Link RecordsMissing Link RecordsMissing Link Records is a record store in Melbourne, Australia. The shop first opened in 1971, but was then called Archie and Jughead's, named after the comic. The shop's co-founders, David Pepperell and Keith Glass, established the shop as a much-needed rock record shop...
)
Record producer
Armiger credited as producerRecord 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...
or co-producer:
- "Beatnick Twist" – Johnny Topper (1979)
- TalkTalk (Paul Kelly album)Talk is the debut album by Australian rock group Paul Kelly and the Dots and was originally released on 30 March 1981 by Mushroom Records and re-released in 1990. Jo Jo Zep & The Falcons leader Joe Camilleri produced seven of the eleven tracks with the rest produced by either Martin Armiger or...
– Paul Kelly & the DotsPaul Kelly (musician)Paul Maurice Kelly is an Australian rock music singer-songwriter, guitarist, and harmonica player. He has performed solo, and has led numerous groups, including the Dots, the Coloured Girls, and the Messengers. He has worked with other artists and groups, including associated projects Professor...
(1981, Mushroom RecordsMushroom RecordsMushroom Records is an Australian recoJrd company formed by Michael Gudinski and Ray Evans in Melbourne in 1972. After its sale in 1998, it merged into Festival Mushroom Records. From 2005 to 2009, it is one of the record labels operated by Warner Bros...
) - Club of Rome (mini-LPExtended playAn EP is a musical recording which contains more music than a single, but is too short to qualify as a full album or LP. The term EP originally referred only to specific types of vinyl records other than 78 rpm standard play records and LP records, but it is now applied to mid-length Compact...
) – The Kevins (1982, White Label Records)- "Ululation (Here It Comes Again)" (1983)
- D-D-Dance – The AllnitersAllnitersThe Allniters were an Australian ska pop band based in Sydney during 1980–1987. Original line-up was Ted Ayers on sax, Dave Bebb on drums, Stuart Crysell on guitar, Martin Fabok on guitar, Peter Hill-Travis on vocals, Graham Hood on bass guitar, Brett Pattinson on vocals and Mark Taylor on...
(1983, Powderworks/RCARCARCA Corporation, founded as the Radio Corporation of America, was an American electronics company in existence from 1919 to 1986. The RCA trademark is currently owned by the French conglomerate Technicolor SA through RCA Trademark Management S.A., a company owned by Technicolor...
) - Sweet & Sour - TV Soundtrack by Takeaways & Various Artists (soundtrackSoundtrack albumA soundtrack album is any album that incorporates music directly recorded from the soundtrack of a particular feature film or television program. In some cases, not all the tracks from the movie are included in the album; however there are rare cases of songs in the trailers that do not appear in...
) – various artists (1984, ABC Records)- "Sweet & Sour", "Glam to Wham" (1984)
- Senso – Stephen CummingsStephen CummingsStephen Donald Cummings is an Australian rock singer-songwriter and writer. He was lead singer of Melbourne-based rock band, The Sports, during 1976–1981, followed by a solo career which has met with critical acclaim but has had limited commercial success...
(1984, Regular Records) - Sweet & Sour Volume Two (soundtrack) – various artists (1984, ABC)
- "No Focus" (1984)
- "Phantom Shuffle" – Austen TayshusAusten TayshusAusten Tayshus is the stage name of Jewish Australian comedian Alexander Jacob Gutman. He is best known for the comedy single "Australiana", a spoken word piece filled with Australian puns.-Biography:...
(1984, Regular) - Deckchairs Overboard – Deckchairs OverboardDeckchairs OverboardDeckchairs Overboard was an Australian Pop music band based in Sydney . They developed from Melbourne based Cheks with the addition of Cathy McQuade and had some minor hit singles "That's The Way" , with Ken Campbell on vocals, "Shout", with McQuade on vocals, "Walking In The Dark" and "Fight...
(1985, Regular) - Distance – Benders (1985)
- Illusions (soundtrack) – various artists (1986)
- "Dumb Things" – Paul Kelly (1988, Mushroom/White)
- Trouble from Providence – Sacred CowboysSacred CowboysSacred Cowboys are an Australian post-punk rock band based in Melbourne and active in 1982-85, 1987-97 and since 2006.The band's lead singer and lyricist is Garry Gray. The current line-up includes: Spencer P. Jones ; Penny Ikinger ; Nick Rischbieth and; Stephan Fiddock . A special guest for shows...
(1988, Normal Records/Citadel Records) - You've Always Got the Blues (soundtrack for Stringer) – Kate CeberanoKate CeberanoKate Ceberano is an Australian singer. She achieved success in the soul, jazz and pop genres as well as in her brief forays into musicals with Jesus Christ Superstar and film...
& Wendy MatthewsWendy MatthewsWendy Joan Matthews is an Australian adult alternative pop singer originally from Canada who has been a member of Models and Absent Friends and is a solo artist...
(1988, ABC) - Young EinsteinYoung EinsteinYoung Einstein is an Australian comedy film directed by and starring Yahoo Serious, released in 1988.-Plot:Albert Einstein, the son of an apple farmer in Tasmania in the early 1900s, splits a beer atom with a chisel in order to add bubbles to beer, discovers the theory of relativity and travels to...
(soundtrack) – various artists (1988) - The CrossingThe Crossing (1990 film)The Crossing is a 1990 Australian drama film directed by George Ogilvie and starring Russell Crowe, Robert Mammone and Danielle Spencer, which was filmed in the towns of Junee and Condobolin in New South Wales.-Box office:...
(soundtrack) – various artists (1990) - Come in SpinnerCome In SpinnerCome In Spinner is an Australian novel by Dymphna Cusack and Florence James, originally published in 1951, and set in Sydney, Australia at the end of the second World War.The title refers to a phrase used in the Australian gambling game of two-up....
(soundtrack) – Vince JonesVince JonesVince Jones is an Australian jazz artist. He is a singer, songwriter, and trumpet/flugelhorn player. His music includes both original music and new contemporary versions of jazz standards. His themes are often love, inequity, injustice, peace and anti-greed.He attributes his love of jazz to...
& Grace KnightGrace KnightGrace Knight is an English-born, Australian vocalist, saxophone player and songwriter. She was a mainstay of Indie pop group Eurogliders during the 1980s which formed in Perth. Knight later became a solo jazz singer and musician based in Sydney...
(1990, ABC) - Thursday's Fortune – Club Hoy (1991)
- Get Happy – Teen QueensTeen QueensThe Teen Queens were an Australian girl group, which scored a string of hit singles in the 1990s with updated remakes of hits from the 1950s and 1960s.-Background:...
(1992) - Wide Skies – GondwanalandGondwanaland (band)Gondwanaland, originally billed as Gondwanaland Project, were an ARIA Award winning Australian musical ensemble which combined indigenous Australian instruments such as didgeridoo and bullroarer with western instruments such as synthesizer and guitar....
(1992, WEAWarner Music GroupWarner Music Group is the third largest business group and family of record labels in the recording industry, making it one of the big four record companies...
) - Seven Deadly Sins (soundtrack) – various artists (1993, ABC)
- Bravado – Penny FlanaganPenny FlanaganPenny Flanagan attended high school at Monte Sant' Angelo Mercy College and is a Sydney based singer/songwriter and novelist. Her musical career began in 1989 when she cut her teeth on the workings of the Australian music industry as one half of the widely acclaimed folk-pop duo, Club Hoy...
(1994) - Seven Flights Up – Penny Flanagan (1996)
Filmography
Armiger credited as music composer or co-composer:- Pure ShitPure ShitPure Shit is a 1975 Australian drama film directed by Bert Deling. When the film premiered at Melbourne’s Playbox in May 1976, the Vice Squad raided the theatre...
(aka Pure S) (1976) - Belau (1983)
- White Man's Legend (1984)
- Displaced Persons (1984)
- Sweet and SourSweet and Sour (TV series)Sweet and Sour is an Australian television series which screened on the Australian Broadcasting Corporation in 1984. It was created by Tim Gooding and Johanna Pigott and was produced internally for the ABC by Jan Chapman...
(1984) - The Lizard King (1985)
- The Empty Beach (1985)
- Dancing Daze (1986)
- Cyclone Tracy (1986)
- Two Friends (1986)
- I Own the Racecourse (1986)
- The Challenge (1986)
- I've Come about the Suicide (1987)
- Perhaps Love (1987)
- Relative Merits (1987)
- Cane Toads (1988)
- Police Rescue (1988)
- Young EinsteinYoung EinsteinYoung Einstein is an Australian comedy film directed by and starring Yahoo Serious, released in 1988.-Plot:Albert Einstein, the son of an apple farmer in Tasmania in the early 1900s, splits a beer atom with a chisel in order to add bubbles to beer, discovers the theory of relativity and travels to...
(1988) - Stringer (1988)
- The Last Resort (1988)
- Sweetie (1989)
- The Rainbow Warrior Conspiracy (1989)
- The Body Surfers (1989)
- The CrossingThe Crossing (1990 film)The Crossing is a 1990 Australian drama film directed by George Ogilvie and starring Russell Crowe, Robert Mammone and Danielle Spencer, which was filmed in the towns of Junee and Condobolin in New South Wales.-Box office:...
(1990) - Ring of Scorpio (1990)
- Wonderful World of Dogs (1990)
- Come in SpinnerCome In SpinnerCome In Spinner is an Australian novel by Dymphna Cusack and Florence James, originally published in 1951, and set in Sydney, Australia at the end of the second World War.The title refers to a phrase used in the Australian gambling game of two-up....
(1990) - Waiting (1991)
- Flowers and the Wide Sea (1991)
- Children of the Dragon (1991)
- Fremantle Conspiracy (1992)
- The Other Side of Paradise (1993)
- Nice Guys Finish Last (1993)
- Seven Deadly Sins ("Greed", "Envy" episodes) (1993)
- CodyCody (telemovie)Cody was a series of Australian telemovies starring Gary Sweet, screened on the Seven Network. Sweet played the title character Cody, a rogue cop.-Movie Titles:* Cody: The Tipoff * Cody: A Family Affair * Cody: Bad Love...
(1994–1996)
Thank God He Met Lizzie
Thank God He Met Lizzie is a 1997 Australian romantic comedy film starring Cate Blanchett and Richard Roxburgh. It was the directorial debut of Cherie Nowlan...
aka The Wedding Party (1997)
The Secret Life of Us
The Secret Life of Us was a television drama series set in the beachside suburb of St Kilda, Melbourne, Australia. The series was produced by Southern Star Entertainment and screened in Australia from 2001 to 2005 on Network Ten and on Channel 4 in the UK...
(2001)
Marking Time
Marking Time was an Australian television mini-series, consisting of four one-hour episodes. It first aired on 9 and 10 November 2003 on ABC-TV...
(2003)
Awards
Australasian Performing Right Association AwardsAustralasian Performing Right Association
Australasian Performing Right Association
The Australasian Performing Right Association is a copyright collective representing New Zealand and Australian composers, lyricists and music publishers. The association's head offices located in Sydney Australia, and it has branch offices in Auckland, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth...
(APRA) recognises excellence by composers and songwriters with the APRA Awards
APRA Awards
The APRA Music Awards are several award ceremonies run in Australia and New Zealand by Australasian Performing Right Association to recognise songwriting skills, sales and airplay performance by its members annually....
presented annually since 1982.
|-
| rowspan="2"| 1995 || Cody
Cody (telemovie)
Cody was a series of Australian telemovies starring Gary Sweet, screened on the Seven Network. Sweet played the title character Cody, a rogue cop.-Movie Titles:* Cody: The Tipoff * Cody: A Family Affair * Cody: Bad Love...
|| rowspan="2" | Most Performed Television Theme ||
|-
| Flowers and the Wide Sea ||
APRA-AGSC Screen Music Awards
These awards are presented annually since 2002 by APRA in conjunction with Australian Guild of Screen Composers (AGSC) for television and films scores and soundtracks. Separate AGSC Awards were inaugurated in 1992 upon the inspiration of Armiger.
|-
| 2004 || Marking Time
Marking Time
Marking Time was an Australian television mini-series, consisting of four one-hour episodes. It first aired on 9 and 10 November 2003 on ABC-TV...
|| Best Music for a Mini-Series or Telemovie ||
Australian Film Institute Awards
Australian Film Institute
Australian Film Institute
The Australian Film Institute was founded in 1958 as a non-profit organisation devoted to developing an active film culture in Australia and fostering engagement between the general public and the Australian film industry...
(AFI) recognises excellence in film work with the Australian Film Institute Awards
Australian Film Institute Awards
The Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts Award, known as the AACTA Award , is an accolade presented annually by the Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts . The awards recognize excellence of professionals in the film industry and television industry, including directors,...
(AFI Awards) presented annually since 1958.
|-
| 1986 || Young Einstein
Young Einstein
Young Einstein is an Australian comedy film directed by and starring Yahoo Serious, released in 1988.-Plot:Albert Einstein, the son of an apple farmer in Tasmania in the early 1900s, splits a beer atom with a chisel in order to add bubbles to beer, discovers the theory of relativity and travels to...
|| Best Original Music Score ||
Australian Recording Industry Association Awards
Australian Recording Industry Association
Australian Recording Industry Association
The Australian Recording Industry Association is a trade group representing the Australian recording industry which was established in 1983 by six major record companies, EMI, Festival, CBS, RCA, WEA and Universal replacing the Association of Australian Record Manufacturers which was formed in 1956...
(ARIA) recognises excellence in recorded musical work with the ARIA Music Awards
ARIA Music Awards
The Australian Recording Industry Association Music Awards is an annual series of awards nights celebrating the Australian music industry, put on by the Australian Recording Industry Association...
(ARIAs) presented annually since 1987
ARIA Music Awards of 1987
The First Australian Recording Industry Association Music Awards was held on 2 March 1987 at the Sheraton Wentworth Hotel in Sydney with Elton John as the host. Presenters of the 20 awards included, Slim Dusty, Basia Bonkowski and Donnie Sutherland, the ceremony was not televised...
.
|-
| 1995
ARIA Music Awards of 1995
The Ninth Australian Recording Industry Association Music Awards was held on 20 October 1995 at the Sydney Convention & Exhibition Centre. There had been a 19-month gap since the previous award ceremony which was moved to be "closer to the business end of the music industry's year"...
|| Fornicon || Best Original Soundtrack / Cast / Show Recording ||
Countdown Awards
Countdown was an Australian pop music TV series on national broadcaster ABC-TV
ABC Television
ABC Television is a service of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation launched in 1956. As a public broadcasting broadcaster, the ABC provides four non-commercial channels within Australia, and a partially advertising-funded satellite channel overseas....
from 1974–1987, it presented music awards from 1979–1987, initially in conjunction with magazine TV Week
TV Week
TV Week is a weekly television magazine in Australia, first published as a Melbourne-only publication in December 1957 , and bearing a strong affiliation to television station GTV.The publication is still publishing weekly...
but then independently. The Countdown Music and Video Awards were succeeded by the ARIA Awards.
|-
| 1984 ||Martin Armiger || Best Producer ||
External links
- Martin Armiger staff profile at Australian Film Television and Radio SchoolAustralian Film Television and Radio SchoolThe Australian Film, Television and Radio School is the Australian national centre for professional education and advanced training in film, television, radio and digital media. The School is an Australian Commonwealth government statutory authority...
(AFTRS) - Martin Armiger filmography at Allmovie
- [ Martin Armiger credits] at Allmusic