In days
gone by, only those born of noble blood could aspire to become a knight. And even
then, the young man had to prove his bravery and gallantry on the field of battle.
But to be a knight meant more than fighting and bouts of jousting. The knights
lived by a code of chivalry and honour - presenting themselves as gentlemen to
a lady and helping those in distress and need. Once a man earned the right of
knighthood, the title and honour was passed down to each succeeding descendant.
In today's society, the honour of knighthood no longer requires the perspective
knight - or dame for women - to prove their gallantry and prowess on the field
of battle but the code of honour and chivalry exists in the form of humanitarian
service and contributions to their chosen profession. Knighthood is not simply
thrust upon the potential prospect but is achieved in stages. The first stage
is the MBE or Member of the British Empire, then the OBE - Officer of the British
Empire, the CBE - Commander of the British Empire, and finally the KBE - Knight
of the British Empire; for women it is the DBE for Dame of the British Empire.
There is a fifth level above that of knight, which is the Grand Knight of the
British Empire. Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II awards each of these honours. Traditionally,
the Queen presents a list of those to be honoured at the beginning of each year
and again as a part of her birthday.
To date, Her Majesty has bestowed the
honour of knighthood on ten members of the music world - nine men and one woman.
While two of the men have been awarded the title of knighthood, they cannot carry
the traditional "Sir" before their name because they are not residents
of the British Empire or Commonwealth.
BOB GELDOF
The first
musician to receive the honour of knighthood from the world of music is Bob Geldof.
Born Robert Frederich Xenon Geldof in Dublin, Ireland, Bob is an honorary knight
that does not carry the title of "Sir" since Ireland is an independent
nation and not a part of the British Commonwealth. Geldof is a founding member
of the Irish punk band The Boomtown Rats. The left handed guitar player has five
gold and one platinum album; as well as, a Brit Award (the British equivalent
to a Grammy); but he is most known for his involvement in Band Aid and Live Aid.
After seeing a BBC program on Ethiopia and the plight of its citizens, Geldof
co-wrote, produced, and arranged for the recording of 'Do They Know its Christmas?'
The song was followed by Live Aid - a massive rock concert that took place on
both sides of the Atlantic in London and Philadelphia. The proceeds from the song
and concert went towards African Relief and AIDS causes. Geldof continues his
work in humanitarian aid.
SIR CLIFF RICHARD
Sir Cliff was born
Henry Roger Webb in Lucknow, India. A popular entertainer in the United Kingdom,
Sir Cliff is often viewed as the British version of Elvis Presley. Like Elvis,
Sir Cliff is a film and pop star and has amassed quite a large collection of hit
records - some 120. It is estimated that Sir Cliff has sold in the neighbourhood
of 250 million albums in his career. Sir Cliff has been inducted into the United
Kingdom Music Hall of Fame, won Brit and BPI (British Phonograph Industry) Awards,
and has a hit in each decade of the fifties, sixties, seventies, eighties, and
nineties. Sir Cliff earned his knighthood for his contribution to music.
SIR
GEORGE MARTIN
Sir George Martin came to the world of music following
a tour of service in the Fleet Air Arm of the Royal Navy. While he does play keyboards,
Sir George is known most for his contributions to music in another capacity -
that of record producer for The Beatles. His first foray into the long-term collaboration
was 'Please, Please Me'. Sir George is known as a truly nice guy in the music
business. Besides producing The Beatles music, Sir George also provided the keyboards
for some of The Beatles studio recordings. While it was never official, Sir George
was sometimes referred to as the fifth Beatle. Sir George Martin's list of musical
accomplishments includes a BPI Award, member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
in the United States, and the United Kingdom Music Hall of Fame.
SIR
PAUL MCCARTNEY
This left handed guitar and bass player has traversed
the world rocking to the sound of screaming teens; first as a member of the "Fab
Four"; later as a part of the band Wings and then as a solo artist. A young
Paul, born James Paul McCartney, first met George Harrison at school, and at 15
he met John Lennon and joined his band The Quarrymen. They would later go on to
form The Beatles with drummer Pete Best; Ringo came later. As a member of The
Beatles, Sir Paul penned some 240 songs. By agreement, all songs written by John
Lennon and/or Sir Paul McCartney are listed as being written by both men; many
of which were written by Sir Paul alone just like 'Yesterday' was billed as being
The Beatles when it was Sir Paul as a solo artist. As a member of his band Wings,
Sir Paul sang the theme song from the James Bond film 'Live and Let Die'. Sir
Paul is an animal rights activist and a supporter of eliminating land mines, but
this is only a small part of his accomplishments. As a musician, Sir Paul holds
3,000 copyrights, has 13 Grammy Awards (as a Beatle, with Wings, and as a solo
artist), has five multi platinum albums in the US, is a member of the United Kingdom
Hall of Music, Brit Award winner, Q Icon Award winner, BPI Award winner, member
of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, member of the Songwriters Hall of Fame, and
an honorary New York Police Detective. In 2005, Sir Paul became the first musician
to have his music played live in space when a performance was beamed into space
for orbiting astronauts. And in 2008, Sir Paul gave his first performances in
Israel. He was supposed to play as a part of the Beatles in 1964 but Israeli officials,
citing possible corruption of Israeli youth as their reason, cancelled the show.
SIR
ELTON JOHN
He was born Reginald Kenneth Dwight but took the rock world
by storm as a young Elton Hercules John - taking the name from artists he admired.
Young Reginald began playing the piano at age four and attended the Royal Academy
of Music. Record company DJM hired Sir Elton as a songwriter pairing him with
lyricist Bernie Taupin. While the two were a song-writing team, it was six months
before they ever met. The first several songs penned by the duo were conveyed
via the English postal system as Taupin would write the lyrics and send them to
Sir Elton for the music. Sir Elton, a prolific writer, could put music to a song
in less than a half an hour. Since those early days, Sir Elton holds the record
for most performances at the Madison Square Garden in New York City with 60. At
the 1974 performance, John Lennon joined Sir Elton on stage. It turned out to
be Lennon's last live appearance. Sir Elton became the first western performer
to play a concert in the USSR and Israel. Since those early days, Sir Elton has
sold an estimated 250 million albums and is the recipient of Brit, BPI and Q Awards,
Oscar and five Grammy Awards, a member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, the
Songwriters Hall of Fame and a Kennedy Center Honors member. Sir Elton has 12
multi platinum selling albums in the US including his 'Greatest Hits' album, which
has been awarded Diamond status with 15 million copies sold. In 2005, Sir Elton
joined the numerous couples that took advantage of the new Civil Union law in
the United Kingdom and married his long time partner, filmmaker David Furnish.
SHIRLEY
BASSEY
The lone woman in the list of musical knights is Welsh singer
Dame Shirley Bassey. Dame Shirley is a popular entertainer in the United Kingdom
who began her career as a performer in a travelling cabaret at the age of 16.
The British Record Industry Award winner is best known to American audiences as
the singing voice for the theme songs for the James Bond films 'Goldfinger', 'Diamonds
Are Forever', and 'Moonraker'. Dame Shirley is the only artist to perform on the
soundtrack of three films about the popular British Secret Service agent known
as 007. Dame Shirley Bassey received her knighthood for her contributions to entertainment.
JAMES
GALWAY
Sir James was born in the Northern Ireland town of Belfast near
the shipyard where the Titanic was built. Young James began playing the penny
whistle - also known as the tin whistle - at the age of two. He has won numerous
awards for his playing in Ireland. Known more for his flute, Sir James still plays
the penny whistle in his concerts. Sir James has been a member of the Belfast
Children's Orchestra, the United Kingdom National Philharmonic, The Royal Shakespeare
Theatre, and was principal flute player for the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra.
Along with his classical music performances, Sir James also performs contemporary
music and Irish music. He has performed with Celtic music legends The Chieftains.
Sir James has taught at the prestigious Eastman School of Music in Rochester,
New York. He received his title of knight for his contributions to music.
SIR
MICK JAGGER
Born Michael Phillip Jagger, Sir Mick is known as much for
his lips as he is for his singing abilities as the front man for the super rock
group The Rolling Stones. Choosing to receive his knighthood in a solo ceremony
so as not to detract from other recipients, Sir Mick was knighted by His Royal
Highness Prince Charles. Sir Mick and The Rolling Stones released their first
album, a self-titled affair, in 1964. They had their first number one album in
1965. As a part of The Rolling Stones, Sir Mick is a two time Grammy Award winner,
and a member of the United Kingdom Music Hall of Music. Sir Mick has been inducted
into the Songwriters Hall of Fame and has won an Ivor Novella Award for his song-writing.
Sir Mick has seen his photo grace the cover of the music magazine that carries
the same name as the band Rolling Stone some 20 times. Sir Mick and his bandmates
of The Rolling Stones have eleven multi platinum selling albums including a diamond
award for 10 million copies sold in the US alone for 'Hot Rocks' and the boys
continue to fill venues for live performances.
SIR TOM JONES
Sir
Tom shares two things with other members of the musical knights - he is Welsh
and sung a theme song from a James Bond film. Sir Tom sang the theme song for
'Thunderball' starring fellow knight Scotsman Sir Sean Connery. He was born Thomas
John Woodward but over the years has been known as Tommy South and later as Tom
Jones. Sir Tom began singing with the Welsh group Senators in 1963 and went solo
a year later. Sir Tom had his first number one in 1965 and 40 plus years later,
he is still releasing hit songs. Over the years, the sensual baritone has sung
everything from country music, to show tunes, pop music and techno music. Sir
Tom has become a musical chameleon changing styles when the need arose. In 1993,
Sir Tom performed at the famous Glastonbury Festival and in 2008 released a new
album titled '24 Hours'.
BONO
The newest member of musical
knights is the Irish rocker known as Bono. Born Paul David Hewson in Dublin, Ireland;
Bono took his name from a hearing aid seller Bono Vox which is Latin for good
voice. Bono, along with band mate Edge, penned the theme song for the James Bond
film 'Goldeneye' starring fellow Irishman Pierce Brosman as 007 James Bond. Proving
that he is more than just a singer and guitar player for the Irish rock band U2,
Bono was a chess champion in school. He has travelled the world meeting with religious
and political leaders on humanitarian causes and continues to be a driving force
behind a variety of causes. Born in a mixed family of a Catholic father and a
Protestant mother, Bono understands the conflicts surrounding his homeland and
many other areas around the world. Bono can sometimes be seen wearing a rosary.
He got the rosary in a trade with a very famous man - Il Poppa - Pope John Paul
II. The Pontiff admired the signature dark glasses worn by the rocker and thus
an exchange was made. Along with his activist work, Bono has acquired a long list
of musical accolades including nominations for Golden Globe, Oscar, and the Nobel
Peace Prize. Bono and U2 have won three Brit Awards, BPI Awards, a Q Icon Award,
inducted into the United Kingdom Hall of Music, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame,
22 Grammy Awards and 12 multi platinum selling albums including a Diamond Award
for 10 million copies sold of the 'Joshua Tree'. Bono has also received the Chevalier
dans l'Ordre de la Legion d'Honneur (French version of a Knighthood). At present,
the list of musical knights may be rather short but it is yet to be completed
with other musicians waiting in the wings to join the family; slow hand rocker
Eric Clapton and the newest CBE Robert Plant among them.
Sherrill
Fulghum
