Simon Fisher-Turner

by Joslyn Layne
U.K. composer and sound designer Simon Fisher-Turner is perhaps best known for his film scores of independent films, including a number of Derek Jarman's and his Oscar-nominated score for Anna Campion's Loaded. In his youth, he was a child television actor who recorded a pop LP and some 45s (self-described as "appalling") for UK Records and Ariola in the '70s. Later, he and Colin Lloyd Tucker were involved in the early days of the The, but soon went off as a duo (1982), recording two albums as Deux Filles (two French girls), then one as Jeremy's Secret. After Fisher-Turner went solo, his film score work for Derek Jarman began, starting with the film Caravaggio and including his later score for Blue. He also recorded two albums (for El) and toured under the name the King of Luxembourg in the late '80s. The late '90s found him collaborating with Robin Rimbaud (Scanner) on live improvisations and the album on Travelcard; Fisher-Turner also collaborated with choreographer Rosemary Butcher for several years and, more recently, played in the Hangovers, a band led by Gina Birch of the Raincoats. He has recorded for Creation, Mute, and other labels under a variety of aliases (not including those previously mentioned): Simon Turner, SFT, Loveletter, Live Blue Roma, and in collaborations as Kendall Turner Overdrive and Bad Dream Fancy Dress.