Arthur Greenslade (4 May 1923 – 27 November 2003) (also known as Art Greenslade) was a British conductor and arranger for films and television, as well as for a number of performers. He was most musically active in the 1960s and 1970s.
Greenslade was born in Northfleet, Kent. He began playing the piano at the age of four, joining a band in Gillingham as a semi-professional, alongside peers such as Ronnie Verrell and Tommy Whittle. In the 1950s, he gained experience playing in the bands of Cyril Stapleton, Vic Lewis and Carl Barriteau before emerging as the pianist and arranger with the Oscar Rabin Band. With the Rabin Band he participated in a BBC radio series, Go Man Go, for five years. His own band, Arthur Greenslade and the G-Men, featured on the BBC's Saturday Club.
Greenslade arranged for Jack Jones, Chris Farlowe, Serge Gainsbourg ("Je T'Aime ... Moi Non Plus"), Genesis, Cat Stevens, Diana Ross, Dusty Springfield, the Bachelors ("I Believe") and Kinderjazz. With Andrew Loog Oldham he wrote "Headlines", the B-side of "Ride on Baby" (IM 038), by Chris Farlowe, which was released in 1966. He arranged Ireland's 1973 Eurovision Song Contest entry, "Do I Dream", sung by Maxi.
Links to Peel[]
Arthur (or Art) Greenslade did orchestral arrangements for Top Gear sessions for Cat Stevens and David Bowie in 1967, when Peel and Tommy Vance were co-hosting the show. He also arranged and conducted the orchestral backing for Chris Farlowe on "Out Of Time" and "Ride On Baby", the singer's two 1966 hit singles, which appeared in Peel's KMEN British Pop Top Ten when the DJ was working at that radio station under the name John Ravencroft.
Sessions[]
David Bowie Top Gear dec 18th 1967 ( audio )
1. Recorded with Cat Stevens: 1967-12-08. First Broadcast: 17 December 1967
- I Love Them All / Kitty / Sun's In The Sky / I'm Gonna Be King / Blackness Of The Night
2. Recorded with David Bowie: 1967-12-18. First Broadcast: 24 December 1967
- Love You Till Tuesday / Little Bombardier / In The Heat Of The Morning / Silly Boy Blue / When I Live My Dream
Other Shows Played[]
- None