Francis Monkman: Film composer and Curved Air co-founder

Francis Monkman was the keyboardist and a founding member of two of the great progressive rock bands of the Seventies, Curved Air and Sky.

Monkman, who has died aged 73, was a major figure in the world of popular music, as well as film, bringing his skills in composition, keyboard and guitar to rock fans and movie-goers alike.

Monkman was born in Hampstead in 1949, the son of Vita Duncan and Kenneth Monkman, a journalist and devotee of the novelist Laurence Sterne. He was educated at Hill House School, Knightsbridge, and Westminster School, studying harpsichord and organ.

During an interview by David Ellis about the beginnings of the group for which he is best known, Monkman said: “Curved Air started in about 1969; that dovetailed with the end of studies at the Royal Academy of Music. I had to decide between the second half of my [bachelor of music] and going on the road. It wasn't a very hard decision!”

The band, named after the album A Rainbow in Curved Air by the avant-garde composer Terry Riley, played a heady mix of sounds, influenced by classical, rock and folk traditions. Their best-known track, “Back Street Luv”, with its haunting vocals by Sonja Kristina, reached number four in the UK charts.

Monkman quit Curved Air following the release of the band’s third studio album, Phantasmagoria (1972), citing musical differences with co-founder Darryl Way. He later commented, “Darryl and I respect each others’ work, but we don’t really see eye-to-eye on most things. And we never really got the co-writing thing together.”

He opted to become a session musician, playing with bands including The Shadows, whom he accompanied on their 1977 20 Golden Greats tour.

The same year, while Roxy Music took a break from recording and touring, Brian Eno and Phil Manzanera formed 801, a short-lived supergroup. Bringing together several big names from the music world, with Monkman on keyboards, the band played just three gigs, culminating in a final concert at the Queen Elizabeth Hall on the Southbank, preserved for posterity on the LP 801 Live.

Monkman would soon go on to found another musical ensemble, Sky. Founded in 1978, together with the classical guitarist John Williams, the band featured a line-up including Kevin Peek (guitar) and Tristan Fry (drums) and Herbie Flowers (bass).

In a later interview with Calyx, he recalled the genesis of Sky: “I worked on John Williams’s second ‘crossover’ album, ended up writing what became the title track, ‘Travelling’. Sounds like ‘proto-Sky’ ... John and I went for a stroll, some fresh air, and he said ‘how about a band?’, went on from there. Herbie was already playing on the album, seemed a natural choice, then Kevin, then Tris. Couldn't have been simpler.”

Their compositions cleverly combined elements of jazz, classical and rock, even reaching number six in the UK charts (and another Top of the Pops appearance for Monkman) with an electrified – and electrifying – rendition of Bach’s Toccata.

Following his departure from Sky in 1981, Monkman enjoyed a successful career as a film music composer, working on scores for several movies. His fellow band members said in a tribute statement: “Francis is also known for his playing synthesiser on the scores to The Empire Strikes Back, Raiders Of The Lost Ark, Superman II and two of the James Bond movies, The Spy Who Loved Me and Live and Let Die. Francis’ score for The Long Good Friday has the avid admiration of film fans in its own right.”

One of those admirers was the critic, Mark Kermode, who said of the movie score: “Francis Monkman’s synthy, saxy theme remains nail-bitingly catchy. Sheer brilliance”.

Outside of the music world, Monkman had made the pages of this newspaper in an article headlined “Rock star aids Russian, 92, who was shorn of her sheep”. Alexandra Vdovina, a shepherd, had been ordered to pay compensation to a man who killed her sheep with his car. Monkman, who had heard about the story on Russia Today, stepped in and paid the fine. “I hope you find a nice sheep to replace the other one, and I hope your life becomes happy again,” he told Vdovina at the time.

Sonja Kristina, singer for Curved Air, spoke with Monkman earlier this month and said in tribute: “I told him how proud I was to be still performing our beautiful songs, that his passion for sonic adventure was groundbreaking and his lyrics fine and eloquent – notably on ‘Over And Above’ and ‘Piece Of Mind’ – his Curved Air extended masterpieces."

Monkman had been previously married to Uiko Chida. They had a daughter, Maya, who died in a road accident.

Francis Monkman, composer and musician, born 9 June 1949, died 11 May 2023