Lyricist/librettist Don Black is perhaps best-known for his collaborations with Andrew Lloyd Webber and for the James Bond theme songs he co-wrote with composer John Barry: "Thunderball," "Diamonds Are Forever," and "Man With the Golden Gun." Black began his career in show business as a standup comedian and debuted as a lyricist for the musical Billy, written with Barry. He later collaborated with Quincy Jones on the 1969 soundtrack The Italian Job, scored the Dove soundtrack in 1974, and has since scored many hit musicals with Andrew Lloyd Webber throughout the 1980s and 1990s, including Tell Me on a Sunday, Sunset Boulevard, and Aspects of Love. In addition to his work for successful musicals, Black has written other popular hit songs, including "Ben," a U.K. chart-topper for Michael Jackson; "To Sir With Love," a U.S. number one single for Lulu; Matt Munro's "Walk Away"; "I'll Put You Together Again" by Hot Chocolate; and the Olympics theme "Amigos Para Siempre," written with Lloyd Webber. Black has collaborated with other leading composers such as Henry Mancini, Jule Styne, and Charles Strouse. He has served as vice president of the British Academy of Songwriters, Composers and Authors, and is the recipient of multiple Academy Award nominations, Tony Awards, and Ivor Novello Awards, as well as an Oscar and a Golden Globe Award. In 1995, a collection of his songs, entitled Songbook, was released. ~ Joslyn Layne