On July 31, Ben Daglish would have celebrated his 60th birthday.
For many of us, Ben Daglish isn’t just a name from old credits, not just a musician from the prime of the Commodore 64, and not just someone who wrote a few well-known melodies.
Ben was one of the people who gave the SID a soul.
Anyone who grew up with the C64 knows that music on that machine was never just background noise. It was atmosphere, feelings and sometimes it was the very reason you’d reload a game in the first place. You’d hear the first few notes and instantly find yourself transported to another world.
Ben’s music had character. It was playful, powerful, driving sometimes almost narrative. It didn’t just sound like technology, like three voices and clever routines. It sounded like someone who understood how to make a lot out of very little.
Titles like The Last Ninja, Deflektor, Krakout, or Trap are more than just old game names to many people. They’re little time machines. A few seconds of music are enough, and suddenly it’s all there again: the monitor, the sound of the floppy drive, the joystick in your hand, and that feeling that the C64 was so much more than just a computer.
For many of us, however, this music was not just a memory, but also a source of inspiration. It showed what’s possible with limited hardware when technology, emotion, and creativity come together. It shaped us, motivated us, and, in its own way, helped us create our own creative works.
The video footage is from Anybody/TRSI, who had the chance to see Ben perform live at a Fastloaders concert in London in 2016. The photo at the end of the video was taken by Patrick Becher he holds the rights to it.
Ben passed away eight years ago today, leaving this world far too soon, but his spirit and his music remain.
They live on in SID files, in memories, in remixes, in conversations, and in those moments when a tune starts playing somewhere and you immediately know why that sound is still something special today and continues to inspire so many.
For TRSI and many others in the scene, Ben is part of this shared cultural DNA. He’s one of those names you don’t have to explain when talking to people who were there back then. And he’s one of those names you should pass on when new people discover this world.
Thank you, Ben.
- For the tunes.
- For the memories.
- For the inspiration.
- For that special sound that hasn’t faded to this day.
WESTPOINT Special Radio
For this day, we wanted to let the music speak for itself.
To accompany our remembrance of Ben, WESTPOINT is running a special tribute radio with a curated selection of his original Commodore 64 SID music.
Just Ben, the SID, and the music that has stayed with us for all these years.
Listen to the WESTPOINT Ben Daglish Tribute Radio:
https://westpoint.fun/radio/ben-daglish-tribute
Since we can only stream Ben's music for a limited time, you have until October 4, 2026, to listen to it online.
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Old Facebook-Page with many Fotos of Ben: https://www.facebook.com/BenDaglishC64/
