peter noble
November 18th, 2003, 07:52 AM
Original Soundtrack to Epic TV Space Drama BATTLESTAR GALACTICA Remastered and Reissued in 25th ANNIVERSARY EDITION
LOS ANGELES, Nov. 14 /PRNewswire/ -- It is unusual when a TV series that lasted just one season continues to inspire a cult following 25 years later. It is phenomenally rare when the music to such a series, in fact any TV series, still receives kudos after such a passage of time. Yet that is the case with 1978's "Battlestar Galactica." Having recently inspired Xbox and Sony PlayStation 2 games, the release of a six-DVD boxed set and a re-imagining of the series on the Sci-Fi Channel, and with a motion picture on the drawing boards, the series' inspired and moving music now returns as well with BATTLESTAR GALACTICA: ORIGINAL SOUNDTRACK 25th ANNIVERSARY EDITION (Geffen/UMe), released November 18, 2003.
Digitally remastered from the original master tapes, BATTLESTAR GALACTICA: ORIGINAL SOUNDTRACK 25th ANNIVERSARY EDITION also boasts a bonus track, an extended 1978 disco version of "Theme From Battlestar Galactica" which makes its CD debut and was spotlighted at fan convention Galacticon 2003 on October 24-26 in Los Angeles. The package also features additional photos and new liner notes and reminiscences from composer Stu Phillips, series creator/producer Glen A. Larson, star Richard Hatch, and Mark A. Altman, writer/producer of the film FREE ENTERPRISE and Co-publisher/Editorial Director of Cinefantastique/CFQ Magazine.
Charged with creating a bombastic and stirring space score in the wake of John Williams' STAR WARS effort, Phillips and Larson wrote one of the most memorable television themes ever, earning a Grammy nomination. Weaving a complicated tapestry of themes throughout, including a memorable motif for the Cylons and Imperious Leader, Phillips integrated orchestral, choral and electronic elements. The original soundtrack also added an obligatory late-'70s disco number.
Utilizing the Los Angeles Philharmonic was certainly a coup for a TV series. But being on the scoring stage of 20th Century Fox was equally unexpected, since Fox was suing Universal and Larson for what they thought was a STAR WARS rip-off. Even Williams showed up to see if Phillips might be plagiarizing his work. He wasn't and in 1983 Williams asked him to arrange a customized "Galactica" suite for him and the Boston Pops to record. Larson notes with pride watching Williams conduct the Pops as they performed "Theme From Battlestar Galactica" amidst his movie signatures for STAR WARS, RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK and CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF A THIRD KIND.
ABC had committed the largest budget ever for a three-hour TV premiere. More than 65 million viewers tuned in. But the series proved too expensive to produce weekly. Twenty-five years later, BATTLESTAR GALACTICA is a science fiction classic and its music acclaimed like no other TV score.
LOS ANGELES, Nov. 14 /PRNewswire/ -- It is unusual when a TV series that lasted just one season continues to inspire a cult following 25 years later. It is phenomenally rare when the music to such a series, in fact any TV series, still receives kudos after such a passage of time. Yet that is the case with 1978's "Battlestar Galactica." Having recently inspired Xbox and Sony PlayStation 2 games, the release of a six-DVD boxed set and a re-imagining of the series on the Sci-Fi Channel, and with a motion picture on the drawing boards, the series' inspired and moving music now returns as well with BATTLESTAR GALACTICA: ORIGINAL SOUNDTRACK 25th ANNIVERSARY EDITION (Geffen/UMe), released November 18, 2003.
Digitally remastered from the original master tapes, BATTLESTAR GALACTICA: ORIGINAL SOUNDTRACK 25th ANNIVERSARY EDITION also boasts a bonus track, an extended 1978 disco version of "Theme From Battlestar Galactica" which makes its CD debut and was spotlighted at fan convention Galacticon 2003 on October 24-26 in Los Angeles. The package also features additional photos and new liner notes and reminiscences from composer Stu Phillips, series creator/producer Glen A. Larson, star Richard Hatch, and Mark A. Altman, writer/producer of the film FREE ENTERPRISE and Co-publisher/Editorial Director of Cinefantastique/CFQ Magazine.
Charged with creating a bombastic and stirring space score in the wake of John Williams' STAR WARS effort, Phillips and Larson wrote one of the most memorable television themes ever, earning a Grammy nomination. Weaving a complicated tapestry of themes throughout, including a memorable motif for the Cylons and Imperious Leader, Phillips integrated orchestral, choral and electronic elements. The original soundtrack also added an obligatory late-'70s disco number.
Utilizing the Los Angeles Philharmonic was certainly a coup for a TV series. But being on the scoring stage of 20th Century Fox was equally unexpected, since Fox was suing Universal and Larson for what they thought was a STAR WARS rip-off. Even Williams showed up to see if Phillips might be plagiarizing his work. He wasn't and in 1983 Williams asked him to arrange a customized "Galactica" suite for him and the Boston Pops to record. Larson notes with pride watching Williams conduct the Pops as they performed "Theme From Battlestar Galactica" amidst his movie signatures for STAR WARS, RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK and CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF A THIRD KIND.
ABC had committed the largest budget ever for a three-hour TV premiere. More than 65 million viewers tuned in. But the series proved too expensive to produce weekly. Twenty-five years later, BATTLESTAR GALACTICA is a science fiction classic and its music acclaimed like no other TV score.