The Goldsmith Odyssey

Jerry Goldsmith's musical legacy lives on in the new animated series Gremlins: Secrets of the Mogwai, featuring a wonderful score by composer Sherri Chung. In this Odyssey Interview, your humble hosts David, Yavar, and Clark chat with Sherri about the score's large collection of memorable thematic ideas, the joy of being given the opportunity take a traditionally orchestral musical approach, the wide array of distinctive ethnic instruments employed throughout, the importance of nodding to Goldsmith's iconic themes, the challenges of navigating the modern TV music landscape, what we might be able to expect musically from the second season of the show, and more! So if it's after midnight and you're struggling to fall asleep, just sit down in a brightly-lit place, pour yourself a nice glass of water, grab a snack, and give this one a listen!

Here's the Odyssey Interviews - Sherri Chung on Gremlins: Secrets of the Mogwai Track List, with better credits than you'll find stated in the episode itself for some tracks.

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Attention! Our final Soundtrack Spotlight of the year is here! 2023 hasn’t exactly been jam-packed with new Goldsmith releases, but it’s closing with a pretty special one: Intrada’s new 2-CD presentation of MacArthur, which offers both a restoration of the original LP re-recording and the premiere of the original film tracks. Your humble hosts Yavar and David are joined by Intrada’s Douglass Fake, liner notes writer Jeff Bond, and restoration specialist Chris Malone to discuss this thrilling new release. They discuss the surprising thematic depth and variety the full version of the score has to offer, the assorted restoration challenges posed by this project, the sonic differences between the film mix and the re-recorded album cues, and much more. Remember: old film scores never die, they just get better-sounding and more complete. Dismissed!

Soundtrack Spotlight shall return… in 2024.

Track List - Odyssey Soundtrack Spotlight - MacArthur 

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Take shelter! Mariah is here! (No, not that one.) Your humble hosts David, Yavar, and Clark dig into the CBS Radio Workshop episode "Storm," a meteorologically-themed docudrama featuring striking narration from William Conrad and a tense, turbulent score from Jerry Goldsmith. You'll hear discussion of the unique nature of this experimental radio series, the effectiveness of Goldsmith's decision to use music to create a dividing line between the narration and the scripted drama, the striking use of a harmonica to represent the storm, the minimal use of recurring themes, and more! While you're waiting for the skies to clear, join us in the storm cellar for an exploration of this little-known musical gem. Enjoy!

CBS Radio Workshop - Storm Track List!

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We know what you're thinking: why is The Goldsmith Odyssey covering Leith Stevens? Well, for one thing, War of the Worlds (1953) is a personal favorite film and score of Odyssey co-host and editor W. David Lichty. For another, it's a good excuse to spend time with friends of the show Chris Malone (who co-produced the new expanded  album for La-La Land) and John Takis (who wrote the liner notes), both of whom once again have marvelous musical insights to offer. And for more reasons, just listen to the show itself, in which you'll hear discussion of where this score sits within Stevens' body of work, the surprising ways in which the score functions dramatically, the crucial improvements this album makes to the previous release, the qualities of the companion score When Worlds Collide, the wildly different versions of this classic story that have been offered over the years, and much more! Don't worry, we aren't planning to start wandering off-mission on a regular basis, but this new release was too exciting a conversation topic to pass up.  Despite the relative absence of our pal Jerry, we hope you'll enjoy this affectionate celebration of an underappreciated composer's most significant work.

Here!  A The War of the Worlds Bonus Soundtrack Spotlight track list!

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Better late than never, we offer a detailed Soundtrack Spotlight on Varese Sarabande's definitive presentation of Jerry Goldsmith’s memorably noir-tinged score for Harold Becker's City Hall! First, your humble hosts David and Clark are joined by liner notes writer Tim Greiving for a discussion of the film's modest virtues, the score's central ideas, the real-life experiences that informed the film's screenplay, the musical influence of Leonard Bernstein's On the Waterfront, and other topics. Afterwards, David and Clark explore the significant and subtle differences between the various film versions, album versions, and alternates this thorough score presentation has to offer. We hope you'll join us for a stroll down the corridors of power(ful film music)!

Here is your de-confusing City Hall Soundtrack Spotlight Track List!

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The latest Jerry Goldsmith at The General Electric Theater volume is now available, and we're thrilled to give you all the details in this Production Report with our friend, conductor/reconstructionist/renaissance man Leigh Phillips. The fifth entry in his ongoing series of re-recordings is "The Last Dance," a sensitive and emotionally complex score for an episode of television that remains lost for the time being. In addition to offering a detailed breakdown of the assorted challenges posed throughout the recording session, Leigh talks to your humble hosts David, Yavar, and Clark about how the success of the earlier Kickstarter campaigns led to this "bonus" recording, inviting a wider audience to view the recording sessions, the most effective approach to leading an orchestra, his ambitious plan to re-record Goldsmith's Lionheart, and much more. Give it a listen, and then click over to Leigh's website to secure your copy of the score (featuring liner notes by Yavar). Enjoy!

Edited by Wes Deckers.

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Back in October of 2021, your humble hosts Yavar and David had a conversation with esteemed art designer Joe Sikoryak about his work  for Film Score Monthly, Intrada, Percepto, and La-La Land Records. Over the course of that chat, Joe offered comments on falling in love with film music as a child, shopping at Intrada Records during the physical shop's early days, and getting a job from Lukas Kendall to redesign and help give Film Score Monthly a more professional magazine look. He mused on the evolving style of soundtrack album design, the challenging economics of releasing soundtrack albums, the Jerry Goldsmith music he enjoys most, and why (as a huge fan of both Goldsmith and Star Trek) he initially struggled to fully connect with the music for Star Trek: The Motion Picture! That discussion is bookended by a more recent chat, in which Joe offers an update on a graphic novel he’s been working on, talks about his participation in both The Jerry Goldsmith Companion and Jerry Goldsmith at The General Electric Theater Kickstarter projects, and offers a great many further insights. Joe has contributed a great deal to the world of soundtrack albums and has a lot of thoughtful commentary to offer, so this is a 2-in-1 conversation you'll want to make time for. It's the interview equivalent of dry-aged brisket placed within a freshly-baked bun, and our hope is that it's comparably enjoyable!

Edited by Wes Deckers.

https://www.joesikoryak.com

https://birdcage-bottom-books.myshopify.com/products/when-we-were-trekkies-bundle-issues-1-7

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Given that all members of the Odyssey team are also lifelong Star Trek enthusiasts, we were particularly thrilled and honored to welcome actor/director Jonathan Frakes to the program. Your humble hosts Yavar, David, and Clark, along with Film Score Monthly founder Lukas Kendall, chat with Jonathan about his experiences working with Jerry on Star Trek: First Contact and Star Trek: Insurrection, the complex nature of Goldsmith’s relationship with the Trek franchise, the collaborative qualities that distinguished Jerry from other film composers, the warmly-received third season of Star Trek: Picard, and much more! It's a warm, lively chat filled with fond memories and memorable music. If you've got 50 minutes to spare, make this show your Number One priority!

Note: This interview was conducted on July 12th, 2023, just prior to the SAG-AFTRA strike.

Track List - Odyssey Interviews - Jonathan Frakes

Special thanks to friend of the show Stéphane Coëdel for his lovely work on this episode's cover image.

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In this episode, we turn our attention to one of America's most memorable, witty, and insightful figures: Andy, co-host of the excellent film music podcast Settling the Score. He joins your humble hosts David, Yavar, and Clark to examine the Playhouse 90 installment "The Shape of the River," which details the tragedy-filled later years of writer Samuel Clemens (aka Mark Twain), and offers a Goldsmith score that alternates between bustling Americana and plaintive melancholy. We take a look at why this teleplay struggles to succeed despite being written by Oscar-winner Horton Foote, try to pin down Goldsmith's unusually loose and slippery thematic ideas, and even offer some reconstructed versions of cues missing from the episode (generously provided by friend of the show Carson Cohen). So give it a listen, and allow our viewing pain to become your listening pleasure!

Your handy Shape of the River Track List! 

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The whole band is back together for a very special kinda-sorta anniversary show! Your humble hosts David, Yavar, Clark, and Jens dig into Goldsmith’s memorable radio score for the 1956 CBS Suspense episode "The Security Agent," a political thriller about two friends attempting to flee Communist Poland. You'll hear discussion of the surprising musical origins of Goldsmith's main theme, the composer's early instincts for knowing when to hold back, the surprisingly nuanced characterizations this tale has to offer, and much more! Afterwards, stick around for a bonus trip down memory lane, as we look back on some of our favorite episodes and discoveries of the Odyssey's first five years. Whether you've been along for the whole ride or have just discovered the show, we thank you for listening, and hope you'll pardon the self-indulgence. Enjoy!

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