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I am so floored by the sound quality... what an amazing experience, and I've only listened to a the first disc and a half's worth.
Congrats to all invovled... this truly is a dream come true.
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The second half of Season Two Disc 3-Track 18, Mirror, Mirror: "Blackship Underscore" has been on A-B Repeat for some time now. The jazzy undercurrent in the low woodwinds and strings as the re-costumed crew move down the corridor to sickbay from the transporter room, and first encounter the I.S.S. "salute", really gives a noir-ish edge to the Savage Enterprise. Jeff Bond, that's the kind of Redshirt Crewman Persona you ought to adopt!
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Jeff Bond does another interview on the ST Collection, this time on the enjoyably erudite Movies on the Radio with host David Garland on New York's WQXR classical station. There will be plenty of discussion of the music and plenty of samples as well. This show will be up for a few weeks, and I recommend checking out previous episodes as well:
http://www.wqxr.org/#!/programs/movies/
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Regarding "Catspaw," there is a good deal of unused music (Castle/Second Castle) and other cues that were tracked over with other parts of the score. Any insight as to why? My guess is that the music just didn't feel creepy enough for the setting when it was seen against the picture.
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So I guess I'm about half way through. I'm in the middle of Mirror, Mirror on Season 2, Disc 3.
This set is a wonder. I mean, we assumed it would be but it really is. I'm listening strictly (mostly strictly) in order so I don't just jump to my favorites. Sometimes this is not hard. The Cage is still a joy even though I REALLY wanted to listen to Where No Man Has Gone Before. Sometimes it's a little more difficult. The Man Trap may grow on me but it was a bit of a chore to get through this time. I listened to the Uhura vocals once. That's enough. (I haven't heard any of her other recordings, but I'm going to guess that this is not her at her best.)
OTOH, I'll be listening to Goodnight, Sweetheart a LOT. It's GORGEOUS.
Where No Man Has Gone Before sounds perfect. I mean everything does, but for some reason the sparse loneliness of WNMHGB really shimmers on this CD.
Then I get to The Doomsday Machine. (FINALLY! YAY!) Um... Hey? I'm not the music producer in the family but the rest of the music so far has sounded so much cleaner than previous recordings, even to me. Surely I'm not hearing this right. Then this morning I heard an interview with Jeff Bond (posted earlier) and sure enough, they talk about distortion in DM. It doesn't sound terrible, it's just not the same "Oh wow I'm sitting next to Fred Steiner" feel that the rest of the music has.
Another real standout for me is Who Mourns for Adonais. I know for some this is their favorite score. Now I see why.
I'm not a huge fan of Shore Leave (although I'm becoming a Gerald Fried fan for sure). But there is one track 2nd Ruth (Ruth) that I was listening along an suddenly WHERE DID THAT COME FROM? Wow!
City on the Edge of Forever is the Star Trek score I never knew I needed to have.
The packaging is glorious. It's beautiful. The liner notes are just as wonderful as you are expecting. The art design is terrific. It's a great balance of visual appeal and information.
I'll continue to babble as I make my way through the set. I'm almost completely ignorant of third season music and I know it's very highly thought of. I'm in the library cues on s2 d3 right now.
Yep, loved Star Spangled Enterprise.
Thanks to all involved. Again. I know a couple of you have said that you've been waiting for months for people to talk about this. I can see why.
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I listened to the Uhura vocals once. That's enough. (I haven't heard any of her other recordings, but I'm going to guess that this is not her at her best.)
For those who are interested, Nichelle at her best is her earlier album "Down To Earth":
http://www.amazon.com/Down-Earth-Nichelle-Nichols/dp/B00020P864/ref=pd_rhf_ee_s_cp_1
A very professionally-produced album and a good showcase for her considerable talent. A used one is less than three dollars at Amazon, well worth a try, IMHO.
(Her later album, GNP's "Out Of This World," is for Nichelle Nichols completists only, if you know what I mean.)
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There are a couple of scores--Man Trap, And The Children Shall Lead, and to an extent Plato's Stepchildren--that have some long, long, fairly subdued cues, and I think that makes them among the more challenging listens for me. All of them have great moments (the end of Plato's Stepchildren might be my favorite Trek fly-off ending other than Fried's "Godfathers") and all three scores are fairly experimental, especially Man Trap and And The Children Shall Lead--the latter features some very daring experimentation with effects from the Yamaha keyboard Duning used. Man Trap is kind of the ultimate 50s/60s "space monster" score--eerie and outre.
Where No Man Has Gone Before is a fairly spare, lonely score. Certainly compared to The Cage. But then Courage gets to The Man Trap and he makes WNMHGB seem warm and cuddly! Gosh that score is BARREN. When it's done you want to go find people to TALK to!
Jeff, just skipped ahead to Gorgon Zapped. That's pretty cool. Has kind of "A Good Start" from TMP vibe to it.
Oh WOW, just got to Meditating Spock from Paradise Syndrome. I just adore that theme all to pieces.
5 hours 14 minutes left.
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Courage took a fascinatingly bleak approach to the series, especially in those first season scores. As Rocket Man once said, "It's lonely out in space"--that seemed to be Courage's philosophy for those scores. But then listen to his second season library cues--those got right into the more upbeat feel of the second season episodes--even though Courage very likely never saw any of them!
Hello mate,
Are you the sole author of the liner notes?
Anything from a third party like Kendall and Bulk?
I think I asked for the caption on the deleted scene photo from "Elaan of Troyius".
Neil
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"Fight on Captain's Theme"! Crack a plastic skull on a real Vulcan's, second season library cues!
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What had been the most revelatory to me are the 2nd season cues I thought were composed for specific episode but were in fact library cues by Alexander Courage. The "Fight On Captain Theme" was, I always thought, composed for Mirror, Mirror. The opening credit cue in Catspaw was another one. Mainly because they don't sound at all like Courage's work to me. Also some cues by Mullendore I thought were Steiner, and so on. Amazing what I'm learning. It's just odd to have the score to Mirror, Mirror without the fight music in there. I guess having certain cues left off the rerecordings were good clues.
The sound is fricking amazing! I have no issues with The Doomsday Machine, it's just great to finally have that complete. All of this music! It's also funny how come cues come on and I don't think of the original episode it was written for; instead I think of the scene I associate with it in a later episode. The tracking on Trek was always good, and when we get Apollo's giant theme, I don't think of that episode, I think of seeing the rocket in Assignment Earth.
Love, love, LOVE this!
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