Apologies for not reading all the thread, are the original recordings lost?
They weren't just lost, they're thought to have been deliberately destroyed. Lorimer Productions did a house cleaning at some point, and threw out much of what they had in storage, including all Waltons master tapes. Very short-sighted of them.
Some Lorimar property was shipped to USC in the late 80s. As far as I know, it’s never been processed.
Just to offer a suggestion, this might be something that would interest Leigh Phillips to consider looking at after he's done the current project he's been doing.
The Orchestras weren't very large (Mostly a decent sized chamber Group) that might be vastly easier to do when license from WB at the moment.
What was the 6th episode titled, Yavar? >>>>>>> The Love Story (only one he recorded in 1973) ------------------------- Oh, just noticed this. Thanks Yavar. That's the episode missing from my tape. I'm guessing it wasn't known or confirmed, back in the paper-full, black & white days. I'm up for a Leigh Phillips 2 disc re-recorded edition too. Can't wait.
And here's another revelation for you, that I learned thanks to Jon Burlingame... Jerry Goldsmith actually wrote original music for a SEVENTH episode of the series proper -- "The Minstrel"! (Technically "The Love Story" is still the seventh episode I suppose, since that came after.)
Note that I didn't say he wrote a score for it -- apparently Arthur Morton wrote the score in post-production, sometimes using Goldsmith's melodies. But in pre-production this episode called for an original song (to be sung on screen by a character)... and Goldsmith penned it! The song is called "My Parents' Child", with words by John Furia Jr. (who wrote the episode itself). Here it is -- doesn't sound a million miles away from some of Jerry's work on The Ballad of Cable Hogue a few years before:
Would LOVE for a new rendition of it to be included on any future definitive complete recording of Jerry's work on The Waltons! And since it sounds like the Arthur Morton score cue trailing after the song is adapting the song melody, I'd honestly love for it to be included as well...
Wow!!! Great info and find. Yes, that strumming guitar melody does call to mind CABLE HOGUE, but those lyrics are a bit clunky and...not great. But it would make for a nice bonus on any potential CD release. Who knows, they might find a smoother singer too.
The musical phrase that hits “tomorrow’s child” (and earlier “my parent’s child”) in this song reminds me very strongly of the “my true love’s eyes” musical phrase in, well, Jerry’s song of that same title from Legend. Anyone else hear it?
Regarding tapes: Check out my September 8, 2013 post in this thread.
Given everything I've heard about WB's current licensing rates, it would cost LESS to just produce a new recording of the music then trying to find (If they exist, which I have my doubts about).
Thanks, Yavar, for sharing the revelation about the Waltons song "My Parents' Child."
It was reading this very thread early in the COVID lockdowns, when I already was searching for viewing material that my wife and I (with our conflicting tastes) might have the interest to watch together, that inspired me to search for this series' first-season DVD set. Neither of us had watched the series much -- but while I respected the very few episodes I had ever seen and always loved its theme melody, I was eager to discover the first-season Goldsmith material. And since my wife grew up near the bottom of her large family in the rural South in the '60s, I hoped she might identify with that comparable rural white Southern family in the Depression era.
It was a success: Eventually we settled into a routine of watching an episode with our breakfast on weekends, and occasionally my wife would enjoy one episode so well that she asked for the next one right away. For myself, I was delighted to find that the scripts in that first season were even stronger than for the few stray, later episodes I had seen before. (An additional layer of dramatic power comes from revisiting this nostalgic series later in life, when you have known the losses of grandparents, parents, and even siblings.) But at least in that one season viewed, I heard some Arthur Morton AND Alexander Courage scores that were about as effective and appealing as were each of the few Goldsmiths, beyond their occasional use of Jerry's main theme.
My vote in Intrada's May 2023 Kickstarter poll went to the prospect of full recordings of The Waltons. At my stage of life, I know I would appreciate and return to that album more often than I ever will THE CHAIRMAN. (Which I'll still buy anyway, as it looks to be the eventual winner.)
But Yavar: At one point during the "Minstrel" episode I specifically remember thinking, "This song is beautiful, but it's sure not like real songs from the '30s." Because I watched the box set without having made a list of the Jerry-scored titles from this thread, I told my wife (in progress) that "The Minstrel" had to be one of Goldsmith's episodes. Well, the end titles credited only Morton... which made me salute Arthur! I can't go check now, because our possessions are packed for an imminent move; but I'm pretty sure that "The Minstrel" contains at least TWO conspicuously appealing songs, though it feels as if I found "My Parent's Child" the more beautiful of the two. It sure is good to learn the truth of its provenance.
And now that you have pointed it out, Yavar, I absolutely agree about the resemblance to "My True Love's Eyes." That's a real expert's catch.
However, the link within Justin's 2013 post above about Lorimar tapes no longer seems active.
Glad you liked the song, Steven! And I'm glad you and your wife enjoyed the show. I look forward to discovering it when we arrive there on The Goldsmith Odyssey. I confess the only episode I've watched to date is "The Ceremony" (I'm a sucker for Jerry's "Jewish sound").
It's also good to hear that the Morton and Courage scores are good. I do really love that Morton cue adapting Goldsmith's song melody in "The Minstrel", and would be interested if he does that much more throughout the score. I'm glad I'm not crazy and you also hear the similarity to "My True Love's Eyes"! I'd be interested to hear that other song in the episode too; I wonder if it was pre-existing and who wrote it.
I wonder if you might end up enjoying a complete Chairman (in great sound) better than you expect. That score has a decent amount of variety in it, among the great action and cool Asian sound everyone gravitates towards.
