Recently I listened to an M&E compilation of music from John Williams's first feature film, Daddy-O. Some of you may know the movie from Mystery Science Theater, I know I've seen it enough times. It got me to thinking about the arch of his career as a musician and composer.
Starting out as a jazz pianist, arranger and session player, scoring his early films with jazzy aplomb and playful music for comedies, his notable foray into sci-fi TV series for Irwin Allen, disaster films, early blockbusters, the explosive return of epic symphonic scores he almost single handedly was responsible for, long time conductor of the Boston Pops, his concert works and film music played around the world and this weekend, perhaps the pinnacle of his career, conducting his own music for the unparalleld Berlin Philharmonic.
I won't be watching the concert until Saturday for the live broadcast on the Berlin Phil's Digital Concert Hall, but I'm establishing a mindset beforehand for what it means in such an incredible career, one which is still ongoing.
So here for your approval, the Main Titles to Daddy-O, screeching tires, car horns and all. It seems to owe some to Elmer Bernstein's The Man with the Golden Arm, but nevertheless it's William's first steps in a film music career that has made him a household name and whose many recognizable themes and melodies are part of a collective pop culture consciousness around the world.
