Media Watch: upcoming (inner)view

Spotted on Twitter: Anil Prasad posted yesterday to note his recent interview session with Trevor, and over the years Anil has provided some very insightful exchanges with this particular subject - looking forward to the new upcoming chapter!

https://twitter.com/Innerviews/status/1702793411907203464

Media Watch: news notes

A few things to report on...

Unfortunately, it was announced last week that National Treasure: Edge of History has been cancelled by Disney+ as confirmed by Variety:

https://variety.com/2023/tv/news/national-treasure-edge-of-history-canceled-disney-1235591191/

This adds the show to the "one and done" list of Trevor's television work, which also includes the limited-run series Zero Hour and the action drama Agent X.  But it is gratifying to know that Trevor's contract included a release of the score's major themes and cues via a soundtrack album.

Speaking of albums, Outlanders (the duo of singer Tarja Turunen and musician-producer Torsten Stenzel) has announced they will be releasing a full-length album of their project on June 23rd, which will contain the previous eight singles released over a three-year period, including the lead single "Closer To The Sky" featuring Trevor on guitar.  So anyone who desired to have that track in physical media form is now in luck!

And lastly, Captain Cuts is busy as usual, but I was excited to see that Ryan and Ben co-wrote a song with Italian pop-rock sensations Måneskin for their international debut album Rush! released earlier this year.

National Treasure: Edge of History soundtrack release

This is the year of new music from Trevor!  The press release for the National Treasure: Edge of History soundtrack hit various news blogs yesterday, so I will link the always reliable Film Music Reporter article here:

https://filmmusicreporter.com/2023/01/17/national-treasure-edge-of-history-soundtrack-album-details/

The digital release of the album is today, available on various platforms for streaming and purchase.  

Trevor receives leading credit for the score but additional music written by Paul Linford is also included, and there are several songs sung by actor Jake Austin Walker, who plays Liam in the show.

Update: National Treasure: Edge of History

If you're looking to renew your Disney+ subscription or sign up in time to add this program to your queue, according to a new profile article in Entertainment Weekly, the show will be airing in December.  It features an interesting overview of how the series will distinguish itself within the franchise as well as honor its' existing traditions (such as having Trevor return as scorer).  Additionally, according to fansite Disney Plus Informer, Edge of History will premiere on December 14th with the first two episodes then new episodes once a week thereafter.

https://ew.com/tv/national-treasure-edge-of-history-lisette-olivera-succeeding-nicolas-cage/

ETA: here is the official trailer.

https://twitter.com/DisneyNT/status/1568744010084417536

(mostly) officially official Good News!

During an interview with Collider to promote the National Treasure: Edge of History television series at this year's Comic-Con (which will debut on Disney+ either at the end of this year or in 2023), it was noted by the show's producers Marianne and Cormac Wibberley that Trevor has returned as the scorer for presumably all ten episodes.  And I think it's reasonable to assume that Paul Linford has joined him in the endeavor, although there's no verification of that as yet.

Marianne described what they have heard of the score in initial viewing of the episodes: "To see the score, like, on the show again but like a little Latinx twist, is just, like, it gives us chills."

Given the global locations for the show which include the American south and also Latin America, it is fitting to learn there will be Latin music elements included in the new score.

The series entire is directed by Mira Nair, and stars Lisette Alexis as Jess, described in the official synopsis as a brilliant and resourceful DREAMer in search of answers about her family -- who embarks on the adventure of a lifetime to uncover the truth about the past and save a lost Pan-American treasure.  The series is considered an expansion of the franchise, which comprises the two films starring Nicholas Cage as Benjamin Gates: 2004's National Treasure and 2007's National Treasure: Book of Secrets.  A third film has reportedly been green-lit and is in pre-production with a script by Chris Bremner.

Media Watch: podcast roundup

Debuting today from the National Treasure Hunt podcast series is an episode devoted to Trevor's score for the first film.  Those who consider themselves devotees of the franchise in general would do well to make their way through all the episodes, as the hosts are well into their third season of appreciation for those films.

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/26-hunt-for-music/id1523117986?i=1000535356680

And this episode of Professor of Rock from last month is devoted to "Owner of a Lonely Heart" featuring interview segments with Jon Anderson and Phil Carson regarding YesWest and the writing/recording of the song.

Confirmed!

Spotted on Twitter: composer Lasse Enersen tweeted today that he and Trevor share credit on the score for the upcoming Renny Harlin action film The Misfits, to be released on June 11th.  This will be the fifth of Trevor's collaborations with Harlin, with a ten-year gap between this film and 5 Days of War.

Unfortunately I can't embed social media posts any longer on this platform, but here's the link which includes the trailer for the film:

https://twitter.com/LasseEnersen/status/1387309370715820033

another entry in the franchise

Continuing in the ongoing trend of adapting movie properties for television, it's been announced that Disney+ will be bringing a new entry in the National Treasure franchise to the small screen, as reported in this article at Deadline.  It's a reboot with a younger female protagonist.

https://deadline.com/2021/03/national-treasure-tv-series-reimagening-latina-lead-disney-plus-mira-nair-1234720950/

It would be great to see Trevor and Paul get involved in either this or the next big screen installment, which appears to be making some progress out of Development Hell, maybe?  Hopefully?

another achievement from Mr. Human Highlight Reel Composer

For college basketball enthusiasts it's that holy time of year - March Madness is upon us once again - and long-time fans are aware of Trevor's involvement in creating theme songs for sporting events on TNT, but he also had a role in updating the long-running theme (composed by Bob Christianson) for the annual NCAA basketball coverage on CBS Sports, as revealed in this article on the MSN website:

https://www.msn.com/en-us/sports/ncaabk/da-na-na-na-dun-daa-na-na-the-story-behind-cbs-s-iconic-ncaa-tournament-theme-song/ar-BB1eItTy?li=BB15ms5q

The only time Radovich remembers having serious discussions about new NCAA tournament theme music came in 2010 when CBS first partnered with Turner Sports to air March Madness on four different channels. Some executives argued a new era required a complete rebrand — an overhaul of the graphics, logos, music and on-air talent. Others were adamant Christianson’s song remained a fixture.

The result was a compromise. Trevor Rabin, a former YES guitarist who also composed the theme for the NBA on TNT broadcasts, subtly remixed Christianson’s song, preserving the core melody but adding some contemporary flourishes.

Media Watch: (one more) interview from last year

Because I didn't see any publicity via social media for this one I missed it when reporting on interviews for the Changes promotional cycle, but Trevor appeared on the Sound of the Movies podcast last year, which focuses on film scorers and others involved in the industry.  It's a wide-ranging interview dealing with the whole of his career, so there's not much long-time fans don't already know.

Changes, disc ten: film music composed by Trevor Rabin promo

 

(With eternal thanks to Dearest Friend of the blog Cee for visual assistance with the physical media.  And also many thanks to everyone who has helped spread the word about my coverage of Trevor.  I truly appreciate everyone who has taken the time to read the blog and also provide engagement via links and other comments on social media.)

* ~ * ~ *

Now that we've come to the end of this series, I'd like to once again thank my readers around the world for their interest, as it was both challenging and enjoyable to research and compose these essays, even as some of the work had already been accomplished in previous years.

And that applies to the last disc, as I had published an entry on this release in its' original form as part of my Collector's Corner series in 2015.

http://rabinesque.blogspot.com/2015/11/collectors-corner-just-big-softy.html

I would definitely name this disc as one of the collector's holy grails given its' previously rare status (and, reflecting that, high price) and so its' inclusion in the boxset is a nice gesture to fans.  Admittedly, I was gratified to be able to discuss my analysis of the promo's raison d'être with Trevor (who, for the record, didn't disagree with my comments) because it is a very interesting artifact of his scoring career in my estimation.

And as it stands, this may be the only curated compilation of Trevor's scoring work we will be able to own and enjoy.  I hope that is not the case, but one never knows.

                                        * ~ * ~ *

As I asserted in the original essay, this promo has a specific purpose to it but also is representative of the early years of Trevor's career as a film scorer in Hollywood, specifically 1997-2002; and so in a way it makes sense that beyond the inciting events I mentioned, this disc was envisioned to provide Trevor further coverage as regards the potential of his overall career.  After seven years (if we say Trevor took that path beginning in 1995) and 17 films (on which he was the principle composer or co-composer) there was still time not to be entirely typecast within the industry.

As has been noted in previous fandom discussion, the disc itself is rather short, but the purpose of a promo is to provide an introduction to a scorer's work, either from a general viewpoint or related to work on a particular film.  So this compilation gave those in the industry making the decisions a chance to hear a different aspect of Trevor's talent, just enough to potentially influence their decisions if the selections as a whole achieved the goal.

And we would have to presume from the way "Aftermath" is labeled that it was already happening to an extent - it's all about context.  So as with the previous entry regarding the Jack Frost promo, I want to discuss these themes/cues in the context of emotive, lyrical pieces of music - do they portray Trevor the composer in a more sensitive light?

I would also reiterate as Trevor was the one selecting the material, he did himself a disservice in not including "Frostbite" or anything from Whispers: An Elephant's Tale, although that might not have been possible for whatever reason.

                                        * ~ * ~ *

My annotations on each track are the result of a couple years of research, as by that point (circa 2013) I had collected many of the score promos/DVD rips of Trevor's music (as regards those scores not officially released) as well as official releases, although in the case of The Banger Sisters I had to watch the film a few times to determine the source of those inclusions in this promo.

"Remember The Titans"

Remember the Titans (2000)

The score for this film contains a fair amount of stirring music as well as more reflective selections, and this piece would fall into the latter category, but it's quite lyrical.  It does quote "Titans Spirit" just a bit as well.  If anything the selections from the film on this disc make a good case for the score to finally receive a physical/digital release by a boutique label.

"Grace" 

(an edit of "Harry and Grace Make Peace" with additional elements from the film's suite)

Armageddon (1998)

I consider "Harry and Grace Make Peace" to be one of those beautiful themes I've mentioned in other essays.  This edit is delicately emotional and majestic.

 
"Banger Sisters" 

(an edit of the main themes)

The Banger Sisters (2002)

The primary motif of the main theme is really compelling even as it's quite simple.  There's a really interesting use of percussion and guitar in this score, although the film has a lot of licensed music in it as well.  But including two pieces from this score is another "proof of concept" kind of decision overall.

"Prague" 

(a promotional mix which combines the theme "Prague Main Titles" with elements of "Welcome To Prague")

Bad Company (2002)

"Prague" is absolutely one of Trevor's best themes ever - so gorgeous!  This is an interesting edit, really evocative, and in its' own way as affecting as "BMBBO."  I didn't mention this in the YMP podcast episode, but Bad Company is also one of my favorites of Trevor's scores.

"A Beautiful Mind Trailer" 

(aka "Aftermath")

Deep Blue Sea (1999)

I like to think that "Aftermath" and "Titans Spirit" were the themes which really got Trevor noticed in the film world itself; when you write a theme which can be applied to more than one visual then you know you've done it right.  You may have only meant for your music to accompany a specific moment, but universality is indicative of a particular creative power.

"Remembrance" 

(aka "Trisha")

Con Air (1997)

The oldest of the material included here, and it really is an emotional moment in a film full of obnoxious over-the-top bluster (not music-wise though).  Trevor's playing is understated but evocative.

"Friendship" 

(an edit of two separate cues)

The Banger Sisters (2002)

I really love the particular tones Trevor used on this score.  Given its' subject it made sense that it was a tad more guitar-heavy.

"Sunrise" 

(aka "First Kiss")

American Outlaws (2001)

Trevor scored two Westerns (released the same year), and I would say this score is somewhat more lighter in tone overall (especially as it shifts idioms throughout) with some reflective moments.  It's actually a rather underrated score, in my estimation.

"Gettysburg" 

Remember the Titans (2000)

I like the grandeur this particular cue exhibits, it would foreshadow his work on such films as The Great Raid and The Guardian.

Onto the booklet now...which is of course totally different from the one included in the original promo, save Trevor's quote which originally appeared on the back cover.  I would take issue with a few points in the liner notes (which I assume were written by Rob Ayling), as I don't believe all the details are necessarily correct.  With all the images included it would lead one to believe that this is a more inclusive compilation when in fact it only represents one particular period.  I think it would have been a better idea to just include one-sheet images from those films actually represented in the selections.  The list of career credits is basically a cut-and-paste from Wikipedia (Fair Game should have been omitted as Trevor was not the principle composer on that film) and sure, at least one era-appropriate photo was included but again - with that ghastly red filter!  Also, including the one-sheet for A Beautiful Mind is somewhat disingenuous, because although "Aftermath" was used in the trailer, none of Trevor's music is actually in the film itself.  But these kinds of things are only revealed through research, and it's clear that was not a consideration in the overall assemblage of this box set.

                                        * ~ * ~ *

Beyond the point in time which film music composed by Trevor Rabin represents, Trevor would continue to have a very successful career by most people's standards - eventually being selected as one of Variety's Billion Dollar Composers and the recipient of ASCAP's Henry Mancini Award (previously the Golden Soundtrack Award), given to composers for outstanding achievements and contributions to the world of film and television music.  Other awards and accolades would also be bestowed.  A piece of his scoring music provided the soundtrack for a moment of cultural zeitgeist which is still talked about to this day.  2006 could be considered his most successful year overall, with five films in release bearing his compositional credit.  He worked in film and television as well as advertising and theme parks.  In terms of longevity, relevance and opportunity I do believe anyone could make an argument for Trevor's overall performance in Hollywood.  But taken in a larger historical context, this promo does hint at the possibility that success came at a particular price: populist but never quite serious, widely-known but never quite diverse, the guy writing music for bombastic popcorn flicks, even if it might have been the best popcorn ever.

And yet here we have evidence that Trevor was capable of passion and gravitas, it was always there even if perhaps it was never particularly desired on the part of those who employed him.  It could be said that such a conundrum seems indicative of the external expectations regarding Trevor as an artist and a musician throughout his career.  But this compilation does indeed contain music which is emotionally affecting and lyrical, as well as some of the best music of his scoring career overall. 

 

There's an entire generation, at least, of fans who know Trevor Rabin as a film scorer and only later discovered that he had a prior career in rock music.  Those fans deserve a more comprehensive score compilation, but also, if this particular part of Trevor's history is to be considered equally important as any other, then I would hope it is further illuminated in the future.

update: Jack is back

In the spirit of the season, Soundtrack Central uploaded the score suite for Jack Frost and it reminded me - as someone who has collected both score promos and score suite promos over the years - that I sometimes believe a score suite is a better listening experience than a score promo because all (or most) of the main themes and cues are combined into one long piece of music and thus is easier to appreciate simply as music.  

https://soundcloud.com/soundtrack-central/jack-frost-theme-suite-trevor-rabin

Media Watch: Yes Music Podcast episode 460

This week's episode of Yes Music Podcast is part 18b of their What did they do next? career retrospective series for Trevor, regarding his move into Hollywood film scoring with The Glimmer Man.  Better still, as I referenced in the previous entry, co-host Kevin Mulryne kindly invited me to come on and offer my perspective on this career change.  As always, I have lots of things to say and hope I provided added entertainment value to their previously well-established efforts.

Many thanks indeed to Kevin and Mark for an interesting conversation and for providing the blog a moment of recognition in the greater world of Yes-related fanworks.

Links to listen:

https://directory.libsyn.com/episode/index/id/17157671/tdest_id/1120238

https://yesmusicpodcast.com/what-did-they-do-next-part-18b-trevor-rabin-plus-arc-of-life-460/

Changes, disc nine: Jack Frost score promo

(With eternal thanks to Dearest Friend of the blog Cee for visual assistance with the physical media.  And also many thanks to everyone who has helped spread the word about my coverage of Trevor.  I truly appreciate everyone who has taken the time to read the blog and also provide engagement via links and other comments on social media.)

* ~ * ~ *

The holiday season is upon us, so what better time to review the only score of Trevor's which can conceivably double as Christmas music?   Back in 2013 I wrote a Knowing The Score entry about Jack Frost, originally released in 1998, which I will link below.  For long-time die-hard fans it's a film which is definitely in our collections because Trevor appears it in as well, as the lead guitar player in the titular character's rock band.  So one could reasonably assume that's a reason why this score in particular was selected for the boxset.

https://rabinesque.blogspot.com/2013/12/knowing-score-jack-frost.html

But it's also a score promo which has been available on the grey market for many years, that's how I originally obtained a copy of my own way back when.  I tend to wonder how the selection was truly considered; I will assert that this promo was not licensed from Warner Bros.  I could be wrong, but nothing else in this boxset was licensed outside of the existing arrangement between Trevor and Rob Ayling to distribute his back catalog and archival releases.  As anyone who collects such items is aware, score promos are circulated within the industry for a variety of reasons - for example, to voting members of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences for consideration when it's time to select a slate for Best Original Score in a particular year.  But also copies will be sent to production companies to enable those responsible to adjudge a composer's work if they are considering that person for a project.  And of course it's not unheard of for those promos to then make their way into the hands of collectors and used record stores and grey market "distributors."  Those who offer promos online for trading are perhaps the least culpable in the sense that they're not charging for something which is not to be sold in the first place.

During my recent exchange with Trevor he decried those in the grey market profiting off his work, and I fully sympathize with that stance.  Especially given what many of these people charge per disc.  On the other hand, Trevor doesn't necessarily stand to profit again off his own work either, as he does not own the rights to any of his scoring work as it stands.  So the inclusion of a score promo in an archival boxset and also for individual sale is cutting it very fine, I would say, as regards the legality of such a selection; as I don't believe that even enough time has elapsed for the rights to the Jack Frost score to potentially revert to Trevor.

But Jack Frost has been consigned to history as a box office bust and therefore could be considered a property that The Powers That Be are likely not too fussed about being used in this fashion, perhaps?  The movie tends to be rather more a curiosity than a holiday classic for a few reasons: Michael Keaton as a reincarnated snowman?  Really?  Also Henry Rollins as the most intensely intense hockey coach (I think his performance is hilarious).  In addition to Trevor and Lou's debut, this movie also features cameos by three of the Zappa kids (before the infamous years-long feud over their dad Frank's estate): Moon Unit as a schoolteacher, Dweezil as an A&R rep, and Ahmet as the town snowplow driver.  But when I try to imagine one of Trevor's true great "lost" scores being included in this fashion - say, Remember the Titans or Whispers: An Elephant's Tale - well, I tend to believe that litigation would surely follow in the wake of such a decision.  So while I think it's a nice gesture as regards the concept (making a previously unreleased score recording available to fans), the execution is yet another example of whatever can be gotten away with and I find that notion suspect as a philosophy.

If actual licensing could have been involved in the process, for example, then a nice bonus would have been the inclusion of those tracks which the Jack Frost Band "plays" in the film and were included on the original soundtrack release - a cover of "Frosty the Snowman" and "Don't Lose Your Faith" (aka "Have A Little Faith") which Trevor appears on.

The accompanying booklet contains stills from the film, one of which is a screencap from the opening scene with the Jack Frost Band (which is obvious because you can see part of a credit in the image).  There is actually an existing production still featuring Keaton as Jack singing and you can see Trevor in the background, but that wouldn't have been as interesting to use.

I'll opine that it's not as good as my screencaps just in terms of appreciating Trevor's presence (I mean, look how grainy it is!), but after all, mine have that pesky Photobucket watermark all over them now.  I will interject here with a bit of trivia: there was a Jack Frost Band mini-reunion when Trevor appeared on stage with Lili Haydn at the Concert on the Bluffs in 2016, which perhaps is one of those things only Rabid Rabinites would appreciate.

One way in which I think this booklet should have taken its' cue from the promo release was to credit those people on Trevor's team, such as Paul Linford, Gordon Goodwin, Don Harper and Steve Kempster.  But in all this is rather a slapdash affair; at the very least I think a short paragraph from Trevor should have been provided to elevate this above the level of a grey market release.

Now onto the music, which I do believe is a wonderful thing to have in your possession even as a score promo does not reflect all of the music actually composed for a film.  However, as Jack Frost relies heavily on licensed music there is less score than there would normally be in such an instance.  In my previous essay I do opine on the music but I'm approaching this from the perspective of listening to the score rather than marrying the music with the movie so specifically.

Frostbite

Trevor could always be counted upon to write a strong memorable main theme, and "Frostbite" certainly achieves that objective.  From those opening chords which are so lovely and delicate and evoke the appropriate emotions associated with love and loss, then progressing through layers of synth voicing to conjure a crystalline landscape of wonder, accented with the warmth of guitar.  As I've stated numerous times before, this theme is one of the most beautiful pieces of music Trevor has ever written.  As it recurs throughout the film I can understand placing it at the beginning of the running order on the promo, but I tend to believe it works better at the end in terms of the listening experience.

The Snowball Fight

I think this is fun in terms of how it contrasts orchestral and rock elements, something which Trevor would become known for throughout his scoring career.

It's Snowing

This could have been an actual song, the theme contains a delightfully propulsive riff and the harmonica and dobro lines provide an intriguing melody; it's easy to imagine it going on for another 2-3 minutes.

Magic Harmonica

I love the wistful mood of the piano on this one, how it leads into the "Frostbite" motif from another realm.

Miss Him Too

Woodwinds are always instruments of longing and regret and express that mood to me in this particular cue.

The Cabin

This has a definite Christmas vibe to me, it's easy to imagine the very place it is named for, a cozy cabin surrounded by snow, once again leading into the main theme.

Goodbye

As a cue, I appreciate how majestic and cinematic this one sounds, which is fitting for where it is placed in the film.

The J Shot

This theme moves through several different moods before resolving into "human highlight reel" music, which Trevor became known for (and in demand to produce).  I really love his dobro playing on this one, which is such a lovely coloring against the strings.

Frost in Medford

I appreciate this as an elegant cue, either this or "Frostbite" really should have been included on the film music composed by Trevor Rabin promo to illustrate his abilities for more lighthearted fare.

Charlie Boy

I believe this cue should have been sequenced with "Goodbye" as they resolve one into the other.

A legacy of inspiration

Published today on the Washington Post website is an article which is in part about the various uses of "Titans' Spirit" - Trevor's main theme composed for the 2000 film Remember the Titans - to mark the 20th anniversary of the film's release this month.  The article also covers the history of the film in its' development, creation, and subsequent position in pop culture history.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/style/remember-the-titans-anniversary/2020/09/23/22e39084-f927-11ea-a275-1a2c2d36e1f1_story.html

#tbt: scoring a selfie

Spotted on Instragram: one could always count on encountering Trevor at a film premiere if he was involved (as I know from personal experience being behind the barricades at the premiere of G-Force).  Here he is with interior design artist Shlomi Haziza at the premiere of Get Smart, which took place on June 16, 2008 at the Mann Village Theatre in Westwood.

View this post on Instagram

With Trevor Rabin. “Yes”. . #music#movies#friends#trevorrabin#trevorrabinisawesome#yes#shlomihaziza#yesband#yesmusic#ownerofthelonelyheart#musician#giture_lovers#talented#score

A post shared by Shlomi Haziza (@shlomihaziza) on Sep 16, 2020 at 9:47am PDT

And here's another shot of Trevor on the red carpet.
Embed from Getty Images

Knowing The Score: Whispers: An Elephant's Tale

One of a continuing series regarding Trevor's career as a film scorer.


Author's note: much of the content of this entry originated between 2009-2011, by way of private composition, brainstorming with an individual who prefers not to be named, and posting on the Yesfans discussion forum.  This process enabled me to discover and share with fandom that Trevor had made vocal contributions to this score.  The original title of my essay was:
“Where did you come from?”

Examining origins in Whispers: An Elephant’s Tale

*~*~*

“Oh, you know, there's actually a lot of them that I'm real happy with, and I'm not talking about even just for a movie, I'm talking about when I'm done and gone, the things that I hope my son will listen to, will be Whispers, which is a movie that was barely released.”

- Trevor Rabin, 2002

Trevor Rabin’s eighth full scoring project since the advent of his film music composition career was one close to his heart as well as his homeland, the Walt Disney Pictures live action family film Whispers: An Elephant’s Tale, released in 2000.  The footage of wild animals, forming the tale of a baby elephant separated from his mother and bonding with another misfit in order to find her, was filmed in Botswana and voiced by a cast of well-known actors, most notably Anne Archer as Whispers’ mother Gentle Heart, and Angela Bassett as Groove, the rogue alpha female elephant who serves as a surrogate mother to the titular character.

The film itself didn’t prove to be wholly successful for a few reasons, but the soundtrack is primary among those elements which did appeal to viewers of all ages.  And part of that appeal lies within the synergy between the composer and the choice of music, as logically dictated by the nature of the film itself.  A native of South Africa, Trevor was an apt choice for a score which blended the music of the continent with orchestral grandeur and percussive tension.

But the score itself never received its fair due, as the recording issued was strictly promotional, meaning available only to those in the industry, and so another chance – as with Remember The Titans – for its' composer to receive further coverage and validation as a master of varying styles and moods within the scoring community was missed.  But thanks to the “gray” market in promo-only recordings I am able to fully comment on one of Trevor’s greatest scores, by his own admission as well as critical consensus.

Trevor had already established a relationship with Disney through his partnership with producer Jerry Bruckheimer on several scores – including what is still likely his most well-known to this day, Armageddon – for projects released under the Touchstone imprint, but the majority of those films were action-based, which suited Trevor’s dynamic style as he used his rock n’roll instincts and orchestral training to create compelling dramatic scores, even as he was looking to expand and move forward with different styles of music, which has always been a hallmark of his ambition and career trajectory.  The first progression beyond action/drama film scoring was with the family film Jack Frost in which he had a distinctly personal involvement – appearing in two of the opening scenes as the lead guitarist of the title character’s rock band – and the score contained very moving and melodic orchestral themes, as well as one of Trevor’s most beautiful compositions, “Frostbite.”  Once this forward momentum had begun, future projects reflected further diversity, as the next score was for the horror film Deep Blue Sea, which contained a full orchestra and choir to supremely dramatic effect.

Whispers: An Elephant’s Tale was as far removed from Trevor’s previous projects as any on his CV, and yet is entirely suited to his compositional style in regards to memorable melodies and orchestral power.  But for the first time in his scoring career Trevor was able to incorporate world music and furthermore offer a score of African musical stylings as a tribute to his own origins.  The music of South Africa holds enormous variety as an aspect of its diverse populace, but the style most associated with the region is called Mbube, a choral mode of singing.  The score also incorporates elements of what is known as Mbaqanga, with intricate percussive motifs and challenging polyrhythms.  Native percussion and wind instruments feature prominently in the score, as well as vocals sung both in English and in Zulu, the predominant language of the Mbube genre.  Because this is a film about animals, many of the sonic textures are suggestive of wildlife calls and vocalizations.

Writing in this idiom was not new to Trevor, as previous instrumental compositions such as “The Cape” and “Where Will You Be” as well as the second single from his solo album Can’t Look Away – a track entitled “Sorrow (Your Heart)” – were written with the same stylistic aim, but this project enabled him to compose upon a broader canvas, to evoke with music the film’s immense panorama of the African landscape.

The central conflict of the narrative – the struggle for survival of a baby elephant separated from the herd in the beautiful yet harsh milieu of the African savannah – provides a great opportunity for the full range of emotional themes and cues in tribute to the characters and the landscape as well as the movement of the story.

The film was created by Dereck and Beverly Joubert, the South African husband-and-wife author/filmmaking team; they wrote the story which was the basis of the script and Dereck co-wrote the screenplay.  The footage was shot in their characteristic fashion of becoming part of the landscape, to the extent where the animals living in situ do not acknowledge their presence.  As conservationists the Jouberts have the highest respect for the environment in which the animals reside, and they capture every aspect of the daily existence of the wildlife of Botswana. The advertising tagline - The True-life Adventure of a Big Little Hero – refers to the footage of actual animals in the wild.  No CGI for the Jouberts, although reportedly publicity for the film stated the two main characters, Whispers and Groove, were trained elephants.  It’s possible the scenes with the poachers in the second half of the film were staged, but the footage of wildlife was otherwise strictly observational.

Whispers was the only narrative-based commercial film the Jouberts were involved with, as all their other works are documentaries, each one focusing on one particular breed in the African savannah.  Their process takes many years, and Whispers likely began as a documentary on poaching, following their 1994 award-winning documentary Reflections on Elephants.  The Jouberts live among the animals they document, capturing moments most human eyes will never witness.  Their mission is to create a greater awareness of the interconnectedness of all life, the life-and-death struggles of their subjects, and how all species should be allowed to co-exist in their native habitats and respected as an equal part of the diversity of our planet.

Trevor has stated in prior interviews he holds similar beliefs as the Jouberts (and the lyrics to “Miracle of Life” are indicative of his stance), and therefore this project likely appealed to him as an opportunity to pay tribute to the music of his homeland, to work with fellow natives in support of a film which possesses a shared philosophy - illustrating the sacred beauty and majesty of a land vast and varied - both visually and musically.  In a sense it was a homecoming: music created as a homage to the place which shaped his creative consciousness as thoroughly as any other external influence; as well as a literal one in which he returned to South Africa in search of familiar voices with which to populate his compositions.

And so such an authentic pedigree (right down to a song from fellow ZA musician Johnny Clegg being commissioned for the end credits) does well to ensure the atmosphere and action of the film is fully represented.  Yet Whispers was admittedly not successful for Disney, despite offering a feast of sight and sound…though not as far as the dubbing was concerned.  Reviews were not kind, such as Lawrence Van Gelder of the New York Times referring to the film’s “cloying anthropomorphism,” and Charles Isherwood of Variety going so far as to label the script “crude.”  A common complaint seemed to be that the subjects by virtue of their species were incapable of nuance and much of the dialog was considered corny.  One does wonder what the film would have been like without the dub in regards to the appreciation of it, and I would have to assert that the dubbing detracts from the overall viewing experience.  In my most recent conversation with Trevor he indicated much the same, opining that perhaps the film should have been released without the dubbing, and I was in total agreement.

But as a very special and beautiful part of the oeuvre of Trevor Rabin, the score for Whispers: An Elephant’s Tale is a wonderful experience, which grows more enjoyable over time with repeated listening.

There are many unique moments in the score and not the least of them is the opportunity to hear Trevor singing in Zulu on a few of the themes, a solo vocal from his original stems interwoven with the African choir utilized for the recording, for which the featured vocalists were Faith Kekana and Lange Dube.  Although Trevor has sampled and processed his own voice as textural elements for other scores, this is the only one in which he actually sings (although he did record a song for use in the film The Banger Sisters – a cover of “Don’t Let Me Be Misunderstood” – which was included on the soundtrack release).

The Main Titles theme (featuring what I refer to as the "Wake Up Africa" motif) is one of Trevor's most memorable overall in terms of melody and progression: uplifting and atmospheric, immediately establishing the overall mood and ambiance of the film, and features both the choir and Trevor on vocals.  Other great themes include "Whispers," "The Longest Night," "Place of Takers," "A Brave Deed" and "We Have To Find Her" as well as "The Stand" which reprises many of the thematic elements featured throughout the score.  Those who own the DVD will recognize "The New Baby" as the music which plays on the menu loop, and it features a bit of a Township Jive take on the main motif of the score.

As a recommendation for adding this film to your collection if you are so inclined, beyond the value of experiencing this score as it was meant to be, watching Whispers reveals a world of wonder in its' cinematography.  The most compelling footage involves those shots featuring the diversity of wildlife - often shot at dawn or dusk - wherein the sky and the land reveal a particular beauty thus adorned by its inhabitants.  The true aesthetic power of the film lies in these moments as we are made appreciative of a place most do not see.

#tbt: interviews of yore

https://cnmsarchive.wordpress.com/2013/12/10/trevor-rabin-on-scoring-armageddon/

I came across this one while engaged in one of my never-ending trawls of the Internet and it's an interview I don't think I've read before, although I imagine there are fans who have.  It's originally from 1998 and so focuses on Trevor's scoring work, but with some nice insights as regards his process at the time, working relationships with various directors and, as always, The Bruck.

There's an interesting detail regarding the soundtrack for Days of Thunder - as I had noted in a previous entry, Trevor played guitar on the David Coverdale track "The Last Note of Freedom" but it seems from his comments he might have also played on the Terry Reid track, a cover of "Gimme Some Lovin'" (and a song we know he's quite familiar with).  That's my guess as it's the only other song produced by Trevor Horn on the soundtrack.

https://recordcollectormag.com/articles/yes-men

I had originally blogged about this interview when it was published, it's from the December 2016 issue of Record Collector.  There's some really interesting anecdotes in this one, including Trevor's admission that he did desire to work on a Broadway show (just not the one he was offered, at least according to what he told me), meeting Paul McCartney in London during the sessions for Big Generator, and revealing that "I Miss You Now" is specifically about Trevor longing to see his parents.

A(nother) conversation with the Maestro

Note: the next entry in my Changes review series - disc three: Wolf - will be published next Friday.  This entry is another component in my overall contribution to the promotional cycle for the boxset.

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It's been over a decade all-told that I've had various encounters with Trevor and I'm pleased to relate to you now our latest meeting of the minds: an interview specifically for Rabin-esque.

I was given the opportunity to phone Trevor at The Jacaranda Room and this past Tuesday we had a 90-minute chat regarding Changes and other related subjects.  Due to technical limitations on my end I wasn't able to record the conversation but I'm going to cover the highlights, as I believe we had an interesting and enlightening exchange (but admittedly I'm biased).

As always, Trevor is one of the nicest guys to interview, incredibly gracious and generous with his time (and patient with my various tangents) and wholly engaging as a conversationalist.  I am entirely grateful he agreed to talk to me about the boxset's contents and topics regarding his career overall.  He was once again very complementary regarding my encyclopedic recall and remarked that I should write a book.  I told him I was very busy writing all the essays for this blog but I appreciated the vote of confidence!

****

The new normal.
We began the interview with a discussion of what is going on in the world right now, and I said I knew he had another layer of worry along with all the things everyone is worrying about because of the associated strife in South Africa.  Trevor acknowledged his homeland is always on his mind and believes the next six months aren't going to be an easy time for anyone in the world.

A giant in his field.
I also brought up the passing of esteemed film composer Ennio Morricone, and we discussed Trevor's favorite Morricone score, for the 1986 film The Mission.  I posited that I felt it was rather influential on later composers, such as the work of James Horner.  He then related to me that he had an "encounter" with Horner regarding his score for the 2003 film Radio, elements of which strongly resembled themes from Remember the Titans.  This was not the only time Trevor would see his work borrowed by others (more on that later), but he attributed this kind of thing to what he refers to as "temp-itis" meaning the director's reliance on the use of a temporary score during the editing process.  Another example was Teddy Castellucci's score for the 2005 remake of The Longest Yard, which contained elements resembling the scores of Remember the Titans and National Treasure.  The composer paid Trevor a visit and confessed that director Peter Segal really wanted more of that type of music in the film, and he cracked under the pressure, "borrowing" quite obviously (to the point of The Bruck considering litigation, according to Trevor).  Not surprisingly did Segal then select Trevor to score his next film, 2008's Get Smart.

Trevor remarked he believed Morricone had been highly influenced by classical composer Edward Elgar, quipping: "If you're going to steal, it might as well be from the best."

Working man.
He related to me the work he performed for Renny Harlin, whom he said called him with a request to "fix" the score of his latest project.  I asked Trevor which of the films currently listed on IMDb he had worked on, and he confirmed to me it was The Misfits, which is currently in post-production.  When discussing the progress on his new solo album, he stated that he's still at about 60% completed but he believes he knows the essence and the overall shape of the work now, and has 3-4 pieces he's really happy with, so the direction is set and he can devote himself fully for the rest of the year.  When I asked him about considerations of remote recording for guest players due to ongoing logistical limitations caused by the pandemic, he replied that such a process is "cumbersome" and one he does not willingly wish to engage in.

In regards to other projects, Trevor said he had been approached by producers for a Broadway show but was ultimately not interested.  As far as appearing with the L.A. Philharmonic he stated that originally Brian Lane and Larry Magid were willing to organize and finance the event but whatever plans and negotiations were thus far accomplished have been stalled by the pandemic.

(tenuous)
I asked Trevor, now that ARW is concluded as a project, if "Fragile" would see any kind of official release and he said he had no desire to release it and didn't think it had any particular relevance in hindsight given that the band is over.  He wasn't even certain it should have been recorded in the first place but thought it would at least serve as a starting point in their endeavors even as they ultimately couldn't manage to record an album due to logistical issues.  He confirmed to me that it was realized strictly between the three of them: with Rick recording his piano parts in England, Jon recording his vocals at The Jacaranda Room, and Trevor providing all other instrumentation and vocals.  Jon contributed lyrics to the bridge (because, as Trevor noted, Jon likes the "freedom" to add things into an existing structure), but Trevor had already written the melody (and had different lyrics originally), so the ARW version of the song would be credited to both Trevor and Jon.  I asked about the origin of "Fragile" and Trevor replied he wrote it as a favor for the showrunner of Agent X; it was composed after the scoring was completed because Herron wanted a song but Trevor was not specifically compensated for writing it, thus he retained the copyright.

The arduous journey from reluctance to cooperation.
By his own admission, Trevor did not make it easy for Rob Ayling to put together Changes, it took much cajoling (as it did with the 90124 project); Ayling paid him a visit in Los Angeles and Trevor gave him access to all his ephemera just to get the man off his back, so to speak, and indicated what he has in storage is quite a jumble.  Shelley assisted with the process of looking through everything.  So all of the inclusions were suggested by Ayling, and we can appreciate that Trevor finally overcame his reluctance to be his own archivist after a fashion and acquiesced.  The photos for The Making of Wolf booklet were among those items he had saved and were thus discovered by Ayling, and luckily must have been safely stored away for the past 40 years.  Trevor noted that at first he couldn't understand the appeal of something like 90124, but agreed in part because he knew there was an ongoing evolving narrative regarding the origins of 90125 and his part in it, and so wanted to produce the originals to prove his point.

What could have been.
This led me to ask about something from the original press release for Changes and that was allegedly the inclusion of demos recorded with Roger Hodgson (which took place in 1990).  Trevor stated he couldn't quite remember how many songs they worked up but it was probably "almost an album's worth" and "The More I Look" was also one of those songs (which later appeared on Roger's 2000 album Open The Door).  I remarked that as a fan I was happy the demo version of "Walls" was included on 90124 because one of the things I love about the song is the beautiful close harmony Trevor and Roger perform on it, and the thought of an entire album like that would have been a wonderful thing to hear.  He agreed, stating he believes the project to be one of the real missed opportunities of his career and considers Roger to be like a brother, noting how happy he was to see Roger again during touring in 2016 and 2018.

Soft focus.
I expressed my appreciation for the film music composed by Trevor Rabin promo disc being included in the boxset and for general sale, revealing to Trevor what I paid for an original copy in years prior.  I asked if he had chosen the track listing and he said he did, stating that in some cases he was working from earlier versions of the themes and that's why some of them have different titles.  He also noted a lot of editing was involved in putting the tracks together and I replied because of that my research into their origins took me quite a while!  When I stated my theory regarding why it was created, to position Trevor away from being considered as the Action Guy in the industry, he agreed, noting that he seemingly moved from genre to genre - from Action Guy to Sports Guy, for example - in terms of the scoring projects which came his way, but was ultimately desiring to score all kinds of films.  He expressed that he had a previous interest in scoring a fully-animated feature (and I reminded him that the first time we spoke in 2009 I made a plea for him to do just that) but said that now it would likely be too complex a project for him to undertake.

An early innovator.
We talked a bit about Trevor's penchant for being on the cutting edge of music technology - I noted that it was pretty amazing he predicted the rise of bedroom recordings a couple decades before they became the norm - discussing the recording of Talk and Trevor stated he would like to perform a remix of the album but because the multitracks exist on more than one type of media (both analog and digital), such a project would be very difficult if not impossible at this point.  He acknowledged he would have done some things differently, especially in regards to the drum sounds.  I brought up the seeming disclaimer included as a "PS" in the credits: "Caution" Extreme Digital Dynamic Range and he replied that Victory (perhaps Phil Carson himself) included that without his knowledge and if he'd seen the liner notes prior to release he would have insisted it be removed.  Trevor recalled that when he first moved to Los Angeles in 1981, living in a house he rented from Manfred Mann's Earth Band vocalist Chris Thompson, he set up a studio in the garage to write and record demos and there were other musicians he knew who also had home studios at the time.  But the recording industry at large had mounted a seeming war against such endeavors, threatening suits and other legal action against artists working from home...which all seems rather ironic in our present-day circumstances.

All the way live.
I wanted to discuss the inclusion of the '89 performance at Boston's Paradise Theater, expressing to Trevor that he has a different perspective on concerts than fans do.  His fans - whether they attended one of the shows on the club tour or not - desire the total experience of a performance.  We don't think of it as "a very long performance that takes a lot of listening" (as he stated in the PROG interview) but rather listen to it as if we were there.  I noted that I have audience recordings of two other shows in addition to Boston and L.A. and even though it's the same setlist, I appreciate the subtle differences between each show.  I enthused that he created a great setlist and had a great band.  Trevor said that once he was convinced to include the bootleg of the radio broadcast he was happy with the decision, noting the broadcast recording is more "raw" and has a "completely different vibe" to the Los Angeles show.  I asked him about whether it was possible to release the full recording of the L.A. show and he replied the multitracks no longer exist, but seemed to indicate that there might be soundboard recordings of some of the dates still in his archives.

Facing up to Face To Face.
Having just recently composed a ginormous essay about the making of said album, I proffered my theory about how having to record three albums at the same time, but two in particular, may have contributed to Face's overall lack, shall we say.  Trevor allowed that it might have had something to do with it but it was primarily that he had never felt the kind of pressure in making an album which he experienced during the writing and recording of Face To Face.  So suffice to say he didn't perform well overall, in his estimation.  He agreed with me that Rene's Call Me is a great album, and we talked about "Paying My Dues" and reached a consensus that its' similarity to "Owner" was not purposeful but likely just a type of experimentation Trevor was desiring to pursue at the time as regards arrangements.

Van Rabin...?
I brought up to Trevor the oft-discussed similarity of the opening for "Hot For Teacher" to "Looking For A Lady - (Wolfman)" and this prompted a story about another "borrow" -  the opening riff from "Eyes Of Love" which you can hear in the track "Baluchitherium" from the 1995 Van Halen album Balance.  Trevor happened to hear the song during a televised football game and contacted Eddie Van Halen about it, recalling that back in 1989 he had gone out to see Steve Stevens performing at The Roxy with Eddie and Steve Lukather and Eddie had told him he enjoyed Can't Look Away, seemingly joking that Trevor shouldn't be surprised to hear something from it on the next Van Halen record.  And so, two albums later...Trevor remarked to me that he was shocked I wasn't familiar with that story.  "I can't believe I'm telling you something you don't already know!" he exclaimed.

Trevor stated that once he and Eddie talked about the "borrow" they worked out an agreement for Trevor to be compensated.  Trevor stated that he didn't actually mind being borrowed from as long as there was some acknowledgment involved.  Later, when relating the sequence of events to Paul Linford, his assistant remarked on the other seeming borrow and once Trevor listened to "Hot For Teacher" he realized that it was a far more obvious lift.  So he has no doubt in his mind where the intro to "Hot For Teacher" originated.

Besides a long acquaintance with Eddie, Trevor had other encounters with the band, such as when he was invited to see Van Halen perform in London at the Hammersmith Odeon in 1978, and spent time backstage being "talked at" by notorious motormouth David Lee Roth.  As long-time fans are aware, Trevor was considered as an opening act for the band, but for various reasons it never came to pass.  He also told me he had been approached at least twice about producing an album for the band during the Hagar years, noting that Sammy is "a really nice guy."

More boxes?
I asked about the purported plans for another boxset of his film music and Trevor explained that while it's a good idea, it's also a very difficult project to accomplish from a logistical standpoint, especially when it comes to licensing.  I told him about the essay I wrote for the blog in 2016, stating that a score anthology/compilation in celebration of his 20th anniversary as a film composer would be a wonderful idea.  I laid out the whole concept, and Trevor thought it was interesting, but likely ultimately remains unconvinced...probably.

Encounter with The Purple One and other adventures.
I am one of those people possessed of an irrepressible curiosity regarding certain ventures, and having touched on the making of Big Generator, I then said: "And while you were there at Sunset Sound mixing the album, so was...Bob Dylan!"  I confirmed to Trevor that whatever he recorded with Dylan at one of the sessions for Down in the Groove, it never made the album.  He appreciated me telling him this because he had no idea himself.  I explained to him that according to my research the making of that album was also quite fraught with contention, is not regarded too highly overall, and so it's not necessarily a bad thing that he didn't make the cut.  But contrary to my speculation, he said Elliot Roberts had originally contacted him regarding Dylan's request, he never had any interaction with the album's producer Beau Hill.  And also during those months of mixing one day he crossed paths with a member of Prince's entourage, who summoned Trevor for a (brief) encounter.  Apparently His Royal Badness didn't think much of "Owner of a Lonely Heart" - shooting hoops out back while wearing his custom-made Andre No. 1 4-inch heel boots.

"It was very weird," Trevor said.  "Yep, that's Prince alright," I replied.

Media Watch: new interview

A new interview with Trevor has been published on the pop culture website Biff Bam Pop!

https://biffbampop.com/2020/07/02/trevorrabininterview/

It's a wide-ranging interview covering various eras and subject matter, including the release of Changes.  Some interesting revelations: Trevor states that he has scored an upcoming film by Renny Harlin, but from viewing the latest information on IMDb it's difficult to know which one (of those not yet released).  There is also apparently ongoing planning for a score work boxset.  He also takes responsibility (and apologizes) for the "crowd swell" sounds on Live At The Apollo, stating there was an issue with the ambiance mic'ing for the recording.