Mazel Tov!

Congratulations to Kyly and Ryan!   As we see here, the newlyweds are now embarking upon the adventure of married life.

May love and happiness, respect and understanding, be yours throughout a lifetime of deepest harmony.

Congratulations to Ryan and Kyly!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!❤️🎉🔥💋🇿🇦💥🍾🎈🎉❤️ 📷 @lisaziven #kyryrabin

A photo posted by GROUPLOVE (@grouplove) on Apr 16, 2016 at 4:25pm PDT

Celebrating five years! The best of Rabin-esque.

Today marks the five-year anniversary of Rabin-esque and I'd like to thank all my readers around the world for your interest; it's my pleasure to write in-depth about my (and I hope yours as well) favorite musician and I am grateful for the opportunity.  Although the blog did not take its' current form until 2011, I spent about two years working on my initial ideas/content and design from when the project was first suggested to me in March of 2009.  And that is in addition to more than half a lifetime absorbed in the musical progress of Our Trev, so it's been a very long time indeed!  I hope your enjoyment in the reading matches mine in the creation and ongoing work of this blog.  And a special thank you to all those who have taken the time to email me with questions and comments - I appreciate your feedback.

So much has happened with Trevor's career since I began this leg of my fandom journey and I look forward to the continual changes, evolution, and - most importantly - wonderful music to come from the Maestro and those he chooses to collaborate with in whatever realm he ventures into.

~*~*~*~

Recently a new reader wrote to me asking for suggestions on where to begin (I suppose five years of entries is a little daunting!) so I decided I would compile a list of those entries I consider to be the best of the blog, as an introduction to the content.

At the top of my list is my proudest achievement; I was invited to interview Trevor during the promotional cycle for Jacaranda in 2012, he was very kind and incredibly generous with his time, resulting in one of the more unique interviews of the period, if I do say so myself.
"Trevor Rabin: the cultivation of Jacaranda"
http://rabinesque.blogspot.com/p/trevor-rabinthe-cultivation-of.html

In anticipation of the release of Jacaranda about a year prior, I wrote the following editorial and I was told Trevor had read this entry and appreciated its' insight.
"Fusion Furor: fulfilling the promise of Trevor's (jazzy) artistic destiny"
http://rabinesque.blogspot.com/2011/04/fusion-furor-fulfilling-promise-of.html

I've written a few record reviews, but this essay regarding Rabbitt's second album is one I'm particularly proud of, as it contains several years work as regards research, listening and writing.
"A (Quantum) Leap and A Hop in the Life (of Rabbitt)"
http://rabinesque.blogspot.com/2014/01/a-quantum-leap-and-hop-in-life-of.html

This is another editorial, posted on Trevor's birthday in 2013, which I believe represents not only my personal viewpoint of his artistic legacy, but the fundamental values of this blog; and an entry which has proven to be quite popular with readers.
"the dreaded box"
http://rabinesque.blogspot.com/2013/01/the-dreaded-box.html

Here's a "listicle" type entry regarding what I consider are the best tracks from each of Trevor's solo albums.
"Five from five"
http://rabinesque.blogspot.com/2012/07/five-from-five.html

My first tribute to the Epic Bromance of Chris and Trevor.
"something Fishy"
http://rabinesque.blogspot.com/2013/03/something-fishy.html

My review of the reissue of Live In L.A. which includes historical commentary on the club tour of 1989.
"some traveling music"
http://rabinesque.blogspot.com/2014/10/some-traveling-music.html

An essay on one of my most prized collectibles as well as Trevor's most popular video.
"Collector's Corner: something I will hold on to"
http://rabinesque.blogspot.com/2013/04/collectors-corner-something-i-will-hold.html
                                        ~*~*~*~

If there are any entries which you would like to see added to this list, please email me at rabinesque.blog@gmail.com and I will be happy to consider them for inclusion.  As always, thank you for your continued patronage, and my immense gratitude to Trevor for the eternal joy of his music...then, now, and always.

update: SCORE documentary release

Tonight, contributors to the fundraising campaign for SCORE: A Film Music Documentary (which features an interview with Trevor among many many other legendary composers, directors, and other film-related participants) received word from the filmmakers that the project is complete and will host its' Los Angeles premiere on June 27th.  They are also hoping to be part of the programming at the Toronto International Film Festival in September.  But for those of us waiting for our perks, it's gonna be a while...

On November 18, we will release SCORE as an HD digital download, and begin shipping physical rewards. This date is not an estimate or best guess; it is our commitment to you.

The delay stands to reason if they're looking for an international distributor and wanting to hit the festival circuit.  However, it's nice to know there is a firm date for home video distribution.  If you want to contribute and get yourself a copy of the DVD or Blu-ray, it's probably not too late - just visit the campaign page at Indiegogo:
https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/score-a-film-music-documentary#/updates

preview to the premiere

It wasn't an April Fool!  On Friday it was announced that thanks to the good people at SyFy we would be able to watch the first episode of Season Two of 12 Monkeys online two weeks before the official season premiere.

Here is "Year Of The Monkey" streaming on the official site:
http://www.syfy.com/12monkeys/videos/201-year-of-the-monkey

With this head start I might even manage a Knowing The Score entry out of it...but unlike Cole and Cassie, I'm going to try not to get too ahead of myself. (*rimshot*)

(And it's nice to see Trevor and Paul have a leading credit this season!)

exciting times

According to Rick Wakeman's latest Grumpy Old Rick's Ramblings, there's definite cause for celebration this Spring:

Anderson / Rabin & Wakeman continues to gain pace and all is looking tremendous. Performance dates are coming in thick and fast and the new music is just everything I believed it could be. Indeed, as I write this GORR I know that Jon is actually spending a few days with Trevor before Trev scoots off to South Africa for his son’s wedding.

This confirms a comment Jon made in a recent interview regarding going to visit Trevor this month.

Ryan's impending nuptials this month might, in part, explain the big push to completion for #tonequest, as Friday's update on Instagram depicts, with Grammy-nominated mastering engineer Greg Calbi (who also mastered Spreading Rumours).

Greg Calbi sure is a master 👊👊👊 @sterlingsound 🔥🔥🔥

A photo posted by GROUPLOVE (@grouplove) on Mar 31, 2016 at 11:12pm PDT

here is my Sole

An ongoing speculation for YesWest fandom involves a certain infamous line in "Love Will Find A Way" which did not exist when Trevor originally wrote the song, and as we know the composition was going to be given to Stevie Nicks, presumably for inclusion on her album Rock A Little.  Alan White then insisted Yes needed the song more than Stevie did.  But apparently this "feel-good song" (as Trevor has categorized it) required a further culinary subtext, such as: how difficult it is to get reservations at the hot restaurant of the moment.  Some choose to believe the line is a metaphor for fidelity, but I prefer my theory...

Lunch will find a way
if you want it to.
Lunch will find a way for me and you.

Knowing The Score: chronology check

Not that I would willingly afford any space on the blog to Twitter spam clickbait tweets (because as a cultural curator I strive for a particular level of quality in what I present to my readers), but links to this particular site have been showing up for a few months now, and this one keeps catching my eye.

Well, unbeknownst to everybody, I did a movie when I was 19.... #TrevorRabin #citations https://t.co/XITsPCYcTQ

— RussoRussel (@RussoRussel) March 17, 2016

The quote is from a 1998 interview, when it wasn't as widely-known that Trevor's scoring career began in South Africa rather than America.  As I've noted previously, although the usual cited year of release for Death of a Snowman is 1978, my research indicates it was first released in South Africa in 1976.  1978 was the year it was released worldwide under the name Black Trash.  A couple years before the recent official DVD release under the movie's original title, I obtained a gray market copy of Black Trash, the name obviously chosen to appeal to the Blaxplotation market even though Death of a Snowman, strictly speaking, is not that kind of film.  I remarked to Trevor that, in my opinion, Death of a Snowman wasn't any better or worse, in terms of the plot and acting, than The Glimmer Man - providing one of those career ironies in regard to his full-time return to film scoring twenty years after an obscure debut in the field.

This is not to imply that he couldn't have written a score at 19, because Trevor was definitely a wunderkind: discovered at age 14 by Patric van Blerk, playing on recording sessions as a teenager, experiencing unprecedented nationwide success by his early 20s.  But there are several indicators to illustrate the Maestro's chronology is a bit off when it comes to this particular project.  Trevor was 19 in 1973, which was the year he and Ronnie Friedman participated in Freedom's Children.  Trevor did perform session work during this period, and it's possible he was still studying at university that year as well, but I do not believe he would have had the appropriate amount of time available to compose a film score the old-fashioned way, as he has chronicled in various interviews.

My assertion: Trevor was 21 - rather than 19 - when he wrote his first score, in 1975.

The centerpiece of Trevor's career at that time, Rabbitt, provides some reference points.  One of the tracks on their 1975 release Boys Will Be Boys! is "Death of Tulio," which is under 30 seconds, qualifying it as something a bit less than an instrumental interlude.  It wasn't until I actually watched Death of a Snowman that I realized "Death of Tulio" was a cue from the movie, as Tulio is the name of one of the henchmen working for the titular Snowman character.  However, it is not the cue used for that (spoiler alert) scene in the movie.  I originally thought it was an unused cue which Trevor decided to include on the album because they (Rabbitt) had played on it, but it is actually used in another part of the movie and does refer to a death - for a scene which shows newspapers delivered with a headline declaring War On Crime (the Snowman's nom de guerre) has eliminated another rival.  Given that much of the score for the film is rock/soul rather than orchestral, it's an entirely logical supposition to assign the performance credits to Trevor, Neil and Ronnie.

Rabbitt's hit single "Charlie" is used in a scene featuring reporter Steve Chaka's girlfriend (who is also named Charlie) and I would imagine the song was not recorded before 1975.  When I told Trevor that "Charlie" can be heard in the movie, he ruefully did not approve of his younger self's decision to include it, which I would assume - as the musical director - he would have made, or at least agreed to.

Another detail is the cameo by vocalist Margaret Singana, who mimes along to "I Feel So Strong" (from 1974's Love Is The Power) as well as "Open Your Mind" (co-written by Trevor, from Stand By Your Man, released in 1975).  As we know, Trevor was involved with her career at that time and I believe he and Patric van Blerk had something to do with her appearance in the movie, but either way the choice of songs also indicates the applicable time period.

This clip provides a true example of the type of scoring which Trevor provided for this film.

I would not recommend any but the most dedicated of completists add this movie to their collection (but if you're an Amazon Prime member you can watch a decent-quality copy of Black Trash for free), although if nothing else it offers a glimpse of the Johannesburg environs in that particular era, including a shot of landmark Hillbrow Tower in one scene.  But it is an example of just how dedicated and ambitious Trevor was at that very young age to take on whatever project he thought was interesting, challenging, and something new in his overall development and experience.  Whatever the outcome, a hallmark of Trevor's musical journey is to be adventurous, and we fans appreciate and admire his eternal resolve.