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What’s up Sorry Staters? Today, as I write, it’s May 4th, so, May The Fourth Be With You. As a Star Wars fan, I thought it appropriate to make my staff pick thematic with the day. So, let’s discover Patrick Gleeson’s Star Wars on Mercury Records from 1977.
First off, this is not a hard to find or pricey record by any means. I found mine cheap in a bargain bin, but as with many similar records it punches above its weight. The current Discogs median is just $5, to give you an idea. But don’t ever let that put you off being curious about a record’s worth. I’ll throw up many $1 records as examples of music that is far superior to a lot of junk that gets passed as music these days and has the nerve to charge punters $50 plus for the pleasure of owning it. But the price of new records is a discussion for another time and place.
Back to Star Wars. I went to the opening weekend screening of the film back in 1977 as an eight-year-old kid and went back several times over the course of that summer. Over the years, I watched the original trio of films many times over, in all their versions. I’ll admit to not being a huge fan of the prequels when they first came out, but have warmed to them over time. I’d say the same about the sequel trilogy, although I have only seen each of those just the once. Not being a Disney subscriber, I still have not seen the Mandalorian series or any of the other animated Star Wars universe films and shows. Whilst living in New York, I had the opportunity to go to the premiere for one of the prequel films, which was more memorable for me standing in line with the nerds because that was when Triumph the Insult Comic Dog filmed a great segment having fun with some of the folks there. None of my party were dressed in costume, so were spared the potential ridicule, but we were thrilled to see Triumph and his handler Robert Smigel doing their thing as we were big fans. Around about that time Smigel had his TV Funhouse show on Comedy Central, which only ran for a season, but was comedy gold in my opinion. Seek it out if you can. Anyway, all this to say that I like Star Wars and honestly any sci-fi TV series or film set in space. Star Trek, Battlestar Galactica, Dr. Who, you name it and I’m probably into it. A big part of the enjoyment for any of these has always been the music and, as I have mentioned many times in these pages, I am a big soundtrack fan and collector. Hence me naturally being drawn to this version of the Star Wars music.
So, the first thing to say about this record is that it is not a simple note-for-note rerecording of the original John Williams score by someone trying to make a quick cash in. There were a few of them in the wake of the film’s success and sci-fi in general. My record collection has several such examples. A lot aren’t that bad. Most people know the one by the artist known as Meco and his Star Wars and Other Galactic Funk. That’s a good one and again easy and cheap to find if you’re into this type of stuff. The Patrick Gleeson version was recorded in July and released in August 1977, just two months after the release of the movie. Gleeson wasn’t responding to the movie like the average movie goer and fan; he had anticipated the release ever since George Lucas began discussing its production back in 1975. In fact, Gleeson, confident in his ability and knowledge of synthesized music, put himself forward to be the one who would score this new movie for Lucas. Obviously, that task fell to John Williams and the LSO after Williams was recommended to Lucas by his directing pal Steven Spielberg. But the idea of Gleeson being the one to produce the music wasn’t just wishful thinking on his part. Over the previous eight or so years, he had made a name for himself within the music industry for his pioneering use of synths and electronic music. Gleeson was an English professor at San Francisco State who had been dabbling in early electronic music during the mid 1960s. In 1968, partly in support and sympathy of protesting students, he gave up his position to become a full-time musician. After hearing Wendy Carlos’s pioneering record, Switched On Bach, he took some money his dad lent him and bought a Moog synthesizer. Soon after, he founded the Different Fur Recording Studio, which initially provided a space for him to record music for independent film and low budget television. Within a short time, his reputation brought him to work for a lot of musicians, particularly in the jazz field, who were experimenting in future sounds for their music. The biggest name being that of Herbie Hancock, who hired Gleeson to set up synth pads for him to use. On meeting Gleeson and seeing him at work, Hancock asked him to play on the recordings rather than teach him how to play the synths. Gleeson ended up joining Hancock and his band for the recording of Crossings and then Sextant, and would appear at some live gigs playing the synth patterns live, something that was very new back then. Through his work and success with Herbie Hancock, Gleeson would make connections with lots of similar minded musicians, including Charles Earland and Eddie Henderson, who utilized his synth work on their albums.
In 1976, Gleeson released an album called Beyond The Sun, which was an electronic take on Holst’s The Planets. The album, with liner notes by Wendy Carlos, was nominated for a Grammy. So, with all this behind him, Gleeson released his most commercial album the following year with the Star Wars record. On the album, the songs are based on the John Williams originals but given a much different treatment. In places, the themes are recognizable, but in others not so much. Also, although much of the music was created using synths, humans are utilized throughout. Particularly drummers, and some damn fine ones, too. Billy Cobham and Harvey Mason are two names that any 70s jazz fusion head should be familiar with. There are also vocals provided by a singer named Sarah Baker (who I couldn’t find much about) and the early use of a Lyricon (a synthesized wind instrument) played by Lenny Pickett, who would later lead the Saturday Night Live Band.
The album comes with a two-sided insert with notes from Gleeson explaining the technical details of the recordings along with his thoughts on the project. He says himself that he thought he was the one who should have scored the film, although he doesn’t knock the work of John Williams and understood why Lucas went the direction he did. Gleeson would eventually fulfill his ambition to score music for a Star Wars project when, in the 80s, he contributed to the Ewoks TV show. His resume is full of notable work, be it for soundtracks or contributing to other artist’s albums. If you start to look, you’ll see his name popping up in the credits of a lot of records. If Herbie Hancock thought he was cool and smart, then you know he must have been.
Okay, gotta catch the deadline. Go check this one out whether you’re a Star Wars fan or just a lover of interesting electronic music. Or both. Here’s a link.
Cheers - Dom