The Baton: A John Williams Musical Journey Jeff Commings

John Williams planned to take a break from film scoring in the second half of 1990 to work on a concerto, but fate brought a screening of the comedy "Home Alone," and Williams could not resist the film about a boy who protects his house from burglars after his family accidentally takes off for Paris without him. The Maestro came to the project after Bruce Broughton had to step away due to scheduling conflicts, marking the second time in two years that Williams replaced Broughton on a film project. Williams writes two themes for the film that became Christmas-themed songs, one of the melodies being used for the film's action sequences before converting to a song about the star that guided visitors to the manger where Jesus was born. Host Jeff Commings counts the score as his fifth-favorite, noting that there isn't a false note in the music and it doesn't resort to overdoing it on the comedy aspect of the film. 

Welcome! This is a podcast unlike any other. We're going on a journey through the 60 years of film music written by the legendary John Williams, considered by just about everyone to be the greatest film composer in history. In this episode, host Jeff Commings begins the journey with a look back at John Williams' life before his first film assignment. Learn about John Williams' time in the Air Force, his studies at Juilliard and learning from the best in his early days in Hollywood.

Let's start this journey through the career of film composer John Williams with his first-ever score for a feature-length film. The 1959 B-movie "Daddy-O" was not the blockbuster that Williams would have hoped to have to launch his career, but it contains some good music. Host Jeff Commings examines some of the music, including some moments that hint at the greatness to come almost a decade later.

The second film in John Williams' filmography is about as different from his first as you could get. The film "I Passed For White" tried very hard to be taken seriously, but is sheer melodrama in the Douglas Sirk method. The film is notable for the first thematic material John Williams has written, a lush melody for the main character. Join host Jeff Commings as he discusses this heavy-handed drama about race and personal identity.

We've got another teenage drama for you on this episode: "Because They're Young." It's a bit more dramatic than John Williams' first foray into the teenybopper genre, Daddy-O, with Dick Clark in his first film role and some obvious attempts to mimic the more popular film The Blackboard Jungle. There are also some connections to West Side Story, both intentional and unintentional. Sit back as host Jeff Commings analyzes this bongo-heavy score for a film that might have you reliving your high school days.

John Williams' fourth film score, for the movie "The Secret Ways," does its very best to turn a very bad film into something watchable. Williams succeeds in many places, coloring in darkly-filmed scenes with violins and flutes and composing a haunting main theme for the piano and cello. Host Jeff Commings tries to explain the plot of the film while breaking down some of the score's finer moments. We'll also discuss the historic firsts John Williams experienced the same year during his work on the TV show "Checkmate."