Space:1999 Year 2 Soundtrack Imminent

[Simon Morris]

Silva Screen have announced that Derek Wadsworth's SPACE:1999 YEAR 2 score
will be released on the 26th October:

http://www.silvascreen.com/?cat=3


While I've got the Fanderson set (my favourite CD of all time, closely
followed by John Cameron's score to THE PROTECTORS), this is extremely
welcome, and I am very sorry that Derek did not live to see it hit the
record shops.

There was talk that the disc might include a bit of newly recorded music
(synth pieces perhaps that had been lost?) - I wonder if that is the case in
the finished article or not, as to me the album (from the tracklist) just seems like an edited
version of what was on the Fanderson set ?


Great news anyway.


Simon

[Nick Haysom]

Cowabunga!!!:):D:cool:

[Achilles Messenger]

Good news indeed!

I have a feeling that the synth pieces will be there as I'm pretty sure Derek newly recorded them, I think he also spent time in the studio remixing other tracks too, so some pieces should sound quite different to the Fanderson CD. In particular, Derek wasn't happy with the way the opening titles were mixed for the Fanderson disc so we'll get something sounding more like it did for the episodes - but in stereo.

It would be a nice dedication to his memory if his new work was included on these discs. Very sad that he's not here to see the release.

Rich

[Simon Morris]

I seem to remember someone (Ralph Titterton I expect) saying that some new pieces had been recorded for the album.

As some synth pieces were reportedly missing at the time, I would have expected the new pieces - if indeed they have been included on the new CD - to perhaps represent some of the pieces apparently lost, similar to the recreation of the 'Memories of Psychon' track on the Fanderson set. I'd certainly welcome those.

I actually met Derek a good while before he passed away; quite by chance when he was judging a big band jazz night. He was quite despairing of the delay in getting the Silva Screen CD out. I can't recall much of the conversation now but the impression I got was that he wasn't really involved personally in recording any extra pieces (although I may be wrong on that) - again, that would be a similar situation then to the re-interpretation of the one synth piece on the Fanderson set. I thought he also said that the remixing budget for the Silva album was very small - again, I might be wrong as my memory is hazy but I thought it was only likely to be the main and end titles which were remixed.

I don't know if anyone knows about the forthcoming disc as to what is or isn't on it. I do know that my Fanderson set will not be replaced by this one, as the Silva disc leaves off large chunks of music which were on the Fanderson set while some pieces are edited in length somewhat. That much I do remember from what Derek said, although I think the disc was still being worked on (or being finalised) at that time.

[Boxy]

I am thrilled to see this release has now been officially announced... I was beginning to worry that it would not be released, especially since before his passing, Derek had some form of dipute with the rights holders of 1999.... Glad this release has not been lost in a legal minefield...

[Simon Morris]

I think the delays were connected with the need to renew Silva's licencing agreement with Granada Ventures (or ITV Global...or whatever else they're now called).

Going back to my earlier post, my gut feeling is that there probably is no 'new' music on this release (re-recorded or otherwise) other than whatever has been remixed and that - retitling of some cues aside - it's an edited down version of the Fanderson 2-CD set.

[Silent Bob]

The track list does seem to be a cut down single disc version of the Fanderson 2 disc set.
I am still hoping the list might be wrong and will have some of his new tracks on it. But i won't hold my breath. :(

[Achilles Messenger]

The track list does seem to be a cut down single disc version of the Fanderson 2 disc set.
I am still hoping the list might be wrong and will have some of his new tracks on it. But I won't hold my breath. :(

Ralph Titterton stated late last year that Derek had infact been in the studio re-recording elements of tracks that, up until that point, no longer existed except for in the episodes themselves.
Therefore, because Derek hasn't actually recorded new complete tracks as it were, but rather some synth pieces which will be overlayed into existing tracks, the tracklist from Silva Screen probably wouldn't reflect this at this stage.
However, if they have included Derek's new work then you'd think they would have been promoting that when describing the release on their news piece!

At the very worst we'll get some re-mixed pieces which I would be happy with, as there is quite a difference in sound on some of Fanderson's Year 2 release compared to Derek's Year 2 promo disc. In my opinion some of the tracks on the latter were superior to the mixes on Fanderson's (sorry guys!), so we should hear something more along the lines of how Derek originally intended.

[Melvin]

You can now place your order on the UK Amazon web site. £11.69. Just a side note Silva Screen Records are also releasing the film soundtrack CD to the two sixties Dr Who movies. Here is a test for you all. Why would I mention this news, the Dr Who CD release, on the fanderson web site. You should all know this one.:)

[Silent Bob]

Because Barry Gray did some of the electronic score for those films! :)

[Melvin]

.....very good....I`ll try and think of a harder question next time.

[kit]

Thanks for letting us know of this release. I joined too late to get in on the Space:1999 year 1 and 2 discs and the Silva Screen editions are all I can get. Unless of course Fanderson is able to rerelease these and the UFO soundtracks again.

Oh and I've pre-ordered the Dr. Who.

Thanks again!

[Achilles Messenger]

Incase anyone hasn't seen it, here is a preview of what looks to be the cover for the forthcoming Year 2 CD...

[Jaffa1978]

Thanks for letting us know of this release. I joined too late to get in on the Space:1999 year 1 and 2 discs and the Silva Screen editions are all I can get. Unless of course Fanderson is able to rerelease these and the UFO soundtracks again.

Oh and I've pre-ordered the Dr. Who.

Thanks again!
Yeah I missed them too, not too bothered about the Space 1999 CDs but would really love the UFO one to be re-released. However I can't see it happening, particularly in the short term. With Silva Screen CDs on general release I expect they may not be too chuffed if Fanderson release their CDs again especially as people are hinting that some of the music will be duplicated. As for UFO I'm not sure. It's not that long since it was out and I've heard rumours that Silva Screen will be releasing their own UFO CD too at some point. But we can live in hope I guess. Don't know if anyone else has further info on this.

[kit]

Received my Dr. Who and the Daleks CD in the mail today.

Hope Silva does release a UFO soundtrack, that would be great.

[Simon Morris]

Amazon.co.uk are displaying what would appear to be revised artwork (and
much improved, in my opinion, from the first cover that was being displayed)
for the forthcoming CD release.

The new cover seems to accompany only the MP3 download version of the album
at the moment (you can have a taste of the tracks even though its not
available until the end of the month); Amazon hasn't as yet updated the
artwork for the actual CD page.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B002RXHIXU/ref=dm_sp_alb?ie=UTF8&qid=1255032702&sr=8-16



Simon

[Mr Joe 90 glasses]

Hi all, just joined, my first post!

Cheers to Simon for the info and Amazon link, have a had a listen.

It's great to hear the Silva Screen CD is finally getting a release, not as complete as the Fanderson one, but still a worthy collectable for those interested in different mixes (or even some extra work from Derek Wadsworth if that is included).

I noticed just recently that Derek's son is putting some of Derek's original promo season 2 soundtrack CD's on eBay, well worth a punt as there can't be many left around.

cheers all,
Steve

[anthonyd]

Anyone know if this will be released in the US? I've sent some emails to various companies but no replies yet.

[Nick Haysom]

Anyone know if this will be released in the US? I've sent some emails to various companies but no replies yet.

Er, does it matter? And why wait? I'm sure Amazon UK, Play, or Silva will ship it to the US for a modest fee.

[Simon Morris]

Anyone know if this will be released in the US? I've sent some emails to various companies but no replies yet.


As Nick says, there's plenty of UK retailers that will willingly ship to the US (although forthcoming Royal Mail strikes are going to have an adverse effect on shipping...)

But SAE in Virginia have it up for pre-order:

http://www.screenarchives.com/title_detail.cfm?ID=12888

[cricket_99]

As Nick says, there's plenty of UK retailers that will willingly ship to the US ...

Amazon UK is wickedly easy to work with on international orders. And by the time you factor in the usual Amazon discount and add international shipping, the price is typically comparable to the source, and then you can deal with Amazon if there are problems.

[Simon Morris]

The Year 2 album is now available to order on Silva's website:

http://www.silvascreenmusic.com/ishop/299/Derek-Wadsworth/326384/Space1999---Year-Two.aspx

[Nick Haysom]

£1.01 cheaper at Amazon though!

http://tinyurl.com/ygcess5

[Simon Morris]

£1.01 cheaper at Amazon though!

http://tinyurl.com/ygcess5


True enough, but normally people who preorder from Silva direct get their orders a bit earlier.

Yer pays yer money and yer takes yer choice..... :D

[kit]

I preodered through Screen Archives Entertainment and bought the MP3 and downloaded from Silva last night. Already enjoying it, right now as a matter of fact, and eagerly awaiting the actual CD to arrive via snail mail.

[Nick Haysom]

True enough, but normally people who preorder from Silva direct get their orders a bit earlier.

Yer pays yer money and yer takes yer choice..... :D

Well yes, true. Personally I'd never pay more to get something earlier - well, not a CD anyway! Having grown up in an era when the words "mail order" were synonymous with "allow 28 days for delivery" (and anything from the US took two months or so!) I find myself bemused by today's "must have it now" culture. I guess MP3's are the ultimate in instant gratification.

[kit]

Well yes, true. Personally I'd never pay more to get something earlier - well, not a CD anyway! Having grown up in an era when the words "mail order" were synonymous with "allow 28 days for delivery" (and anything from the US took two months or so!) I find myself bemused by today's "must have it now" culture. I guess MP3's are the ultimate in instant gratification.

Yes they are.

[Nick Haysom]

Yes they are.

That's gratifying to know.

[Simon Morris]

My Year 2 CD has just arrived in the mail. No time to listen, but the booklet is very nice indeed, I think.

Nice to finally have this out, and once again, it's a shame Derek Wadsworth didn't get to see it.

[Captaincubbio2009]

I have just pre ordered my copy of Derek Wadsworth's Space 1999 Year 2 TV Soundtrack from Silva Screen this morning.

The latest Fanderson - Space 1999 Year 2 TV Soundtrack whent on EBay last night for £65.00 GBP Pounds

I wonder if they'll be anymore being put up it looks like one of Late Derek Wadsworth's relatives who is doing it

Kindest Regards

Captain Cubbio 2009

[Nick Haysom]

My Year 2 CD has just arrived in the mail. No time to listen, but the booklet is very nice indeed, I think.

That's incredible! Already? I don't believe it.

I hardly ever get post delivered so early in the day.

;)

[Nick Haysom]

The latest Fanderson - Space 1999 Year 2 TV Soundtrack whent on EBay last night for £65.00 GBP Pounds
I wonder if they'll be anymore being put up it looks like one of Late Derek Wadsworth's relatives who is doing it

No wonder Fanderson sold out so quickly - Derek Wadsworth had half of 'em!

:)

[Simon Morris]

Post around here varies - normally from 9.30 onwards, and rarely after midday.

Regarding the promo discs, I seem to remember that Derek had a big box of about 100, but it might have been more. He sent out lots when he was touting for composing and arranging jobs, but quite a few went to fans who used to write to him too.

Most of the discs that have been put on ebay by Derek's son have been the promos, as far as I know. But it's fair to assume he must have had a few copies of the Fanderson set too....

[Simon Morris]

Ok - had my first listen :)

For those who have the Fanderson CD set, I can confirm that there is no 'new' music on this release. The Main Title and End Title have clearly been remixed to sound truer to the original sound of the titles as transmitted (rather than the awfully flat version which opened the Fanderson disc).

If any other remixing has been done, it's very subtle because essentially the music sounds pretty much the same as the Fanderson mixes - which means that if you had any issues with the remixing for that album (and I had a couple of very slight issues myself...), the Silva album probably won't have resolved those issues.

It has been remastered, and I'm not sure if some of the music hasn't had a bit of reverb added (although my initial listen isn't in the best of environments, so I wouldn't be 100% sure about that).

The booklet is very nice indeed - love the cover, which is heaps better than the temporary one that Silva put on it for initial advertisements etc. The late Derek Wadsworth wrote an extensive introduction, while the notes are mainly taken from the Fanderson release. The notes are book-ended by tributes to Derek from both Derek's children and from the CD producer Tim Mallett.

What matters at the end of the day is that they have taken the 'best bits' of the Year 2 music and distilled them down into one superbly listenable CD which makes the music more widely available.

Nice job Silva, and to all those involved in finally getting this release 'out there'.

[Simon Morris]

Forgot to add that some stellar names have been added to the Musician's List:

The truly legendary drummer Barry Morgan (who played on many Barry Gray sessions), as well as drummer Martin Drew, who used to play with the Ronnie Scott group. Also Pete King on alto sax, who played on many John Cameron sessions and with Cameron's jazz-rock group CCS!

Deep, deep respect....! :)

[kit]

Year 2 arrived in the mail today. Although I've been listening to the MP3 album for a week now It's great to have the CD in my hands and read the liner notes.

[Captaincubbio2009]

Hello there all,

My CD TV Soundtrack to Derek Wadsworth came today at 1.45 pm because of this Postal Strike. I must say it sounds a lot clearer than Fanderson's edition, All credit goes to Silva Screen.

I managed to have a few lovely E-Mail's off Derek Wadsworth sometime before he sadly passed away, He seemed such a lovely man he sent me a signed photo & a promo cd signed.

Kindest Regards

Captaincubbio2009

[Simon Morris]

Hello there all,

My CD TV Soundtrack to Derek Wadsworth came today at 1.45 pm because of this Postal Strike. I must say it sounds a lot clearer than Fanderson's edition,


I think what they've done is remastered it at a higher volume level; I don't really think it is actually 'clearer' than the Fanderson edition. Initially I thought they had applied more reverb, but I'm not sure that they have now, having listened more carefully.

There is more 'volume' on the Silva release, whereas to get the same volume level on the Fanderson you just have to turn up the volume control on your equipment a bit more. When I first had the Fanderson set I thought it could have done with a bit more volume....

Other than that, the mixes themselves (outside of the titles) seem pretty much the same to me, and the level of detail in the music is the same between the Fanderson set and the Silva....

[Simon Morris]

The online magazine Film Score Monthly has published their review of the Space:1999 Year Two Soundtrack, which was given a four star rating (out of 5, I think....). Anyway - here it is:


Taking over scoring duties from composer Barry Gray on Gerry Anderson’s much beloved television series Space 1999, jazz trombonist and arranger Derek Wadsworth was up to the challenge, and his efforts are represented on this new Silva Screen release. The late composer, perhaps most familiar to readers as a conductor on some of Silva Screen’s film music re-recordings, worked with many top musical names during his career, including Dusty Springfield and Tom Jones. He brought his jazz background to the sci-fi series while simultaneously creating a refreshing electronic-orchestral sound suited to the narrative. Some of the top-drawer musicians working under the composer’s baton include harpist David Snell, synthesist Dave Lawson, and guitarist Martin Kershaw.

Wadsworth reflected on the project: “...John Cage, Terry Riley, Philip Glass, Stockhausen and others were displaying the brilliance of surrealism, minimalism, sound sculptures and long drawn-out ethereal trances. All of these things had filtered into my developing musical palette...” The high-energy “Main Theme” opens the album with a powerful statement for brass, synthesizer and drums. The remainder of the music is divided into five suites, each devoted to a particular episode. (As detailed in the copious liner notes, some portions of the music were tracked into different episodes throughout the series.)

“The Metamorph” (4 tracks - 20:02) begins with the ethereal “Strange Light,” an evocative piece of scoring for light brass, organ and synthesizer. Shimmering harp and guitar further the all-pervasive, mystical sense of awe. As the light grows, emerging symphonic rock flourishes add a rougher edge to the proceedings. The opening passages of “Escape From Psychon” offer an engaging blending of percussion, assorted electric keyboards, harp and synthesizer. Gradually, short percussive raps appear and accelerate suddenly, only to disperse in a cloud of brass. Although the track is principally rhythm oriented, the moodier sections for organ, synth, and a small string section are equally effective in fostering suspense. The piece winds down with disco-infused action rhythms. “We’re All Aliens,” an easy listening piece for brass, synth, and sensitive strings, closes the suite on a happy note.

A bustling mix of brass, harp and keyboards opens “The Exiles” (5 tracks - 18:49) with “A Swarm of Space Bees.” Atypical ’70s television scoring for rock and orchestra dominates “The First Capsule” and “Make Me a Pretty Nose”; employing brass, strings and keyboards, Wadsworth’s work here is easy to digest, yet still retains enough melodic integrity to befit the dramatic nature of the project.

The highlight of “One Moment of Humanity” (3 tracks - 10:34) is “The Seduction.” This elaborate progressive-jazz/rocker efficiently incorporates some memorable instrumental elements; electric piano and synth; the Terje Rypdal-like squeals of electric guitar; and spirited drum performances, all culminating in a lively jazz free-for-all. “The Taybor” (4 tracks - 11:56) displays the lightest tone of the whole album via confidently rendered, up-tempo pop and jazz cuts.

Finally, the suite for “Space Warp” (3 tracks - 16:56) ends the recording with the jazz-rock energy of “Light Years Away,” which contains some especially vigorous performances. The energy of the track mellows smoothly as strings, guitar and brass combinations, reminiscent of Jerry Fielding’s jazz scoring, emerge. More jazzy scenarios are explored on “Showdown at Copernicus,” complete with oscillating electronic effects, snazzy guitars, powerful rhythms, and dense strings. This last track in particular is one of the album’s best, and superbly illustrates the talents of its composer.

In addition to Wadsworth’s informative musings, there are further liner notes by Chris Bentley, Ralph Titterton and Max Wadsworth. Recommended highly to fans of the series, Space: 1999—Year Two is not only a great souvenir but also a substantial listening experience. And if you’re new to the legacy of Space: 1999, this music will illustrate the colourful imagination of its author! —Christopher Jenkins
(FSM Vol 15, No 1 Jan 2010)