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It has been thirty years since the starship U.S.S. ENTERPRISE first flashed across out television screens and into our collective consciousness--and we're still amazed by it.
But then, everything about STAR TREK is amazing--its unique hold on the imagination of adults and children, its durability through generations of television history, its power to generate successful spin-off shows and movies--and not least of all, its ability to inspire the best in people.
The secret of STAR TREK is that it's fun. It's fun to write, it's fun to be in it, it's fun to watch, it's fun to share with friends. I've been involved with STAR TREK since almost the beginning. I've written episodes for the original series, I've written two non-fiction books about STAR TREK and two STAR TREK novels, I've been an extra in one movie and one episode, and I wrote the Writer's/Director's guide for STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION.
Recently, STAR TREK: DEEP SPACE NINE decided to do an episode where the crew of DS9 traveled back in time to become part of the original "The Trouble with Tribbles" episode. For the fun of it, I worked as an extra in that show. I'm the gray-haired security guard tickling the Tribble on the floor. (The fellow who never beamed down with Kirk and Spock.)
If you've seen that episode them you know how meticulously the STAR TREK: DEEP SPACE NINE production team recreated the first U.S.S. ENTERPRISE. If you thought it looked good on television, you should have seen it in person--to actually walk those corridors again was to travel thirty years back in time. (I kept looking for Kirk and Spock.) For those of us who had worked on the original series, it was like coming home again--and that set was one of the most visited sets in Hollywood. Cast members from all the shows dropped by, as well as people who worked on the original series.
Working that show, even for a couple of days, even in a very minor role, reminded me again of the magic of the original vision, the power of STAR TREK to inspire people to dream beyond their limits. During the past thirty years, we've seen writers and producers invent stories that challenge our views of the way the universe works. We've seen the art and make-up and special effects departments invent new worlds and new civilizations. We've seen actors and directors bring those worlds to life.
And...we've felt the intensely personal responses throughout. The music that accompanies every STAR TREK episode, every STAR TREK movie, provides us with profoundly emotional cues. The delicate opening notes of Alexander Courage's theme from the original series are like a beckoning--Come--I offer you adventure. And then, the soaring melody picks you up boldly and carries you off to the stars. The music is as ear catching a piece of work as has ever been written. It can stop me dead in my tracks.
When STAR TREK: THE MOTION PICTURE was made in 1979, Jerry Goldsmith composed a new STAR TREK theme. That theme was also used for STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION, STAR TREK V: THE FINAL FRONTIER and STAR TREK: FIRST CONTACT. It is a bold and triumphantly musical statement, very possibly one of Goldsmith's most inspired works.
In the years since them, other composers have come to the STAR TREK universe, bringing their own musical flavors and textures, each adding his own unique emotional palette to the STAR TREK ouvre.
This album has been compiled by Neil Norman, who has made a career out of bringing otherwise unavailable music from science fiction television shows and movies to an enthusiastic audience. This is the first time that the original themes of all four STAR TREK series have been compiled on a single disc, with previously unreleased musical suites from the most memorable episodes. So this just isn't a CD; it's a time machine, taking you back to some of your favorite memories--and forward into the future. Put it in your stereo, sit back and enjoy. -- David Gerrold
In 1964 Gene Roddenberry, an ex-policeman turned writer-producer, submitted a concept to Desilu Studios for a new science fiction program. His idea was essentially Captain Horatio Hornblower in space leading a "Wagon Train to the Stars." Desilu found the idea intriguing and shipped it around to various networks. NBC finally picket it up, and Gene present his script for STAR TREK starring Jeffrey Hunter as Captain Christopher Pike, Majel Barrett (the future Mrs. Roddenberry) as second-in-command Number One and Leonard Nimoy as Mister Spock, his half-alien science officer. NBC turned down Gene's initial concept "The Cage," saying that the story was "too cerebral." Additionally, they felt the character of Spock looked too demonic for television audiences and had to go., but NBC thought the premise was worthy of a second try, so Gene then submitted "Where No Man Has Gone Before." This second pilot case William Shatner as Captain James Kirk along with a new set of actors portraying the crew of the starship Enterprise. But at Gene's insistence, Nimoy stayed on as Mister Spock. The pilot was bought and STAR TREK was a go. Little could anyone have realized at the time that a television legend was being born.
Since the initial airing of the series, STAR TREK has begat a following unlike anything known in the history of the medium. Following STAR TREK's cancellation in 1969 after a three season run, fans began to take notice of the show in reruns. Today, STAR TREK fans are legion and their continued interest and letter-writing campaigns have helped spawn to date eight feature films and three television spinoffs. To coin a famous phrase, it has gone where no television series has gone before by bringing many otherwise taboo subjects before audiences as well as being entertaining and educational.
This collection of suites and themes pays homage to STAR TREK and its many incarnations on television over the past 30 years. From the classic series we present a suite from one of the most popular and well-remembered episodes of the series "The Trouble with Tribbles." Written by the well known science fiction author David Gerrold, "Tribbles" was a tale of Klingon spies, obnoxious gem traders and prolific, purring balls of fluff. For this show, composer Jerry Fielding was brought in to write some original music in a rather light-hearted, almost comical vein. Fielding has been known for using innovative musical techniques for his scores in the absence of hi-tech synthesizers. His amusing "Tribble" motif is heard whenever you see a roomful of the little fur balls or when Captain Kirk is about to sit on one. This effect was achieved by dubbing trombone overlays into the tracks at twice normal speed. Probably Jerry's best known piece is his raucous bar fight sequence which harkens back to the style of his more famous western scores.
Jerry had written music for many famous television shows including the themes fro HOGAN'S HEROES, McMILLAN AND WIFE, and THE BIONIC WOMAN. He also scored many famous films like THE WILD BUNCH (1969), the Oscar-nominated STRAW DOGS (1971), CHATO'S LAND, THE MECHANIC (1972), THE KILLER ELITE (1975), THE OUTLAW JOSEY WALES (1976) which earned Jerry his second Oscar nomination, THE ENFORCER (1976), THE GAUNTLET (1977) and ESCAPE FROM ALCATRAZ (1979). Jerry Fielding passed away from a heart attack in Toronto on February 17th, 1980. Many subsequent film and television productions suffered for his loss.
When Gene finally got the green light for STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION, he decided he wanted Jerry Goldsmith's theme from STAR TREK: THE MOTION PICTURE to underscore the opening credits. After the famous Alexander Courage preamble, Jerry's theme, as arranged by Dennis McCarthy, sets the stage for STAR TREK's long-awaited return to television. Jerry himself would later write the Main Title for STAR TREK: VOYAGER, a theme which would eventually win the Emmy for Best Main Title for a television series.
"Heart of Glory" marked the return of the Klingons in this episode from the first season of STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION. Here, the Enterprise crew finds a group of renegade Klingons in the run from the Empire's new regime. For this score, composer Ron Jones employs several moody synth movements along with a clacking percussive motif which is essentially his theme for the Klingons. Ron uses this same motif in later Klingon-based episodes to come. Ron worked on STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION for three and a half years before leaving the series, but while he was there he established many themes for various STAR TREK heavies like the Klingons, the Romulans and the Borg, many of which have become favorites among fans of the show. Ron moved to Los Angeles after attending Seattle Pacific University in 1978 where he studied music composition and arranging at the Dick Grove School of Music. Since then he has scored many Hanna-Barbera cartoon series such as THE SMURFS, THE FLINSTONES and SCOOBY DOO. Later he worked with Mike Post and the late Pete Carpenter on THE "A" TEAM, RIPTIDE, MAGNUM P.I. and HUNTER. Currently he has produced several original compositions for his own record label, EMOTIF.
When Ron Jones left STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION, Jay Chattaway was immediately asked to take over scoring duties alongside Dennis McCarthy. Having proved his worth with outstanding scores for the episodes "Tin Man" and "Remember Me," Jay continued on through the remaining run of the series and on into STAR TREK: DEEP SPACE NINE and STAR TREK: VOYAGER. In the episode "The Inner Light" for STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION, Captain Picard (Patrick Stewart) is possessed by an alien space probe left behind by a dead civilization. Under the influence of the probe, Picard lives the life of on of the civilization's inhabitants as the world's inevitable end is chronicled. For this episode, Jay has composed a wonderful melody played by Picard on a Ressikan flute. the melody is heard again in the episode "Lessons" as arranged by Dennis McCarthy. It is presented here as an extended suite for flute and orchestra conducted by Jay Chattaway and performed by the STAR TREK: DEEP SPACE NINE orchestra.
Jay is a veteran of the record industry having served as jazz A&R director for Columbia Records. Among the records Jay has produced was Maynard Ferguson's Conquistador which contained an arrangement of the original Theme From STAR TREK. He later went on to score various motion pictures such as MISSING IN ACTION, STEPHEN KING's SILVER BULLET, RED SCORPION, THE AMBULANCE, 30 YEARS WITH NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC and the PBS series SPACE AGE.
"The Visitor" has turned out to be one of the most beloved episodes of STAR TREK: DEEP SPACE NINE and was nominated for a Hugo Award for best dramatic presentation of science fiction in films and television. It was also chosen by TV Guide as being the most popular episode by the viewing audience. Following Dennis McCarthy's new fourth season arrangement of his Emmy-winning theme for STAR TREK: DEEP SPACE NINE is his stirring, emotional score for this outstanding episode as the life of writer Jake Sisko (as played by Tony Todd) is chronicled as he desperately tries to rescue his father Benjamin Sisko (Avery Brooks) from a temporal anomaly following a warp-core accident on the starship Defiant.
For the episode "Heroes and Demons" from STAR TREK: VOYAGER, the musical history of the series comes full circle. When Gene Roddenberry created STAR TREK, he envisioned an action-filled, swashbuckling adventure a la CAPTAIN BLOOD with musical scores to fit the mood and the pace. In this episode, Voyager's holographic doctor (Robert Picardo) must do battle with an alien computer virus which has taken the form of Grendel, a mythical dragon from "The Adventures of Beowulf." In the tradition set forth by Gene thirty years ago, Dennis' score packs a wallop that would do Errol Flynn proud, with textures reminiscent of the works of Alfred Newman and Erich Wolfgang Korngold.
Dennis' tenure in STAR TREK began with the premiere episode of STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION "Encounter at Farpoint" (GNPD 8012) and has prospered through STAR TREK: DEEP SPACE NINE and STAR TREK: VOYAGER, garnering several Emmys and Emmy nominations along the way. His feature film debut was the score for STAR TREK GENERATIONS (GNPD 8040) and subsequently, the feature film version of McHALE'S NAVY. Recent projects include LIFESTORIES, HIDDEN IN SILENCE, episodes of SLIDERS and TINY TOONS, THE COLONY, THE CARE AND HANDLING OF ROSES, and IN THE NAME OF LOVE: A TEXAS TRAGEDY. He was also musical director for the UPN special STAR TREK: 30 YEARS AND BEYOND.
Finally, mention must be made of Alexander Courage whose bold theme for STAR TREK is the foundation for all the wonderful music represented here. His career as a composer spans over four decades since coming to California after World War II. His involvement with STAR TREK came about because of his fried Wilbur Hatch who was head of music for Desilu Studios. Hatch introduced Courage to Gene Roddenberry who later assigned him to write both pilot episodes of STAR TREK (GNPD 8006). Since then he has scored the episodes "The Man Trap", "the Naked Time", "Plato's Stepchildren" and "The Enterprise Incident." He currently serves as orchestrator for John Williams, Jerry Goldsmith and many other composers.
Includes the STAR TREK: FIRST CONTACT game teaser from the Official Paramount Pictures STAR TREK: FIRST CONTACT website plus Promotional Theatrical Trailer for STAR TREK: FIRST CONTACT.
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Opening screen
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First Contact trailer
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First Contact Borg game
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Soundtrack information
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