You talk about a forgotten gem in the Goldsmith canon! In those long ago, early-1950s days of my youth I can still recall the excitement of watching Brett Chase dish out wholesome, honest justice to bad guys and gals and always cutting to the quick with his "Just the facts!" Brilliant television that stays with a fella like a good Cuban meal!
Which brings me to the topic of this thread: Goldsmith's 276 original and complete scores for this great (but forgotten) show. Everyone says that Earle Hagen's I Spy was the first show with all original music, but in fact, "Jerrald" Goldsmith's scores preceded Hagen's efforts by fifteen years! Take that!
My favorite Badge of Honor Goldsmith score is definitely from season three's episode, "Heroin is No Heroine." "Jerrald" Goldsmith's pulsating action cue during the Lawn Dart scene has to be the best thing he ever did. Badge of Honor is a Warner's property, so maybe there's hope of rescuing the scores and we fans can get the music in the best possible 44' master tapes...my fingers are crossed...
so maybe there's hope of rescuing the scores and we fans can get the music in the best possible 44' master tapes...my fingers are crossed...
WHAT!!?? You missed the (almost) complete box set of this series? It was even presented in a hybrid SACD. Just three tracks were missing which were on a damaged tape.
It was limited to 300 copies of course, but with that $100 price tag (1950s dollars, not corrected for inflation) I thought it wouldn't sell out the way it did (33 minutes after it was put on for preorder)...
WHAT!!?? You missed the (almost) complete box set of this series? It was even presented in a hybrid SACD. Just three tracks were missing which were on a damaged tape.
It was limited to 300 copies of course, but with that $100 price tag (1950s dollars, not corrected for inflation) I thought it wouldn't sell out the way it did (33 minutes after it was put on for preorder)...
The carbon paper copy of the liner notes fetches BIG bucks on ebay, and the funny thing is the set was on triple-sided discs. A shame, because I don't have a side free DVD player...
Check out track 7, disc 9: "Confusion". It's said to be the first use of atonal music for TV.
Unfortunately, owners of this set are offered some free advice from me: beware trips from the Feds. The record company blamed a "clerical error", but nevertheless Laurent Watteau contacted the authorities when it was noticed that in the fifth paragraph of the 53rd page of liner notes (penned by Harper Lee, in a rare publication) the name of one track is erroneously reported (it seems Ms Lee offered an extraneous usage of the indefinite article). Such was the magnitude of the offence, a constitutional amendment was swiftly drawn up making clear it is a felony to be in posession of the set.
I don't know, I think the show lost its edge when Jack Vincennes was replaced as advisor. I just sorta lost interest, I guess. Didn't they start farming the scores out to Harry Sukman about that time?
