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And...there's been no announcement!
That's a new low in clue standards!
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Breaking news: there are other composers besides Jerry Goldsmith.
Come on, you're pulling our legs.
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As far as Jerry Goldsmith beeing my favorite composer since day one, where are the Dominic Frontiere, Billy Goldenberg, Leonard Rosenman, Michael J. Lewis, David Shire, Lalo Schifrin etc??
Fully deserted or ignored by Varese Club!
For years if not decades (except ROBOCOP 2).
I mean, David Shire and Lalo Schifrin get plenty attention from the other labels, and Leonard Rosenman to some degree as well, but Michael J. Lewis? Billy Goldenberg? Sadly hardly anyone releases their stuff, and apparently it's largely due to disappointing sales of the few that have come out.
The Varese Club for well over a decade at least has concentrated primarily on expanding titles they control in perpetuity, something they only started doing rights-wise in late 1989. So Robocop 2 was literally the only Rosenman score they controlled the rights to. And they don't have perpetuity rights for much of anything from those other composers, which I guess you can perhaps blame on their priorities in the 90s... although they did release some older scores in that time period which is why The Other, Mephisto Waltz, and the Flint scores are locked up by them when it comes to Goldsmiths that need expansion. (I fear that Disney's purchase of Fox may have made those impossible for the foreseeable future, sadly.)
Yavar
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Yes I have the same feeling actually..that labels are slowing down their releases.
What makes you so sure it's the labels' choice? From what I've heard, approvals (and other delays) stretch on longer and longer, probably as studios get more short-staffed. I don't think the labels necessarily prefer to release product less frequently. After all they depend upon it to survive.
Yavar
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I never said it prevented them; I simply pointed out what their priorities have been and why.
Several years back Varese was still releasing some premieres, whether technically Club releases or not: The Big Fix, the three Grusin premiere CDs (four scores), the Neal Hefti twofer of The Odd Couple/Barefoot in the Park... apparently they didn't sell well, at all (Grusin's Murder by Death may have been an exception I guess). The expanded Deluxe Editions they released sold consistently much better.
They even tried something weird once where they labeled a Club release of Rosenthal's Rooster Cogburn to be "The Deluxe Edition" even though it was a total 100% premiere! Didn't work. It sold very poorly for them, and was put on a huge discount sale just like The Big Fix. And that's a western, a genre that usually does well!
Producing Deluxe Editions of scores they already own in perpetuity seems to be Varese's most successful strategy, with the lowest costs to them.
How do the other labels manage to release stuff and premiere a composer in their catalogue otherwise, like Quartet? Is this a commercial matter or just an open-mind spirit affair?
Of all the specialty soundtrack labels, Varese Sarabande is the only one owned by a corporation (I think it's still Cutting Edge, right?) Whoever is running Varese has corporate overlords they have to answer to, and therefore different considerations and responsibilities as compared with say Doug Fake (who owns Intrada himself) or Jose Benitez (who owns Quartet) or MV/Matt (LLL).
If one of those independent owners makes a bad business call sometimes, no biggie -- they are their own bosses, and hopefully other releases they do can compensate for the losses so their business continues. (Hey, sometimes they do something like a rerecording even though they KNOW it will be a loss for their company -- just because they want to do it!) I think the reality for anyone running Varese is very different.
Even among Silver Age film musicians, there are composers widely (not over) represented on disc like Jerry Fielding (well, at Intrada all right, not at Varese) while some others are completely under represented like Dominic Frontiere (beeing the more obvious name) or David Shire, Gil Melle, Billy Goldenberg and Fred Karlin.
And alas, these (GREAT!) composers do not sell well... and they're selling less than they ever did, now.
Yavar
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Of all the specialty soundtrack labels, Varese Sarabande is the only one owned by a corporation (I still think it's Cutting Edge, right?) Whoever is running Varese has corporate overlords they have to answer to, and therefore different considerations and responsibilities as compared with say Doug Fake (who owns Intrada himself) or Jose Benitez (who owns Quartet) or MV/Matt (LLL).
Yavar
That's a very astute observation, Yavar. As has been said here many times, the most popular boutique soundtrack labels are all run by fans. If you want a score, some if not all the guys in charge feel the same. The only reason they haven't released your grail yet is because they can't for a very good reason...
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Thanks, Joe. 
I do feel like sometimes I really love an obscure score that the labels don't care much about, like Jeff Alexander's Support Your Local Sheriff! (Yes I know there was a Twilight Time isolated score track... but I'd still like it given the Chris Malone treatment, on album.)
Yavar
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Anyway, if Varese Club must stay in secure territory, well, it's ok for me.
So they can expand and give the Deluxe treatement to:
Joel McNeely's SOLDIER
Joel McNeely's TERMINAL VELOCITY
John Debney' SUDDEN DEATH.
These 3 are welcome!
Yes, yes, YES!!!
I really hope Cary Mansfield reads this thread.
Although, I thought I read somewhere that they really do want to Deluxe Soldier, except that (at least as of last year) there were tapes issues or something to the effect getting in the way.
And for Terminal Velocity, as of last March, Gary wrote to me that Varese had "...no plan to do anything with..." it. As saddened as I was to read that email, I had much appreciation that he responded and was direct with me. I dig that!
Still, I hope he reconsiders.
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Posted: |
Aug 6, 2022 - 8:01 AM
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By: |
Solium
(Member)
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Anyway, if Varese Club must stay in secure territory, well, it's ok for me.
So they can expand and give the Deluxe treatement to:
Joel McNeely's SOLDIER
Joel McNeely's TERMINAL VELOCITY
John Debney' SUDDEN DEATH.
These 3 are welcome!
Yes, yes, YES!!!
I really hope Cary Mansfield reads this thread.
Although, I thought I read somewhere that they really do want to Deluxe Soldier, except that (at least as of last year) there were tapes issues or something to the effect getting in the way.
And for Terminal Velocity, as of last March, Gary wrote to me that Varese had "...no plan to do anything with..." it. As saddened as I was to read that email, I had much appreciation that he responded and was direct with me. I dig that!
Still, I hope he reconsiders.
Joel McNeely is one of my favorite composers even if he's a chameleon.
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Joel McNeely is one of my favorite composers even if he's a chameleon.
I would hope Varese would see McNeely in a more profitable light given his winning streak on The Orville.
Anyone seen the recent Comic-Con Orville Panel? McFarlane mentions the music only once, a cool anecdote about McNeely. He didn't mention anyone else. BTW, the score for Episode 8 is REALLY good...and lengthy too. Rather wall to wall for a near 90 min episode.
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