Stu Phillips (composer)

Last updated

Stu Phillips
Stu Phillips 2007.jpg
Phillips in 2007
Background information
Birth nameStuart Phillips
Born (1929-09-09) September 9, 1929 (age 94)
GenresClassical
Occupation(s)Composer, arranger, conductor
Years active1958–present
Labels Colpix, Capitol
Website www.stuwho.com

Stuart Phillips (born September 9, 1929) is an American composer of film scores and television series theme music, conductor and record producer. He is best known for composing the theme tunes to the television series McCloud , Battlestar Galactica , and Knight Rider .

Contents

Biography

Career

Phillips studied music at The High School of Music & Art in New York City, New York, and at the Eastman School of Music in Rochester, New York. While at Eastman, he began arranging music for the Rochester Civic Orchestra. [1]

In 1958, Phillips began composing for Columbia Pictures' television and record subsidiaries. He founded Colpix Records and produced high-charting hits for James Darren, Nina Simone, The Skyliners, Shelley Fabares, and The Monkees. He also furnished music for Columbia's television series, including The Donna Reed Show with Fabares and The Monkees . Phillips branched out into motion-picture work, and scored Columbia's 1964 movie, Ride the Wild Surf .

In the mid-1960s, he worked for Capitol Records and created, produced and arranged for the easy listening studio orchestra the Hollyridge Strings. [1] Excerpts from the Hollyridge Strings album The Beatles Song Book can be heard on the 1964 Capitol documentary album The Beatles' Story . [2]

In the late 1960s and early 1970s, Phillips continued scoring films and television series including music for the films Beyond the Valley of the Dolls (1970), The Seven Minutes (1971) and the television series Get Christie Love! .

In 1974, he began working at Universal Studios scoring television series; Glen A. Larson made extensive use of his compositions. During this time, he scored music for the television series The Six Million Dollar Man , McCloud , and Battlestar Galactica . [1] His Battlestar Galactica theme was featured prominently in the film Airplane II: The Sequel (1980). He also composed music for the television series The Amazing Spider-Man (which was for Charles Fries/Dan Goodman/Danchuck Productions) during this time.

In the 1980s, Phillips left Universal and began working at 20th Century Fox, again being a favorite composer of Glen A. Larson, where he composed music for the television series The Fall Guy , Automan and Knight Rider . [1] All programs were Larson productions.

Later years

Phillips went into semi-retirement in the 1990s at his home in Studio City, California. Since that time, he has appeared at fan conventions for Battlestar Galactica and has attended cult-film screenings for Beyond the Valley of the Dolls. [1]

In 2002, Phillips published his autobiography Stu Who?: Forty Years of Navigating the Minefields of the Music Business.

In 2006, he also participated in a documentary film featured on the special edition DVD re-release of Beyond the Valley of the Dolls. [3]

Long a "serious" musician, Phillips has also orchestrated pieces by Ludwig van Beethoven and Sergei Rachmaninoff for Symphony orchestra. [1]

Phillips can be heard on FaLaLaLaLa.com discussing the history of The Hollyridge Strings's Christmas album, which it released in 2008.

Filmography

Film music

Television music

Awards and nominations

Grammy Award

BMI Film & TV Awards

Further reading

Related Research Articles

<i>Knight Rider</i> (1982 TV series) American crime drama television series (1982–1986)

Knight Rider is an American action crime drama television series created and produced by Glen A. Larson. The series was originally broadcast on NBC from September 26, 1982, to April 4, 1986. The show stars David Hasselhoff as Michael Knight, a sleek and modern crime fighter assisted by KITT, an advanced, artificially intelligent, self-aware, and nearly indestructible car. This was the last series Larson devised at Universal Television before he moved to 20th Century Fox Television.

Battlestar Galactica is an American science fiction media franchise created by Glen A. Larson. It began with the original television series in 1978, and was followed by a short-run sequel series, Galactica 1980, a line of book adaptations, original novels, comic books, a board game, and video games. A reimagined version aired as a two-part, three-hour miniseries developed by Ronald D. Moore and David Eick in 2003, followed by a 2004 television series, which aired until 2009. A prequel series, Caprica, aired in 2010.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Glen A. Larson</span> American television producer and writer (1937–2014)

Glen Albert Larson was an American television producer, writer, musician, and director. His best known work in television was as the creator of the television series Alias Smith and Jones, Battlestar Galactica, Buck Rogers in the 25th Century, The Misadventures of Sheriff Lobo, Quincy, M.E., The Hardy Boys/Nancy Drew Mysteries, B. J. and the Bear, The Fall Guy, Magnum, P.I. and Knight Rider. In addition to his television work, Larson also was a member of the folk revival/satire group The Four Preps.

<i>Galactica 1980</i> American sci-fi TV series (1980)

Galactica 1980 is an American science fiction television series and a spin-off from the original Battlestar Galactica television series. It was first broadcast on ABC in the United States from January 27 to May 4, 1980, lasting for 10 episodes.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mort Garson</span> Pioneering electronic music composer, arranger, and songwriter (1924–2008)

Morton Sanford Garson was a Canadian composer, arranger, songwriter, and pioneer of electronic music. He is best known for his albums in the 1960s and 1970s, such as Mother Earth's Plantasia (1976). He also co-wrote several hit songs, including "Our Day Will Come", a hit for Ruby & the Romantics. According to Allmusic, Mort Garson boasts one of the most unique and outright bizarre resumés in popular music, spanning from easy listening to occult-influenced space-age electronic pop.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Harold Faltermeyer</span> German musician

Hans Hugo Harold Faltermeyer is a German musician, composer and record producer.

Richard "Ribbs" Gibbs is an American film composer and music producer whose credits include Dr. Dolittle, Big Momma's House, Queen of the Damned, the television series Battlestar Galactica and the first season of The Simpsons.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bear McCreary</span> American composer and musician (born 1979)

Bear McCreary is an American musician and composer of film, television, and video game scores based in Los Angeles, California. His work includes the scores of the television series Battlestar Galactica (2004), Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., Outlander, The Walking Dead, The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power, The Serpent Queen, Percy Jackson and the Olympians, Halo, the video games Call of Duty: Vanguard, God of War and God of War Ragnarök, and the film Godzilla: King of the Monsters.

<i>Battlestar Galactica</i> (1978 TV series) American science fiction television series of the 1970s

Battlestar Galactica is an American science fiction television series created by Glen A. Larson that aired on the ABC network from September 17, 1978, to April 29, 1979. It stars an ensemble cast led by Lorne Greene, Richard Hatch, and Dirk Benedict. The series follows a group of humans fleeing the destruction of their homeworlds aboard the titular spacecraft, searching for a new home as they are pursued by the Cylons.

<i>Battlestar Galactica</i> (miniseries) 2003 American science fiction miniseries

Battlestar Galactica: The Miniseries is a three-hour television miniseries starring Edward James Olmos and Mary McDonnell, written and produced by Ronald D. Moore and directed by Michael Rymer. It was the first part of the Battlestar Galactica remake based on the 1978 Battlestar Galactica television series, and served as a backdoor pilot for the 2004 television series. The miniseries aired originally on Sci Fi in the United States starting on December 8, 2003. The two parts of the miniseries attracted 3.9 and 4.5 million viewers, making the miniseries the third-most-watched program on Syfy.

<i>Battlestar Galactica</i> (2004 TV series) 2004 American science fiction television series

Battlestar Galactica (BSG) is an American military science fiction television series, and part of the Battlestar Galactica franchise. The show was developed by Ronald D. Moore and executive produced by Moore and David Eick as a re-imagining of the 1978 Battlestar Galactica television series created by Glen A. Larson. The pilot for the series first aired as a three-hour miniseries in December 2003 on the Sci-Fi Channel, which was then followed by four regular seasons, ending its run on March 20, 2009. The cast includes Edward James Olmos, Mary McDonnell, Katee Sackhoff, Jamie Bamber, James Callis, Tricia Helfer, and Grace Park.

Colpix Records was the first recording company for Columbia Pictures–Screen Gems. Colpix got its name from combining Columbia (Col) and Pictures (Pix). CBS, which owned Columbia Records, then sued Columbia Pictures for trademark infringement over the Colpix name.

<i>The Hardy Boys/Nancy Drew Mysteries</i> American television series

The Hardy Boys/Nancy Drew Mysteries is an American television mystery series based on the Hardy Boys and Nancy Drew juvenile novels. The series, which ran from January 30, 1977, to January 14, 1979, was produced by Glen A. Larson from Universal Television for ABC. Parker Stevenson and Shaun Cassidy starred as amateur detective brothers Frank and Joe Hardy, respectively, while Pamela Sue Martin starred as amateur sleuth Nancy Drew.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Saga of a Star World</span> 1st and 3rd episodes of the 1st season of Battlestar Galactica

"Saga of a Star World" is the pilot for the American science fiction television series Battlestar Galactica which was produced in 1978 by Glen A. Larson. A re-edit of the episode was released theatrically as Battlestar Galactica in Canada before the television series aired in the United States, in order to help recoup its high production costs. Later, the standalone film edit was also released in the United States.

The music of the 2004 TV series Battlestar Galactica is a body of work largely credited to the composers Bear McCreary and Richard Gibbs. The music of Battlestar Galactica displays a variety of ethnic influences and generally does not conform to the "orchestral" style of many science fiction scores.

The Hollyridge Strings was an American studio orchestra that specialized in easy-listening music, and recorded for the Capitol Records label in the 1960s and 1970s. Stu Phillips, Mort Garson, and Perry Botkin, Jr. were among those who produced, arranged, and conducted the group's recordings.

The music of Caprica is a body of work credited to composer Bear McCreary.

Nathan Scott was an American film score and television composer. He composed, conducted, arranged and orchestrated more than 850 separate credits in television, as well as the music for more than 100 films. His credits in television included Lassie, The Twilight Zone and Dragnet, while his film credits included the film score for Wake of the Red Witch.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jean-Pierre Dorleac</span> American costume designer

Jean-Pierre Dorléac is a French costume designer whose work has appeared in film, television, theater, variety, opera and burlesque.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Stu Phillips official biography at stuwho.com
  2. Gillian G. Gaar, « 100 Things Beatles Fans Should Know and Do Before They Die », Triumph Books, 2013
  3. The Beyond the Valley of the Dolls special-edition DVD features Look on up at the Bottom: The Music of the Dolls. USA: 20th Century Fox.