Behind the Music: The Force Awakens Soundtrack
Do you hear that? No, not Yub Nub. That’s in your heart. Now listen with your ears… that’s the sound of thousands of fanboys & girls finally getting their grubby little hands on the official Star Wars: The Force Awakens soundtrack by John Williams. If you’re one of the lucky few to have received it in the mail a day early, congratulations! If you’re not, well, we’ve got the next best thing! An interview with Joseph Williams, John’s brother, also an accomplished musician, who reveals the inspiration behind some of the tracks on his big bro’s latest release. Keep reading to go behind the music of Star Wars: The Force Awakens.
All week long Star Wars fans have been clamoring for the soundtrack to The Force Awakens to leak online. Miraculously, it has yet to pop up as of this writing. But in a few hours we’ll all have master composer John Williams’ score on repeat. Until then however let’s examine some of its stand out tracks with a little help from John’s little brother, Joseph Williams. If he looks familiar, it’s because he wrote the English lyrics for the unforgettable song Lapti Nek from Return of the Jedi. Joseph also happens to be the lead singer of one of the greatest soft rock band to ever rock softly: Toto.
Joseph Williams was gracious enough to hop on a Skype call with us late yesterday and what he shared about The Force Awakens soundtrack is fascinating. Some of the tracks have their origins in the last places you’d imagine. Who knew John Williams’ was inspired by such an eclectic group of musicians and pop culture events? In any case, let’s turn it over to Joseph! Below you’ll find the track listing along with a quote from the younger Williams revealing the genesis of each track. Thanks again, Joseph. You rock… softly!
1. Main Title and the Attack on the Jakku Village
“Jojo based this on a track I wrote called Takin’ It off my self-titled debut. Man, it’s a barn burner! Slow build but once it gets goin’ there ain’t no village gonna be left standing. Max von Sydow never stood a chance.”
2. The Scavenger
“Apparently Rey is a scavenger in the movie and he’s probably a wandering soul. Jojo was really struggling to find a musical thread here. I threw him a bone in the form of Yeah, Yeah, Yeah (If I Seem To Wander) off my album The Fall. He repurposed lots of its elements and added a few strings and spoons. Pretty meta… sonic scavenging for a track called The Scavenger!”
3. I Can Fly Anything
“I love gospel as much as my booty jams, so I played some of my good friend R. Kelly’s music for Jojo, and I Believe I Can Fly really struck a chord in him. I can’t wait until I play Trapped in the Closet for him! Maybe for Episode VIII.”
6. Rey’s Theme
“This one was a no-brainer. Bro tells me this Rey cat is a loner, and he’s on a desert planet with no real friends and family. I’m instantly transported to 2007 when I recorded my cover album Tears. On the acclaimed collection I put a soft rock edge on Eric Carmen’s classic All By Myself. Played it for Jojo, damn near brought him to tears. He knew what he had to do.”
7. The Falcon
“Jojo says Han Solo hasn’t seen the Millennium Falcon in years, and that’s like a man without his house you dig. Kismet! I play Going Home off my album with Peter Friestedt, next thing you know not only is our track basically in the film, but JJ writes it into the script!”
9. The Rathtars!
“This one’s hilarious! Okay, back in the 80’s I dated martial artist Cynthia Rothrock, and my pet name for her at the time was “Rathrar” — I would say it while faking a lisp and she’d crack up every time. Anyway, Jojo was stumped so he tells me about Rathtars and it reminds me of Cynthia. I fire up No Retreat, No Surrender 2, and the movie’s main theme inspires Jojo to write music, and me to call “Rathrar.” She’s still got it!”
10. Finn’s Confession
“For the third single off our (Toto’s) album Fahrenheit we shot a sexy little video which featured Paula Abdul. Now she wasn’t the megastar she is today. She was just an ethnically ambiguous dancer with a foxy figure. So one day I says to Jojo… you think a guy like me and a fox like that?? Jojo winks at me and says ‘Baby J, you got this’ and I did! We went out on a pair of dates. Pretty sure this track is based on my interracial relationship with Paula. Finn confesses his love for Rey… I hope he gets as lucky as I did with Paula.”
11. Maz’s Counsel
“This one’s a trip and a half. The beginning is based on what I did with Lapti Nek but Jojo added a few more chants because it’s pirate themed. Then it transitions to a mystical vibe, which is similar to some of my score for the show Roswell — also about little aliens, like Max Kanister… not sure about the name, Jojo is hard to hear sometimes.”
12. The Starkiller
“Aah, Starkiller… fond memories, really brings me back full circle. Jojo says the base is on a snowy planet… and the films are owned by Disney now plus this one’s releasing near Christmas, so we visit my extensive back catalog and boom! There it is, a vinyl pressing of the soundtrack to Mickey’s Magical Christmas: Snowed in at the House of Mouse. I let Jojo lift a few of the tracks I sang on there, really fit the mood.”
15. Han and Leia
“Civil partners is what Jojo said… he needed something that felt right for Han and Leia. They’ve had it rough the last 30 years but still really love each other. Boom! I had it. I sang Can You Feel The Love Tonight the way I did for the Lion King soundtrack, and my bro was in tears. Straight up tears! What you hear in this track is like 10% Han and Leia’s theme and 90% my lion vocals.”
17. Snoke
“When I heard the name of the villain in the new film, it reminded me of smoke. So I rolled up a doobie and Jojo got his cross-saber bong ready and we blazed for a good two hours. Debated Darth Plagueis and stuff, and after a while I realized I had already sung a song that would be perfect for Snoke. The Reeferman off our (Toto’s) album Falling in Between had just the right amount of momentum and drug references for kids these days.”
19. Torn Apart
“This one is just heartbreaking. Jojo said Han Solo gets killed by his son, which blew my mind. Then I remembered not only do I have an album titled I Am Alive but one of its best tracks fit the mood perfectly. Unharm Your Heart kills at shows. Yeah, irony! Jojo tweaked it a bit and created a fitting piece for Solo’s end.”
20. The Ways of the Force
“This draws inspiration from the title theme I composed for the show Miracles. Jojo thought it fit perfectly with the themes of the Force. He changed a few bars here and there but the soul of the piece is mine.”
23. The Jedi Steps and Finale
“I suck at hellos and goodbyes so this one’s great. Jojo tells me Luke is finally meeting his daughter so it just clicks! I tell him to go listen to Don’t Worry Baby off my Smiles album, and what do ya know… not only does it inspire the Jedi steps, friggin’ JJ Abrams hears it and he loves it so much, he makes Luke Skywalker say, “Don’t Worry My Baby Girl” in the film!
Thanks again to Joseph Williams for taking the time to speak with us. Be on the look out for him on tour with Toto starting in late January. And if you haven’t already, pick up their latest CD, XIV — which marks Joseph’s triumphant return to the band. It’s the perfect accompaniment to The Force Awakens soundtrack, and we’re sure it will have a huge influence on Episode VIII. That’s all for now. Keep it locked to FakingStarWars.net for the latest news from a galaxy far, far away.
