Like a mainstream hit, the intro clocks in close to 10 seconds. Star Wars main title graphic COURTESY OF BILLBOARDįor a deeper dive on the various sections of the song, read on. Under that, via some lightsaber action, there’s a graphic showing how the various sections of the Star Wars main title correspond to a hit pop song’s parts. Using a breakdown of the Star Wars theme provided by Hit Songs Deconstructed, we’re digging into what makes Williams’ “Main Title” so readily identifiable and unforgettable.īelow is a graphic showing how Hit Songs Deconstructed broke the song into five parts for us (set against the Death Star). Comparing the main title to the top 10 of the Billboard Hot 100 during the third quarter of 2015, Penn discovered the theme shares many structural characteristics of a mainstream hit.Īnd while the same can be said of a few other movie themes in the post-George Lucas landscape (Williams’ film compositions in particular), the Star Wars main title is especially built to “reinforce the theme’s primary hook/payoff in the listener’s head.” So why is that? We spoke with David Penn, founder and editor-in-chief of Hit Songs Deconstructed (an essential source for hit songwriting trends and analysis), for an expert musicologist’s look into why John Williams’ main title for Star Wars is one of the most successful (a disco version actually topped the Hot 100 for two weeks in 1977), identifiable and enduring movie themes of all-time.Īccording to Penn, the theme is “arguably the most recognizable and iconic theme in cinema history.” And that’s not simply a function of the film’s popularity bolstering the music. Seriously, it’s impossible to think about Star Wars without the theme music bursting into your brain, and a sense of victory-against-the-odds swelling through your chest. But really, did it ever leave? The film series’ iconic, epic main title has been playing in fans’ heads ever since A New Hope scrolled onto screens in 1977. ![]() ![]() Thank the maker - Star Wars returns to theaters and our lives this week with Star Wars: The Force Awakens. ![]() The “Star Wars” logo seen in the opening of the films COURTESY OF LUCASFILM This article is a collaboration between Billboard and Hit Songs Deconstructed.
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