#watership down soundtrack

[fuckyeahwatershipdown]

Italian Watership Down posters

[fitzfunnymoments]

Thinking so much about the idea I have for a Little Robots movie <3 (it's not even a full idea beyond Watership Down but no one dies)

[weirdgirl92]

Just remembered this was sitting in my drafts for a while. Anyway, I got bored again and randomly decided to go through some official cover art (and vintage ads) for another semi-obscure favorite of mine. Much like Little Nemo, I didn’t watch this film until I was much older. So thankfully, I had no childhood trauma associated with it.

Still, I can’t help but laugh at that one critic from People Magazine (in the 7th pic) telling parents to take their kids to see it. Sir, you do know what kind of movie this is, right???

[vhstve591]

Angela Morley and Malcolm Williamson - Watership Down: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack (CBS UK/Columbia, 1978) - Designed by Maurice Wilson

Normally I wouldn't be interested in showcasing soundtrack covers since they have barely anything interesting art-wise, but after having just watched this movie on HBO Max and falling in love with it almost instantly, I decided to make an exception for this one.

The front cover is essentially the same as the theatrical poster, but the back fascinates me. How they managed to cram many scenes of the movie in Hazel's silhouette at a time when we didn't have Photoshop or Illustrator (or any digital editor) to make the process easy is a mystery.

For a while, getting a copy of this soundtrack was a hassle; since the movie was a box office failure in both the UK and US, CBS didn't see any reason to re-release a soundtrack for a movie that flopped and was likely to be forgotten (home video was very much considered a fad back then) so fans were forced to shell out a ton of dough just to get a copy. We eventually got a CD release in 1998 (the film's 20th anniversary), but in a limited edition pressing by P.E.G. Recordings (under license from Sony Music, who now owns the master recordings having bought CBS's music arm the decade prior). Eventually, another CD pressing came in Europe around 2017 from Vocalion (in a SACD hybrid release) before Sony finally took the hint and put out a proper re-release in both vinyl and CD in 2022 worldwide (it's also on Spotify and iTunes/Apple Music).

Images courtesy of Discogs.

[sambirdyanim8]

Me and the buddies when it's pizza day at school :

Okay, I'm gonna have to switch up my profile today. Yes, I- the chicken - have finally watched the original 1978 Watership Down. I spent all of yesterday watching it on YouTube. I have to say, it's a very beautiful movie. (Escpecially the soundtrack) The scariest scene for me was the first time Bigwig and Woundwort started fighting, where he opened his mouth all wide with all his sharp teeth showing. As a lover of the book, I was kind of thrown off with how fast the events in the book took place, and more importantly, how in the warren of the snares scene, where Bigwig nearly dies, we don't even get a moment to make sure he's dead. Aside from the violence towards the end, it's a shockingly cute movie. (Don't get me started on the scenes between Bigwig and Kehaar.)

[godzilla-reads]

I had to dig through some stuff but I found my criterion collection edition of Watership Down, plus I recently acquired the movie soundtrack (both are to the left in the picture).

Hmm… can you tell I like this story?

[mywingsareonwheels]

Hey, this is to check that fellow trans fans of Watership Down are aware that most of the music for the 1978 cartoon film of the book was written by the awesome trans woman composer (and conductor and arranger and clarinettist and saxophonist) Angela Morley (1924-2009). :D

Some other cool things she did:-

under her previous name she wrote the theme tune and some of the incidental music for Hancock's Half Hour

and some of the music for The Goon Show, ditto

also ditto, she worked on some of Shirley Bassey's music including "As I Love You"

one of her first projects after transitioning was as an orchestrator for Jesus Christ Superstar

she worked on numerous US television soundtracks including Dynasty, Dallas, and Wonder Woman

she did a lot of (mostly uncredited) collaborations with John Williams, assisting him with film scores including Star Wars, E.T., and Home Alone

she won three Emmys for music arrangement/direction and was nominated eight times for composing; she was also the first trans person to be nominated for an Oscar (which she was twice)

That's not even all of it! Absolutely awesome woman. <3 Here's some more on Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Angela_Morley

Anyway. She was superb. <3

[male1971]

In case you didn’t know…

Angela Morely, the composer of the soundtrack to Watership Down

And Wendy Carlos, composer of the soundtrack for Tron and The Shining

Are both trans.

🏳️‍⚧️

[gemwing1988]

For those who are familiar with Watership Down, there was an old children friendly animated series based off from the book that had aired on television in the year 1999 to 2001.

Personally, I had enjoyed the cartoon series over the original and much darker movie based off from the book. In my opinion, it is charming with some interesting storylines, charming characters, beautiful and a handful of all-star casts ranging from the late Rik Mayall who voices Keehar the black headed seagull, Jane Horrocks voicing Hannah the mouse and the late John Hurt as the dreaded General Woundwort.

I’m not say to admit I also have the complete series on DVD and the soundtrack CD that also includes the famous song from the movie, “Bright Eyes”, sang by the late Stephen Gately.

Of all cartoon shows and movies based off from beloved book classics, the 1999 cartoon series of Watership Down will always have a special place in my heart. 🩷

Bright eyes, burning like fire.

Bright eyes, can you close and fail?

How can the light that burned so brightly

Suddenly burn so pale?

Bright eyes.

🌹💐🌸

[fuckyeahwatershipdown]

1978 Watership Down Original Soundtrack 8-Track (Canadian Version)

[persy-r-bozo]

I firmly belive everyone, and I mean Everyone.

Needs to go out into the woods and listen to old children's film soundtracks.

I've done it alot. It heals you I'm being so serious right now.

Listen to the bambi OST. Fox and the hound OST. Raggedy ann and andy OST. Watership Down OST. While walking though the woods.

It feels like this.

[bigbighouse]

1, 3, 4, 14, 18, 19?

Song of the year?

jacob and the stone by emile mosseri, from the minari soundtrack. i was surprised to see this at the top of my wrapped but thinking back it really does mean a lot to me. it feels like home and missing home and having to create home for yourself, which was a lot of what this year was about for me. sometimes i listen 2 it and cry and miss my mom

3. Favorite musical artist / group you started listening to this year?

ok unbelievably i had put 0 effort into listening to aurora's stuff despite the fact that i love her voice and her sick lil outfits and like. every song i've ever heard by her. but i got heavy into a few of her albums during yeehawgust and they were life changing i love that weird lil gal

4. Movie of the year?

rip like i said in the last ask i watch soooo little tv and movies that this is hard 2 answer. imma say avatar the way of water and ignore the everything about it for the sake of the fact that the aesthetics absolutely rip

14. Favorite book you read this year?

tie between watership down and my father left me ireland (michael brendan dougherty). i read watership down at the beginning of the year and i think? i had read it before but this time it hit so good and i knew it would. my father left me ireland was a more recent read about reclaiming culture as a young parent when (for the sake of survival) your ancestors were unable to pass it down to you. it was such a sweet and strong and reassuring book and i loved it

18. A memorable meal this year?

many answers to this. fresh crumchy green beans and lemon pellegrinos by the lake. steaming hot pho in the place that used to be across the street (rip) in the middle of january with freezing rain pelting the windows. the long half-meal that lasts from 7am to dinnertime on thanksgiving day, sneaking buttery potatoes and grammie's stuffing and bits of the turkey necks getting tender in their broth on the stove. and the radioactive red 40 cherry pie filling but that was on me and we don't have to talk about it

19. What’re you excited about for next year?

continuing to learn how 2 live. slowly lessening our dependence on the public food system and getting to know the people who raise our beef and grow our produce and bake our bread. putting down roots. lying in the sun. blowing up my phone in the microwave

[variousqueerthings]

THIS WEEK IS THE 100TH ANNIVERSARY OF ANGELA MORLEY'S BIRTH (March 10th)

and something cool I only learnt today is that she was one of three uncredited orchestrators of the Karate Kid soundtrack -- she's there on the IMDB, but not mentioned on the Karate Kid wikipedia, although one of the other two is

in fact, a fair amount of her work is uncredited or simply not given as much focus, including on both Home Alone movies, Schindler's List, Star Wars (A New Hope), Superman, and E.T. (also have been reading that she arranged for Cinema Paradiso, but it's not on her or the movie's IMDB -- doesn't mean it's untrue, but strange that her name pops up everywhere except there for that), and on TV for Wonder Woman, Cagney and Lacey, Dynasty, Dallas, and one episode of Doctor Who amongst many others -- it's like a hidden history in plain site, because scroll down her IMDB and it's all there, but nobody ever mentions her contributions to these movies and shows and so nobody knows

in Leeds there was a local celebration of her on March 16th to coincide with 50 years since the first TS/TV conference in the UK, with her family coming in from out of town and on zoom from America to listen to performances of her music, including a piece that had never been played before

the influence of trans people in popular culture continues to take me by surprise, not because I don't know that we're there, but because it's always such a treasure to discover more

it was especially touching how much of her family was there for this and supported the celebration of her, even offering the piano piece that was being played for the first time for the event

a lot of Angela Morley's most well-known orchestrations and compositions weren't created until she was 40+ years old (with Watership Down being in 1978). we've got plenty of space and time to figure ourselves out and find our space in the world

Happy 100 Years to Angela Morley, iconic trans woman who worked on film and TV and in original composition and whose scores are wonderfully whimsical

[maxdatanuki]

Bruhh im dying i havent watched the first episode of burrows end yet bc im gonna make my mom watch it with me so i have to wait.

I am having second thoughts considering brennans inspo was with the watership down soundtrack but when i asker her is shes still okay with it shes told me never seen or read watership down so im like 0_0 welp i warned.

[0zzysaurus]

You ever just remember that the Watership Down soundtrack was composed by a trans woman

[veliseraptor]

Top 5 animated movies?

I see asks like this one for this meme and I'm like "lise what if you just wrote a short and simple response listing movies, then maybe you would actually end up answering all your meme asks" and then my brain goes "nope <3" and I end up with five paragraphs. I'm just not very good at shutting up.

anyway!

1. The Last Unicorn. This is the "no-brainer" one for me because I always feel like this is just...such an important piece of media, and it's one of those things where when I show it to new people I feel very vulnerable about it and kind of go "please understand that in sharing this with you I am showing you my vulnerable underbelly and if you hate it don't tell me." I don't even know that I could articulate why exactly, but it occupies a very particular place in my heart that few other pieces of media can claim to have. I have watched it so many times and here I am going "maybe I should rewatch it today, actually. plug in my external cd drive and pull out the dvd and everything." It's like that.

2. Princess Mononoke. Another one that came to me immediately as I was coming up with this list. I'm pretty sure I watched it a little too young and the opening scene with the boar creature vs. Ashitaka kind of scarred me a little bit but...lord, what a movie. It's beautiful visually and as a story I also love it. I feel like chronologically Spirited Away was my first Studio Ghibli I remember, but this was the one I latched onto. ngl, the fact that there are wolves in it probably helped.

3. Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron. It started to get a little harder here, but then I remember how I felt when I saw a caption referencing a song from this movie's soundtrack (thanks for the bangers, Bryan Adams! unexpected but I'm grateful) and went "!!!!" like my brain was lighting up like a lightbulb. So yeah, I'm going to say this is an important one. You can take the horses away from the horsegirl but you can't take the horsegirl out of the girl. or something like that. And this was one of my horsegirl movies. I also just now remembered the paint by numbers extras that were on the dvd that I was weirdly obsessed with, so that's cool.

4. Watership Down. Actually this one should've been third and I don't know how I forgot it! I joke that the fact that the animated movies I rewatched most as a kid were this one and The Last Unicorn and that probably explains a lot of things, but honestly it might. This movie has a reputation that's in some ways bigger than it deserves (though the destruction of the warren segment is pretty much as awful as everybody says it is), but it is also just legit a really good story and well-adapted into a movie, in my opinion. I watched the remake and was profoundly disappointed mostly because I felt like the animation style was boring, and one thing this movie definitely had going for it was the style.

5. Atlantis: the Lost Empire. I almost went with The Lion King but then I remembered this movie, and, yeah. What a film. Truly everyone who has talked about the brief period where things were very weird and therefore very interesting at Disney were right. Also Helga probably turned me gay (and specifically gay for female villains), I just didn't notice until later.

Honorable mentions to The Lion King, The Rescuers Down Under, and Mulan. And probably several others I'm forgetting that I'll think of as soon as I hit post.

There are definitely the animated movies I want to see, most notably Song of the Sea, because I suspect I would really like them. I am just terminally bad at watching movies, you know.

shout out to The Secret of the Seal though, which was a movie where I sort of thought one of my sisters and I shared a collective hallucination until finally I managed to track it down with something like "seal macaroni penguin animated movie." not to be confused with the 1992 anime film Tottoi, mind you.

...though considering now that I'm looking again all I can find to prove its existence is a cover, I'm beginning to wonder again. The Rotten Tomatoes page I thought was going to take me to it returns a 404 not found.

IT WAS REAL she screamed as they dragged her away. I SWEAR IT WAS A REAL MOVIE