I Dream of Jeannie

Well, who doesn't? But I digress.

All kidding aside, I was trying to work out the theme to the "I Dream of Jeannie" theme music the last few days. It was fun. After getting the melody notes, I wanted to see what key it was in, as an aid to possibly trying to figure out some chords to go with it. All the notes fell within the key of F, except one distinct section had some out of key notes. Those notes however all fit within the key of G#, which at first I thought was a bit odd...but OK. That section, which begins at 24", has a kind of wistful quality to it. Then I realized that G# has the same notes as F minor. So that section is really in A minor [EDIT: correction - F minor), and it all made perfect sense. Anyway, it was a fun little project and for me really drove home the idea of parallel minor scales and how they can be incorporated and used to great effect.

Originally Posted by: dlwalke

All kidding aside, I was trying to work out the theme to the "I Dream of Jeannie" theme music the last few days.[/quote]

I love that tune! I did a cover of it last year using my fretless guitar as the trombone line.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a96ddI_UOkU

Originally Posted by: dlwalkeAll the notes fell within the key of F, except one distinct section had some out of key notes.[/quote]

Yes, the original is in F. But it's neat because the melody & progression actually starts on the V chord, C9. So, the main verse section is: C9 (V) > F6 (I).

[quote=dlwalke]Those notes however all fit within the key of G#, which at first I thought was a bit odd.

The bridge or B section is in A-flat major. And it starts on the ii chord.

Bb min (ii) > Eb7 (V) > Abmaj7 (I) > Adim7 (vii dim of ii)

Bb min (ii) > Eb7 (V) > Gmin7b5 (ii of V) / C9 (V)

At the Gmin7b5 it starts to head back to F.

[quote=dlwalke]Anyway, it was a fun little project and for me really drove home the idea of parallel minor scales and how they can be incorporated and used to great effect.

This song is a great example of classic songbook writing. A section with strong melody & basic chord progression. B section in unrelated key that winds back to the A section.

Fun stuff & great project. I love old TV theme songs. And this is one of my faves! Enjoy!

Thanks Chris. I'm very happy you shared with me the chords you came up with for I Dream of Jeannie. I was going to take a stab at tackling harmonizing the melody but I'm sure I would have struggled with it and there's no way I would have gotten the Adim7 or Gmin7b5.

Those old TV shows, from my early teens, are great fun for me to work on. It helps (i.e., in figuring them out) that the melody is so embedded in my mind's ear, and they're just fun. I've worked on a few others. The theme to the original Star Trek is a sentimental favorite. That was a few months ago but I think I found that one less straightforward in terms of key. I think it might have wandered a bit. I'll have to take a look back at that to see if it makes more sense to me in terms of what's happening, now that I've gotten a little more playing time and theory reading under my belt.

BTW - I noticed a mistake in my original post where I said that one section modulated to A minor but I meant to say it modulated to F minor (the parallel minor to the rest of the song). You called it A-flat and I wonder if you think it is incorrect to call it F minor (even though the notes would be the same). I think I called it F minor because that section starts out with a bunch of F notes (if I transcribed it correctly) in the melody line and takes on a sudden wistful quality that is at odds with the feel of the rest of the song that seemed very minor-esque to me.

OK, next stop: Get Smart!!

Originally Posted by: dlwalkeThose old TV shows, from my early teens, are great fun for me to work on. It helps (i.e., in figuring them out) that the melody is so embedded in my mind's ear, and they're just fun.[/quote]

Exactly! There are so many good ones & the best ones are really catchy & well done mini musical compoisitions.

Originally Posted by: dlwalkeThe theme to the original Star Trek is a sentimental favorite. That was a few months ago but I think I found that one less straightforward in terms of key. I think it might have wandered a bit.

I'm a big ST fan! The theme from TOS is genius. I figured out the melody a long time ago as a kid, but it took me forever to figure out & understand the chords & the harmonic motion. :)

There are quite a few modulations & reharmonizations going on underneath that melody that put it very much in jazz territory. I finally bought the sheet music to a piano arrangement of it to find out what treasures were hiding in there. Amazing structure.

[quote=dlwalke]

OK, next stop: Get Smart!!

Excellent! Have fun with it. :)

Glad to hear that that TOS theme is a bit tricky, as I did struggle with understanding what was happening musically. I'm going to take another look and see if time has made it less cryptic.[br] [br]You may very well know this, but if not you may find it interesting. Roddenberry, without the knowledge or approval of composer Alexander Courage, wrote lyrics to that theme. I don't believe that anyone has heard them as I don't believe they were ever recorded. Apparently, he wrote them so that he would be officially listed as a co-writer and therefore be entitled to half of the performance royalties. From Wikipedia - "Although there was never any litigation, Courage later commented that he considered Roddenberry's conduct unethical. Roddenberry was quoted as responding, "Hey, I have to get some money somewhere. I'm sure not gonna get it out of the profits of Star Trek."[br] [br]Something else I found amusing was that there was some sort of contractual agreement with the musicians union (or some such organziation) that scene music music (like the stuff they would play during climatic battle scenes, or humourous interludes like tribbles falling out of the storage compartment all over Kirk's head or whatever) could be re-cycled at will, across episodes, during the season in which it was recorded, but only during that season. If they wanted to use the same music for an episod during a subsequent season, it had to be re-recorded. The point was to provide additional revenue for the musicians. Perhaps that is commonplace but I found it kind of interesting.

Originally Posted by: ChristopherSchlegel[quote=dlwalke]

I'm a big ST fan! The theme from TOS is genius. I figured out the melody a long time ago as a kid, but it took me forever to figure out & understand the chords & the harmonic motion. :)

There are quite a few modulations & reharmonizations going on underneath that melody that put it very much in jazz territory. I finally bought the sheet music to a piano arrangement of it to find out what treasures were hiding in there. Amazing structure.

Not recorded, but written.....

"Beyond the rim of the star-light[br]My love is wand'ring in star-flight[br]I know he'll find

in star-clustered reaches[br]Love, strange love

a star woman teaches.[br]I know his journey ends never[br]His star trek[br]Will go on forever.[br]But tell him[br]While he wanders his starry sea[br]Remember, remember me.

Originally Posted by: dlwalke [br]You may very well know this, but if not you may find it interesting. Roddenberry, without the knowledge or approval of composer Alexander Courage, wrote lyrics to that theme.[/quote]

Yes! I first watched the show in the earlier 70s in it's first syndicated re-broadcast. When I was a teenager I came across a book on the making of ST: TOS. This was back in the 80s & quite a find. I was surprised to read about the lyrics & the entire back story of the show.

Maybe more surprising at the time was learning that the show was originally considered a huge failure & struggled to even accomplish what it did in those 3 original years. And Roddenberry was turned down mulitple times & nearly failed to even get it produced in the first place! If not for the studio support of Lucille Ball it probably would never have been produced at all.

It's a pretty amazing story.

Originally Posted by: dlwalke [br]I don't believe that anyone has heard them as I don't believe they were ever recorded.

There are a few fan made versions on the web. FWIW, I can still remember thinking about the final lines, "Well, no. It won't go on forever. It's a 5 year mission." :)

[quote=dlwalke][br]Something else I found amusing was that there was some sort of contractual agreement with the musicians union ...

Yes, prior to the personal computer & internet the music business was a bit different. Since it was much more difficult to create & manipulate recorded audio there were multiple ways for producers, engineers & musicians to be employed & paid. Now many of those tasks are streamlined, combined or eliminated. And modern contracts often cover a wider field of use.

There are parallels in other business. For example, years ago you might see a room full of accountants working on mechnical calculators with pencil & paper! Nowdays all that is done by one person with a PC & a digital spreadsheet. :)[br][br]

Originally Posted by: ChristopherSchlegel

Originally Posted by: dlwalke [br]You may very well know this, but if not you may find it interesting. Roddenberry, without the knowledge or approval of composer Alexander Courage, wrote lyrics to that theme.[/quote]

Yes! I first watched the show in the earlier 70s in it's first syndicated re-broadcast. When I was a teenager I came across a book on the making of ST: TOS. This was back in the 80s & quite a find. I was surprised to read about the lyrics & the entire back story of the show.

Maybe more surprising at the time was learning that the show was originally considered a huge failure & struggled to even accomplish what it did in those 3 original years. And Roddenberry was turned down mulitple times & nearly failed to even get it produced in the first place! If not for the studio support of Lucille Ball it probably would never have been produced at all.

It's a pretty amazing story.

Originally Posted by: dlwalke [br]I don't believe that anyone has heard them as I don't believe they were ever recorded.

There are a few fan made versions on the web. FWIW, I can still remember thinking about the final lines, "Well, no. It won't go on forever. It's a 5 year mission." :)

[quote=dlwalke][br]Something else I found amusing was that there was some sort of contractual agreement with the musicians union ...

Yes, prior to the personal computer & internet the music business was a bit different. Since it was much more difficult to create & manipulate recorded audio there were multiple ways for producers, engineers & musicians to be employed & paid. Now many of those tasks are streamlined, combined or eliminated. And modern contracts often cover a wider field of use.

There are parallels in other business. For example, years ago you might see a room full of accountants working on mechnical calculators with pencil & paper! Nowdays all that is done by one person with a PC & a digital spreadsheet. :)[br][br]

I love Lucy!!

I am fan of fretless guitar players, love the sound of fretless guitars. What are good fretless guitar players in your oppinion? I started to listen to Tom Fountainhead Geldschläger, from Berlin Germany, this guy knows his stuff. He is very talented. https://youtu.be/Bq0-Xkekw2c