Presale pricing for the Harmony 101 course has been extended, but it ends after tomorrow!! Check out the brand new course and get it for 50% off- cornellmusicacademy.com/harmony
and how about when the music is coming back to main, Thomas is also coming towards the camera and then kinda loops back to the beginning of video/music
The video isn't the actually the intro video. It's that, but extended to fit the full length arrangement of the theme with a lot of clips added in between. The first 2 clips and the last clip are all that you have in the actual intro.
I still unironically enjoy watching the classic Thomas series. Even though I’m a bit too old to be gripped by the stories anymore (not to mention I’ve seen and read them a dozen times already), the gorgeous visuals and incredible music are so intoxicating. Britt Alcroft and the Rev. W. Audry didn’t just make my childhood, they made my whole life 😂❤️
@@AdrienMelody If you like the classic Thomas series, wait until you watch Mitton’s passion project TUGS. It really helped with making Thomas better from Season 3 onward.
The whole thing is very ragtime-indebted. There's a line in Scott Joplin's 'Maple Leaf Rag' that sounds so similar to part of the Thomas theme that I'm convinced that it was an intentional nod on the Thomas composers' part.
@@metalnut92 I've noticed this line as well, and I'm sure we're thinking of the same part. I know at least one other character theme in the show borrows heavily from an old big band tune (I forget which one at the moment), so I wouldn't be surprised if they intentionally "quoted" various musical lines from classic tunes.
I have thought this for decades and never seen anyone reference it. Absolutely, it’s the final section of the Maple Leaf Rag which feels exactly like TTTE. I can see it’s in A flat but no idea why it’s such a strong link.
This video gave me one of those "wait, how did we get here?" moments. I'm listening to a jazz pianist talk about how great the TTTE theme is, and now we're breaking it down in highly-trained, well-experienced, grown-up musician terms, and we're serious about it. This is what the internet is really for.
Well the best artists tend to be well rounded, and being well rounded tends to make a more kind and understanding person. Memes are a silly part of the warmth and empathy connecting people across time and space.
Whenever I think about stuff like this I tend to think about how the folks behind the composition/arranging were trained professionals - so they knew how to use all these techniques and ideas, even if it was all for a kids show. That said, this theme is epic. The sounds chosen are super kid friendly and charming, but the harmony is wild
I read an interview with the composer of the Postman Pat theme once (which is a deceptively tricky piece to play) and he said how you should never patronise young children with lazy writing, as they have a far greater appreciation for complexity in music than many people realise.
honestly, when they switched up thomas i couldnt watch it as a kid anymore. it just felt annoying. going back now i realise that the old show is just as good as i remember and it really did get worse. i didnt grow up. they pander to kids and it isnt as interesting to watch
It’s why a lot of the music from the first 5-6 years of power rangers is really good because it never really pandered to children there were great music that if it wasn’t tied to kids show would be loved I think
My mom once had a job playing piano in a hotel restaurant… I think if you rearranged the rhythm a little you could easily slip a piano version of this into the set list without most people noticing.
This just proves the pure composing genius of Mike O'Donnell and Junior Campbell, not to mention Britt Allcroft's insistance of not dumbing down the music to kids so that everyone of all ages can enjoy it
I'm from the 80s grew up watching Thomas. That's why our generation seems to be more prepared for the real world because we handled whatever we encountered...
With all the moving around chords, keys, and harmonies, I wonder if it's the musical equivalent of traveling on a train. It goes everywhere and you're seeing all sorts of locations. You're there for a destination, but you're also in it for the journey. It's like a smooth train ride. And it ending at a different major than the beginning means you're at the station. Kinda like Thomas!
i think it's more that mediant modulations feel very large and loud also I'm surprised he didn't mention how the diminished chord gives it a ragtime feel 9:40 which is interesting since ragtime often has railroad themes
Yes, even just sticking to kids' programmes, One of the best has to be Robinson Crusoe. I believe that though it was a French production, the BBC commisioned a fresh score for the English dubbed version. But it's not just the main theme that's so good, there are several equally memorable incidental themes.
If you think about it, that actually tracks as an analogy for the show and Thomas himself. You end in a different place then you started; a lot changes on the way, but in the end it all went smoothly.
Yeah. Every train had a soundtrack to contextualise their individual characters. James, Gordon and Percy all had their own accompanying musical score that complimented their distinctly diverse personalities
That last bit that starts at 1:40 always gave me shivers. Me and my brother were sooo angry when they introduced the “They’re 2, they’re 4, they’re 6 they’re 8,” song and animated the engine’s instead of having the models.
Memories from my childhood only consist of Season 1 and 2; for whatever reason I stopped watching thereafter. (Recently I binged watched both seasons) Heard that they took Edward down from the main characters, so I'm glad I stopped watching since Edward has always been my favourite. 😌
You don’t know how long I’ve been waiting for a video on this. My whole dang life. I wouldn’t be a musician or writer today if it wasn’t for the music of Thomas.
Ayyy we getting old huh brother, I was trumpet back in the day. I never got to watch this show much unfortunately. Always knew this song could bump tho haha
The Thomas theme is pretty special from its composition to just looking at the sounds used. Those are some killer synth sounds and the train sounds are great.
It's fun to watch someone who actually understands the technical aspects of music discuss a song I can only describe as 'neat', and explain that, basically, I'm right.
When I played jazz keys in high school, I transcribed this song. I remember being astonished by the depth and genius of the chord progressions. I also made a ragtime cover which was super fun to play. Later in high school we would try to throw the opening lick (GABCDE Ab) into our solos at concerts and festivals just to piss our band director off. Glad someone else uncovered the beauty for the internet to see!
So you should absolutely do a deep dive into the different themes in the show. Each engine has their own and they all slap. James' theme is my personal favourite.
One of the best theme songs of all time, Mike and Junior went so unbelievably hard with the series soundtrack. Every individual theme fits the characters so well and the arrangements are genius. I’m more partial to the earlier music of the first 2 series, brilliant usage of 80s synth that didn’t have that overbearing stereotypical ‘Big’ sound and instead used the Jupiter 6 to create a somewhat ‘classical’ soundtrack, Gordon and Edward’s themes being good examples of that. The usage of the Linn LM-1 to emulate the steam sounds is such a clever use of sound design. No children’s show soundtrack has stood out to me more than this one.
I love how people used to put so much effort and care into things. As you say this is so good for no reason. It's a kids TV programme there is no need for it to be this complex but they did it anyway. I wish society went back to taking more care over things.
Being a kids TV show there was all the more reason to take so much care. I think it's amazing when kids are exposed to what is actually great art aimed at their audience. Kids know when something has been done well for them, and they know when something has been done badly. Well, I knew, because I'm of the generation that had this! I loved it so much, still do!
Mike and Junior were also put on the soundtrack for TTTE's sister show, Tugs. The intro to that slaps pretty hard too. It's an epic intro which goes perfectly with the footage of the tug boats working in the harbor from sunrise to sunset. A harmonious orchestra accompanied by a saxophone to really give it the 1920s feel of the shows setting
Harmony of the first theme is a tribute to Duke Ellington's Take the A Train. It just substitutes D7b5 with th Ab7 😉 Super subtle, but super incisive. And yours is a super work. Thank you!
You'll be surprised how good is the entire soundtrack is. Whether it's the jazzy feel of James' theme, the grand feel of Gordon's or the orchestral feel of Oliver's, composers Mike and Junior did a great job at creating a OST that everyone could enjoy.
Just to note, the high-hat isn't just a "steam cylinder chuff" sound, it's specifically a chuff sound produced by early steam sound units in G and 1 gauge model trains. I have an LGB starter set Stainz sound unit lying around in my workshop that makes that very sound.
@@Shakes-Off-Fear I mean, the studio was kitbashing and modifying Marklin 1-gauge models, so I wouldn't be surprised if they had a few of those around. Fun fact, whenever you see trucks moving but can't see the locomotive that's pushing or pulling them, it's actually a Marklin 1-gauge model of a German Federal Railways Class 80 0-6-0, running number 80 031.
Good music tells a story. Thomas the tank engine is a story about trains, trains go from one place to another, but its also a story about personal growth, and learning from your mistakes. So as far as ending in a different key, hinting a different place than where you started, it makes sense! I love this theme!
Me and my cousin Zack watched Thomas the Train on VHS almost religiously as little kids in the early 2000’s so the theme has always unironically brought me so much nostalgia 😂
The song seems whimsical and doesn't take itself seriously with the left field chord progressions and samples as instruments, but always resolves so perfectly that it really should take itself seriously. Reminds me of Harlem globetrotters, but for the ears.
Something I remember Ian McKellen saying in an interview: "Take your work seriously, but don't take yourself too seriously." Apparently applies to music too ;)
I'm not sure why, but I feel like the Harlem Globetrotters theme itself with its whistles and similar ragtime groove is pretty similar to the Thomas the Tank Engine theme
For a time, (I think Jim Henson really brought it into popularity) music was seen as integral to kids shows, and they would spend a significant amount of money hiring great conductors and song writers. I think Backyardigans and Phineas and Ferb were some of the last kids shows to really poor blood sweat and tears into their soundtracks
Adventure Time would like a word. It's different, but it's for a different generation. I'm an old man, but I was blown away by AT when my kids were watching it.
@@MoistGrundle I would never dunk on Adventure Time's writing, but is its music really any good? Besides the masterpiece that is the bacon pancakes song, there's nothing impressive that I know about that's come out of it
I always thought children's TV show intros were just made so well. Not just Thomas the tank engine but original Fireman sam intro, Scooby doo intro from 2002/6, Pippi longstocking "what shall I do today"..... Always felt like they put in lots of effort into something so small and probably insignificant to people after the age of 8. These ones really bring the nostalgia
I loved Thomas the Tank Engine as a kid, but I was petrified of the theme music. I don't know what it was about it, as soon as the music played I'd run into the kitchen and close the door waiting for it to end. As soon as it finished I'd come back in and enjoy the episode. I'm happy to say that now that I'm 37, I am now brave enough to listen it and it's pretty good.
You know, it didn't and doesn't scare me, but now that you say that, I can kind of see it. I'm no musicologist and can't explain exactly what features they are, but something about the chords could be interpreted as cheerfully sinister. Especially right at the start. Almost sounds like the tune is coming to get you, with a great big grin. Not unlike a steam locomotive, rolling relentlessly toward you with a human face...
Even as an adult it's a really good show to watch. They knew the audience was smart enough to handle it. It had good lessons and story telling moments. God I loved this show so much.
This video actually made me a lot more emotional than I thought it would. When I was a kid, I used to watch old Thomas the Tank Engine episodes on VHS whenever I would go to my grandparents’ house. I think of it now as my grandpa sharing his love of trains with me in the best way he knew how. He passed away a few years ago, and now this theme song just makes me think of him. 😔
I’m a huge fan of Thomas the Tank Engine, and even though when Thomas was sold to HiT in 2004 and marketed towards a more American audience instead of British, it wasn’t terrible until around season 8 or 9, but it was a huge bummer to have this beautiful theme song be replaced after season 7. Mike O’Donnel and Junior Campbell wrote this theme and were the composers from season 1 until season 7. They brought an amazing energy to the show and I highly recommended checking out “The Flying Kipper” (Season 1, Episode 19) and “Henry’s Forest” (Season 3, Episode 9) because they have some of the best music scores in the show. Thomas may seem like a very toddler targeted show, but like postman pat, it is a younger audience marketed show, but has themes that all ages can enjoy. At least the first 7 seasons of course!
Themes from the 70s and 80s are invariably bangers. Generally written my uber talented musicians with hippie mindsets who want to do something awesome and mind expanding for the kids.
I HIGHLY recommend looking at other tracks from the series. This series is legendary for its vocal talent, score, set and model design. Top tier entertainment. Really deserves a second look. The flying kipper theme is amazing! And the James theme has been covered like crazy.
The Viaduct theme slaps hard; always puts the audience in the moment. Henry/The flying Kipper theme never fails to feel epic, grand triumphant. The watermill theme is beautiful. While James' jazz theme is up there, I have to give my #1 spot to Percy's S3 theme. Bursting with energy; and also my goto to show how the show evolved and grew compared to other shows. Percys theme reflects that really well; I've always said Thomas is the MC but Percy has the most evolution. His theme from s1-5 reflects his character growth
This theme is quintessentially jazzy, with elements of ragtime and even dixieland. As for jazz covers, insaneintherainmusic probably did the best cover I’ve heard
An added point is that the downbeat arguably pops more through the tune than the main beat. Largely due to the left hand effectively being a rag-time riff. - I agree hugely though that it's the unresolved aspects that really make this appealing. It almost has a jazz quality to it. NGL either, I've always had a bizarre fascination with the bridge chord progression. It just works SO well.
Been watching Thomas the Tank Engine with my boy this summer. The music goes far harder than it needs to. However, I will say that good compositions tend to not annoy parents, so I think it's more for the sanity of the parents than it is for the education or entertainment of the kids.
i grew up watching the show and the theme song is one of my earliest musical memories, it definitely stuck with me much more than a ton of more low-effort theme songs from other shows i watched as a kid. The cream will rise to the top!
I was so surprised at how much the theme song has changed over the years. Its had like....over 5 different versions with even more animation variations
Someone else here commented that in an interview one of the composers stated that they believe that it’s important to write genuinely good music for children’s shows because children have a greater appreciation for complexity in music than most people give them credit for
The sanity of the parents is an important consideration when the episodes are only 5 minutes long and the opening and closing credits have the same tune, so if binging you will be listening to the theme song 20+ times per hour...
It always fascinates me how when you watch musical breakdowns like this that you'll often be reminded of other pieces. This time, the walkdown highlighted at 7:06 instantly put me in mind of the walkdown leading into the chorus of "I Can't Stop Loving You" by Leo Sayer.
Rev.Wilbert Awdry created Thomas the Tank engine and the other characters when his son Christopher had a bout of measles in 1942/3 to cheer him up. Christopher had a bossy friend called Gordon in the 1950's which is how that character was named. By 1945 W.Awdry published The Three Railway Engines, and a year late published Thomas the Tank Engine. Awdry was the son of a vicar and amateur railwayman, and the railway workers attended his church and would let them go for walks along the line. As child he would listen to a steam train at night which would go have to go uphill, and he described the sound of the engine going "I can't do it, I can't do it, I can't do it" and the banker (helper engine) going "yes you can, yes you can, yes you can". The theme tune captures Awdry's description of the sound a steam engine very well. Rev. Wilbert Awdry has brought generations of people so much joy, whether through the books or Thomas and Friends and other TV shows. In the books there is a touching message to his son Christopher. I watched Thomas and Friends and read the of the books growing up, I hadn't seen it in years but managed to find old episodes on RU-vid during the pandemic which was a real joy in an otherwise rotten time.
Can you please record a full-length version of "Thomas the Tank Engine Theme (Standard Arrangement)"? It would fill a hole in my soul which I didn't know was there.
There’s a playlist called “Thomas Reorchestrated” that has BIG orchestral arrangements of the season 1 songs. Gordon’s theme with a big band is THE sound of speed for me now
if this video doesn't mention that first ascending phrase of the theme also being the chorus bass run in elliott smith's "between the bars" I am going to be sorely disappointed
This is a really nice analysis, but just to add to it a bit - First, the connection with "Mean Mr. Mustard" has everything to do with the way the key center slides up and down at the same time as these almost totally chromatic ascending/descending figures are going back and forth, almost to the point where the song comes off like an exact musical representation of how the title character probably lopes drunkenly down the street. "TTTE", for its part, aims for and achieves a smoother, more relaxed version of this feel, with the frequent key changes arguably being an intentional representation of how much variety a happy sentient train would get to experience on a journey - fields, rivers, towns, villages, all kinds of weather, you name it, Thomas & Friends have glided along at a consistent pace right through it. Second, the very start of the melody of "TTTE" is pretty blatanly borrowed from an ACTUAL jazz standard about a train, that being "Take The 'A' Train". (This cover that finally synthesizes the two songs makes the connection pretty much impossible to ever miss again once heard: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-YYob4uDjEKI.html) And third, that diminished scale at the end strikes me as being very likely a reference/homage to Scott Joplin's "The Maple Leaf Rag" and/or "The Entertainer", both of which are immensely famous and have musical elements that heavily overlap with each other as well as "TTTE". I'm sure there's more to say, but that's what hits me the most clearly.
I love that after the B section, during the bridge, the clip they show is Thomas driving over, you guessed it, a bridge Also for all the people in the comments asking for a full cover of the Thomas theme, Insaneintherainmusic has a brilliant cover of this on his channel, check it out!
I really appreciate you getting the Duck Tales theme song stuck in my head now. I've been rocking the Street Sharks and Biker Mice from Mars themes lately. On a kick.
I was obsessed with Thomas as a kid, and as I grew out of the show, I never grew out of this song. It's so cool to see that people still appreciate the music
You always seem like you are having the time of your life, no matter what topic you're discussing. You're definitely one of my favorite subscriptions 😊
After this and The Transformers, I'd love to see you look at other theme songs, like Ducktales, Chip and Dale: Rescue Rangers, Darkwing Duck, M.A.S.K., GI JOE, Jonny Quest, The Racoons, GEM, and probably a hundred more that I didn't mention.
DuckTales theme is great. The popular opinion is that the original is better than the remake, and I have to agree that the brass just gives such awesome energy. But I think I prefer the overall makeup of the remake.
I've heard the remake, and indeed both my son and my ex-wife enjoy the new series, but I can't bring it to mine at all. The classic theme, though, is one of those I can always hear in my head. :-)
The theme is very interesting as it travels around keys like a train circumnavigating the island of Sodor on the main line. I’m sure that was intended by the creators.
Carlos from insaneintherain made a jazz cover of this a few years ago and I remember being blown away by the fact that it sounded quite legit, and wasn't just a meme
Absolutely! Thomas was my first introduction to different characters having their own themes long before I discovered film scores. There's even a brilliant double theme between the Thomas main theme and what I think of as the "breakdown train" theme in "Thomas Goes Fishing"
When you have extremely talented composers that take their work seriously, you get masterpieces like this song. This is the reason why a lot of classic theme songs are still used today 👌
The thing this it should be insane. With ringo star as the main narrator. It’s almost certain you had Paul macarney helping with it as well. Thomas’s theme song is almost certainly the final pure collab of the Beatles. I’m almost certain George Harrison (who I’m not sure if he was actually alive when this was written but if not he was defo speaking through spirit). And John Lennon phasing through time to help on one of his past acid trips. And because I’ve said this on the internet it’s now factual 100%.
Oh Mike and Junior weren’t the only passionate people on classic Thomas. The first 5 seasons are absolutely stunning in terms of models and filming, on top of the score. Every single theme in those early seasons goes just as hard. The stories were pretty good too back then. They stuck pretty close to the original books, which themselves were a really grounded love-letter to railways that didn’t speak down to kids. Unfortunately that magic has been lost to time…
We never got George C after Ringo in the OG UK version - most of our Thomas content was a fella called Michael Angelis. He had a very similar timbre to Ringo so as kids we never really noticed the difference. Thomas was absolutely huge for elder UK millennials (I'm born in 85) and the theme tune was iconic even before it became the meme tune.
Shining Time Station is the American version (Ringo followed by George Carlin as the conductor, also starring Didi Conn from Grease), and the theme was different. I actually love both themes, the original UK version and the early 90's American version.
I always thought it was was meant to be off by a few cents. Evokes the cockney music hall London sound I always thought it was supposed to be dancing to. Good video for a worthy theme!
I love how tickled and delighted he is! I had it on my someday/maybe list to sit at a piano and analyze this theme; glad this guy took care of that for me. I loved the Ringo narration series and always thought the theme had a late Beatles vibe, and this all now makes more sense. Thanks for the magical musical tour through the Island of Sodor! 🛤🚂🎶
it has a weird sorta Ellington vibe going on, I never really noticed how cool this theme was when I watched this as a kid but now I know why it hit so hard lol
@@james_subosits not only that, the first 4 bars of the A sections are basically the same harmonically. Only difference is D7b5 instead of Ab7 which is basically the same chord with a different root
Год назад
@@RyJohnsonMusic, came here to see if someone said this in the comments. Thanks!
I think there is one part that's missing here, that being O'Donnell and Campbell's masterful use of lietmotif. Nothing I can think of compares to the dynamic use of Edward's theme from series one, to its more complex versions in series two, leading up to Edward's Exploit, using a minor version during the climax of the episode, finishing off with a final resolution that's just perfect and completes and concludes the whole character arc in a wonderful triumph. All of the themes have a variation for different events and every callback adds so much to the story. Its amazing when you can tell what's happening and who's involved, in addition to how much that character has grown to this point. Its something I don't see nearly enough.
The old Shining Time Station show with Carlin and Starr was my childhood. I LOVED trains as a kid. We couldn’t actually pick up the show where we lived in Alaska, so my grandparents down in California would record a bunch of them and then mail us videocassettes.
Additional info: one of the composers of the thomas theme, was already an established songwriter by the time he wrote the theme. He was in a band in the 60s called Marmalade and had some really legendary songs....
Thomas the Tank Engine has so much good music. One song that I've always loved from that show in specific was "Accidents Will Happen" (original 1999 version) which also has a bit of some complex harmony.
Thomas was my favorite when I was little and even now I still love it (I'm 27) I have a couple pf collectible shelves and theirs one of those wooden percys with the magnets on the front back up their. That's probably where I get my love of trains from.
In my opinion Thomas the tank engine was and I mean ‘was’ the greatest kids show ever. 1. Because the models on the classic sets that trick you into thinking it’s real. 2. As mentioned the amazing soundtrack and 3. The feel that it wasn’t just a kid show with the darker themes like scraping engines. This will be my favourite show forever sad what Mattel did to it in 2018
This was such a blast to watch you talk about this! Such an appreciation for Mike & Junior's writing as well as... your ability to break it down in an understandable way. Keep up the great work Charles!
God how I loved this show. I was obsessed as a toddler and it always held a special place in my heart. Now so even more as I realized how brilliant it really was musically and as a piece of music. Nice observation and blast from the past man.
The other thing that gave it the charm was the instrument they used, the Roland Jupiter 6, as the antiquated steam engines accompanied by such a harmonic note couldn’t have been cheap to get an actual band to perform, so managing to pull off a hummable and memorable soundtrack like this gave it a budgeted feel, which with the music and rather upbeat nature of the stories made it feel homey, like an actual place you can easily settle into if the Isle of Sodor was real, an austerity feel to everything, from the bustling yards and trains in and out of the station with a chipper tune in the background felt busy, and endearing. That’s why I think the soundtrack defined how the show felt from seasons 1-4
I have always heard this as a ragtime piano with a form of skiffle drum beat. This is why it has the odd key changes that still flow in a great manner. Those 2 musical forms together also create a rhythm that can slide under a ton of different musical styles.
And ragtime was popular during the peak of the age of steam. I remember as a kid the style of the theme feeling appropriate to the show, without really knowing why. And when you've got Ringo Starr loitering around, the pressure is on to impress.
@@brianspenst1374 they're called trills alright, octave trills for the ones that alternate your left-right hand playing the same things but in a different octave, or using the thumb and pinky stretched out on a single hand, to play the same single note on 2 octaves alternated with a wrist tilting movement keeping those fingers stretched, rather than moving the fingers or using a wrist downward motion, that tilting motion with the wrist being the center of gravity is quintessentially honky-tonk ;) i mean, if you "trill" chords outlining them staccato, aren't they really just very quick arpeggios? where does one draw the line at what is a trill ? semitone hammeron/pulloff combos on stringed instruments are trills or any interval for that matter, so i'm going to have to assume trills are strictly alternating 2 notes really quickly, hell maybe even chords, regardless of interval, but any complexity beyond alternating exactly 2 hits of the 2 notes or chords in the repeated pattern is technically just a really goddamn fast arpeggio, right? :P
This theme always reminds me of Take the A-train by Ellington, probably due to the chords’ succession, which is quite a coincidence cause Thomas is actually a train !!
@@jde824 Waw that’s so nice ! I know that insaneintherain has done an interpretation of TTTE too, and in the bigband way so that’s pretty nice either !
Thomas has hands down some of the best music in TV. Each engine had their own theme music. Runaway trains feel intense because of the music alone. I hope you go even more in depth with this shows music in the future.
Try checking out the 'Tugs' theme, it was created by the exact two compossers that made Thomas's theme (Mike O'Donnell and Junior Cambell) but it has a completely different feel to it and is an absolute joy to listen to, keep up the good work btw!
I'm 40 and I grew up watching Thomas as a very young child. I have hinestly ot smiled more during a youtube video because I have always LOVED the theme tune but couldn't have ever possibly have explained why. This video is the very definition of why RU-vid exists!
Always knew that theme song slapped for a reason as a kid. Bro and I would get DOWN to that. Also: love how that double-time part matches the tempo of “chugs” made by a moving train engine. Really went all in with the train theme throughout the song.
This might be just me but that little tag at the end, specifically after the seemingly first resolving chord so the descending part right after it; it reminds me very much of part of the orchestral arrangement you'd hear on old silent movies where the villain has tied the damsel in distress to the train tracks.
Yes! I think that comes through ragtime. Compare it with the ending of Winifred Atwell's Black & White Rag, which Mike would certainly have heard since it was the theme music of a popular snooker TV show.
I don't hear Mean Mister Mustard in the Thomas song, but I definitely hear The Beatles as a whole. The unconventional chord progression that somehow works effortlessly, the creative instrumentation, that cheery corny piano oom-pah. It's so great.
I love watching you break down these songs that i never would've thought to break down. Ab to C is a harmony i wouldn't have thought to do myself but it worked major props to whoever wrote the Thomas theme
After watching Thomas, we can't help but wonder why people would take any mode of transport that isn't a train. While I took a Boeing 747 to Singapore in 2018, I went by train to Beijing, Hanoi, and Vladivostok to see Xi Jinping, my second meeting with Trump, and Vladimir Putin respectively. Trains get the job done, leave you right in the middle of town without having to find extra transport from the airport, and you see so much more scenery
Most of the songs in the series involve the chuffing noise. It really is a credit to the composers the amount of thought out into. I find myself listening to a lot of the different songs when I’m feeling nostalgic
I was gonna say its always sounded Beatley to me, didnt know it was actually written by a guy who worked with them though! And obviously Ringo narrating, really came full circle
Mike O'Donnell and Junior Campbell made absolutely beautiful themes for Thomas. Every engine, major location, and serious scenes have their own themes that make it so iconic. O'Donnell has actually been remaking and releasing the themes that you can purchase on his website. They're a great listen!
I believe the reason for the continuous "root change" is due to it telling a story of a train going on it's merry way on it's way down the line. Starting from a steam engine stoking in the beginning, then on delivery after delivery with random experiences throughout, finalizing with the trip back to the switchyard.
