Thursday, December 20, 2007

Powerhouse




From reading that Mothersbaugh article, I learned about Raymond Scott, the guy who composed a famous Looney Toons piece of music, called "Powerhouse." Rush threw that bit into their epic, La Villa Strangiato. I looked up Raymond Scott on the internet and discovered what an awesome guy he was--a jazz composer with a mathematical flair, and among other things, a sonic/electronic innovator upon whose teats such heavyweights as Tangerine Dream must have suckled. Check this mutha out!

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

La Villa Strangiato is an epic? I thought it was more like Canadian auto-bukkake. Too bad Williams couldn't have sued those bitches for more:

Q: Did the rock band RUSH get sued and have to pay royalties for their unauthorized use of Raymond Scott's ''Powerhouse'' in their 1978 recording ''La Villa.Strangiato''-?
A: By the time Raymond Scott's publisher notified the band's management of the infringement, the statute of limitations had expired on the challenge. But Rush's management, out of deference to Mr. and Mrs. Scott (Raymond was still alive at that point), offered a one-time "penance" payment, feeling it was the ethical thing to do. All involved were happy with the resolution, and Rush has no further financial obligations. Under the settlement, they were not required to accord RS partial songwriting credit on the.piece.