An analysis of "Chicken in the Pot" with Ender Smith from AurekFonts. We cover lyrics and language, talk about pronunciation, notation, genre, string samples, harmony, tuning, and quite a bit more. Finally, we field listener submitted questions about "Chicken in the Pot" and discuss the rest of minutes 41-45 of Solo: A Star Wars Story.
Timestamps:
- 00:00 - Hello there!
- 11:03 - How did "Chicken in the Pot" get its name?
- 15:39 - Luleo Primoc and the legendary musician Louis Prima
- 28:30 - Why do the Huttese lyrics sound French?
- 42:20 - What are the lyrics and translation to "Chicken in the Pot"?
- 45:45 - Is the chorus about hunger or is it a thing?
- 52:45 - Boss Baby meme, points of contact with certain musical genres, categories, the varying efficacy of tropes.
- 59:12 - What genre or style would you consider "Chicken in the Pot"?
- 1:14:28 - Strings sound sampled from the 60s or 70s.
- 1:27:33 - Are the strings diegetic or part of the score? Where are the strings coming from?
- 1:37:19 - Microtonality, tuning systems, and musical notation. Strap in!
- 2:17:45 - Why does this song absolutely slap?
- 2:28:24 - Hot take: Max Rebo is not canonically famous.
- 2:38:18 - Do you prefer the version with the high voice or the low voice (like on the film)?
- 2:45:57 - Other music and sound observations in Solo minutes 41-45.
- 3:32:50 - SWMM Questionnaire
Things to Check Out:
- Underscore podcast: Goofy Baby Songs with Isaac Schankler (Xanthe's old music podcast where they recommended Chicken in the Pot in 2018): https://www.listennotes.com/podcasts/underscore/goofy-baby-songs-with-isaac-ZwpuRo16rEa/
- Louis Prima - King of the Swingers (2006 Documentary) - https://youtu.be/PpimuXlMMP8
- How Sheet Music Lies To You (12tone video; highly recommend!): https://youtu.be/quOLtE0wfAo
- Complete Catalogue of the Musical Themes of Star Wars (by Frank Lehman): https://franklehman.com/starwars/.
Musical Themes:
- 5. The Gang
- 1. Young Han Solo (Heroic, comp. JW)
- 3. Secrets
- 4. Han & Q'ira
Where are we in the soundtrack?:
- "Walk to Dreyden's (3M17)"
- "Chicken in the Pot (3M18S)", NOT "Chicken in the Pot"
- "Han & Qi'Ra Reunite (3M19)"
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STAR WARS MUSIC MINUTE QUESTIONNAIRE:
1. In exactly 3 words, what does Star Wars sound like?
- Actually close enough. (to John Williams)
- (Previous answer: California radio voiceovers)
2. What's something related to Star Wars music or sound that you want to learn more about?
- How musical notation works in Star Wars. What does Bith notation look like for the Cantina Band? How about Max Rebo's charts? Does he read sheet music or play by ear?
- (Previous answer: the making of one musical cue from start to finish)
3. What's a score or soundtrack you're fond of besides anything Star Wars?
- The Village (composed by James Newton Howard)
- (Previous answer: Knives Out - composed by Nathan Johnson)
Bonus question: What would you encourage listeners pay closer attention to on their next watch of Solo?
- Hyperfocus on the Huttese word for hamburger
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Guest: Ender Smith (AurekFonts)
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/AurekFonts
- Fonts: https://aurekfonts.github.io/
- Previous SWMM episode: ANH 3: Droid Musicality - https://youtu.be/qtY3zAA-A8A
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