Sesame Street's 'Pinball Number Count'....Like You've Never Heard it Before
London, England (PRWEB UK) 7 September 2013 -- September 2013 marks the release of Beat DeVille’s cover of Pinball Number Count, a reboot of a much-loved classic that transforms the original sample into an accessible contemporary soundtrack. The original jazz-funk arrangement, composed by Walt Kraemer and featuring vocals by The Pointer Sisters, first played on American hit TV series Sesame Street in 1977.
Synced to a one-minute animated sequence within a pinball machine, it involved complex time signatures (including 3/8, 7/8 and 11/8) that made it difficult to rearrange. Despite its enduring popularity (evidenced by the release of many cover versions), it was never produced successfully in a song format.
Pete Newton, producer of Beat DeVille, explains, “The key was to unify the diverse time signatures as a regular 4/4 structure, so the hooks could be stitched together as a backbone for the track. New chord progressions and instrumentation could then be introduced to add harmony and musical flow.”
The reworked structure also provides an opportunity to move the track in different directions, including new lyrics and wider applications. Pete continues, “Like many of us growing up in the ‘70s and ‘80s, Pinball Number Count was my first real exposure to cool jazz-funk music. I wanted to remind fans of the original just how good it was, but also give the track a new lease of life.”
Fellow musician Julius Waters of Kinobe, commented, “The art of sampling lies in extracting a song’s DNA and evolving it into something fresh and new. Pete has nailed this process using a complex but iconic piece of music. The world is waiting for this track!”
Sesame Workshop has granted full permission for use of the original sample in this track. The second song, entitled Happy Galaxies, is a remix of the new instrumentation added to the title track. Beat DeVille’s Pinball Number Count will be released on iTunes and Amazon MP3 on 16 September, and is available for pre-order on iTunes now. Further details, including the promotional video, can be found at the beatdeville.com website.
Beat DeVille is the sound of Pete Newton, a composer and producer from Manchester with over 10 years experience of writing commercial soundtracks.
Pete’s work has been published through Sony/BMG, Universal and EMI, and plays on all major UK networks. It also has wide exposure in the USA, on productions such as 'The Oprah Winfrey Show' and 'Hogan Knows Best', and on networks such as FOX, Paramount and MTV. His rock guitar composition Ladz Magz was used in the official trailer for the movie Mr. Nice, starring Rhys Ifans as Howard Marks, the infamous British drug smuggler.
Pete’s repertoire is diverse, although his main interest lies in heavy rock, disco and orchestral cinematic soundtracks. According to AIR Studios/Strongroom Productions, he is “A mean guitarist and very talented arranger and mix engineer.” Pete has a passion for classic disco music (in the Nile Rodgers vein) and is currently working on an album inspired by this era, under the name Beat DeVille.
Contact: Pete Newton
Joan Fleming, [email protected], +44 7870674233, [email protected]
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