"Powerhouse" (1937) is an instrumental musical composition by Raymond Scott, perhaps best known today as the " assembly line" music in
animated cartoons
Animation is a method by which still figures are manipulated to appear as moving images. In traditional animation, images are drawn or painted by hand on transparent celluloid sheets to be photographed and exhibited on film. Today, most anima ...
released by
Warner Bros.
Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (commonly known as Warner Bros. or abbreviated as WB) is an American film and entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California, and a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Di ...
History
In scripted comments read on the First Anniversary Special of
CBS Radio
CBS Radio was a radio broadcasting company and radio network operator owned by CBS Corporation and founded in 1928, with consolidated radio station groups owned by CBS and Westinghouse Broadcasting/Group W since the 1920s, and Infinity Broadc ...
's '' Saturday Night Swing Club'', on which the Raymond Scott Quintette performed, host Paul Douglas announced that "Powerhouse" had been premiered on that program in January or early February 1937.
Scott's Quintette (actually a sextet) first recorded "Powerhouse" in New York on February 20, 1937, along with three other titles. This recording was first commercially issued on the
Irving Mills
Irving Harold Mills (born Isadore Minsky; January 16, 1894 – April 21, 1985) was an American music publisher, musician, lyricist, and jazz artist promoter. He sometimes used the pseudonyms Goody Goodwin and Joe Primrose.
Personal
Mills was ...
-owned Master Records label as Master 111 (mx. M-120-1), coupled with another Scott composition, " The Toy Trumpet". After the demise of the Master label late in 1937, "Powerhouse" was reissued on Brunswick 7993, and subsequently on Columbia 36311 (after the CBS purchase of
ARC
ARC may refer to:
Business
* Aircraft Radio Corporation, a major avionics manufacturer from the 1920s to the '50s
* Airlines Reporting Corporation, an airline-owned company that provides ticket distribution, reporting, and settlement services
* ...
, which included the Brunswick catalog). The same take was issued on all releases. (An unreleased 1939 recording by the original Scott Quintette was issued in 2002 on the two-CD Scott compilation Microphone Music '.)
The personnel on the February 20, 1937, version are:
* Raymond Scott -
piano
The piano is a stringed keyboard instrument in which the strings are struck by wooden hammers that are coated with a softer material (modern hammers are covered with dense wool felt; some early pianos used leather). It is played using a keyboa ...
*Dave Harris -
saxophone
The saxophone (often referred to colloquially as the sax) is a type of single-reed woodwind instrument with a conical body, usually made of brass. As with all single-reed instruments, sound is produced when a reed on a mouthpiece vibrates to pr ...
*Pete Pumiglio -
clarinet
The clarinet is a musical instrument in the woodwind family. The instrument has a nearly cylindrical bore and a flared bell, and uses a single reed to produce sound.
Clarinets comprise a family of instruments of differing sizes and pitches ...
*Dave Wade -
trumpet
The trumpet is a brass instrument commonly used in classical and jazz ensembles. The trumpet group ranges from the piccolo trumpet—with the highest register in the brass family—to the bass trumpet, pitched one octave below the standard ...
*Louis Shoobe -
double bass
The double bass (), also known simply as the bass () (or #Terminology, by other names), is the largest and lowest-pitched Bow (music), bowed (or plucked) string instrument in the modern orchestra, symphony orchestra (excluding unorthodox addit ...
drums
A drum kit (also called a drum set, trap set, or simply drums) is a collection of drums, cymbals, and other Percussion instrument, auxiliary percussion instruments set up to be played by one person. The player (drummer) typically holds a pair o ...
"Powerhouse" and "The Toy Trumpet" remained in Scott's repertoire for decades, and both were
adapted
In biology, adaptation has three related meanings. Firstly, it is the dynamic evolutionary process of natural selection that fits organisms to their environment, enhancing their evolutionary fitness. Secondly, it is a state reached by the po ...
for Warner Bros. cartoon
soundtracks
A soundtrack is recorded music accompanying and synchronised to the images of a motion picture, drama, book, television program, radio program, or video game; a commercially released soundtrack album of music as featured in the soundtrack of ...
by WB music director
Carl Stalling
Carl William Stalling (November 10, 1891 – November 29, 1972) was an American composer, voice actor and arranger for music in animated films. He is most closely associated with the ''Looney Tunes'' and ''Merrie Melodies'' shorts produced by War ...
along with a dozen other Scott titles, and both have been recorded by numerous other artists. Stalling, who spiced his scores with "Powerhouse" dozens of times, never created a complete version of the work, with all his adaptations existing as excerpts.
The United States
publisher
Publishing is the activity of making information, literature, music, software and other content available to the public for sale or for free. Traditionally, the term refers to the creation and distribution of printed works, such as books, newsp ...
Structurally, "Powerhouse" consists of two distinct – and seemingly unrelated – musical themes, played at different
tempo
In musical terminology, tempo (Italian, 'time'; plural ''tempos'', or ''tempi'' from the Italian plural) is the speed or pace of a given piece. In classical music, tempo is typically indicated with an instruction at the start of a piece (often ...
s. Both have been used in numerous cartoons. The first theme, sometimes referred to as "Powerhouse A", is a frantic passage typically employed in chase and high-speed vehicle scenes to imply whirlwind velocity. The slower theme, "Powerhouse B", is the "assembly line" music, which sometimes accompanies scenes of repetitive, machine-like activity. "Powerhouse" in its entirety places "B" in the center while "A" opens and closes the work (
ternary form
Ternary form, sometimes called song form, is a three-part musical form consisting of an opening section (A), a following section (B) and then a repetition of the first section (A). It is usually schematized as A–B–A. Prominent examples includ ...
).
Use in cartoon works
The first use of "Powerhouse" in a cartoon occurred in the 1943
Warner Bros.
Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (commonly known as Warner Bros. or abbreviated as WB) is an American film and entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California, and a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Di ...
''
Looney Tunes
''Looney Tunes'' is an American Animated cartoon, animated comedy short film series produced by Warner Bros. starting from 1930 to 1969, concurrently with its partner series ''Merrie Melodies'', during the golden age of American animation.
'' short ''
Porky Pig's Feat
''Porky Pig's Feat'' is a 1943 Warner Bros. ''Looney Tunes'' animated cartoon directed by Frank Tashlin. It was released on July 17, 1943, and stars Porky Pig and Daffy Duck.
Directed by Frank Tashlin with musical direction by Carl Stalling, and ...
'', directed by
Frank Tashlin
Frank Tashlin (born Francis Fredrick von Taschlein, February 19, 1913 – May 5, 1972), also known as Tish Tash and Frank Tash, was an American animator, cartoonist, children's writer, illustrator, screenwriter, and film director. He was best kn ...
. Also in 1943, it was used in the ''
Private Snafu
Private Snafu is the title character of a series of black-and-white American instructional adult animated shorts, ironic and humorous in tone, that were produced between 1943 and 1945 during World War II. The films were designed to instruct servi ...
Spies
Spies most commonly refers to people who engage in spying, espionage or clandestine operations.
Spies or The Spies may also refer to:
* Spies (surname), a German surname
* Spies (band), a jazz fusion band
* "Spies" (song), a song by Coldplay
* ...
'', and ''
Rumors
A rumor (American English), or rumour (British English; see spelling differences; derived from Latin:rumorem - noise), is "a tall tale of explanations of events circulating from person to person and pertaining to an object, event, or issue in p ...
''. It was subsequently featured in over 40 other Warner Bros. cartoons.Index of Raymond Scott titles in Warner Bros. cartoons at RaymondScott.net /ref> The most well-known "assembly-line" usage of "Powerhouse B" occurs in
Bob Clampett
Robert Emerson Clampett Sr. (May 8, 1913 – May 2, 1984) was an American animator, director, producer and puppeteer. He was best known for his work on the '' Looney Tunes'' animated series from Warner Bros. as well as the television shows '' ...
's ''
Baby Bottleneck
''Baby Bottleneck'' is a 1946 Warner Bros. ''Looney Tunes'' cartoon directed by Bob Clampett and written by Warren Foster. The cartoon was released on March 16, 1946, and stars Daffy Duck and Porky Pig. Tweety makes a cameo appearance in the fil ...
'' (1946), in which newborn babies (of various species) are processed on a conveyor belt in time to the melody.
The "Powerhouse A" section is featured prominently during
Bugs Bunny
Bugs Bunny is an animated cartoon character created in the late 1930s by Leon Schlesinger Productions (later Warner Bros. Cartoons) and voiced originally by Mel Blanc. Bugs is best known for his starring roles in the '' Looney Tunes'' and '' ...
's altercation with a
gremlin
A gremlin is a mischievous folkloric creature invented at the beginning of the 20th century to originally explain malfunctions in aircraft and later in other machinery and processes and their operators. Depictions of these creatures vary widely ...
in Clampett's 1943 ''Merrie Melodies'' cartoon '' Falling Hare''. Stalling's lengthiest adaptation of the "Powerhouse A" section is interpolated during the beginning and end of the rocket travel sequence in the 1953 ''Merrie Melodies'' cartoon ''
Duck Dodgers in the 24½th Century
''Duck Dodgers in the th Century'' (spoken as "twenty-fourth-and-a-half") is a 1953 Warner Bros. ''Merrie Melodies'' cartoon directed by Chuck Jones. The cartoon was released on July 25, 1953, and stars Daffy Duck as space hero Duck Dodgers, P ...
'' (directed by
Chuck Jones
Charles Martin Jones (September 21, 1912 – February 22, 2002) was an American animator, director, and painter, best known for his work with Warner Bros. Cartoons on the ''Looney Tunes'' and ''Merrie Melodies'' series of shorts. He wrote, produ ...
). It starts at roughly 2:20, clocking in at one minute and twenty-five seconds.
Other Warner cartoons which contain excerpts from "Powerhouse" include ''Birdy and the Beast'' (1944), ''Cat-Tails for Two'' (1953), ''Early to Bet'' (1951), ''Falling Hare'' (1943), ''His Bitter Half'' (1950), ''House-Hunting Mice'' (1948), ''It's Hummer Time'' (1950), ''Jumpin' Jupiter'' (1955), ''Rocket Squad'' (1956), ''Sheep in the Deep'' (1962), ''Compressed Hare'' (1961), and dozens more.
In the 1960s, producer
Hal Seeger
Harold Seeger (May 16, 1917 – March 13, 2005) was an American animated cartoon producer and director who owned his own studio the Hal Seeger Studio (Hal Seeger Productions). He is most famous as the creator of the 1960s animated series '' Batfi ...
and composer/arranger Winston Sharples adapted "Powerhouse" and other Scott compositions in dozens of episodes of their ''
Batfink
''Batfink'' is an American animated television series, consisting of five-minute shorts, that first aired in April 1966.David Mackay published a filmography of Batfink in the Sept. 1993 issues oFarmes per Second magazine, and also provided a comp ...
'' cartoon series.
The original Raymond Scott Quintette recordings, including "Powerhouse", were licensed in the early 1990s for
soundtrack
A soundtrack is recorded music accompanying and synchronised to the images of a motion picture, drama, book, television program, radio program, or video game; a commercially released soundtrack album of music as featured in the soundtrack o ...
usage in twelve episodes of '' The Ren and Stimpy Show''. Various passages of the tune have been arranged for use in ''
The Simpsons
''The Simpsons'' is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series is a satirical depiction of American life, epitomized by the Simpson family, which consists of Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa, ...
The Bernie Mac Show
''The Bernie Mac Show'' (often shortened to ''Bernie Mac'' in syndication) is an American sitcom television series created by Larry Wilmore, that aired on Fox for five seasons from November 14, 2001 to April 14, 2006. The series featured Bernie ...
'', and '' The Drew Carey Show'' (in a brief scene involving an animated character). An entire 1993 episode of '' Animaniacs'', "Toy Shop Terror", was set to Warner Bros. music director Richard Stone's arrangement of the composition. "Powerhouse" also served as bumper theme music for
Cartoon Network
Cartoon Network (often abbreviated as CN) is an American cable television channel owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. It is a part of The Cartoon Network, Inc., a division that also has the broadcasting and production activities of Boomerang, Car ...
from 1998 to 2003, and can be heard as a systematic rock theme in the 2003 feature film '' Looney Tunes: Back in Action''.
"Powerhouse" has been used In ''
The Simpsons
''The Simpsons'' is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series is a satirical depiction of American life, epitomized by the Simpson family, which consists of Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa, ...
'' four times. The first occurs in "
And Maggie Makes Three
"And Maggie Makes Three" is the thirteenth episode of the sixth season of the American animated television series ''The Simpsons''. It originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on January 22, 1995. In the episode, Homer recounts t ...
" (Season 6, Episode 13) during a montage of a bowling pin assembly line. In the episode "
Bart Has Two Mommies
"Bart Has Two Mommies" is the fourteenth episode of the seventeenth season of the American animated television series ''The Simpsons''. It originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on March 19, 2006. In the episode, Marge babysits ...
" (Season 17, Episode 14), "Powerhouse" B is adapted in a scene that pays homage to the 1937
Disney
The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios complex in Burbank, California. Disney was originally founded on October ...
short ''
The Old Mill
''The Old Mill'' is a 1937 ''Silly Symphonies'' cartoon produced by Walt Disney Productions, directed by Wilfred Jackson, scored by Leigh Harline, and released theatrically to theatres by RKO Radio Pictures on November 5, 1937. The film depicts t ...
'', when
Homer Simpson
Homer Jay Simpson is a fictional character and the main protagonist of the American animated sitcom ''The Simpsons''. He is voiced by Dan Castellaneta and first appeared, along with the rest of his family, in ''The Tracey Ullman Show'' short "G ...
gets caught in the Old Mill while trying to save his Rubber Duckie. In the episode " Little Big Girl" (Season 18, Episode 12), "Powerhouse" was used during the sequence where the fire at Cletus' farm is lit. In the episode "
The Fool Monty
"The Fool Monty" is the sixth episode of the twenty-second season of the American animated television series ''The Simpsons''. It originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on November 21, 2010. In the episode, Bart finds Mr. Burns l ...
" (Season 22, Episode 6), "Powerhouse" was adapted as background music for a construction scene in which
Charles Montgomery Burns
Charles Montgomery Plantagenet Schicklgruber "Monty" Burns, usually referred to as Mr. Burns, Monty, or C. Montgomery Burns, is a recurring character and the main antagonist of the animated television series ''The Simpsons'', voiced initially b ...
, having lost his memory, is led to a dangerous construction site by Homer Simpson, who seeks revenge for Burns' years of cruel behavior. Burns walks along moving girders, narrowly avoids flying rivets, and other well-worn cartoon construction site gags. ''Simpsons'' creator Matt Groening once ranked "Powerhouse" as #14 on a list of his "100 Favorite Things".
A remix is used in Madness Combat, a Newgrounds series.
In the ''
SpongeBob SquarePants
''SpongeBob SquarePants'' (or simply ''SpongeBob'') is an American animated comedy television series created by marine science educator and animator Stephen Hillenburg for Nickelodeon. It chronicles the adventures of the title character a ...
'' episode "Broken Alarm" from season 12, an arrangement plays over a scene of
SpongeBob SquarePants
''SpongeBob SquarePants'' (or simply ''SpongeBob'') is an American animated comedy television series created by marine science educator and animator Stephen Hillenburg for Nickelodeon. It chronicles the adventures of the title character a ...
ukulele
The ukulele ( ; from haw, ukulele , approximately ), also called Uke, is a member of the lute family of instruments of Portuguese origin and popularized in Hawaii. It generally employs four nylon strings.
The tone and volume of the instrumen ...
, an instrument traditionally used in SpongeBob music.
"Powerhouse," with added lyrics, was used in the Looney Tunes animated series '' Bugs Bunny Builders'' in a July 2022 episode entitled "Hard Hat Time".
Recent performances, recordings, and usages
In recent years, ''Powerhouse'' has been recorded by jazz clarinetist Don Byron on his album ''Bug Music'', jazz pianist Ted Kooshian on his 2009 CD ''Ted Kooshian's Standard Orbit Quartet: Underdog, and other Stories...'', pedal steel guitarist
Jon Rauhouse
Jon is a shortened form of the common given name Jonathan, derived from "YHWH has given", and an alternate spelling of John, derived from "YHWH has pardoned".The Beau Hunks Sextette, The Coctails, and jazz guitarist
Skip Heller
Fred "Skip" Heller (born October 4, 1965) is an American singer, songwriter, and guitarist. Although active in many different types of music as a performer, producer, and historian coming out of the Philadelphia jazz scene, and in spite of local ...
rock band
A rock band or pop band is a small musical ensemble that performs rock music, pop music, or a related genre. A four-piece band is the most common configuration in rock and pop music. In the early years, the configuration was typically two guita ...
Rush
Rush(es) may refer to:
Places
United States
* Rush, Colorado
* Rush, Kentucky
* Rush, New York
* Rush City, Minnesota
* Rush Creek (Kishwaukee River tributary), Illinois
* Rush Creek (Marin County, California), a stream
* Rush Creek (Mono Cou ...
adapted part of "Powerhouse" in their 1978 instrumental "
La Villa Strangiato
The Canadian rock band Rush has written, recorded, and performed several instrumentals throughout its career.
Studio recordings
La Villa Strangiato
"La Villa Strangiato" was released on the 1978 album '' Hemispheres'', and is subtitled "An Exe ...
" (5:49 into the track) on their ''
Hemispheres
Hemisphere refers to:
* A half of a sphere
As half of the Earth
* A hemisphere of Earth
** Northern Hemisphere
** Southern Hemisphere
** Eastern Hemisphere
** Western Hemisphere
** Land and water hemispheres
* A half of the (geocentric) celestia ...
'' album, as did
ska
Ska (; ) is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1950s and was the precursor to rocksteady and reggae. It combined elements of Caribbean mento and calypso with American jazz and rhythm and blues. Ska is characterized by a walki ...
/
soul
In many religious and philosophical traditions, there is a belief that a soul is "the immaterial aspect or essence of a human being".
Etymology
The Modern English noun ''soul'' is derived from Old English ''sāwol, sāwel''. The earliest attes ...
band The Pietasters in ''Factory Concerto'' on their 1993 self-titled album. Alternative jazz group Soul Coughing sampled it in "Bus to Beelzebub" from their 1994 album '' Ruby Vroom''. The tune has also been appropriated by
They Might Be Giants
They Might Be Giants (often abbreviated as TMBG) is an American alternative rock band formed in 1982 by John Flansburgh and John Linnell. During TMBG's early years, Flansburgh and Linnell frequently performed as a duo, often accompanied by a d ...
Devo
Devo (, originally ) is an American rock band from Akron, Ohio, formed in 1973. Their classic line-up consisted of two sets of brothers, the Mothersbaughs (Mark and Bob) and the Casales (Gerald and Bob), along with Alan Myers. The band had a ...
(on "Fraulein"), and others. Other contemporary artists who have recorded versions of "Powerhouse" include Thelonious Moog,
The Tiptons
The Tiptons Sax Quartet, previously known as The Billy Tipton Memorial Saxophone Quartet, is a jazz saxophone quartet from Seattle, Washington. The ensemble consists of five members (the fifth member being the quartet's drummer and percussionist) ...
Quartet San Francisco
Quartet San Francisco is a non-traditional and eclectic string quartet led by violinist Jeremy Cohen. The group played their first concert in 2001 and has recorded five albums. Playing a wide range of music genres including jazz, blues, tango, ...
, and Steroid Maximus (featuring
J. G. Thirlwell
James George Thirlwell (born 29 January 1960), also known as Clint Ruin, Frank Want, and Foetus (band), Foetus, among other names, is an Australian musician, composer, and record producer. He is known for Juxtaposition, juxtaposing a variety o ...
).
Lee Presson and the Nails
Lee Presson and the Nails is a swing band that formed in San Francisco in October 1994 during the late 1990s swing revival.
History
The band won a California Music Award (Bammie) in 1998 for Best Swing/Cabaret Act and an ''SF Weekly'' Awar ...
included it on their album ''Jump-swing from Hell: Live At the Hi-ball Lounge''.
In 2006-2007, the "assembly line" theme was used in a highly
choreographed
Choreography is the art or practice of designing sequences of movements of physical bodies (or their depictions) in which motion or form or both are specified. ''Choreography'' may also refer to the design itself. A choreographer is one who cr ...
commercial for the
Visa
Visa most commonly refers to:
*Visa Inc., a US multinational financial and payment cards company
** Visa Debit card issued by the above company
** Visa Electron, a debit card
** Visa Plus, an interbank network
*Travel visa, a document that allows ...
check card The term check card can refer to:
* An identification card issued by a retailer allowing the holder to tender payment by check. Such cards were commonly issued in the United States by supermarkets and other retailers before the widespread use of d ...
. The commercial, entitled "Lunch", was staged in a manner intended to be reminiscent of the tune's cartoon uses.
In August 2009, Sinking Ship Productions staged a musical portrait of Raymond Scott entitled ''Powerhouse'' at the New York International Fringe Festival. The composition "Powerhouse" was used as a recurring theme. Sinking Ship presented a revised and fully-staged version of the production at the
New Ohio Theatre
The New Ohio Theatre is a performance venue in the West Village of Manhattan in New York City. Located at 154 Christopher Street, the theater was established by Robert Lyons (writer), Robert Lyons as the SoHo Think Tank in 1994. After losing the l ...
in Manhattan in 2014.
On August 8, 2013, the Raymond Scott Orchestrette performed an arrangement of "Powerhouse" to accompany Dance Heginbotham's choreographic work ''Manhattan Research'' at New York's
Lincoln Center
Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts (also simply known as Lincoln Center) is a complex of buildings in the Lincoln Square neighborhood on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. It has thirty indoor and outdoor facilities and is host to 5 millio ...
Out Of Doors summer concert series.
"Powerhouse" was also used in some PBS commercials in 2000 urging viewers to shop.
In 2014, the Dubuque, Iowa, Colts Drum and Bugle Corps included "Powerhouse" as part of their show, "Dark Side of the Rainbow". In 2016,
Bethesda Softworks
Bethesda Softworks LLC is an American video game publisher based in Rockville, Maryland. The company was founded by Christopher Weaver in 1986 as a division of Media Technology Limited, and in 1999 became a subsidiary of ZeniMax Media. In its ...
used the Scott Quintette's original 1937 recording in a showcase presentation for their Fallout 4 and Fallout Shelter games.
In 2017, Chapo Trap House utilized the piece for their Call of Cthulhu Tabletop Game series.
The "assembly line" section was used on
Neil Cicierega
Neil Stephen Cicierega ( ; born August 23, 1986) is an American comedian, actor, filmmaker, singer, YouTuber, musician, songwriter, puppeteer, artist, and animator. He is known as the creator of a genre of Flash animation he termed "Animutation ...
's 2020 album ''
Mouth Dreams
''Mouth Dreams'' is the fourth mashup album by American musician and comedian Neil Cicierega. It was released on September 30, 2020. Like his three previous mashup albums ('' Mouth Sounds'', ''Mouth Silence'', and ''Mouth Moods''), its source mat ...