I had no idea Stewart Copeland made this soundtrack. As a massive Police and Spyro fan I cannot believe I didn't know that. Looked up the spyro soundtrack on spotify today and saw his name..Crazy!
My favorite drummer, and my favorite rock band too I've been listening to them since I was a very young child, I remember taking long car trips with my parents every year and I always put on *MY* The Police CD. Discovering that he composed soundtracks for games and movies makes me want to consume it all immediately
I know that he was credited for Alone in the Dark 2002 versions, but i didn't knew he work for Spyro the Dragon, the man is a fucking drumming legend and a good composer in the band The Police with Sting .
His workflow is really commendable for those early days. You'd be hard pressed finding professional, well-recorded, established musicians playing through your game and really try to get a feel of the intricacies of a level before composing something.
3:05 - I burst laughing when he said that. Always wondered how he came up with all those ideas. I would never imagine that he decided to beat the levels first to get the atmosphere of every single one! Now that's some serious commitment but that's why it went so well. Incredible musician, so much awesome work from him.
I adore that detail. The fact that he plays the level and he HAS to beat it for himself so he can know what sounds the level needs to feel right. Much like the music of something like the fallout games really sets them apart and puts you in the world. I hear those sounds and I think, "SPYRO." Stu is such a brilliant musician and must've been such a joy to work with
I understand it's not necessarily a great idea for most to personally play a game, but I LOVE that it's part of his process. I'd personally do it the exact same way, I don't just wanna see the visuals and hear the sounds, I wanna FEEL the game, from the moment to moment action to the greater journey it all adds up to.
This man is a legend. I thank him for every music he made on Spyro. Every single one was unique and different. I get nostalgic from those kinds of tunes, it's so happy, fun and adventurous.
Just a few years before composers were using trackers which was one note at a time and must have took weeks to program music. Luckily software advanced quite quickly in the 90's and made it much easier for composers like Stewart,
As a musician, the spyro soundtracks shaped my childhood and influenced my writing. As a producer and mix engineer, old pro tools is a fucking nightmare. My God, how did he even see that?
looks like Digital Performer! It is interesting though how DAWs haven't really changed _that_ much in function since then besides cleaner graphics, more intuitive UI & the plug-ins that are available...which I guess are all some pretty big changes actually lol
One of the most memorable parts of this game is the soundtrack. Everytime I think of this game I think of Glimmer from Spyro 2 and the song that is played.
"any kind of art is a creation of tension then resolution, (...) you create the tension and then release it" That's the most music sentence i have ever heard, it's so true. It's so fundamental and it works so well
I have played these games since I was a kid in 2000 when they came out with Spyro 3, and always secretly liked the MIDI soundtrack, especially the first game. I had NO idea that Stewart Copeland wrote them until today. This blew my mind.
2:33 hearing those low bit rate samples is a time machine back to a very exciting time in "multimedia" just as computers were getting powerful enough to play video or do real-time sfx. We all dreamed of a cyber future, and it was low poly.
I'm so glad he took the time to actually play the game and use that as inspiration. I feel like a lesser musician from his generation wouldn't have taken the job seriously and would've just phoned it in. The music in this game is iconic
0:45 That would explain why Year of the Dragon initially had an incomplete soundtrack; all those vehicle levels and extra characters must've really slowed him down
Maybe you only played Spyro 3 in Europe (or another PAL territory). The PAL versions repeated music in some levels, whilst the NTSC versions had all of the music. Some music tracks were removed in the PAL versions and all the remaining music was converted to mono in order to make space for all of the spoken dialogue in many European languages. It sucked.
J & B Slots and More Even so, that didn’t help much since it was ultimately Copeland himself who had to finalize the soundtrack for the game. That’s why the PAL version is incomplete and has reused tracks (it came out earlier) the NTSC version (specifically the Greatest Hits version) had the completed finished soundtrack from Copeland himself. I’m just so glad I grew up with the Greatest Hits version...
@@Amainville93 Oh yeah, the Sorceress and Evening Lake both shared the Sunrise Springs theme, and these two were actually just a programming error. The proper theme for both were already done and in the game files but didn't get queued up properly 'til they fixed it in the next version.
Stuart is successful because he figured out how to get people to desire his personal unique musical voice. So, when he has to create for a product that is new, he just channels his inner voice instead of forcing something to align with the product’s vibe. If everyone could figure out how to find that voice and apply it to the wider world, everyone would be successful.
Was watching amanda show for the first time recently and knew the music sounded very familiar. Then I searched up the composer and it was the same guy.
Nice Kurzweil K2500X! That thing was expensive as hell back then. A monster synth and then he also has the rack version going by the labels on the sequencers MIDI tracks.
So, I saw this and had an idea. My friends were making a video game on RPG maker and they asked me to write the music for it, and when I was play-testing the levels to get the mood of the level, my friend was watching me play the level on his PC. I did exactly what Copeland did and said “Can you please not interrupt me while I’m working?” It was great.
Spyro is burned into my brain, i always remember running around as a dragon, hearing all the dragonflies and things ziiitching along and hearing these amazing tunes. Man this is faaaar out.
This was on the first PlayStation Underground I owned and still have - 2.4. Stewart Copeland was the first composer that I heard for a video game, and this interview of him was awesome and knowing he composed Spyro the Dragon games makes me love him even more!! He’s a genius that composed the music for my childhood, and I thank him for that! This interview was always a joy for me to watch and learn how music making for a game and movie is done.
What a man, what a legend. His first video game gig and he absolutely killed it. I'm thinking back to 1998-2001 when I obsessed with the original trilogy (still am) and the music was such a treat. Great to see a video of Stewart at work making the very soundtrack that was a good part of my childhood.
4:30 gotta agree with Stravinsky here, coming up with a cool unexpected chord progression or the melody to go with it is maybe the best thing that can happen while you compose
I'm honestly surprised to learn that Stewart Copeland spent time playing the games while he made the music, I find that really awesome, I always pictured he was just given an idea of what to make and that was it. I really dig the desk setup he had
The soundtrack in this game was unparalleled. I love how he said he plays the game without music first, my disc would often mess up so I got that experience a lot
Never played a Spyro game in my life, though i probably should, but i’m a huge Police fan, & man do i love Stewart & his music! He’s an absolutely awesome, funny, talented guy, & the music he makes never fails to impress me.
Thanks to UA-cam for suggesting this. And huge thanks to Steward Copeland for amazing soundtrack of an amazing game trilogy (and remaster too). For every single track. One of the best VGM ever in my opinion. Spyro Trilogy were my favorite platform games on PS1. And I recorded their soundtracks on cassettes.
the music is one of the things that made this game unforgettable
specially for those characteristic organ notes in almost every soundtrack! I love those
Yup!!!! Let's pray they get him back for Spyro 4. He is part of Spyros soul!!! Nothing can replace the Legendary Copeland!
Facts. Just finished ice cavern. Music is so nostalgic.
Ironic too since the music is pretty forgettable, and is more of an ambience than the mysic
@@marioboi323kid was obviously born after 2005
The part of the video where he makes a completly example song for Spyro level (1:59) is a piece of art.
I had no idea Stewart Copeland made this soundtrack. As a massive Police and Spyro fan I cannot believe I didn't know that. Looked up the spyro soundtrack on spotify today and saw his name..Crazy!
Dude I just found out seconds ago that he did this and the theme from the Amanda Show 🤯I’m befuddled
My favorite drummer,
and my favorite rock band too
I've been listening to them since I was a very young child, I remember taking long car trips with my parents every year and I always put on *MY* The Police CD. Discovering that he composed soundtracks for games and movies makes me want to consume it all immediately
He's one of the most creative drummers and musicians around.
I know that he was credited for Alone in the Dark 2002 versions, but i didn't knew he work for Spyro the Dragon, the man is a fucking drumming legend and a good composer in the band The Police with Sting .
Me too! I'm not a massive Spyro fan, but I do like the Police, and it's still a cool surprise!
"they pay me for this"
They had better pay him!!! He composed absolute masterpieces, truly memorable tracks across the Spyro trilogy
I want to do this
They pay him? YOU MONSTER
He also composed Spyro enter the dragonfly
The smile he gave when he said that
He's there talking about how easy it is, and I'm just sitting here completely baffled. This man is a genius.
His workflow is really commendable for those early days. You'd be hard pressed finding professional, well-recorded, established musicians playing through your game and really try to get a feel of the intricacies of a level before composing something.
Seriously most people would maybe give it 5 minutes of random play before scoring, if they even play the game at all lol
"They pay me for this." what a legend
i hope he knows what an impact he made on so many kids!
Kassie Owen hello friend what are you doing here
Oh yeah, I found this video when I was 13 I think, back in 2006 or 2007. I was so inspired by him, I started working in DAWs after I saw this.
Hes one of the reasons I make music.
yeah... I'm 24 and still love spyro's music!
@@xethanxxstraightx1794 same
3:05 - I burst laughing when he said that. Always wondered how he came up with all those ideas. I would never imagine that he decided to beat the levels first to get the atmosphere of every single one! Now that's some serious commitment but that's why it went so well. Incredible musician, so much awesome work from him.
I adore that detail. The fact that he plays the level and he HAS to beat it for himself so he can know what sounds the level needs to feel right. Much like the music of something like the fallout games really sets them apart and puts you in the world. I hear those sounds and I think, "SPYRO." Stu is such a brilliant musician and must've been such a joy to work with
I understand it's not necessarily a great idea for most to personally play a game, but I LOVE that it's part of his process.
I'd personally do it the exact same way, I don't just wanna see the visuals and hear the sounds, I wanna FEEL the game, from the moment to moment action to the greater journey it all adds up to.
@@greyklopstock7155 and mentioning the tip lines they used to have, where you'd call a phone number to get help with the game
This man is a legend. I thank him for every music he made on Spyro. Every single one was unique and different. I get nostalgic from those kinds of tunes, it's so happy, fun and adventurous.
And he was part of The Police
Back when the game came out i had no idea who he was and that he wrote the music. I hugely appreciate it now
This guy is a pure genius!!
I couldn't agree more
CrashFan95 you are everywhere for years lmao
This man legit made one of the best soundtracks of all time in gaming and did it with archaic protools software and a few keyboards.
Just a few years before composers were using trackers which was one note at a time and must have took weeks to program music. Luckily software advanced quite quickly in the 90's and made it much easier for composers like Stewart,
Mozart only had a piano and paper. Limitations can produce greatness
Man you really don't wanna see how some of the iconic, immortal NES music was made...
@@jaggasspeople still use trackers nowadays, most notable example i can think of is Emma Essex who uses OpenMPT
Mozart never had to compress the sounds of his piano to fit inside a 1 mb NES cartridge. I wouldn't call having a piano a limitation lol.
massive amount of sounds being used from Eric Persing Spectrasonics legacy libraries and stylus drums, worth mentioning and crediting, a true legend
"don't interrupt me when I'm working"
Glad we both watched the same video.
He’s a legend for saying that lol
@@Hey-Its-May there’s a no assholes policy in this comment section. Time to get the fuck out.
seeing Copeland actually produce the main theme of spyro is kinda unreal to me to witness on video it doesn't seem possible.
That was actually the theme for Wild Flight. It might be a remix of the main theme though.
bro im sitting straight up dead out my sleep watching this in shock like a kid
That was Wild Flight we saw him putting together, one of my favourite tracks from the first game!
AdmiralOctopus sunny flight with TOASTY as the music! Which is how it was supposed to be
As a musician, the spyro soundtracks shaped my childhood and influenced my writing.
As a producer and mix engineer, old pro tools is a fucking nightmare. My God, how did he even see that?
looks like Digital Performer! It is interesting though how DAWs haven't really changed _that_ much in function since then besides cleaner graphics, more intuitive UI & the plug-ins that are available...which I guess are all some pretty big changes actually lol
It’s all there underneath, flow has gotten faster but the fundamentals can be quite simple when you look at the same way he does
2:55 -- I recognized the song when he added the electric guitars, its Wild Flight.
And then his quip at 3:05 is golden, "They pay me for this!"
I recognized it when he added drums and electric guitar melody confirmed my guess. Wild Flight had a very distinctive beat to it.
This guy's sense of humor is right up my alley :D
One of the most memorable parts of this game is the soundtrack. Everytime I think of this game I think of Glimmer from Spyro 2 and the song that is played.
ME TOO!
My first experience of any Spyro game
If anybody was curious like I was, the software he is probably using Digital Performer 2.7 for Macintosh.
I actually was curious, thank you
I was also curious so thank you hahaha
I am probably still curious….
I don’t know man! Seems to me like an old FL Studio (the old called Fruity Loops)
I'm not curious any more I'm gay
"any kind of art is a creation of tension then resolution, (...) you create the tension and then release it" That's the most music sentence i have ever heard, it's so true. It's so fundamental and it works so well
"They pay me for this."
- Stewart Copeland
thats so funny
"They pay me for 'this'" :D
this guy created the deep childhood of mine.
WOW when he hit that loop @ 3:30 so many good childhood memories came back. That’s the power of an iconic soundtrack! Thank you Stewart.
Stuart Copeland spamming the flame button as he grumbles about "getting the crap kicked out of me" classic 😂
No way 😮 this is the man behind the music of the game of my youth..... Wtf i'm a big fan of Copeland for years, and i just discover this today
OH MY GOODNESS THOSE ORGAN BEATS AT 3:30 JUST FREAKING MAKE IT FOR ME AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGH
Thank you for your work Stewart Copeland !!!!
Love just how all the process seems so simple and funny to this creator. "A chord here leads to a chord there..."! That's real passion!!
Summer forest theme is an all time classic. What a creative man.
The spyro trilogy has some of my favorite music it's so iconic and I could listen to it for hours on end
I have played these games since I was a kid in 2000 when they came out with Spyro 3, and always secretly liked the MIDI soundtrack, especially the first game. I had NO idea that Stewart Copeland wrote them until today. This blew my mind.
The best soundtrack in the history of gaming for me. Glad to know a pretty cool guy made it for us. Ahhh, teh memoriez.
2:33 hearing those low bit rate samples is a time machine back to a very exciting time in "multimedia" just as computers were getting powerful enough to play video or do real-time sfx. We all dreamed of a cyber future, and it was low poly.
I'm so glad he took the time to actually play the game and use that as inspiration. I feel like a lesser musician from his generation wouldn't have taken the job seriously and would've just phoned it in. The music in this game is iconic
0:45 That would explain why Year of the Dragon initially had an incomplete soundtrack; all those vehicle levels and extra characters must've really slowed him down
Sorait no he had a second composer help
Maybe you only played Spyro 3 in Europe (or another PAL territory). The PAL versions repeated music in some levels, whilst the NTSC versions had all of the music. Some music tracks were removed in the PAL versions and all the remaining music was converted to mono in order to make space for all of the spoken dialogue in many European languages. It sucked.
J & B Slots and More Even so, that didn’t help much since it was ultimately Copeland himself who had to finalize the soundtrack for the game. That’s why the PAL version is incomplete and has reused tracks (it came out earlier) the NTSC version (specifically the Greatest Hits version) had the completed finished soundtrack from Copeland himself. I’m just so glad I grew up with the Greatest Hits version...
I had the original release in the US. Always thought it was weird the fight with the Sorceress had the first hub world’s music playing.
@@Amainville93 Oh yeah, the Sorceress and Evening Lake both shared the Sunrise Springs theme, and these two were actually just a programming error. The proper theme for both were already done and in the game files but didn't get queued up properly 'til they fixed it in the next version.
Best most random thing youtube has thrown to me in years
Stuart is successful because he figured out how to get people to desire his personal unique musical voice. So, when he has to create for a product that is new, he just channels his inner voice instead of forcing something to align with the product’s vibe. If everyone could figure out how to find that voice and apply it to the wider world, everyone would be successful.
The music in Good Burger and Amanda Show always stood out to me, probably from hours of playing Spyro
How are they related? I’m excited for this answer as I spent countless hours playing Spyro and watching Good Burger as a child
@@Iron_Thunderstorm same composer.
Was watching amanda show for the first time recently and knew the music sounded very familiar. Then I searched up the composer and it was the same guy.
@@Iron_Thunderstormwtf same composer obviously
@@Iron_Thunderstormthe end credits for The Amanda Show was just an edited Spyro track
I have a massive respect for this man
Ok
I cried watching this ad hearing make an amazing theme so casually
This man made the sounds of my childhood between spyro and police albums. I have no idea why i haven't watched this video earlier, it's fantastic
My Childhood Soundtracks
This kind of career at this time seems like such a cool vibe
Especially following the late 70's and 80's as drummer for the Police
One of the most versatile drummers!
Nice Kurzweil K2500X! That thing was expensive as hell back then. A monster synth and then he also has the rack version going by the labels on the sequencers MIDI tracks.
Thank god, I found this video.
He made our childhood magic.
He was keeping it real back in 2011
So, I saw this and had an idea. My friends were making a video game on RPG maker and they asked me to write the music for it, and when I was play-testing the levels to get the mood of the level, my friend was watching me play the level on his PC. I did exactly what Copeland did and said “Can you please not interrupt me while I’m working?” It was great.
Josh Trimarco where is the game
Spyro is burned into my brain, i always remember running around as a dragon, hearing all the dragonflies and things ziiitching along and hearing these amazing tunes. Man this is faaaar out.
He absolutely crushed the soundtrack for this game. Still one of the best gaming soundtracks ever, to this day
I just found out my favorite drummer made some of my favorite games this is wild.
This was on the first PlayStation Underground I owned and still have - 2.4.
Stewart Copeland was the first composer that I heard for a video game, and this interview of him was awesome and knowing he composed Spyro the Dragon games makes me love him even more!! He’s a genius that composed the music for my childhood, and I thank him for that!
This interview was always a joy for me to watch and learn how music making for a game and movie is done.
Watching him make a piece of music during this interview was a major plus, too.
Wild Flight was what he composed here. Cool
i went and listened to it and it changes how i view all these songs now lol
My favourite game soundtrack, along with the music for Spyro 2 and 3
Some really fun rompler pop there. That upright bass is featured in many games from that era
that game's music was incredibly goofy at times and that's why it was charming as hell
This game is iconic. Everything is perfect. Level design. Gameplay. Aesthetics. And the music. The music in this game is so so perfect
"sigh...." thanks dude for the good times xx
best video i've seen in a minute
"They pay me for this" and I hope they pay you again! Bring back Copeland for Spyro 4!!!!!
I come back to this video every few months
The creativity is amazing, this guy deserved every dollar
Really enjoyable video. Stewart rules.
If I get dementia in my old age, this music would be a lifeline to my memory.
amen to that
"God, that's amazing!" -me, out loud to myself while watching this.
this game had phenomenal music, never knew it was Stewart Copeland!
Remember watching this on my playstation underground demo disc! 😮
What a man, what a legend. His first video game gig and he absolutely killed it. I'm thinking back to 1998-2001 when I obsessed with the original trilogy (still am) and the music was such a treat. Great to see a video of Stewart at work making the very soundtrack that was a good part of my childhood.
This is highly inspiring as someone who loves digital production
As a Spyro fan music composer, I can guarantee that yes, it IS fun!
that transpose is 🔥
This will never not be a complete and total delight to watch ❤
Thank you for uploading this piece o history :)
With the police and the music for spyro, this man, this LEGEND made my childhood memorable and special
oof what a blast from the past! I used to play spyro so much when I was a kid 😂
That's just brilliant! Thanks for uploading this. :)
Copeland is great. Saw him in concert in my town last year. Should have yelled out something about Spyro ha ha.
i love your work. Thank you
When i was a kid this soundtrack was soundtrack of my life. It's funny to see how he is so excited in his studio like i'm in mine now. 😅
It's weird to see a Copeland video without swearing.
Some of the best video-game music EVER!!
I was a teenager when this came out - first mention of Stuart Copeland (love his drum work) and it was an instabuy.
4:30 gotta agree with Stravinsky here, coming up with a cool unexpected chord progression or the melody to go with it is maybe the best thing that can happen while you compose
I'm honestly surprised to learn that Stewart Copeland spent time playing the games while he made the music, I find that really awesome, I always pictured he was just given an idea of what to make and that was it. I really dig the desk setup he had
The soundtrack in this game was unparalleled. I love how he said he plays the game without music first, my disc would often mess up so I got that experience a lot
Never played a Spyro game in my life, though i probably should, but i’m a huge Police fan, & man do i love Stewart & his music! He’s an absolutely awesome, funny, talented guy, & the music he makes never fails to impress me.
Absolutely worth it, it’s a fun game and the music never gets old. I just got the three pack on Nintendo switch.
Go play spyro reignited. It's like 30 bucks for 3 games.
So awesome. 😊❤ The music from the spyro trilogy, never gets old. It's so iconic, a masterpiece and one of the best old school games from the 90s.
Wow. So cool. Never knew Copeland produced music as well.
I'm so jealous of musicians and how they so effortlessly create songs like this. That 'they pay me for this' section was so good
2:54 i think we all just felt nostalgia.
2:54 was pretty nostalgic, I agree.
Oh. I always loved the music from Spyro. Had no idea it was Stuart Copeland!
I love the imagination and talent of this man
Loved the game but stayed for the soundtrack. I just listen to the soundtrack now in 2024 at age 63.
God, this is amazing, I love the song he created, perfect beat great dissonance with that organ.
Little known fact, he reused one of the Spyro songs for the movie Pecker. Absolutely love the man’s work. Percussive genius
this is dope, I'm thankful it survived 14 years
Thanks to UA-cam for suggesting this.
And huge thanks to Steward Copeland for amazing soundtrack of an amazing game trilogy (and remaster too). For every single track. One of the best VGM ever in my opinion.
Spyro Trilogy were my favorite platform games on PS1. And I recorded their soundtracks on cassettes.