by Pete Vilmur

Star Wars is a lot of things: "space opera," post-modern fairytale, the nickname of a satellite-based defense system. But it's also an undeniable product of the 1970s--or its original incarnation is at any rate. Yep, the original Star Wars ranks right up there with disco, Charlie's Angels, customized vans and velvet paintings, as one of the pop-cultural landmarks of that infamously-tacky decade.

I guess that's why I like this 8-track section that Pete Vilmur's put together. It helps remind us of just what Star Wars was, of where it came from and, ultimately, how far it's come. Sure, many of us like to say that Star Wars "changed my life," and most of us attach to the film a nostalgic significance of a type usually reserved for first kisses. But there is an aspect of Star Wars--a specter if you will--that still lurks back there in 1977; a certain something that's since become lost because...well, because we left it there. Just like the 8-track.

Looking at this stuff also allows one to get an idea of the incredible variety of musical recordings that were cooked up to capitalize on Star Wars mania. Spaced Out Disco? Galactic Funk? Of course, such compilations weren't limited to the 8-track format--but they should have been.

Anyway, enjoy. And be sure to check out Pete's pendant article outlining the history of Star Wars on 8-track.

Article on Collecting Star Wars 8-tracks

Title Artist Label and Year Description Thumbnail
Star Wars 8-Tracks
Star Wars Soundtrack John Williams/The London Symphony Orchestra 20th Century Fox, 1977 white cartridge, black label
Star Wars Soundtrack John Williams/The London Symphony Orchestra 20th Century Fox, 1977 black cartridge, black label
Star Wars Soundtrack John Williams/The London Symphony Orchestra 20th Century Fox, 1977 blue cartridge, white label
Star Wars Soundtrack John Williams/The London Symphony Orchestra 20th Century Fox, 1977 gray cartridge, black label
Star Wars Soundtrack John Williams/The London Symphony Orchestra 20th Century Fox, 1977 white cartridge, pink label
Star Wars Soundtrack John Williams/The London Symphony Orchestra GRT, 1977 Canadian Release
The Story of Star Wars N/A 20th Century Fox, 1977 blue cartridge, black label
The Story of Star Wars N/A 20th Century Fox, 1977 dark gray cartridge, borderless label
Music from Star Wars The Electric Moog Orchestra Musicor Records, 1977 early release; black cartridge
Music from Star Wars The Electric Moog Orchestra Musicor Records, 1977 second release; blue cartridge
Star Wars and Other Galactic Funk Meco Millennium Record Company, 1977 black cartridge
Star Wars and Other Galactic Funk Meco Quality Records Limited, 1977 white cartridge; Canadian release
Patrick Gleeson's Star Wars: Selections from the film performed on the world's most advanced synthesizer Patrick Gleeson Phonogram Inc., 1977 black cartridge
Music from the sci-fi film composed by John Williams for Star Wars; also: A Stereo Space Odyssey, including the theme from 2001 John Williams/The London Symphony Orchestra Danil Records, 1977 black cartridge
Music from the sci-fi film composed by John Williams for Star Wars; also: A Stereo Space Odyssey, including the theme from 2001 John Williams/The London Symphony Orchestra Ahed Products, 1977 black cartridge; Canadian Release
Music from Other Galaxies and Planets Don Ellis and Survival Atlantic Recording Corp., 1977 black cartridge
Spaced Out Disco: Featuring Disco Themes from Star Wars, 2001, Star Trek and Close Encounters of the Third Kind The Galactic Force Band Springboard International, 1978 black cartridge
Zubin Mehta Conducts Themes from Star Wars and Close Encounters of the Third Kind Zubin Mehta/the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra London Records, 1978 white cartridge
Star Wars Ferrante and Teicher United Artists Music, 1978 black cartridge
The Original Soundtrack from the Film The Empire Strikes Back John Williams/The London Symphony Orchestra RSO Records, 1980 black cartridge
Music from The Empire Strikes Back Boris Midney RSO Records, 1980 white cartridge
Star Wars, Return of the Jedi, Music from John Williams' Score Charles Gerhardt RCA Records, 1983 white cartridge
The Star Wars Trilogy Varijan Kojian Varese Sarabande, 1983 black cartridge



Images from the collections of Pete Vilmur and Duncan Jenkins.


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Ron Salvatore (salfamily@aol.com)