Sam Spence
| Sam Spence | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Samuel Lloyd Spence |
| Born |
March 29, 1927 San Francisco, California, U.S. |
| Died | February 6, 2016 (aged 88) Lewisville, Texas, U.S. |
| Genres | Film score |
| Occupation(s) | Composer, musician |
| Years active | 1966-1990 |
Samuel Lloyd "Sam" Spence (March 29, 1927 – February 6, 2016) was an American soundtrack composer best known for his work with NFL Films. His work has also been on the EA Sports Madden NFL football video games and many football-related commercials.
A former University of Southern California music instructor living and working in Munich, Spence was hired in 1966 to score the mini-documentaries that conveyed National Football League highlights and personalities to fans in the network-television era. Spence's music cues combined with the baritone voice of John Facenda to remarkable artistic effect, creating the now trademark style of sports highlights videos of the NFL. Spence, together with Steve Sabol and the NFL Films crew, can arguably be credited with a significant role in making American football the most popular professional sport in the U.S.
Initially, Mahlon Merrick was asked to provide scores for NFL Films. A friend of Spence, Merrick asked Spence to help in the recording sessions. "Mahlon had written marches," said Spence. "Toward the end of that recording session, I stuck in a couple of different pieces – my own orchestral compositions with strings and woodwinds, more like a Hollywood film score. It turned out they were Ed Sabol's favorites and he offered me a three-year contract to write, conduct, and produce NFL Films' music."
In Germany, Spence wrote several TV soundtracks with Hani Chamseddine, e.g., for the Francis Durbridge thriller "Wie ein Blitz". After his retirement in 1990, he returned to Munich. He achieved unexpected fame in 1998 with the success of a CD compilation entitled The Power and the Glory: The Original Music & Voices Of NFL Films. Spence died at a Lewisville, Texas nursing center on February 6, 2016, at the age of 88.
In 2005, Spence's music was remade by the hip hop music group Da Riffs, which can be heard on several NFL Network shows and found in the soundtrack of the game Madden NFL 06. Along with the urban remakes, the original songs still play in the game's soundtrack. His music was also included in Madden NFL 07, Madden NFL 08, and Madden NFL 09, being remixed again by Da Riffs.
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