JWFAN Turns 15!

[Ricard 2,270]

You have got to be kidding! 15 years? Well... yes! On the night of February 5, 1999, I uploaded to the internet the first page of which later became JWFAN... It was a very modest, single-page website focusing on compiling all known information about the then-upcoming John Williams' score for Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace (the first Star Wars score in 16 years!).

 

Those were the days of Windows '98, dial-up modems, and lower-than-128Kbps MP3s. The default search engines were Yahoo! or Altavista, Netscape was the cool alternative to Explorer, we had 15GB hard drives in our PCs, and floppy disks were still popular. Nearly everyone purchased their music on CD, and bought or rented their movies on DVD (or even VHS!). There were no blu-rays, flat TVs, YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, smartphones, tablets, or even portable music players... And we were as happy (or perhaps more!) as we are today.

 

So in that "prehistoric" context, that little website called Star Wars Episode I - The Music was born, grew up and became popular much faster than I could ever imagine. Being the main source of information on the TPM score was paired with the fact that a lot of music heard in the film was not included in the album, and the website not only provided information on how to obtain that music… it also offered the music itself! Which, of course, was the reason for the site being at 4 or 5 different free hosts in less than a year...

 

At that time, a couple of dozen fans (maybe less) gathered on a regular basis to discuss the works of the Maestro at Tim Perrine's "The Groovy Yak's John Williams Forum" or the Yahoo! John Williams Fan Club (where I had met a young Thor Joachim Haga the year before), while the main sources for JW info and articles were Scott Hanson's The Unofficial John Williams Home Page, Jeff Eldridge's The John Williams Web Pages, Ayaz Asif's John Williams website and Frank Lehman's JW review page.

 

In the fall of '99, when Tim closed the forum following a weird incident involving some trolls, I re-opened it as The John Williams Message Board (the very first genesis of this one!), and as an extension of the Star Wars Music site, which by November of that 1999 was already the most popular source for Williams news... but still wasn't a general JW site.

 

That situation changed shortly after, since I was somehow frustrated by the lack of frequent updates on the two main general John Williams sites, as compared to my own SW music updates. So in a matter of weeks, the SW music site evolved into a JW news site (some may remember it as "John Williams Central" or its subtitle "Your Daily Dose of John Williams"), fast becoming the number one place for John Williams news and discussion, and one of the most visited film music sites.

 

The year 2001 brought the site's final url and name: JWFAN, as well as its first "independent" hosting by our savior Andreas Westphal. The rest is history (and it can be found in the site and forums archives).

 

So where were you 15 years ago? Does any of this ring a bell? Any memories to contribute? Celebrate and discuss!

 

[BLUMENKOHL 1,081]

Here is to 15 more!

[KK 3,308]

I may not have been here 15 years ago, but I hope to be here for the next 15, and then maybe I can share some memories then. I've already made a bunch (or as many as one really can on an online forum that's about film music) with great people here!

[Mr_K 6]

I was here way back in those early days. I was here frequently to glean as much as I could about Ep 1's score. Now same thing again for Ep 7...very exciting. Happy Anniversary, Ricard!

[Koray Savas 2,254]

I've only been here for about half that time, but it certainly doesn't feel like it. To JWFan!

[Incanus 5,818]

Where did those 15 years go?!!!

I remember the original site very well, a definite guide to Episode I that was the big thing for JW fans and film music community back in 1999. One by one the other JW sites were left by the wayside and updates ended but this site was becoming the no 1 JW information central. I visited frequently 1999 through 2001 (I did not even have a computer back then and had to do all my surfing at school) but in 2002 I joined the messageboard community and have been here ever since.

These have been good times my fellow JWFanners and continue to be! Congratulations to JWFan and Ricard and long life and prosperity to all! I raise a toast to 15 year old JWFAN!

[Chris ChrusherComix 47]

Awesome! And I found the site later that year (sometime during the Summer '99, I believe?) when searching for unreleased TPM music at a friend's apartment (I didn't have a computer yet then), then, as soon as I had my 1st PC with dial-up, I was posting on the forums by June 2000. Happy b-day JWFan and thanks Ricard and the gang!

(And some of us still buy CDs! )

[Alejandro 28]

I've been here for 15 years! I remember accessing the ep 1 site on my webtv lol

[Hlao-roo 389]

Thanks for the recap, Ricard! In a world of Facebook and Twitter, it's hard not to miss the golden age of the personal homepage -- blinking text, horizontal rules, garish wallpaper, the works. By the time I got into film music, the World Wide Web was all the rage, and I believe FILMUS-L and rec.music.movies were either at their peak or just beginning their decline. The forums at FSM, MovieMusic.com, and Filmtracks (and Andreas Lindhal's shorter-lived ScoreReviews.com a few years later) were booming, each drawing their fair share of colorful characters (e.g., DANIEL2 ultimately standing out as perhaps the most bizarre of them all, although whoever started the Marxist oboe thread at Filmtracks deserves a nod as well). But the message board I actually posted at was The Groovy Yak's. Then the trolls moved in, and the rest is history.

For more detailed reminiscences, see this thread from a few years ago: http://www.jwfan.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=19700&page=1

 

On 06/02/2014 at 6:33 AM, Chris ChrusherComix said:

Awesome! And I found the site later that year (sometime during the Summer '99, I believe?) when searching for unreleased TPM music at a friend's apartment (I didn't have a computer yet then), then, as soon as I had my 1st PC with dial-up, I was posting on the forums by June 2000. Happy b-day JWFan and thanks Ricard and the gang! (And some of us still buy CDs! )

Do you miss the political/religious discussions from the ezBoard days?

 

On 06/02/2014 at 5:00 AM, Ricard said:

In the fall of '99, when Tim closed the forum following a weird incident involving some trolls, I re-opened it as The John Williams Message Board (the very first genesis of this one!), and as an extension of the Star Wars Music site, which by November of that 1999 was already the most popular source for Williams news... but still wasn't a general JW site.

 

That situation changed shortly after, since I was somehow frustrated by the lack of frequent updates on the two main general John Williams sites, as compared to my own SW music updates. So in a matter of weeks, the SW music site evolved into a JW news site (some may remember it as "John Williams Central" or its subtitle "Your Daily Dose of John Williams"), fast becoming the number one place for John Williams news and discussion, and one of the most visited film music sites.

 

The year 2001 brought the site's final url and name: JWFAN, as well as its first "independent" hosting by our savior Andreas Westphal. The rest is history (and it can be found in the site and forums archives).

 

So where were you 15 years ago? Does any of this ring a bell? Any memories to contribute? Celebrate and discuss!

What, no mention of IndyMusic and HeroicTracks (or whatever the name was)?

 

*Sigh* 15 years ago, Jim Ware and John Takis were the same person. How things have changed!

 

[Trent B 340]

That long? Damn doesn't seem that long...

I remember I was lurker for a long time until I signed up in I think 2002ish. I remember there were a couple of times the forum would never come back because of money situation regarding host servers but glad it did.

[Hlao-roo 389]

That long? Damn doesn't seem that long...

I remember I was lurker for a long time until I signed up in I think 2002ish. I remember there were a couple of times the forum would never come back because of money situation regarding host servers but glad it did.

I remember there was this guy named Jack... never mind.

[Thor 8,485]

Happy 15th anniversary, Ricard -- or in our internal case, 16th anniversary!

Back in 1998, I was in the army and used the sloooow internet connections in the PC room during my duty trek around camp. I was maintaining my yahoo clubs about Elfman and Spielberg (both of which still exist, actually, although they're pretty much dead) and sometimes participating in your Heroic Film Music Club, among others (which, as you say, turned into the early incarnations of this site). I may be mistaken, but I think I also had a club called 'Celluloid Tunes', which later metamorphozed into a crummylooking film music website which eventually developped into my film music webcast that I started last year. What a journey!

[Quintus 5,461]

Congratulations on your epic accomplishment Ricard, sustenance online is no mean feat, especially these days. You did it!

In 1999 I was 22, in my first longterm relationship with a stunning blonde called Joanne, at the peak of my JW fandom (and at the time, Horner's too); but I wouldn't get online for another six years, which is when I discovered your SUBLIME website. Good times, and I've loved it here ever since (gee, would you have guessed it?).

Here's to many more years and some great new Star Wars scores

Me in 1999, reading Qui Gon's Noble End on the back of the cd case in HMV:

[King Mark 3,730]

Time sure flies. I remember the first board with different style threads (E.Z. board?) well because we discussed The Patriot, A.I. and Harry Potter 1 . It had a black background with white letters at first, then Ricard put the white background when The Patriot came out and it blinded me because I was used to darkness. . Then we switched to another board for about 1 year then finally this one around the time of AotC if I remember correctly. Doesn't seem that long ago we were anticipating new HP scores.

I had dial up until 2005

[BloodBoal 7,541]

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,440]

How could you say that! I think we are stronger then ever!

[King Mark 3,730]

The Phantom Zone Trio existed in the first board

What is the board that Crusher broke by posting a picture of the Emperor?

[BloodBoal 7,541]

[Quintus 5,461]

But not in this thread, because that would be disrespectful on this occasion.

15 years old? Not bad, for a website past its prime.

There's always one. You have disrespected your host.

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,440]

I agree, you can go too far Alvar.

I will write a short soliloquy later.

[Mr. Breathmask 566]

In 1999, MTV and the now-deceased Dutch music network TMF played John Williams' Duel of the Fates from Star Wars: Episode I. It piqued my interest and I went to the local Free Record Shop (a large chain of record stores that is closing down its last locations this spring) to sample the physical CD. It was fun hearing the Star Wars main title theme outside of a film or tv show for the first time, but the other music on the album was a bit out there for me. I was twelve at the time and still caught up listening to radio stations popular among high schoolers.

A little later, I did watch a little movie called Titanic and was quite taken by its score (the themes for the ship's grandeur even moreso than the film's ubiquitous love theme). I lent a copy of both the original album and the Back to Titanic CD from my local library and copied it to casette tape. I played that quite a lot and enjoyed how the music told its own story over the original soundtrack's 73-minute running time.

Meanwhile, my fascination with filmmaking grew and I became enamoured with Jurassic Park's soundscape. The ambiences, the dinosaur sounds, the little things Gary Rydstrom and his crew used to make that world come alive.

And then there was the score.

That rousing theme as the helicopter approaches the island, which I had loved for years, but also the majestic dinosaur theme and the suspense building music throughout the film. If ever I found a CD with that music in a store, I told myself, I would buy it in a heartbeat.

And as I started making a habit of letting a film's end credits play out more and more, I started noticing how much wonderful music there was to be found in other films as well. And how certain names kept popping up. James Horner, Jerry Goldsmith and the man who seemed to have single handedly composed the music to every pop culture icon of the past twenty-five years: John Williams.

In the summer of 2001, I found a copy of the Jurassic Park album in Luxembourg. I bought it instantly. I played it on my DiscMan throughout the rest of our vacation and fell in love. I picked up an original copy of the Titanic album as well.

The year went on and the first Harry Potter was released. I liked the main theme and picked up the album. I thought it would be fun to collect all of the Potter scores over the coming years. And it was by the same guy who wrote Jurassic Park, so this would probably be good.

I became very intrigued by the music and started looking around the internet for more information on it. And there it was. A complete cue list, featuring every single cue written for the film and where it appeared on the album (if it was released at all). I had found a treasure trove of information on film music. They had stuff about Hook, Jurassic Park and the Star Wars films. This site was called JWFan.

In early 2002, being the owner of just four soundtrack albums (Shore's Fellowship of the Ring had joined Titanic, Jurassic Park and the first Harry Potter), I ventured into the site's message boards, wondering what other music there was to collect. I was quickly welcomed by others who were even more passionate about film music collecting and so a long journey started on the way to collecting great scores by great composers.

Over the years, JWFan grew to be a big part of my daily life, posting daily and reading everything. Moderating this place was quite fun for some time and a lot of these people I've never met in person became a bigger part of life than the people I saw face to face on a daily basis. I took my first vacation on my own and flew to Spain to meet some of you and hear composers talk about their work. It was a great week in Úbeda.

Now, twelve years since I joined this place, here we are. The film music collecting may have taken a backseat for now (we live in a great time for film music fans; there's so much wonderful scores being released now I just can't afford to collect them all), but I still listen to them on a daily basis. I've worked in films and television and am slowly starting to make my own. I just got to finish my first short with its own score and it's been a wonderful experience. And I probably wouldn't have had that odd quirk of being a film score geek if it wasn't for this odd band of fellow misfits here at JWFan.

Here's to another 15 years and more.

- Marc

[Quintus 5,461]

I became very intrigued by the music and started looking around the internet for more information on it. And there it was. A complete cue list, featuring every single cue written for the film and where it appeared on the album (if it was released at all). I had found a treasure trove of information on film music. They had stuff about Hook, Jurassic Park and the Star Wars films. This site was called JWFan.

Never heard of it.

[BloodBoal 7,541]

[Quintus 5,461]

Save the brutal honesty for the other threads here.

Tact.

[Miguel Andrade 1,381]

15 years ago I was working on my own Williams website, that went public in late February '99-- the 26th, if memory serves. I think I found out about Ricard's own site sometime during that month.

[Quintus 5,461]

Darnit!

[BloodBoal 7,541]

[Thor 8,485]

15 years ago I was working on my own Williams website, that went public in late February '99-- the 26th, if memory serves. I think I found out about Ricard's own site sometime during that month.

I remember when your site went public too, but it was all in Portuguese, so I didn't really understand anything beyond the English titles, of course.

[Quintus 5,461]

Save the brutal honesty for the other threads here.

Tact.

I'll try.

[BloodBoal 7,541]

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,440]

I had been a soundtrack fan for for nearly a decade. started, like so many of my generation by recording music from the TV speakers onto a cassette, and slowly becoming aware that some film music was actually released on CD.

My first soundtrack related CD was a Bond song compilation, my first proper score was a dubbed tape of Moonraker.

From these humble beginnings I slowly started building a collection. Like with Marc, Jurassic Park became something of a game changer. I still believe those few minutes from Journey To The Island are responsible for igniting the budding passion of future filmscore fans more then anything else, save possibly Star Wars.

In those first years, my hobby was very much a lonely one. It's weird that compared to today, how hard it was to find out information about film scores, or composers. I had no idea what John Williams looked like or how old he was until years later. I also had no real idea that there were any other collectors out there.

Then in 2000, after much convincing and negotiating, my Mom finally took out an Internet subscription.

I started slowly to see whats out there. I recall finding Filmtracks, and Scott Hanson's very informative site, and via some link I ended up and a website about the music for The Phantom Menace. Specifically, it's message-board. Very different from today's incarnation. Threaded, with a black screen and white text. (something you hardly ever see anymore)

My first post was a humble one, but a fever gripped my blood and very shortly I was posting a hell of a lot. Responding to questions people had about things I just happen to know, never having the concept that my knowledge would be of any value to anyone. Asking my own questions abouyt Star wares music, John Williams scores etc etc..

And also another weird thing happened. The topics of discussion slowly drifted into other area's. I started to remember the (screen) names of people, developing a report. Getting a sense of what some of them were like as actual people.

After a while I had found that I had made some friends, pissed a few people off etc.

Of course there wasn't much depth to it in those days, or so I thought. It wasn't like talking to "real" people. There were no consequences. It's all online.

That changed for me during the Natalie Portman Wars. When some topless pictures appeared of Natalie Portman on a beach. A long and bitter flame war erupted. Some f the side of decency and virtue (me, Roald, Darth Further) some on the dark side of sleaze and pornographic filth! (King Mark, Chrusher and Ricard). Apparently my diatribe went a bit out of line that night, because Ricard took actual offense to it and threatened to leave the MB, knowing I would not apologize.

This actually really shocked me, and for the first time I realized there were some boundaries. (a fact I have forgotten at various point in this MB's history)

I did apologize, and Ricard stayyed, but the War was over and ended in a stalemate.

I've e made a few friends during those years. Most of them "just" internet friends of course. With the bond mainly considting the coincidence of visiting the same forum and sharing some interests. But some have gone deeper.

Hitch became, and remains something of a verbal sparring partner, and it was my good pleasure to meet him several times though the years.

Former member Darth Furter is another one who has become a real friend. a friendship born out of a similar sense of humour and the sharing of a video of a singing penis (long story) this led to a long correspondence via email, and finally a meet up in 2006 when I visited Spain for the first time and saw Basil Poledouris give his first, and sadly final concert. I would return to Spain an additional 3 times, meeting Rubén (Darth Further) again and several other members, Scissorhands, Neomodian, Ross/Elmo Lewis/Ender, Luke Skywalker and fellow Dutchie Mr. Breathmask for instance.

In the early 2000"s I also formed a close correspondence with a bright young chap called Indysolo who i ran in to via Napster's chat feature. I would eventually introduce him to the JWfan MB where he would take over the job as Moderator from Ricard before ultimately disappearing, never to be heard from again....

JoeinAr is also a member I bonded with. And it was the announcement of the death of his long time partner James that was the first time I was really shocked and moved by the live of someone I'd never actually met before.

Joe and I share a common passion for stirring up trouble and stating blunt, unpolished opinions.

During the same time I conversed almost daily with Neil S. Bulk (Indysolo) on AIM I did the same with a young female called Ren. While there were always one or two women present on the forum, posting occasionally (Greta, Dani) Ren became the first one to build up a substantial amount of posts and actually became "one of the guys" (a horrible...horrible phrase, come to think of it).

Eventually, like so many of out best members she slowly drifted away from the forum, only to return for a brief, but quite memorable stint in 2012, when she needed to reconnect with a part of herself she she possibly had left behind.

I also re-connected with her on a deeply personal level and this led to a brief but memorable meeting last year in Boston. Where I also met the current Moderator Jason and his (now) fiance Marcy, and a few other of our North American members.

Other memorable connections (for me) is an ongoing sparring partnership with Lee, who is alternatively a hell of a nice guy or a self-righteous little shit, depending on my particular mood of that day (and his). And Alice, who I got to know at first via our mutual friendship with Renovia, and later on a more personal level. *waves*

That is basically what JWfan is for me. it's personal.

Certainly not planned it to be, but throughout nearly 14 years and countless posts (the post count listed here does not reflect my total contribution) it has become a very consistent part of my life.

So the history of JWfan is most definitely the history of Stefan Cosman, well...part of it.

[BloodBoal 7,541]

[Mr. Breathmask 566]

It's true. Whenever Stefan walks into a room, deep horns, tremolo strings and the occasional boom-tzzzz accompany him.

[Miguel Andrade 1,381]

15 years ago I was working on my own Williams website, that went public in late February '99-- the 26th, if memory serves. I think I found out about Ricard's own site sometime during that month.

I remember when your site went public too, but it was all in Portuguese, so I didn't really understand anything beyond the English titles, of course.

At the time, there were two great Williams sites already on-line, so it made more sense to me to make one that brought something new to the game. In the process I was able to create what I still feel to be a pretty comprehensive discography listing, while making it easier for Portuguese speaking people to access all that information on Williams.

[BloodBoal 7,541]

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,440]

As cool as I am, I'm not a cool as Raj!

[Quintus 5,461]

According to BloodBoal I'm in self-righteous little shit mode today, which is fine. He's probably right.

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,440]

Good, I'm feeling slightly edgy today!

You know you really are a tosser, arent you!

[Quintus 5,461]

Takes one to know one, bellnodge!

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,440]

love ya!

[TownerFan 5,247]

Happy 15th Anniversary, JWFan!

I still remember the very early days, as I took my first steps into the interwebs in search of information about JW and the new Star Wars score and suddenly finding this place (as well as Jeff Eldridge's John Williams Web Pages and Scott Hanson's Unofficial John Williams Fan Page).

Even though I've never been a truly active poster, nor my contribution has ever been truly "valuable", this place has always been very special and dear to me. The greatest thing is that I connected to many people here and also happened to find some great friends, like Miguel and Mari.

True art makes people connect in some strange, deep ways and that's one of the greatest gifts JW's music gave to all of us. So, thank you, Ricard, for building this community to share our love and make us bonding friendship.

Here's to another 15 years!

[BloodBoal 7,541]

Even though I've never been a truly active poster, nor my contribution has ever been truly "valuable"

Hey, don't say that! You write great posts, dude!

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,440]

I agree with Alvar. Your contributions are extremely valued.

[TownerFan 5,247]

Thank you guys, I didn't want to sound too understated. Let's celebrate JWFan!

[Jim Ware 559]

You have got to be kidding! 15 years? Well... yes! On the night of February 5, 1999, I uploaded to the internet the first page of which later became JWFAN... It was a very modest, single-page website focusing on compiling all known information about the then-upcoming John Williams' score for Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace (the first Star Wars score in 16 years!).

Fifteen years! That makes me feel rather old, not helped by the fact that yesterday was my birthday too.

It's also worth noting that John Williams started recording The Phantom Menace at Abbey Road on February 5th 1999.

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,440]

It's also worth noting that John Williams started recording The Phantom Menace at Abbey Road on February 5th 1999.

that is a BRILLIANT bit of trivia!

[mstrox 6,939]

Happy birthday, JWFAN. I'm not sure when I first popped up, but it might have been around the time of the first TPM trailers (I remember some cobbled together edits of the trailer music) or - at the latest - around the time of the TPM OST's release. Those were good times.

I remember writing a track by track score analysis of the Episode I ultimate edition for the site, which as far as I know was wiped out - and good thing, too, since I'm sure that 14-year-old me made a looooooooooot of mistakes.

Otherwise, I'm happy just to be a poster on the message board - much less frequently now than in 1999-2001, but still here

[Jim Ware 559]

It's also worth noting that John Williams started recording The Phantom Menace at Abbey Road on February 5th 1999.

that is a BRILLIANT bit of trivia!

5,6,9-12,14-17 February 1999, Abbey Road Studios.

[Glóin the Dark 1,326]

Fifteen years ago, I'm not entirely sure I'd even used the internet...

[BLUMENKOHL 1,081]

Even though I've never been a truly active poster, nor my contribution has ever been truly "valuable", this place has always been very special and dear to me.

I consider you one of the most thoughtful and valuable posters around here!