George S. Clinton Boosts SCL Panel

2007 BMI Film & Television Richard Kirk Award recipient George S. Clinton made a recent appearance lending his expertise on the Society of Composers & Lyricists (SCL) Annual Members Meeting’s composers panel, held October 17 at The American Legion’s historic Hollywood Post 43. The panel explored composing in the current environment and discussed today’s unique demands of creating music for film, television and games.

George S. Clinton began his professional musical career as a songwriter, arranger, and session musician in Nashville, while earning degrees in music and drama at Middle Tennessee State University. Clinton became a staff writer for Warner Brothers Music, with songs recorded by such artists as Michael Jackson, Joe Cocker, and Three Dog Night; continued arranging and session work; and, as a recording artist, did albums for MCA, Elektra, ABC, and Arista. The critically acclaimed George Clinton Band attracted the attention of Cheech and Chong, giving George the opportunity to score his first film, Cheech and Chong’s Still Smokin.’

Clinton has since gone on to score cable’s The Red Shoe Diaries, feature films including the Austin Powers series, John Waters’s A Dirty Shame; Disney’s holiday hits The Santa Clause 2 and The Santa Clause 3; and The Astronaut’s Wife. Most recent projects the Emmy Award-winning Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee and the upcoming Harold and Kumar 2. In addition, Clinton has written several concert works, three musicals and serves as an advisor at the Sundance Composers Lab. Awards include a Grammy and Emmy nominations, and eight BMI Film Music Awards, including the Richard Kirk Career Achievement Award.