It was never my burning ambition to do this. I sort of fell into film & TV composing around 1961. When did you start composing film music - and what or who were your early passions and influences?

While Phillips might have retired many years ago, he is still very much a part of the film and television zeitgeist today, attending fan conventions and cult screenings of Battlestar and Beyond the Valley of the Dolls and even winning a BMI Film and TV Award for Best Ringtone with Knight Rider. With a style that can adapt to every genre from disco to pop, Phillips' first love is classical, his epic score to Battlestar Galactica a testament to this. Working exclusively with Glen Larson for many years the pair were responsible for some of the '80s biggest hits including Buck Rogers, The Monkees, Quincy, The Six Million Dollar Man and of course the iconic Knight Rider and Battlestar Galactica. Having composed music for over 20 feature films in the '60s and '70s and being covered by the likes of Tammy Wynette and B.B.King, Phillips moved on to writing for TV. Becoming aware that a favorite work isn't as original as one assumed is jarring, but does it necessarily negate the greatness of a new take on an older invention? In any case it's clear that the musical muse of ongoing influence is a gift that keeps on giving.He's played piano in cocktail lounges and produced records for Nina Simone, he's been an A&R man too, but you'll probably know Stu Phillips best for being the composer of cult '80s TV shows Knight Rider and Battlestar Galactica. It's a reminder that the foundations of civilizations are built upon previous societies whose inherited ideas are celebrated even when their artistic lineage is forgotten or deliberately obscured. “Lesser artists borrow great artists steal” – Pablo Picasso's famous quote has been embraced and debated by generations of creators and critics. I'm surprised there haven't been similar legal battles over similarities between Nirvana's ' Come As You Are' and Killing Joke's ' Eighties' or the more egregious example of Metallica's ' Enter Sandman' and the earlier ' Tapping the Emotional Void' by Excel. Many people are probably familiar with the lawsuit claiming Ray Parker Jr.'s ' Ghostbusters' theme song was a rip-off of ' I Want a New Drug' by Huey Lewis and the News.

This reminds me of some other songs I love that may be more influenced by others than the authors wish to admit.

Knight rider theme song stu phillips