Not Power Cutter

Song - Hit Drive

Artist(s) - Robin Gurin (composer credit only), Georgia Shapiro, Alec Williams (performer credit only)

Released - 1994

Primetime Usage - 1994-96

Contained on - FirstCom A29 (Power Net)

Featured Highlight - Falcons @ Panthers, 1995


If you've been following this blog or are otherwise familiar with NFL Primetime music, you've probably noticed there's another song from the mid-'90s that sounds a lot like Power Cutter but isn't Power Cutter.  Hit Drive is a little darker & edgier, but it still has the same repetitiveness and lack of real melody.  It's often difficult to tell them apart if the Primetime clip you're watching has weak sound quality, too.  It turns out this similarity is not a coincidence.  Not only is Hit Drive on the same album as Power Cutter, it's actually the very next track!

A couple months ago, around the time I was doing the New Day post, I stumbled upon a website called "musiqneed.com".  It seemed like it was at least partially foreign and also legally dubious, but it did have nearly every album from the FirstCom Action series available for streaming (along with a lot more music of all kinds).  Most importantly, though, it had the FirstCom A-series albums that are missing from the FirstCom website.  I was finally able to listen to these (except FC-A19, which was also missing on musiqneed) after searching for them for years.  Unfortunately, Hit Drive is the only NFL Primetime song contained on the missing albums that I hadn't already identified.  Double unfortunately, the musiqneed site has been down since early April.  So the rest of you are out of luck as to listening to Hit Drive yourselves, at least for now.

This track has a lot of mid-'90s highlights to choose from, most of them lame.  You could probably call Hit Drive "The Bill Pidto Special."  Anyway, here are the Falcons (temporarily) choking away a playoff spot against the expansion Panthers.

Power Cutter

Song - Power Cutter

Artist(s) - Robin Gurin (composer credit only), Georgia Shapiro, Alec Williams (performer credit only)

Released - 1994

Primetime Usage - 1994-96

Contained on - FirstCom A29 (Power Net)

Featured Highlight - Ravens @ Jaguars, 1996


Another track that has made its rounds on various NFL Primetime download collections, "Power Cutter" is one that makes no attempt to stand out.  It's more generic, repetitive, and background-ish than perhaps any other Primetime song, and it was clearly intended to be nothing more.  It works surprisingly well, however, because it at least provides a nice beat & some steady energy for your football-viewing enjoyment.  Power Cutter was created by the same trio that gave us The Event, and is also contained on the same, impossible-to-find FirstCom album.  You shouldn't have much trouble obtaining a legally dubious, lower-bitrate version on the web, but good luck finding an official, high-quality cut.

Power Cutter's featured highlight has two, then-new teams squaring off in an entertaining game in Jacksonville.  Fun fact!:  despite playing only two years in Baltimore, Vinny Testaverde was the Ravens' all-time leader in passing yards until Joe Flacco passed him in 2010.

The Greatest Show on Turf

Song - The Event

Artist(s) - Robin Gurin (composer credit only), Georgia Shapiro, Alec Williams (performer credit only)

Released - 1994

Primetime Usage - 1994-05

Contained on - FirstCom A29 (Power Net)

Featured Highlight - Ravens @ Rams, 1999


Late in the 1999 preseason, total unknown Kurt Warner replaced the injured Trent Green as the starting quarterback for the St. Louis Rams.  What happened was one of the most remarkable stories in NFL history.  Warner not only led the Rams to their first Super Bowl title, but—partially thanks to weapons like Marshall Faulk, Torry Holt, Isaac Bruce, and Az-Zahir Hakim—also had one of the league's all-time best passing seasons.  During this run, Chris Berman coined the phrase "The Greatest Show on Turf" to describe St. Louis's "circus-like" offense that lasted through the 2001 season.

"The Event," in addition to being a Primetime song, is also a good descriptor of watching the Warner-led Rams.  Composed by Robin Gurin & Georgia Shapiro, and performed by Shapiro & Alec Williams, the song provides a nice mix of laid-back tempo and energetic entertainment.  I couldn't really find any info on the three, though, other than noticing that Shapiro & Williams are credited as writers on "Anxiety" by The Black Eyed Peas.

Going back to the first paragraph, this post's featured highlight is Kurt Warner's first ever start against the Ravens in what was then called the Trans World Dome.  His stats weren't as spectacular as what was to come, but he was playing a good defense and it was just the beginning of his run of success.  Enjoy!