New Primetime - Classic Battle (Sam Spence)

Song - Classic Battle

Artist(s) - Sam Spence

Debut - No later than 1996

Primetime Usage - 2021, 2023-24

Contained on - Classic NFL Orchestral (as well as some other NFL Films albums like Autumn Thunder Vol. 6)
Featured Highlight - Packers @ Cowboys, 2023 Wild Card

Sam Spence gets his third-straight post on this blog.  "Classic Battle" is another NFL Films classic that most any football fan will recognize.  As with "March to the Trenches," Classic Battle was only used for the intro of the attached game highlight.  That highlight is the Packers/Cowboys Wild Card game from a couple years ago where Dallas decided to play flag football on defense.  Classic Battle accompanies Chris Berman's recaps of the Ice Bowl and the 1995 NFC Championship Game.  Also, as with "The Equalizer," I don't know exactly when Spence composed this piece or when it debuted on NFL Films.  It's not on any of the old NFL Music LPs, and the earliest album with it I know of is NFL CD 005 Magnificent Eleven from 1996.

 

 

New Primetime - March to the Trenches

Song - March to the Trenches

Artist(s) - Sam Spence

Debut - 1970 (according to Spotify)

Primetime Usage - 2020

Contained on - NFL music compilations like Autumn Thunder (Soundcloud song link)
Featured Highlight - Steelers @ Cowboys, 2020 (Intro)

Another Sam Spence classic.  Unfortunately, "March to the Trenches" was only used once on NFL Primetime as far as I know, and it was only used for a highlight intro.  The 7-0 Steelers visited a Dallas Cowboys team that was having to play their 29th. string quarterback.  March to the Trenches accompanied Chris Berman's remembrance of the two franchises' glory years in the 1970s, while the rest of the clip uses Arnold.  The Cowboys actually gave Pittsburgh a good game despite being a clear underdog, but they couldn't hold the lead.

March to the Trenches oddly doesn't appear to be on the official NFL music website.  I'm pretty sure it isn't on any of the old NFL LPs, either.  It is on most of the NFL Films music compilations, though, and it's very easy to find just by searching Google or whatever.

 

 

New Primetime - The Equalizer (Sam Spence)

Song - The Equalizer

Artist(s) - Sam Spence

Debut - No later than 1996

Primetime Usage - 2021, 2023-24

Contained on - Classic NFL Orchestral (as well as some other NFL Films albums like The Power and the Glory)
Featured Highlight - Packers @ 49ers, 2021 (SNF)

One of the songs most synonymous with famed NFL Films composer Sam Spence nowadays is "The Equalizer."  When getting ready to make this post, I started to wonder "Why is it so comparatively popular?"  It has nothing to do with the quality of the song.  It's a good song, though I wouldn't say it's my favorite Spence composition or anything.  It's more because I can't figure out when The Equalizer originated or what video it was first used with.  It's not on Autumn Thunder, and it doesn't seem to be on any of the 1970's-'80s NFL Music Library LPs either.  The earliest album I could find with The Equalizer was NFL CD 004 (On to Victory) from 1996, and I have no idea when it debuted on NFL Films' stuff.  Could its modern popularity come from gamers remembering it from Madden '06?  I don't know…

Anyway, the accompanying highlight is the Packers/49ers Sunday Night Football game from Week 3 of 2021.  Green Bay blew a 17-0 lead only to pull out a 2-point win with a last-second field goal.  This would be a Pyrrhic victory for the Packers, however, as we all remember what happened between these two teams in the Divisional Round later that season.

I linked an official source for the song above (the current NFL Music site), but they only allow 30 second previews if you're not signed up or whatever.  If you want to hear the full version, though, it's easy to find by searching Google or YouTube or whatever.

 

 

Sam Spence Duo

Song 1 - Up She Rises (a.k.a. "Up as She Rises" or "A Golden Boy Again")

Artist(s) - Sam Spence

Released - No later than 1971

Primetime Usage - 2000

Contained on - Classic NFL Orchestral (as well as other NFL Films compilations like Autumn Thunder)

Featured Highlight - Raiders @ Steelers, 2000

Song 2 - The Raiders

Artist(s) - Sam Spence

Released - 1974

Primetime Usage - 2000

Contained on - Classic NFL Orchestral (as well as other NFL Films compilations like Autumn Thunder)
Featured Highlight - (same as above)

For the December 2000 matchup between the Oakland Raiders and the Pittsburgh Steelers at Three Rivers Stadium (the penultimate game at TRS), NFL Primetime decided to give it the 1970s NFL Films throwback treatment.  One feature was Chris Berman constantly referring to then-current players as 1970s stars (e.g., referring to Rich Gannon as Ken Stabler).  The more memorable feature, however, was the back-and-forth use of two classic NFL Films songs by Sam Spence.  The first, mostly used when Pittsburgh had the ball, is "Up She Rises."  This song is also referred to as "Up as She Rises" or "A Golden Boy Again."  The second, mostly used when Oakland is doing stuff, is appropriately titled "The Raiders."  The Raiders debuted on NFL Films in 1974 to accompany the poem, "The Autumn Wind."  I don't know exactly when Spence wrote Up She Rises, but it's used on the 1970 Colts highlight video so it couldn't be any later than the first half of 1971.

Special thanks to Godzfire for pointing this highlight out to me, and to SW561 for putting the original clip on YouTube.