Intrada presents the premiere score-only release of Hans Zimmer's A League of their Own. The delightfully witty film deserved a similarly tongue-in-cheek score. Zimmer's music artistically represents not only the film's period, but the onscreen antics as the first-ever women's baseball team is formed, while retaining a sense of gravity and reverence for this historic and unfortunately short-lived episode in American baseball. The film gave Zimmer the opportunity to create a score that blends nostalgic Americana with his inimitable style, resulting in a mix of swing/jazz numbers that complement his rousing orchestral music. Although the film is party comedy, Zimmer narrows in on the heart of the story—the camaraderie of the players and the emotional depth of the story— while also capturing the WW II era. Zimmer's main challenge in scoring the film was understanding the game itself, which was relatively foreign to him. But through trial and error he figured it out, even while on the recording stage:
“Well, I don’t understand baseball,” said Zimmer in conversation with director Penny Marshall. She responded, “It’s really simple. When they hit the ball, that’s good.” It’s funny, I remember we were at the scoring session and I did this big build up, and then they hit the ball. It’s like fireworks, it’s glorious, and angels singing. She taps me on the shoulder, and she says, “Wrong team.”
A song compilation was released at the time of the film's theatrical run, featuring a generous 15-minutes of score. For this new release, Intrada presents nearly 60 minutes of Zimmer's score. Produced by Zimmer connoisseur Stéphane Humez and edited and mastered by Maxime Marion, this Intrada release presents the definitive edition of Zimmer's delightful score, adorned with liner notes by Kaya Savas.
View the album's trailer here.
The 1992 film is a sports comedy-drama inspired by the real-life All-American Girls Professional Baseball League (AAGPBL) during World War II. The story follows sisters Dottie Hinson (Geena Davis) and Kit Keller (Lori Petty) as they join the Rockford Peaches, one of the league’s teams, alongside a diverse group of women players. Managed by the initially reluctant, washed-up former player Jimmy Dugan (Tom Hanks), the team faces challenges on and off the field while proving that women’s baseball is more than just a wartime novelty.
