Steve Bartek (born January 30, 1952, in

Garfield Heights, Ohio Garfield Heights is a city in Cuyahoga County, Ohio, United States. It is a suburb of Cleveland. The population was 28,849 at the time of the 2010 census. Geography Garfield Heights is located at (41.421423, -81.602682). According to the Unit ...

) is an American

guitarist A guitarist (or a guitar player) is a person who plays the guitar. Guitarists may play a variety of guitar family instruments such as classical guitars, acoustic guitars, electric guitars, and bass guitars. Some guitarists accompany themsel ...

film composer A film score is original music written specifically to accompany a film. The score comprises a number of orchestral, instrumental, or choral pieces called cues, which are timed to begin and end at specific points during the film in order to e ...

, conductor, and orchestrator. He is best known as the lead guitarist in the band

Oingo Boingo Oingo Boingo () was an American new wave band formed by songwriter Danny Elfman in 1979. The band emerged from a surrealist musical theatre troupe, The Mystic Knights of the Oingo Boingo, that Elfman had led and written material for in the y ...

and for his orchestration work with composer

Danny Elfman Daniel Robert Elfman (born May 29, 1953) is an American film composer, singer and songwriter. He came to prominence as the singer-songwriter for the new wave band Oingo Boingo in the early 1980s. Since the 1990s, Elfman has garnered internation ...

Career

Early career

Bartek's career started while at William Howard Taft High School in

Woodland Hills, California Woodland Hills is a neighborhood bordering the Santa Monica Mountains in the San Fernando Valley region of Los Angeles, California. Geography Woodland Hills is in the southwestern region of the San Fernando Valley, which is located east of Ca ...

, writing songs and playing flute with the psychedelic rock band

Strawberry Alarm Clock Strawberry Alarm Clock is a psychedelic rock band formed in 1967 with origins in Glendale, California Glendale is a city in the San Fernando Valley and Verdugo Mountains regions of Los Angeles County, California, United States. At the 20 ...

. In 1974 he graduated from

UCLA The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a teachers college then known as the southern branch of the California ...

with a degree in Composition. After college he worked at the Baked Potato with Leon Gaer under the leadership of

Don Randi Don Randi (born February 25, 1937) is an American keyboard player, bandleader, and songwriter who was a member of the Wrecking Crew. Career Randi was born February 25, 1937 in New York City. He was raised in the Catskill Mountains and studied c ...

until joining the theatrical ensemble

The Mystic Knights of the Oingo Boingo The Mystic Knights of the Oingo Boingo was an American surrealist street theatre troupe, formed by performer and director Richard Elfman in 1972. The group was led by Richard until 1976, when his brother Danny Elfman took over. The group evolved ...

in 1975, where he met his collaborator

. Between 1979 and 1995, Bartek was lead

guitar The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected string ...

in new wave band

with Elfman. Bartek also orchestrated the horn arrangements for the band and co-produced many of their albums.

Film and television

Bartek has composed music for

television series A television show – or simply TV show – is any content produced for viewing on a television set which can be broadcast via over-the-air, satellite, or cable, excluding breaking news, advertisements, or trailers that are typically placed be ...

including ''

The Tick ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the ...

'', ''

Tales from the Crypt Tales from the Crypt may refer to: * ''Tales from the Crypt'' (album), by American rapper C-Bo * ''Tales from the Crypt'' (comics), published by EC Comics during the 1950s ** ''Tales from the Crypt'' (film), a 1972 Amicus film starring Ralph Ric ...

'', ''

Nightmare Ned ''Nightmare Ned'' is an American animated television series which ran from April 19 to July 5, 1997, on ABC. The show was produced by Walt Disney Television Animation and Creative Capers Entertainment, and created by Terry Shakespeare, G. Sue Sh ...

'' and '' Steven Spielberg's Amazing Stories'', and movies including ''

An Extremely Goofy Movie ''An Extremely Goofy Movie'' is a 2000 animated comedy film distributed by Walt Disney Home Video, produced by Walt Disney Television Animation, and directed by Douglas McCarthy. It is a standalone sequel to the 1995 film ''A Goofy Movie'' and t ...

'', ''

Romy and Michele's High School Reunion ''Romy and Michele's High School Reunion'' is a 1997 American comedy film directed by David Mirkin and starring Mira Sorvino, Lisa Kudrow, and Janeane Garofalo. The plot revolves around two 28-year-old girls who appear to have not achieved much ...

'', '' Romy and Michele: In the Beginning'', '' Snow Day'', '' Novocaine'', the '' 1998 remake'' of '' Psycho'' and '' The Art of Travel''. In 1992 he was nominated for a

Saturn Award The Saturn Awards are American awards presented annually by the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror Films. The awards were created to honor science fiction, fantasy, and horror in film, but have since grown to reward other films be ...

for his soundtrack to '' Guilty as Charged''. In 2005, together with

and

Stewart Copeland Stewart Armstrong Copeland (born July 16, 1952) is a Scottish-American musician and composer. He is best known for his work as the drummer of the English rock band the Police from 1977 to 1986, and again from 2007 to 2008. Before playing with th ...

, he was awarded an BMI Film & TV Award for his work on ''

Desperate Housewives ''Desperate Housewives'' is an American comedy-drama soap opera television series created by Marc Cherry and produced by ABC Studios and Cherry Productions. It aired for eight seasons on ABC from October 3, 2004, until May 13, 2012, for a t ...

''. As an orchestrator, Bartek has worked on over 50 productions with Danny Elfman as of 2007, including most

Tim Burton Timothy Walter Burton (born August 25, 1958) is an American filmmaker and animator. He is known for his gothic fantasy and horror films such as '' Beetlejuice'' (1988), '' Edward Scissorhands'' (1990), '' The Nightmare Before Christmas'' (1993 ...

productions, '' Mission: Impossible'', ''

Good Will Hunting ''Good Will Hunting'' is a 1997 American psychological drama film directed by Gus Van Sant, and written by Ben Affleck and Matt Damon. It stars Robin Williams, Damon, Affleck, Stellan Skarsgård and Minnie Driver. The film received positive r ...

'', ''

Spider-Man Spider-Man is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer-editor Stan Lee and artist Steve Ditko, he first appeared in the anthology comic book ''Amazing Fantasy'' #15 (August 1962) in the Si ...

'' and ''

Milk Milk is a white liquid food produced by the mammary glands of mammals. It is the primary source of nutrition for young mammals (including breastfed human infants) before they are able to digest solid food. Immune factors and immune-modulat ...

'', and has done orchestration work with composers Jon Brion and Stephen Trask. Bartek provided the soundtrack for

Donovan Cook Donovan Ryan Cook III (born January 30, 1968) is an American film director, cartoon creator and producer, best known for creating, directing and producing the animated series ''2 Stupid Dogs'' and directing the Disney animated features ''Return ...

's indie film '' Rideshare: The Movie'', alongside former

member Johnny "Vatos" Hernandez. In 2015 Steve performed the theme to ''

Harvey Beaks ''Harvey Beaks'' is an American animated television series created by C. H. Greenblatt for Nickelodeon. The series aired from March 28, 2015, until December 9, 2016, when it was moved to Nicktoons on March 1, 2017, which followed the series fina ...

''.

Other work

Steve Bartek did horn arrangements for

Avenged Sevenfold Avenged Sevenfold (abbreviated as A7X) is an American heavy metal band from Huntington Beach, California, formed in 1999. The band's current lineup consists of lead vocalist M. Shadows, rhythm guitarist and backing vocalist Zacky Vengeance, ...

's song " A Little Piece of Heaven" as well as for

John Hiatt John Robert Hiatt (born August 20, 1952) is an American singer-songwriter. He has played a variety of musical styles on his albums, including new wave, blues, and country. Hiatt has been nominated for nine Grammy Awards and has been awarded ...

's "Little Head". He produced Raya Yarbrough's eponymous album and arranged strings for the song "Early Autumn". He also did a string arrangement for Ricky Martin's " Vuelve". Bartek played the acoustic guitar on the Bangles cover of "A Hazy Shade of Winter" on the

Rick Rubin Frederick Jay Rubin (; born March 10, 1963) is an American record producer. He is the co-founder (alongside Russell Simmons) of Def Jam Recordings, founder of American Recordings, and former co-president of Columbia Records. Rubin helped popula ...

arranged soundtrack for the 1987 film "Less Than Zero". Bartek plays guitar for the TV series ''

Battlestar Galactica ''Battlestar Galactica'' is an American science fiction media franchise created by Glen A. Larson. The franchise began with the original television series in 1978, and was followed by a short-run sequel series (''Galactica 1980''), a line of ...

'', ''

Trauma Trauma most often refers to: *Major trauma, in physical medicine, severe physical injury caused by an external source *Psychological trauma, a type of damage to the psyche that occurs as a result of a severely distressing event *Traumatic inju ...

'' and '' Walking Dead''. Bartek also contributed music to both the ride queue and exit of

Disneyland Disneyland is a theme park in Anaheim, California. Opened in 1955, it was the first theme park opened by The Walt Disney Company and the only one designed and constructed under the direct supervision of Walt Disney. Disney initially envisio ...

's short-lived

Rocket Rods Rocket Rods was a high-speed thrill attraction in Tomorrowland at Disneyland in Anaheim, California. The ride, meant to evoke a futuristic rapid transit system, opened in 1998 on the existing PeopleMover infrastructure as part of the New Tomorrow ...

attraction in 1998, including a synthesizer arrangement of Steppenwolf's "

Born to Be Wild "Born to Be Wild" is a song written by Mars Bonfire and first performed by the band Steppenwolf. The song is often invoked in both popular and counter culture to denote a biker appearance or attitude. It is most notably featured in the 1969 f ...

" and "World of Creativity (Magic Highways of Tomorrow)", the latter being a radical re-arrangement of "Detroit", a song originally written and composed by the

Sherman Brothers The Sherman Brothers were an American songwriting duo that specialized in musical films, made up of Robert B. Sherman (December 19, 1925 – March 6, 2012) and Richard M. Sherman (born June 12, 1928). Together they received various accolades i ...

for the 1967 Disney film, '' The Happiest Millionaire''. Bartek is an admirer of composer Raymond Scott, and in 2012, he worked with

Ego Plum Ego Plum (born February 27, 1975) is an American film composer, musician, and performer. He is best known for his work on ''The Cuphead Show!,'' '' The Patrick Star Show,'' '' Kamp Koral,'' ''SpongeBob SquarePants,'' '' Jellystone!,'' '' Making ...

in arranging a live tribute show held at the

Walt Disney Concert Hall The Walt Disney Concert Hall at 111 South Grand Avenue in downtown Los Angeles, California, is the fourth hall of the Los Angeles Music Center and was designed by Frank Gehry. It was opened on October 24, 2003. Bounded by Hope Street, Grand Ave ...

REDCAT Roy and Edna Disney CalArts Theater (REDCAT) is an interdisciplinary contemporary arts center for innovative visual, performing and media arts in downtown Los Angeles, located inside the Walt Disney Concert Hall complex. Opened in November 20 ...

entitled "Machine Man: The Musical Mayhem of Raymond Scott". Bartek played guitar on

Gerald Casale Gerald Vincent "Jerry" Casale ( ) ( ''né'' Pizzute; born July 28, 1948) is an American musician. He came to prominence in the late 1970s as co-founder, co-lead vocalist, and bass player of the new wave band Devo, which released a top 20 hit i ...

's 2021 single, ''I'm Gonna Pay U Back.''

Select filmography

*1991 '' Guilty as Charged'' *1991 ''

Past Midnight ''Past Midnight'' is a 1991 Neo-noir thriller film (with slasher connections) starring Rutger Hauer and Natasha Richardson, as well as co-stars Tom Wright, Clancy Brown and Paul Giamatti (making his first credited screen appearance). Plot Pa ...

'' *1994 ''

Cabin Boy ''Cabin Boy'' is a 1994 American fantasy comedy film, directed by Adam Resnick and co-produced by Tim Burton, which starred comedian Chris Elliott. Elliott co-wrote the film with Resnick. Both Elliott and Resnick worked for '' Late Night with D ...

'' *1995 ''

National Lampoon's Senior Trip ''National Lampoon's Senior Trip'' is a 1995 American comedy film for the National Lampoon magazine franchise, directed by Kelly Makin. It marked Jeremy Renner's film debut. Plot At Fairmount High School, Ohio in the suburbs of Dayton, a gro ...

'' *1995 '' Coldblooded'' *1997 ''

'' *1998 ''

Meet the Deedles ''Meet the Deedles'' is a 1998 American comedy film directed by Steve Boyum in his directorial debut, and starring Paul Walker, Steve Van Wormer, A. J. Langer, John Ashton, Robert Englund, and Dennis Hopper. This was the first live-action fi ...

'' *1998 '' Psycho'' *2000 '' Snow Day'' *2000 ''

'' *2000 '' The Crew'' *2001 '' Get Over It'' *2001 '' Novocaine'' *2003 '' Carolina'' *2007 ''

The Simpsons Movie ''The Simpsons Movie'' is a 2007 American Animation, animated comedy film based on the long-running animated sitcom ''The Simpsons''. The film was directed by the show's supervising director David Silverman (animator), David Silverman and star ...

'' *2010 ''

Despicable Me ''Despicable Me'' is a computer-animated media franchise centering on Gru (Despicable Me), Gru, a reformed super-villain (who later becomes a father, husband, and secret agent), and his yellow-colored Minions (Despicable Me), Minions. It is p ...

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Bartek, Steve 1952 births Living people People from Garfield Heights, Ohio American music arrangers American rock guitarists American male guitarists American television composers American film score composers American male film score composers American new wave musicians 20th-century American guitarists Guitarists from Ohio 20th-century American male musicians 21st-century American guitarists Strawberry Alarm Clock members 21st-century American male musicians