Born in Los Angeles, he entered the film industry in 1976, initially as an actor. He made his film scoring debut in 1980 for the film Forbidden Zone directed by his older brother Richard Elfman. He has since been nominated for four Academy Awards and won a Grammy Award for Best Instrumental Composition Written for a Motion Picture, Television or Other Visual Media for Tim Burton's Batman and an Emmy Award for his Desperate Housewives theme. Elfman was honored with the prestigious Richard Kirk award at the 2002 BMI Film and TV Awards. The award is given annually to a composer who has made significant contributions to film and television music.
He is the son of novelist Blossom Elfman and the brother of director Richard Elfman.
Elfman was born in Los Angeles, California, the son of Blossom Elfman (née Bernstein), a writer and teacher, and Milton Elfman, a community in the Baldwin Hills area of Los Angeles. He spent much of his time in the local movie theatre, adoring the music of such film composers as Bernard Herrmann and Franz Waxman.
Stating that he hung out with the "band nerds" in high school, he started a ska band. After dropping out of high school, he followed his brother Richard to France, where he performed with Le Grand Magic Circus, an avant-garde musical theater group. Violin in tow, Elfman next journeyed to Africa where he traveled through Ghana, Mali, and Upper Volta, absorbing new musical styles, including the Ghanaian highlife genre which would eventually influence his own music. Elfman contracted malaria during his one-year stay and was often sick. Eventually he returned home to the United States, where he began to take Balinese music lessons at the CalArts. He was never officially a student at the institute, nonetheless, the instructor encouraged him to continue learning. Elfman stated, "He just laughed, and said, 'Sit. Play.' I continued to sit and play for a couple years." At this time, his brother was forming a new musical theater group, The Mystic Knights of the Oingo Boingo. The group performed the music for Richard's debut feature film, Forbidden Zone. Danny Elfman composed his first score for the film and played the role of Satan. By the time the movie was completed, they had taken the name Oingo Boingo and begun recording and touring as a rock group.
In 1985, Tim Burton and Paul Reubens invited Elfman to write the score for their first feature film, Pee-wee's Big Adventure. Elfman was apprehensive at first because of his lack of formal training, but with orchestration assistance from Oingo Boingo guitarist and arranger Steve Bartek, he achieved his goal of emulating the mood of such composers as Nino Rota and Bernard Herrmann. In the booklet for the first volume of Music for a Darkened Theatre, Elfman described the first time he heard his music played by a full orchestra as one of the most thrilling experiences of his life.[citation needed] Elfman immediately developed a rapport with Burton and has gone on to score all but two of Burton's major studio releases: Ed Wood, scored by Howard Shore, which was under production while Elfman and Burton were having a fight, and Sweeney Todd, an adaptation of the 1979 Stephen Sondheim Broadway musical. He also, more recently, accompanied Tim Burton in the composition of music for "Almost Alice", the soundtrack for Alice in Wonderland.
Burton has said of his relationship with Elfman: "We don't even have to talk about the music. We don't even have to intellectualize – which is good for both of us, we're both similar that way. We're very lucky to connect" (Breskin, 1997).
In 2021 he released "Big Mess", his first non-soundtrack album since 1984's "So-Lo", which is often considered to rather be an Oingo Boingo album due to the presence of many other band members.
Elfman has three children: Lola, born in 1979; Mali, born in 1984; and Oliver, born in 2005. On November 29, 2003, Elfman married film actress Bridget Fonda. In 1997 he scored A Simple Plan – his only score for one of her films to date (although he did compose a cue for the film Army of Darkness, in which Fonda has a cameo). He is the uncle of actor Bodhi Elfman who is married to actress Jenna Elfman, known most notably in her role as Dharma in the TV series Dharma and Greg.
Closing
Danny Elfman Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And finally, everything worked out just fine.
Christmas was saved, though there wasn't much time.
But after that night, things were never the same--
Each holiday now knew the other one's name.
And though that one Christmas things got out of hand,
So, many years later I thought I'd drop in,
And there was old Jack still looking quite thin,
With four or five skeleton children at hand
Playing strange little tunes in their xylophone band.
And I asked old Jack, “Do you remember the night
When the sky was so dark and the moon shone so bright?
When a million small children pretending to sleep
Nearly didn't have Christmas at all, so to speak?
And would, if you could, turn that mighty clock back,
To that long, fateful night. Now, think carefully, Jack.
Would you do the whole thing all over again,
Knowing what you know now, knowing what you knew then?”
And he smiled, like the old pumpkin king that I knew,
Then turned and asked softly of me, “Wouldn't you?”
The lyrics to "Closing" by Danny Elfman, with narration by Patrick Stewart, describe the aftermath of the events depicted in the movie "The Nightmare Before Christmas". The singer reflects on the fact that, despite some bumps in the road and some chaos along the way, everything ultimately worked out fine and Christmas was saved just in time. However, the experience forever changed both Halloween and Christmas, as they learned each other's names and became aware of each other's existence.
The singer then recounts a visit many years later to Jack Skellington, the pumpkin king who had tried to take over Christmas in the movie. He finds Jack looking thin but happy, surrounded by his skeleton children who play strange little tunes on their xylophones. The singer asks Jack if he remembers the fateful night when he almost ruined Christmas, and if he would do it over again if given the chance. Jack smiles and turns the question back on the singer, asking if he wouldn't want to relive such a thrilling adventure.
The lyrics to "Closing" capture the bittersweet nostalgia of looking back on a time when things were exciting, even if they were also a bit scary and unpredictable. The singer is clearly fond of Jack and his mischievous spirit, even as he acknowledges the danger and chaos that he brought to the holiday season. The song leaves the listener with the sense that, while it's important to learn from the past and make good choices, there's nothing wrong with a little bit of daring and mischief once in a while.
Line by Line Meaning
And finally, everything worked out just fine.
All the events have concluded in a very positive way.
Christmas was saved, though there wasn't much time.
Even though there was not much time, Christmas was successfully saved.
But after that night, things were never the same--
Things changed irreversibly after that particular night.
Each holiday now knew the other one's name.
As a result of the event, every holiday became aware of each other's existence.
And though that one Christmas things got out of hand,
Despite things getting out of control that one Christmas,
I'm still rather fond of that skeleton man.
I still hold a great appreciation for the skeleton man.
So, many years later I thought I'd drop in,
Many years had passed since the incident and I thought to pay a visit.
And there was old Jack still looking quite thin,
After all those years, Jack still looked rather skinny.
With four or five skeleton children at hand
Jack now had a few skeleton children with him.
Playing strange little tunes in their xylophone band.
The skeleton children were playing unusual music on their xylophones.
And I asked old Jack, “Do you remember the night
I inquired Jack if he remembered that particular night when...
When the sky was so dark and the moon shone so bright?
The sky was dark, and the moon was bright.
When a million small children pretending to sleep
When millions of children pretended to be asleep.
Nearly didn't have Christmas at all, so to speak?
It was as if Christmas was about to be canceled entirely.
And would, if you could, turn that mighty clock back,
If given the chance, would you go back in time?
To that long, fateful night. Now, think carefully, Jack.
To that eventful night. Think wisely, Jack.
Would you do the whole thing all over again,
Would you repeat everything again?
Knowing what you know now, knowing what you knew then?”
Knowing all that you know now and at the time?
And he smiled, like the old pumpkin king that I knew,
Jack smiled, as he had while being the Pumpkin King.
Then turned and asked softly of me, “Wouldn't you?
He then asked me in a gentle tone, 'Wouldn't you?'
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Written by: DANNY ELFMAN
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind