Les Baxter (March 14, 1922 – January 15, 1996) was an American musician and… Read Full Bio ↴Les Baxter (March 14, 1922 – January 15, 1996) was an American musician and composer.

Baxter studied piano at the Detroit Conservatory before moving to Los Angeles for further studies at Pepperdine College. Abandoning a concert career as a pianist, he turned to popular music as a singer. At the age of 23 he joined Mel Tormé's Mel-Tones, singing on Artie Shaw records such as "What Is This Thing Called Love?".

Baxter then turned to arranging and conducting for Capitol Records in 1950, and was credited with the early Nat King Cole hits, "Mona Lisa" and "Too Young", but both were actually orchestrated by Nelson Riddle.[1] (In later releases of the recordings the credit was corrected to Riddle.[citation needed]) Not a uncommon practice these days: Baxter himself had arranged Nat King Cole's "Nature Boy" in 1947 for a recording conducted by Frank De Vol. In 1953 he scored his first film, the sailing travelogue Tanga Tika. With his own orchestra, he released a number of hits including "Ruby" (1953), "Unchained Melody" (1955) and "The Poor People Of Paris" (1956). The latter recording sold over one million copies and was awarded a gold disc.[2]He also achieved success with concept albums of his own orchestral suites: Le Sacre Du Sauvage, Festival Of The Gnomes, Ports Of Pleasure, and Brazil Now, the first three for Capitol and the fourth on Gene Norman's Crescendo label. The list of musicians on these recordings includes Plas Johnson and Clare Fischer.

Baxter also wrote the "Whistle" theme from the TV show Lassie.

Baxter did not restrict his activities to recording. As he once told Soundtrack! magazine, "I never turn anything down".

In the 1960s, he formed the Balladeers, a besuited and conservative folk group that at one time featured a young David Crosby.[citation needed] He operated in radio as musical director of The Halls of Ivy and the Bob Hope and Abbott and Costello shows.

Like his counterparts Henry Mancini, Lalo Schifrin and James Horner, Baxter later worked for the film industries from 1960s to 70s. He worked on movie soundtracks for American International Pictures where he composed and conducted scores for Roger Corman's Edgar Allan Poe films and other horror stories and teenage musicals, including The Pit and the Pendulum, Panic in Year Zero!, Beach Party, The Comedy of Terrors,The Dunwich Horror, and Frogs. Howard W. Koch recalled that Baxter composed, orchestrated, and recorded the entire score of The Yellow Tomahawk (1954) in a total of three hours for $5,000.[3]

With less soundtrack work in the 1980s, he scored music for theme parks and SeaWorlds. In the 1990s, Baxter was widely celebrated, alongside Martin Denny and the Arthur Lyman Group, as one of the progenitors of what had become known as the "exotica" movement. In his 1996 appreciation for Wired magazine, writer David Toop remembered Baxter thus:

"Baxter offered package tours in sound, selling tickets to sedentary tourists who wanted to stroll around some taboo emotions before lunch, view a pagan ceremony, go wild in the sun or conjure a demon, all without leaving home hi-fi comforts in the white suburbs".
Baxter has a motion picture star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6314 Hollywood Blvd.

Somewhere in Space
Les Baxter and His Orchestra Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Somewhere in the night
There must be someone for me
Somewhere in the night
Who knows, where somewhere may be

Across the way
Or maybe, way beyond the distant star
How I wish, I knew

Just where and who you are

Somewhere in a dream
I find her here by my side
Then when I awake
My dream drifts out with the tide

My lonely heart keeps saying to me
"No, this doesn't seem right
There must be someone
Somewhere in the night"

Somewhere in a dream
I find her here by my side
Then when I awake
My dream drifts out with the tide

My lonely heart keeps saying to me
"No, this doesn't seem right

There must be someone
Somewhere in the night"

Overall Meaning

The lyrics of Les Baxter and His Orchestra's song "Somewhere in Space" convey a sense of longing and yearning for an unknown connection with someone special. The singer expresses a deep desire to find that elusive person who feels like a missing piece in their life, emphasizing the uncertainty and mystery of where this person may be. The repeated refrain of "Somewhere in the night" evokes a sense of searching in the darkness for a glimmer of hope and companionship, suggesting that this search is an ongoing journey.

The imagery of being alone in the night and dreaming of finding this mysterious person by their side creates a poignant contrast between the reality of waking up alone and the fleeting moments of solace in dreams. The theme of longing and unfulfilled desire is echoed in the lines "My lonely heart keeps saying to me, 'No, this doesn't seem right,'" underscoring the sense of incompleteness and longing for a deeper connection. The imagery of the dream drifting away with the tide symbolizes the transient nature of these fleeting moments of solace and the pervasive feeling of emptiness upon waking.

The song explores the theme of hope and belief in the existence of a soulmate or kindred spirit somewhere out there, beyond the confines of time and space. The singer ponders the possibility of this elusive connection existing across the vast expanse of the universe, emphasizing the enduring faith in the power of love to transcend distance and time. The wistful tone of the lyrics conveys a mix of melancholy and optimism, highlighting the enduring human need for connection and belonging.

Overall, "Somewhere in Space" by Les Baxter and His Orchestra is a poignant reflection on the universal search for love and companionship, capturing the bittersweet essence of yearning for a connection that feels just out of reach. The song's evocative lyrics and dream-like imagery invite listeners to contemplate the mysteries of the heart and the eternal quest for that special someone who may be waiting to be found somewhere in the vast expanse of the night.

Line by Line Meaning

Somewhere in the night
In the darkness of the night, there may be a person meant for me.

There must be someone for me
I believe there is a special person out there for me.

Who knows, where somewhere may be
It is uncertain where this special person could be.

Across the way
Maybe just across from me.

Or maybe, way beyond the distant star
Possibly in a faraway place beyond the stars.

How I wish, I knew
I wish I had the knowledge to find this person.

Just where and who you are
The specific location and identity of this person.

Somewhere in a dream
In a fantasy or vision I see her.

I find her here by my side
I discover her near me.

Then when I awake
But upon waking up from sleep,

My dream drifts out with the tide
The dream slips away like the tide receding.