Columnist Tim Graham: NFL rocks on ‘The Power and the Glory’ CD

Tim Graham

Wednesday, Oct. 14, 1998 | 10:14 a.m.

Tim Graham's media notebook appears Wednesday. His page 1 column appears Thursday. Reach him at tim@lasvegassun.com or 259-4078.

Usually when I crank up the stereo, my next-door neighbor gets cranky. Loud music vibrating his walls, it seems, has a tendency to keep him awake in the wee hours.

One particular CD, however, had a strange effect the first time I played it. Instead of pounding on my door, my neighbor was on the lawn in a three-point stance, ready to block any would-be tacklers who might amble down the sidewalk.

For those who live and breathe football, "The Power and the Glory" is mandatory. It's an emotional journey into the heart of the game. The 36-track CD, due to be released Tuesday, delivers the rousing music and classic voice of NFL Films.

The same tunes children hummed during their backyard ballgames, the same phrases uttered by legendary narrator John Facenda are all there.

"There's a tremendous amount of nostalgia," NFL Films president Steve Sabol said.

Sabol cannot classify the music as anything other than "visceral." Listening for only a few moments to tunes like "Up She Rises" and "Round Up" immediately conjures images of a galloping Gale Sayers, a leaping Lance Alworth, a fire breathing Oakland Raiders defense.

"The style of that music mirrors the feelings of pro football," Sabol said. "In no other sport than football does music have an affect. The marching band and drums would always stir the blood. It speaks of the passion and the violence of the sport."

Facenda's oaken delivery -- once called the "Voice of God" -- is prominent on the CD. His melodramatic yet poetic words are etched in football lore.

Take, for instance, "The Fringe of Battle," a 24-second track: "To the players, reality is one against one, move and countermove, helmet to helmet. Nowhere is this conflict more evident than at the fringe of battle, where the receiver and cornerback match glares. Here, cunning and speed determine the victor. One on one -- the battle where the loser bleeds alone on an open field."

Oh my.

"I've always said he could read a laundry list and make it sound dramatic," Sabol said of the late Facenda.

"The stuff Facenda did was the epic stuff that was carved in concrete. (San Francisco 49ers quarterback) Steve Young once said that when you heard Facenda say your name, you knew you had made a mark for all time."

NFL Films has worked on releasing its music for about seven years.

"I do about five or six different talk shows a week," Sabol said, "and I'm only on for about six or seven minutes. But invariably I would get a question: 'Where do I get your music?' Finally, it got to the point where we decided we should make it available.

"We started out with cassette tapes and sent them out for free to whomever asked for them. Then it got to be so overwhelming, we said 'Let's do it right. Let's make a CD and put it out for sale.'"

There is no reason this CD shouldn't be an immediate hit.

"That music and Facenda's voice were a perfect match for a certain time and place in the growth of pro football," Sabol said. "There still was a certain mystique about the teams and players, about what happens on the field.

"It was a time when the emotional tie-in with a fan and his team probably was the strongest it's ever been."

You can go your Anguay

KTNV Channel 13 finally made a switch on its "Monday Night Quarterback" show. Tanja Anguay was replaced by Robin Burke as sports director Ron Futrell's co-host.

Anguay, who struggled in her old role, now handles Burke's old duties as remote correspondent.

"The station decided to switch Robin and Tanja and, one show into it, I think it worked out pretty well," Futrell said. "I think each of them did better in the areas they were in.

"I just think that (Anguay) will do better mingling with the fans, doing more interactive stuff. That's more her element."

Static: Ron Futrell took Tuesday off so he and his wife, Kathy, could celebrate their 20th wedding anniversary. ... CBS will transmit three NFL games in the revolutionary high-definition television format this season, starting with the Dec. 19 matchup between the New York Jets and Buffalo Bills. CBS also will use the format for an AFC playoff tilt. Only network affiliates with digital capability will be able to show the games in HDTV. Unfortunately, KLAS Channel 8 is an analog station.