SOUNDTRACKS
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Soundtracks are a lot more than movie music...
...or so I'm ready to argue as a 30 year devotee of this sorely under appreciated genre. So, in an effort to do my part, each week
I'll be making recommendations of soundtracks current and vintage, make a fuss over long awaited soundtrack scores finally getting
a well deserved release, and in general, make some noise about this often overlooked category. Beyond my long experience as a
listener and as a pianist and songwriter, both of which I've put to use in writing a quarterly soundtrack column for the Chicago
Tribune, I can only offer my recommendations. You'll discern my taste soon enough and upfront I'd like to make it clear that I'll
focus most heavily on SCORE soundtracks. In the end, all criticism is subjective but if I can point a listener toward a little heard
soundtrack or strongly advise you to either ORDER IMMEDIATELY or SKIP ALTOGETHER, all the better.
...or so I'm ready to argue as a 30 year devotee of this sorely under appreciated genre. So, in an effort to do my part, each week
I'll be making recommendations of soundtracks current and vintage, make a fuss over long awaited soundtrack scores finally getting
a well deserved release, and in general, make some noise about this often overlooked category. Beyond my long experience as a
listener and as a pianist and songwriter, both of which I've put to use in writing a quarterly soundtrack column for the Chicago
Tribune, I can only offer my recommendations. You'll discern my taste soon enough and upfront I'd like to make it clear that I'll
focus most heavily on SCORE soundtracks. In the end, all criticism is subjective but if I can point a listener toward a little heard
soundtrack or strongly advise you to either ORDER IMMEDIATELY or SKIP ALTOGETHER, all the better.
| We're finally getting a limited edition of Michael Small's (seen above) seminal Klute score but now we need soundtracks for his equally terrific work on two other terrific thrillers from the 1970s: The Parallax View and Marathon Man (DVD covers shown above). |
Film composer Michael Small died last year of prostate cancer after a long but mostly
unsung career as a film composer. His greatest period of influence was in the 1970s
and what notoriety he has began with his ground breaking score for the Jane
Fonda-Donald Sutherland thriller, 1971's Klute.
The first time I saw the film, decades later, on television, I was immediately taken by
the lovely, somber love theme Small wrote for the leading characters. The prostitute
Bree, played with astonishing reality by Fonda, is being stalked by a killer and is
befriended by a private detective, John Klute (played by Sutherland), who is hired to
find the real killer and clear the name of a man suspected of the killings. Wary of
each other, the two slowly fall in love and at one point are glimpsed strolling around
the streets of New York's outdoor markets. This is where the love theme, heard in brief
dashes beforehand, is fully realized. Small fleshes out the theme, played by a lone
trumpet and guitar, then adds in drums, flute, and jazz organ, until it finally blooms
with a full string section. All within less than two minutes.
This cue -- heard on the new limited edition CD available at www.buysoundtrax.com --
is worth the entire output of a lot of other lesser but more prominent film composers I
could name and instantly reveals Small's innate melodic gifts. The rest of the Klute
score shows the breadth of his talent as well. Fans of the film will recall the creepy "la
la la" Rosemary's Baby inspired title track repeated throughout the film each time the
killer is glimpsed stalking Bree. There's also a beautiful, Russian-influenced cue
("Goldfarb's Fantasy") that serves as a background for a scene in which Bree visits an
elderly client. And then there are those groove funk cues, heard when Bree tries to
track down a former friend and call girl through the Manhattan discos of the early 70s.
"Bree's Abandon (Take Me Higher)" is the most distinctive of these. Small easily
handles all the different musical styles with aplomb.
Though the film did well and won Jane Fonda a critically popular Oscar for Best Actress,
the soundtrack was never released. A promo edition, complete with cover and liner
notes (but no track titles), did make the rounds. This edition, from tiny Harkit
Records, was originally available in Europe, and now arrives in a limited edition with
stills and notes on the score. Well worth the $19.95 list price. Order this one quick
before it goes out of print.
Now with this release arriving at last, if we could only get Small's Marathon Man score and
at least the Main Title track from The Parallax View to follow I could be momentarily
happy!
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Don't forget to check out previous soundtrack recommendations by visiting the
ARCHIVES
Next Week: TBD
unsung career as a film composer. His greatest period of influence was in the 1970s
and what notoriety he has began with his ground breaking score for the Jane
Fonda-Donald Sutherland thriller, 1971's Klute.
The first time I saw the film, decades later, on television, I was immediately taken by
the lovely, somber love theme Small wrote for the leading characters. The prostitute
Bree, played with astonishing reality by Fonda, is being stalked by a killer and is
befriended by a private detective, John Klute (played by Sutherland), who is hired to
find the real killer and clear the name of a man suspected of the killings. Wary of
each other, the two slowly fall in love and at one point are glimpsed strolling around
the streets of New York's outdoor markets. This is where the love theme, heard in brief
dashes beforehand, is fully realized. Small fleshes out the theme, played by a lone
trumpet and guitar, then adds in drums, flute, and jazz organ, until it finally blooms
with a full string section. All within less than two minutes.
This cue -- heard on the new limited edition CD available at www.buysoundtrax.com --
is worth the entire output of a lot of other lesser but more prominent film composers I
could name and instantly reveals Small's innate melodic gifts. The rest of the Klute
score shows the breadth of his talent as well. Fans of the film will recall the creepy "la
la la" Rosemary's Baby inspired title track repeated throughout the film each time the
killer is glimpsed stalking Bree. There's also a beautiful, Russian-influenced cue
("Goldfarb's Fantasy") that serves as a background for a scene in which Bree visits an
elderly client. And then there are those groove funk cues, heard when Bree tries to
track down a former friend and call girl through the Manhattan discos of the early 70s.
"Bree's Abandon (Take Me Higher)" is the most distinctive of these. Small easily
handles all the different musical styles with aplomb.
Though the film did well and won Jane Fonda a critically popular Oscar for Best Actress,
the soundtrack was never released. A promo edition, complete with cover and liner
notes (but no track titles), did make the rounds. This edition, from tiny Harkit
Records, was originally available in Europe, and now arrives in a limited edition with
stills and notes on the score. Well worth the $19.95 list price. Order this one quick
before it goes out of print.
Now with this release arriving at last, if we could only get Small's Marathon Man score and
at least the Main Title track from The Parallax View to follow I could be momentarily
happy!
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Don't forget to check out previous soundtrack recommendations by visiting the
ARCHIVES
Next Week: TBD