Movie soundtracks were the last bastion of creative and accessible music. With Big Bands becoming insignificant or atonal, the silver screen became the vehicle for modern composers to create new musical ideas. Here are a handful of composers who have stood the test of time with their music filling our ears as well as our eyes.
From Castile a five-part panorama of romance. Someone needs to turn these into jazz charts; they can’t be passed by!
One of the most influential of composers has been Henry Mancini, with this four disc, eight album collection a great place to start. Haunting and long shadowed themes about for Orson Welles’ Touch Of Evil”, with the music from Peter Gunn, still requires shades to wear. Plas Johnson’s tenor to The Pink Panther is just one of the iconic tunes on that soundtrack, while Mr. Lucky is a nourish delight. Mancini was also adept at creating evocative moods, as on Breakfast at Tiffany’s, with drama abounding in the bold Hatari! and Experiment in Terror.
The two disc, 52 song collection entitled The Magic of Mancini puts together music that was featured in a plethora of movies, creating a cache of “Theme Songs” that still resonate today. There are also some vintage deliveries of jazz and rock tunes that hit the charts, with songs that served as vehicles for pop singers to not only interpret, but center their careers around.
Here, you get the debut of these classic tunes, such as “Moon River”, “Days of Wine And Roses”, “Mr. Lucky”, “The Great Imposter” and “Hatari”(you may not have known that the hit “Baby Elephant Walk” was from the film Hatari). Of course, there is the famous relentless guitar lick and riffing saxes on “Peter Gunn” and you also get the swinging “Big Noise From Winnetka”, which jazz bands still play to this day. There are also selections from a handful of his albums such as Driftwood and Dreams, The Blues And The Beat and Combo. Included here are rocking classics like “Castle Rock” and “Tequila” for the kids and “Smoke Rings” and “Mood Indigo” for the parents.
Dimitri Tiomkin had his share of popular themes, with an excellent collection put together on this single disc. Not only do you get the gorgeous theme from The Guns of Navarone and the underrated The Fall of the Roman Empire”, but there’s a wonderful medley of his western themes, including Rawhide, Giant, Red River and High Noon. Ride, ‘em in!
Elmer Bernstein may not be as well known as brother Leonard, but he had a successful career with soundtracks as well. This album has the rich and vibrant music to the classic film To Kill A Mockingbird, making you want to watch the Gregory Peck film again just to hear where the music fits in. There’s also a “Blues and Brass” that holds up well under time. Get some popcorn for the occasion!