FILM SCORE FRIDAY 5/17/02
By Scott Bettencourt
Before I start plugging the new Varese Club CDs, I'd like to remind
our readers that the latest FSM CDs are now in stock and currently shipping.
THE
TRAVELING EXECUTIONER is that rare entity, a capital punishment
comedy (Last Dance with Sharon Stone doesn't count), and features
an offbeat, Dixieland flavored score by Jerry Goldsmith. 36
HOURS presents Dimitri Tiomkin's exciting score to the WWII
thriller, expanding hugely on the original soundtrack album. HOURS
was actually remade for TNT in 1989 as Breaking Point, starring
Corbin Bernsen and Joanna Pacula (remember them?) with a score by J.A.C.
Redford.
This week, Varese
Sarabande announced their three latest CD Club releases, as well as
their first limited Masters Film Music release in many years. The BALLAD
OF CABLE HOGUE is Jerry Goldsmith's only film for director Sam
Peckinpah, a change-of-pace Western comedy from the controversial director,
and one of Goldsmith's few period comedies. (Another one is THE
TRAVELING EXECUTIONER. Did I mention that we just released THE
TRAVELING EXECUTIONER?) HOGUE has never before been released
on CD or LP.
In THE VIRGIN QUEEN, Bette Davis reprised her role as Queen Elizabeth
I from The Private Lives of Elizabeth and Essex, this time accompanied
by the music of the great Franz Waxman. The character of Queen Elizabeth
will be familiar to history buffs and also to modern filmgoers who've seen
her portrayed by Cate Blanchett in Elizabeth and by Judi Dench in
her Oscar-winning cameo in Shakespeare in Love.
CAST A GIANT SHADOW, a biopic of Israeli war hero Mickey Marcus
(played by Kirk Douglas), featured a rousing score by Elmer Bernstein
and guest appearances by John Wayne, Frank Sinatra and Yul Brynner. The
Varese CD contains the contents of the original UA album release with no
additional cues.
The Masters Film Music release is of Georges Delerue's lovely
score for JOE VS. THE VOLCANO, though to be honest it's hard to
think of a Georges Delerue score that isn't lovely. Curly Sue? Nope,
still lovely. VOLCANO is the only feature film directed by Oscar
winning screenwriter John Patrick Shanley (Moonstruck), and was
the first of three teamings of Tom Hanks (during the very brief pause in
his remarkable hit streak) and Meg Ryan, with Ryan giving a charming and
delightful performance in three different roles. The film is lavishly mounted
and in its oddity may stand the test of time better than Sleepless in
Seattle and You've Got Mail.
And as one who has been collecting soundtracks for over a quarter of
a century, I would like to thank Varese Sarabande again for their very
existence.
A FEW CDS CAME OUT THIS WEEK
The Ballad of Cable Hogue - Jerry Goldsmith - Varese CD Club
Cast a Giant Shadow - Elmer Bernstein - Varese CD Club
Dinotopia - Trevor Jones - CMR
Enterprise - Dennis McCarthy - Decca
Ice Age - David Newman - Varese Sarabande
Insomnia - David Julyan - Varese Sarabande
Jason X - Harry Manfredini - Varese Sarabande
Joe vs. the Volcano - Georges Delerue - Varese Club/Masters
Film Music
Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron - Hans Zimmer (4 score cues)
- A&M
36 Hours - Dimitri Tiomkin - Film Score Monthly
The Traveling Executioner - Jerry Goldsmith - Film Score Monthly
Unfaithful - Jan A.P. Kaczmarek - Varese Sarabande
The Virgin Queen - Franz Waxman - Varese CD Club
We Were Soldiers - Nick Glennie-Smith - Sony
AND A COUPLE LITTLE MOVIES TOO
About a Boy - Badly Drawn Boy (Damon Gough) - Soundtrack on BMG
Attack of the Clones - John Williams - Score Album on Sony
The Believer - Joel Diamond - Score Album on Milan
REJECTED SCORES, CHAPTER THREE:
From: "Dimitris I. Spanos" <spanos@rtel.gr>
Recently I watched The Big Blue with the magnificent Eric
Serra score. Perhaps it was replaced only in the US?
I remember reading several years ago that not only Maurice Jarre,
but Vangelis and James Horner wrote music for White Squall.
I believe several major composers were announced for White Squall,
but as far as I know, only Jarre and Jeff Rona actually wrote music for
it.
And I believe you're right about The Big Blue. Similarly, the
European prints of K2 contain Hans Zimmer's score, and supposedly
the European version of A Night in the Life of Jimmy Reardon features
Elmer Bernstein's music.
From: "Peter Dishal" <pdishal@comcast.net>
Following up on Tom DeMary's note about Tiomkin's rejected
score for "The Westerner": according to Jan Herman's biography of William
Wyler ("A Talent for Trouble"), it was producer Sam Goldwyn who was unhappy
with the original music and had Alfred Newman rewrite "much of Tiomkin's
score."
From: Scott Andrew Hutchins <scottandrewh@comcast.net>
what about EYES WIDE SHUT - Vivian Kubrick [Jocelyn Pook]
I understand Vivian completed a few cues Stanley found inappropriate.
Does anyone else have any info on this?
From: Travers Cleeman <tsr@alphalink.com.au>
The end credits of Dangerous Beauty has "additional music
by Rachel Portman". (trust me, it's DEFINITELY listed in the end titles,
though you won't find mention of it at www.imdb.com or on Portman's CV).
Fenton and Portman generally compose similar a style of music, so
I've never been able to identify exactly what music nor how much Portman
score is left in the film.
George Fenton's score is a real beauty, though!
That film spent a year or so on the shelf and had multiple titles -- The
Honest Courtesan, Courtesan, Venice -- so I'm guessing
Portman's music wasn't the real problem. And by the way, can anyone tell
me what happened to Dangerous Beauty star Catherine McCormack? I
mean, specifically, her face? In all her recent movies (Shadow of the
Vampire, The Tailor of Panama, Spy Game) she's had this
perpetually bitter look at odds with the earthy beauty that made many of
us fans of her work. Any theories? The aging process, or perhaps the aftereffects
of doing films like Dangerous Beauty and The Land Girls.
REJECTED SCORES, CHAPTER FOUR: JOE JACKSON
& JOHN BARRY
From: "Stephen Woolston" <sw@supanet.com>
Although John Barry was replaced on The Appointment, European
versions of the film still carry his score even though the credit remains
Stu Phillips.
Barry recorded a complete score for Sinful Davey (1967) (repl: Ken
Thorne)
Barry wrote a replacement score for Mike's Murder (1984). Can't
remember the rejected composer, but the Mike's Murder album carries his
music not Barry's.
Thank you for the reminder about Sinful Davey. And the original
Mike's Murder score was by Joe Jackson, the album of his songs released
long before the much delayed, re-edited, and Barry-rescored film.
From: "Steven Kennedy" <stev4uth@hotmail.com>
For some reason, I seem to remember that the film "Tucker"
was to have a score by John Williams which was replaced by some jazz composer.
Joe Jackson wrote the score for Tucker: The Man and His Dream. I
have trouble believing John Williams wrote a rejected score, if only because
a Williams rejection would have received a lot of press, especially within
the film music community.
From: " James A. Corry " <barring889@msn.com>
In answer to your question regarding John Barry and the
score to "Clash Of The Titans" apparently Barry DID write a score. Ray
Harryhausen has been quoted as (tersely) saying:"John Barry wrote a musical
score for "Clash Of The Titans." We couldn't use it."
MUSIC NOT FOR THE MOVIES
Receiving less attention than the recent slew of John Williams concert
music releases (American Journeys, Yo-Yo Ma Plays John Williams),
the new CD 20TH CENTURY CONCERTI, from the British label AVS, features
the first recording of John Williams' Tuba Concerto, composed in 1985,
a rare year when he produced no film scores. In the liner notes, Williams
says he's been composing for the instrument ever since he wrote a tuba
solo for the movie Fitzwilly.
The disc, conducted by David Snell, also features works by three composers
who are no longer with us -- Germaine Tailleferre, Henri Tomai, and Toshiro
Mayuzumi, who composed the Oscar-nominated score for The Bible.
Another recent CD release is the 50s oddity FRANK SINATRA CONDUCTS
TONE POEMS OF COLOR. The album, released by Capitol, features Sinatra
conducting a dozen color themed pieces which the singer commissioned from
a variety of composers -- including Elmer Bernstein, Andre Previn, and
Victor Young -- based on a series of poems by Norman Sickel, who had previously
written for Sinatra's radio shows.
The liner notes include the text of the poems -- "Red is the violent/the
exciting shocker of we who seek excitement", "Orange is the gay deceiver,"
etc. -- but the poems are not recited over the music. Fortunately. An interesting
coincidence: both Sinatra and Previn were later married to Mia Farrow,
and Bernstein replaced Previn on the Farrow vehicle See No Evil.
Here are the contents:
1. White - Victor Young (4:14)
2. Green - Gordon Jenkins (4:05)
3. Purple - Billy May (4:21)
4. Yellow - Jeff Alexander (2:38)
5. Gray - Alec Wilder (4:49)
6. Gold - Nelson Riddle (3:36)
7. Orange - Nelson Riddle (4:57)
8. Black - Victor Young (3:58)
9. Silver - Elmer Bernstein (4:38)
10. Blue - Alec Wilder (4:38)
11. Brown - Jeff Alexander (4:01)
12. Red - Andre Previn (3:57)
WHERE ARE THE MARK SNOWS OF YESTERYEAR,
ROUND THREE
This week's entry in the game of matching the older composer's projects
with those of a similar but younger composer involves the comedy team of
Jerry Goldsmith and Danny Elfman:
Amazing Stories: "Boo" - Beetlejuice
Breakout - Proof of Life
Coma - Extreme Measures
Dennis the Menace - Flubber
Link - Instinct
Malice - To Die For
Planet of the Apes - Planet of the Apes
Psycho II - Psycho
The Red Pony - Black Beauty
Rudy - Good Will Hunting
Sleeping With the Enemy - Dolores Claiborne
Supergirl - Spider-Man
The Swarm - Men in Black
And finally, a second player has joined the game, supplying his suggestions
for the previous pairing of John Williams and James Netwon Howard:
From: Fernan <f_elliott@wanadoo.es>
Raiders of Lost Ark / The Lost World - Atlantis
The Accidental Tourist - Mumford
A Guide for Married Man - My Best Friend's Wedding
Not, with My Wife You don't ! - Intersection
Sabrina - French Kiss
Monsignor - Primal Fear
Amazing Stories - E.R.
Dracula - Flatliners
Always - My Girl / The Sixth Sense
The Fury - Stir of Echoes
Sleepers - Eye for an Eye
Seven Years in Tibet - Alive
Jaws / The River - Waterworld
Heidi - The Man in the Moon
JFK - Dave
Nixon - Falling Down
The Patriot - The Postman
Far and Away - Wyatt Earp
Stepmom - Dying Young
Angela's Ashes - The Saint of Fort Washington
ET - The Fugitive
Close Encounters - Signs
Hook - Treasure Island
Minority Report - Guilty by Suspicion
I find some of the connections pretty sketchy, even by my own lenient standards,
but I appreciate the effort. However, I forgot to mention one of the unwritten
rules of the game -- the older composer's score has to predate that of
the younger composer -- so that pairings like Stepmom & Dying
Young, while apt, don't quite qualify. However, Close Encounters/Signs
is right on the money. Good job!
THERE'S NO ESCAPING HIM, IS THERE?
Our fearless leader, Lukas Kendall, was recently interviewed on the
radio by David Garland for WNYC, in a broadcast featuring musical clips
from Logan's Run, The Omega Man, and other FSM CDs. The show can be accessed
online at http://www.wnyc.org/new/music/spinning/index.html
GLASS CONCERT NEWS
A chance to hear a Philip Glass (KUNDUN, TRUMAN SHOW) piece live--Tue,
May 21, 8pm, THE TEMPEST STRING QUARTET will play Glass's String Quartet
No. 5 at Alfred Newman Recital Hall on the campus of University of Southern
California. Tickets are $15 and $10, and free for the USC community. For
more info call (323) 874-4194.
TAKING A BITE OUT OF THE POLL
From: Scott Hanson <srh@shore.net>
The best score for a Dracula film is Philip Glass's score
for the 1931 Bela Lugosi film, but you forgot to include that on the poll.
I did forget to include it, but I only had room for twenty-five entries,
and frankly I don't like the Glass score all that much. But I haven't heard
it with the film yet, so maybe I'll change my mind when I do.
From: "Darren MacDonald" <mayor_mccheese55@hotmail.com>
O.K., my vote went to John Williams' Dracula too, but if
that's not vote tampering I don't know what is.
I presume that Mr. MacDonald is referring to the over five thousand votes
cast for Mr. Williams' Dracula score. I just assumed those votes
were cast by the five thousand website readers who immediately buy up each
of our CDs, financing Lukas's lavish rockstar lifestyle.
OUT OF FOCUS
I would like to apologize to the reader who wrote in asking for Richard
Kraft's office address. I would have sent it to you directly but I managed
to lose your e-mail address.
Richard Kraft
Blue Focus Management
15233 Ventura Blvd.
Suite 200
Sherman Oaks, CA 91403
MailBag@filmscoremonthly.com
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