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Is SAE going to carry these titles?
Order them from the MMM site, its very easy and their service is superb.
sd 
Absolutely right. Every bit as good as SAE and Intrada. Can't wait for these (both discs) to get here!
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Posted: |
Jan 7, 2008 - 4:50 PM
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By: |
MMM
(Member)
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I've gotten quite a few e-mails from people wanting to know if we might release the music from 1972's BEWARE! THE BLOB, with music by Mort Garson, or 4D MAN (related to THE BLOB), with music by THE BLOB's Ralph Carmichael.
The short answer is "no." The music for THE BLOB and BEWARE!... have nothing to do with each other musically or otherwise. I have no idea who would possess recordings of Garson's score, and I know nothing about Mr. Garson at all. I only saw the film once and have no recollection of the music. Doesn't mean it's bad or anything -- I just don't know it.
As for 4D MAN, this is a VERY "out there" brassy jazz score by Carmichael, and I'm not sure it would be the best listening experience from a music-only perspective. It's even a bit "extreme" in the movie to my delicate ears.
And for the 130th time, there are NO surviving scores for INVADERS FROM MARS, and the only tracks and music and effects in horrific condition. And there are no surviving scores for INVASION OF THE BODY SNATCHERS, although music tracks seem to exist but the owners don't want them released.
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There's also some Lavagnino on the Digitmovies release of ESTER THE KING, credited to both Lavagnino and Nicolosi. A lot of it sounds like Lavagnino to me.
You are completely right! About 90% of the ESTER AND THE KING score is by Lavagnino. The one and only pure Nicolosi piece is the exotic dance track "Balletto nel tempio" in track 21.
Nicolosi did contribute just a few things - maybe only some transitions for the reworked scenes - to these 3 other tracks, but everything else has been composed by Lavagnino:
18. IL MONDO DI ESTER 1:36 Nicolosi - Lavagnino
28. TENERAMENTE 2:56 Nicolosi- Lavagnino
33. SERENITA' DI ESTER 1:31 Nicolosi-Lavagnino
Lavagnino's style is very recognizable and even in these few tracks most of the music at least to my ears seems to be by him.
By the way, I can tell you that the Alhambra soundtrack CD label in Germany will probably release Lavagnino's simply wonderful music for the 1956 exotic documentary feature film L'IMPERO DEL SOLE (EMPIRE IN THE SUN) very soon (maybe in about two months) on an official CD. I have been in contact with the composer's daughter Bianca for some time now. She does have the only surviving copy of the mastertape of this score and she is very cooperative and supportive in the production of this CD. She - together with her two sisters - has given us her approval that this CD may be produced in Germany. If everything goes right, she will also write some liner notes for the booklet.
I have already heeard the complete music (almost 60 minutes long!) and can only highly recommend it. It is sheer delight and one of the musically most imaginative, colorful and beautiful Italian Golden Age soundtracks of the mid-50s.
I hope that many Golden Age film music collectors will be as delighted about this announcement as I am myself. As soon as I have further and more detailed infos about this upcoming CD, I will of course post them here!
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As far as I know, Bianca has no own e-mail address. But I have her private home address and communicate with her either through postal mail in the old way or through phone. I will tell her "greetings" from you the next time I hear from her again.
She has promised to write some liner notes for the CD project so that I am pretty sure we will get them from her.
L'IMPERO DEL SOLE is such a fine, very melodious score - in my opinion one of Lavagnino's best. I am sure that many fans of Rozsa, Newman or Herrmann (the many harp glissandi in the score do even remind me a bit of Herrmann's BENEATH THE 12-MILE REEF) would love this music when they could hear it.
I hope that the score is not too unknown for many of the people so that they will be too reluctant to buy it.
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Posted: |
Jan 8, 2008 - 1:21 PM
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By: |
MMM
(Member)
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Thanks for passing along my greetings to her! I would think many film music fans of Newman, Rozsa, and other Golden Age composers would love Lavagnino, as his music, while being singularly "Lavagnino," shares much with that era. Rozsa's music in particular was a major influence in Lavagnino's life, which was why I first got interested in him. While the two composers' styles are very different, there is a supreme quality to the music of both. I, too, hope that some people take the "chance" on Lavagnino at some point -- if they do they will be richly rewarded time and again.
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I would like to endorse David and Stefan's comments about L'IMPERO DEL SOLE. This is a quite magnificent score that will be a major addition to any serious film music fan's collection.
Thank god there are people like Stefan willing to save magnificent music from unknown movies like this!
Cheers Dave
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Did you notice the characters on the background on the Blob covert art?
Ralph Carmichael, David Schecter, Herman Stein and all the other ones I didn't founded… Funny.
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Posted: |
Jan 18, 2008 - 12:36 PM
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By: |
MMM
(Member)
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I wish nobody had spotted me... Alas, our cover artist Robert Aragon (far left, with dark glasses and German Shepherd) did that without my permission! Next to Herman is my lovely wife Kathleen, holding our then-puppy, Scottish Terrier Nessie Annabella MacSchecter. Other familiar faces are on there, too, including friend Bob Burns (known to classic sci-fi fans everywhere) and his wife Kathy, and sundry other buddies.
When I showed the cover art for this and THE INTRUDER (music by Stein) to Herman, he was way more excited to be having his image associated with THE BLOB than he was having his own CD released! If he were still alive, I can almost guarantee he would have requested more comps for THE BLOB than the other disc.
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