Bruce, I have no doubt that yours will sound better, very possibly a lot better. In a world of finite time and finite resources, on a score that doesn't get that much listening anymore, priorities must be considered. But you're tempting me…
"Fear Strikes Out" is one of my favorites, though I must admit I enjoy it on more than one level. It's a melodically inspired and undeniably thrilling score, but . . . it's also kind of funny.
One of the things Bernstein accomplishes with this one is a musical representation of the hysteria that the Jim Piersall character experiences because of his father's pressuring him, and the consequent mental illness. The result is sometimes a little campy.
Here's an example:
Now, obviously the scene isn't meant to be funny, and perhaps when the film was first screened it actually wasn't. But, anyone else get the same sort of humorous enjoyment I do out of this way-over-the-top melodrama?
It's a case where everything about the scene is just great, the acting, the directing, the music, and the result is, well . . .
But I do love it anyway. Go figure.
Incidentally, the real Piersall had some star quality himself, I think:
Really excited to see more Paramount Scores in the pipeline. Any additional 80's titles in the pipeline, Bruce?
I think the other labels love doing the 80s stuff - when I finally got my foot in the door there, my lists were exclusively 50s and 60s. We have an incredible score coming soon and then we'll see what happens after that.
