THE BLACK BIRD Composed and Conducted by JERRY FIELDING
INTRADA Special Collection Volume 136
For the 1975 Columbia Pictures noir parody The Black Bird, Fielding decided to score the film largely as a drama, feeling that the comic elements would take care of themselves. The movie’s “period” is, like the film itself, all over the map in terms of tone and style. For Fielding aficionados, however, there is plenty of musical fun on this CD. The composer’s jazzy, string-based riff on the “Main Title” is very much in sync with his work of this vintage. The mid-1970s saw him gradually abandon some of his earlier tropes and mannerisms in favor of a style that would increasingly feature electronics. Like many composers of the time, he felt that synthesizers would begin to play a much greater part in film music and he began to accommodate them accordingly. Discreetly at first, and here mostly in the opening and closing titles, he experimented gingerly. A busy motif, in counterpoint to the orchestral forces, makes its presence felt. Interestingly, quite a bit of groundwork for Fielding’s later work (including his superb music for The Big Sleep) would be laid here first.
The Black Bird, a comedy-spoof of the whole noir genre, plays upon the Maltese Falcon, with the leading character would be Sam Spade’s son, Junior (George Segal), who had inherited his father’s detective business including cranky Lee Patrick (the secretary from the original). It is 1975, although strangely Junior is dressed as if it is the 1930s, as are many of the ne’erdo- wells he encounters. Finding the falcon, aka the black bird, Junior deposits it in the trash, and later is surprised to learn of its value, demonstrated by the parade of criminals, killers, femme fatales, etc., who are now on his tail.
FYI, it's worth mentioning that the Main Title to this film was lifted from KOLCHACK-THE NIGHT STALKER, it served as Fielding's theme for our Favorite reporter in that program.
Indeed, such fantastic use of synthesizer as another instrument blending in with the orchestra. Plus so many amazingly frenzied pieces so quick and lively!
I ordered both of these. I couldn't resist. I sure hope the rest of this one is as good as the samples and not some strange fielding music I wont ever appreciate. Still the tracks sampled alone are worth it.
Boy... talk about obscure titles. I've seen this years ago and don't remember anything about Fielding's music -- but it's GOT to be better than the film.
hmmm...I played the main title and don't recognize any KOLCHAK music?
If you remember the music from the opening of the episode with Tom Skerritt as the Devil's Candidate who can shapeshift from human to dog...
FYI, it's worth mentioning that the Main Title to this film was lifted from KOLCHACK-THE NIGHT STALKER, it served as Fielding's theme for our Favorite reporter in that program.
A rather good example of "Waste Not, Want not..."
We may as well also mention that "Chase Through Kitchen" owes a great deal to Fielding's own bar fight music from "The Trouble with Tribbles."
hmmm...I played the main title and don't recognize any KOLCHAK music?
Go check out any of the episodes that Fielding score of the show...
You'll hear it..
You'll hear it... in just one episode as specifically written (Devil's Candidate), and then once again tracked into another (Chopper, I think). There's also a piano version of it in the feature film "Scorpio" too. Frankly, I don't mind how many times Fielding used it. It's a rather wonderful piece of music (and actually an improvement on Prokofiev ).
Neat release! 
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