LALO SCHIFRIN

Same here, I'm not familiar with most of it but what d'fook, it's schifrin.

The newest box set from FSM!

The Cincinnati Kid: Lalo Schifrin Film Scores, Vol. 1 (1964–1968)

Lalo Schifrin is one of the most distinguished composers of the Silver Age—and still going strong today. He may have been the most influential, however, when he broke into movies and television in the 1960s—his unique synthesis of jazz, symphonic, pop and avant garde styles was invigorating. For the first time, FSM presents an extended collection of Schifrin’s 1960s theatrical film scores, comprised of a quintet of M-G-M original soundtracks and related album recordings.

Rhino! (1964) was Schifrin’s first Hollywood score, written for an African safari adventure starring Robert Culp, Harry Guardino and Shirley Eaton. Schifrin was recommended by MGM Records (where he was a recording artist) as being the film studio’s answer for Henry Mancini on Hatari!—a tall order, but one Schifrin pulled off with a vibrant and exciting symphonic score, featuring exotic African instrumentation and several memorable themes and musical setpieces.

Once a Thief (1965), Schifrin’s second feature score at M-G-M, is a corker of a jazz soundtrack for Ralph Nelson’s film noir starring Alain Delon, Jack Palance and Ann-Margret. Schifrin’s score, at turns dynamic and poetic, was heralded by jazz critics as one of the rare, authentic uses of the idiom in a Hollywood movie. The album includes both the original soundtrack (never before released) and Schifrin’s 1965 LP for Verve Records, Once a Thief and Other Themes (also including selections from The Man From U.N.C.L.E. and Joy House, and a few non-soundtrack pieces).

Disc three features what is probably Schifrin’s best-known score for M-G-M, The Cincinnati Kid (1965), the Norman Jewison film starring Steve McQueen as an up-and-coming gambler in 1930s New Orleans. Schifrin wrote a bluesy score centering on a theme for harmonica, sung (with lyrics by Dorcas Cochran) over the end titles by Ray Charles. The album features both the MGM Records album (a hybrid of original soundtrack and re-recorded selections) and the complete original soundtrack as recorded for the film, including many alternates and unused cues.

Discs four and five feature two late-1960s films in which M-G-M tried to build feature careers for the stars from The Man From U.N.C.L.E., Robert Vaughn (in 1967’s The Venetian Affair) and David McCallum (in 1968’s Sol Madrid), by casting them (separately) in unrelated stories of international espionage. Schifrin’s scores to both films are excellent: pulsating, moody Cold War intrigue for The Venetian Affair (featuring cymbalom), and diverse, often Latin-flavored pop and jazz for Sol Madrid (alongside more traditional scoring).

Disc five concludes with an assortment of bonus tracks from Schifrin’s M-G-M work of the period, including themes from TV projects Medical Center, The Mask of Sheba and Earth II. The entire 5CD set, save for a few tracks, is in excellent stereo sound, remastered from the original 35mm three-track scoring masters (for the original soundtracks) or ¼” two-track album masters (for the record albums). Liner notes are by Schifrin authority Jon Burlingame. As an additional bonus, full track-by-track commentary can be found, for free, online at our website.

-Erik-

I have Cincinnati Kid and Man From Uncle already.
Thomas

Sound clips, James... utilize them!

-Erik-

Yeah, but FSM does!

-Erik-

Volume 1....

A Schifrin volume 2 to follow at some point?

True! But A Tom & Jerry Vol 2 wouldn't feature a Coogan's Bluff ( which is my hope ) or other Schifrin works like The Beguiled or his many TV works.

Thankfully, no! I'd still love to own that set but I just have to go careful right now what with "real life" to pay for...council tax, electricity, gas etc

Guess Schifrin hasn't the rights to those scores to release them on aleph.

I have SOL MADRID already, but none of the others. In a parallell world where I was a filthy rich man, this might have been interesting, but right now, it's way, way off the radar for me. Impressive undertaking, though, like most of FSM's boxes.

If they were released on Aleph I'm sure it would be on an individual basis.
Thomas

that would be very cool wouldn't it? There really aren't many composers who incorporate jazz to film better than Lalo Schifrin.

http://sdtom.wordpress.com/2011/06/21/p … wschifrin/

my latest review of the FSM release. If you're into big band/jazz you're gonna like it.
Tom