CD Reviews: Vic Mizzy and El Cid
Vic Mizzy: Suites and Themes *****
VIC MIZZY
Percepto 003
36 tracks - 77:17
Films represented (disc order): The Ghost and Mr. Chicken (1965)
- 4 cues; The Caper of the Golden Bulls (1966) - 1 cue; A Very Special
Favor (1965) - 1 cue; The Night Walker (1964) - 1 cue; Did you Hear the
One About the Traveling Saleslady? (1968) - 2 cues; The Shakiest Gun in
the West (1968) - 1 cue-suite; The Spirit is Willing (1967) - 2 cues; The
Perils of Pauline (1967) - 1 cue; The Reluctant Astronaut (1967) - 2 cues;
The Love God? (1969) - 1 cue; Don't Make Waves (1967) - 3 cues; The Busy
Body (1967) - 1 cue; and How to Frame a Figg (1971) - 1 cue
TV Themes included: The Addams Family; Green Acres; The Pruitts
of Southampton; Legal Eagle; The Double Life of Henry Phyfe; Portofino;
Pioneer Spirit; Rhubarb; The 13th Gate; The Secretary; Shakespeare Loves
Rembrandt; The Don Rickles Show; Temperatures Rising; Kentucky Jones; and
Terror on the 40th Floor
Before you read another word, do yourself a favor and order this before
Percepto runs out of copies (www.percepto.com). Done? Now...here's what
you have to look forward to!
Percepto's production of Vic Mizzy's classic scores for 13 films (essentially
all the films he scored), and themes for 15 TV shows (mostly from the 1960s)
is a first class act on all accounts. Don't let the "Suites" title fool
you -- this isn't comprised of random bits of scores mixed together. Most
tracks are main titles.
The program booklet is one of the best I've seen (FSM's releases aside)
and is a great example of how these kinds of releases should be done. There
is an opening two-page introduction by producer Taylor White. Daniel Schweiger's
excellent notes fill up 17 additional pages -- even most classical music
releases rarely get this treatment these days. In addition, the booklet
is filled with stills from the movies, as well as a central two-page spread
of the movie posters for all films featured. The only thing missing is
a quick reference page listing all of Mizzy's scores; a small carp easily
remedied by the IMDB.
If you grew up attending Don Knotts matinees, this album will be a trip
down nostalgia lane. Plus, anyone who ever watched a rerun (or is old enough
to have enjoyed these shows when they first aired) will enjoy the TV themes
included here. It is Mizzy's music that made these otherwise innocuous
films a joy to watch, with their silly dialogue; hilarious situational
comedy; and nerdy love scenes. This whole CD will get your toes tapping
and bring a smile to your face. Every cue is a highlight in itself.
The Film Music
My favorite Don Knotts film has always been The Ghost and Mr. Chicken,
which opens this album. I fell in love with the organ playing in the attic,
and the inclusion of the music from this film alone warrants the price
of admission. Furthermore, there are four cues included (the most of all
films represented here): the "Main Title," "Goodbye," "Luther" and "The
Wedding," where the organ segues from the wedding music into the "ghostly"
organ music. When I was a kid, that part always freaked me out and made
me laugh at the same time.
While much of the film music included comes from comedy films, there
are also surprises. The "Main Title" from William Castle's The Night
Walker, the earliest score represented here, is excellent. A work admired
by Bernard Herrmann, the brief excerpt included here features great vibraphone,
hammered dulcimer and harp writing. If the rest of this 60+ minute score
is as interesting as this excerpt, it deserves its own release. In fact,
the studio even tried to get a "Best Score" nomination for Mizzy's work
on this film.
The "Main Title" from Did You Hear the One About the Traveling Saleslady
begins with a brief "wah-wah" guitar riff reminiscent of the theme for
Don't Make Waves, and then moves in to pure Mizzy shuffle music.
The "Hoedown Ballet" is a joy to listen to, with "honking" horn sections
and excitement in every measure. The ballet is a great sampling of Mizzy's
familiar scoring style of woodwinds doubled with orchestral bells or xylophone.
The one true "suite" comes from The Shakiest Gun in the West.
I remember parts of this film, mostly the "gunfight" scenes; this album
helps recall some of the more amusing images. This is a unique western
score filled with harmonicas, wah-wah guitars, tom-toms, and organ. Also,
it's full of the music that can indelibly be linked to Knotts...no matter
what film he is in.
The Spirit is Willing adds a harpsichord to the jazzy mix of
"Bedroom Cares"; it sounds a bit like a goofy sea-shanty mixed with snippets
of "Here Comes the Bride" and "cool" imitation "hippy" rock. The second
cue from this score, the "Main Title," has a great honky-tonk piano section.
The Perils of Pauline boasts a gorgeous waltz as part of its
main title, as well as music reminiscent of the kind of thing you would
hear in silent films when maidens in distress were tied to railroad tracks.
The three cues from Don't Make Waves appear in far better sound
here than in the incarnations from Chapter III's score presentation of
last year. This is further indication that this is a good score, from the
beautiful love theme to the jazzy opening title music.
The "Main Title" for The Busy Body is a wonderful soft-shoe shuffle
piece that includes to great effect a shooting gun as one of its percussion
instruments. I found myself laughing aloud at the way Mizzy uses this "instrument."
The film section of the disc concludes with the great "Main Title" for
How to Frame a Figg. Once again we are reminded how closely linked
were the careers of Don Knotts and Vic Mizzy. The moment the music begins
your mind immediately conjures Knotts.
As you listen to these themes, the thing that really strikes you is
that Mizzy's musical voice is unique and far more familiar than you may
have realized. Perhaps his music, like Carl Stalling's, is so much a part
of our television heritage that we no longer are able to see it for the
sheer genius it is, and was, in its time. It's a reminder that those of
us enamored with big "action scores" should keep our ears open for the
treasures born in the difficult job of scoring comedic films. Vic Mizzy
is one of the great masters in this genre.
The Television Themes
You may find yourself singing along during this portion of the CD, especially
when The Addams Family and Green Acres roll around. Can any
one person have been responsible for this many fabulous TV themes? It boggles
the mind! The lyrics that accompany The Pruitts of Southampton and
the hilarious repetition of the lawyers for Legal Eagles (a pilot
that never aired) are fantastic fun. The Double Life of Henry Phyfe
is a cousin to the theme for I Dream of Jeannie (not written by
Mizzy). Portofino is gorgeous. The theme for the science fiction
program The 13th Gate includes theremin, and is one of the great
themes for a sci-fi show you'll ever hear. (By the way, Gene Rodenberry
heard this work and tried to get Mizzy to score his new sci-fi series,
but Mizzy was too busy.) Shakespeare Loves Rembrandt approaches
camp and has to be heard to be fully appreciated; its straight, classical
harpsichord playing, wah-wah guitars and jazzy flute/recorder combos are
undeniably wacky. The final theme for Terror on the 40th Floor,
a made-for-TV movie from 1974, is an amazingly cool combination of styles
that Lalo Schifrin and John Williams would employ in their films of the
time. Again, it's one of the best TV themes ever penned.
The sound of these cues stands up remarkably well and shows only minimal
distortion when larger forces are employed (most noticeable in The 13th
Gate); but none of this is really distracting.
Incidentally, guitarist Tommy Tedesco and the legendary Shelley Manne
are among the many superb musicians whose work for Mizzy are featured on
this disc.
Overall, this may be the best $20 you will ever spend on an album. Percepto
is to be commended for resurrecting this fun music; providing superior
information for its production; and reproducing the music in excellent
sound for 70+ minutes of play time. This is an essential disc for film
music and TV theme fans. [And, yes, I'm on my fourth listen of The Ghost
and Mr. Chicken!] -- Steven A. Kennedy
Comments regarding this review can be sent to this address: stev4uth@hotmail.com.
El Cid *****
MIKLÓS RÓZSA
Chapter III CH 37502-2
11 tracks - 42:43
In the shadow of all of the (justified) furor over Varèse Sarabande's
fantastic release of Cleopatra, Chapter III quietly released a remastered
edition of the original soundtrack recording of another huge 70 millimeter
epic, El Cid. Although the album has that awful "Movie Marquee"
cover art that plagues all the Chapter III releases, this release fills
a gap in the Miklós Rózsa discography left when the previous
Sony CD went out of print, allowing collectors who missed that release
to finally get one of Rózsa's most lush and expansive scores. The
Koch recording has superior sound and more music, but was a poor substitute
because, while conductor James Sedares brought much passion to the love
theme for Rodrigo and Chimene, his treatment of the action music was lacking.
Rózsa's own recording, however, is definitive.
The score itself, in which Rózsa combined carefully researched
aspects of 11th century Spanish music into the fabric of the epic style
he created with Ivanhoe, Ben Hur and King of Kings,
is a wondrous blend of adventure and romance, making an indelible impression
on a listener (I remember playing the Koch recording at the record store
at which I worked at one point; everyone who had seen the film recognized
the music).
The Chapter III release, like the Sony CD before it, replicates the
selections found on the original MGM LP. After starting off with the rousing
"Overture," the "Prelude," which is one of his best main titles, contrasts
the martial and heroic theme for Rodrigo with the love theme, "The Falcon
and the Dove." "13 Knights" is a busy cue that sets the tone for the action
music that will culminate in "Battle of Valencia," a great flurry of violence
and fury.
"Palace Music" is a hypnotic bit of source music that introduces the
authentic Spanish sound that will be blended into Rózsa's score
in such cues as "Farewell," which has a more introspective reading of Rodrigo's
theme, before a fully developed version of "The Falcon and the Dove" (complete
with solo violin) takes over. This sound is also explored in the tender
"The Twins" and the tragic "The Cid's Death."
Rodrigo's theme, of course, is heard to best advantage in the well-known
"Intermezzo: The El Cid March," which rivals Rózsa's own "Parade
of the Charioteers" from Ben Hur as one of the most rousing film
music marches ever recorded.
"The Legend & Epilogue" closes the album with a bang; a pipe organ
states with authority Rodrigo's theme before it is overtaken by the action
music, mounting to a climax of material from "The El Cid March" to commemorate
Rodrigo's final act of heroism. The strings and brass take on Rodrigo's
theme again before "The Falcon and Dove" reappears for the finale.
The sound is very good, with a nice wide stereo soundfield and a lot
of detail. The only caveat is that the bass could have been a little stronger.
Except for the cover, the art direction is decent. It would have been nice
if more music had been made available, but this is a classic score in all
senses of the term, and having at least this much is a gift; one can not
help but be entranced by Rózsa's sweeping music. -- Josh Gizelt
MailBag@filmscoremonthly.com
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