Lena Horne: Lena in Hollywood With beautiful arrangements by Ray Ellis. The arrangement for "It had better be tonight" is outstanding. Michael Bublé based his recording of the song on it it seems.
I'm really digging this album I stumbled on today:
Frank Sinatra - Days of Wine and Roses, Moon River and Other Academy Award Winners (1964)
So looking around a bit for other movie song covers, I found this one:
Sarah Vaughan Sings The Mancini Songbook (which also has Wine and Roses, being from 1965)
And of course there's Monica Mancini's albums of her dad's songs and other film songs.
What are some other good movie-song albums?
One of my favorites is Tony Bennett's "The Movie Song Album" from 1965. One of the best albums by TB. Musical direction by Johnny Mandel who also arranged and conducted his "The Shadow Of Your Smile", which is my favorite version, and "Emily". Neal Hefti arranged and and conducted "Girl Talk" and "It's Never Too Late" arranged and conducted by David Rose. Other charts by Al Cohn and Larry Williams. TB does "Days Of Wine and Roses". If Mancini had arr. and cond. this it would have put a cherry on top.
I'm really digging this album I stumbled on today:
Frank Sinatra - Days of Wine and Roses, Moon River and Other Academy Award Winners (1964)
So looking around a bit for other movie song covers, I found this one:
Sarah Vaughan Sings The Mancini Songbook (which also has Wine and Roses, being from 1965)
And of course there's Monica Mancini's albums of her dad's songs and other film songs.
What are some other good movie-song albums?
As much as I am a fan of Ol' Blue Eyes ... I have >1,200 of his recordings ... this album, which I've owned for 18 years, is not one of my favourites. All of the songs are performed well but I feel his heart wasn't in it when it came to these two Henry Mancini ~ Johnny Mercer cuts ... they were purely the excuse to produce an album with the theme of the Academy Award.
Normally I'll take Mr. Sinatra's interpretation of a song over anyone else's but for these two ... I do think Andy Williams gets the top spot.
Coincidentally, I played Shirley Bassey's versions of both songs earlier today ... not her best work.
As for collections of film songs, if we're looking for vocal (song-stylist) albums, Matt Monro's Invitation to the Movies is a good listen (at least for those tracks I have ...!)
Of course, if you're willing to go back a decade, then Doris Day produced superb albums of movie songs, e.g. Hooray for Hollywood Vol.1 & 2
Great suggestions so far, thanks to everyone for contributing. I've turned this post into a list of everything mentioned in this thread, and will keep adding if more is mentioned.
"Chitty Chitty Bang Bang" (The Chipmunks feat. Dave) - 2:40 "Hushabye Mountain" (The Chipmunks feat. Dave) - 2:05 "Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious" (The Chipmunks feat. Dave & Chorus) - 2:05 "We're Off to See the Wizard" (The Chipmunks feat. Dave) - 2:40 "The Bare Necessities" (The Chipmunks feat. Dave) - 2:40 Side Two "Chim Chim Cher-ee" (The Chipmunks feat. Dave) - 2:27 "Que Sera Sera" (The Chipmunks feat. Chorus) - 1:50 "Consider Yourself" (The Chipmunks feat. Dave) - 3:00 "You Two" (The Chipmunks feat. Dave) - 2:35 "The Roses of Success" (The Chipmunks feat. Dave) - 2:54
Eddie Fisher sings all the Oscar winners,from 1934 to 1954.
Mostly shorter versions to make them fit,but with an interesting commentary about all the winners and the year they won.
It is out on CD,coupled with Eddie’s “Irving Berlin” album.
Enjoy!
Tracklist 1934 : The Continental (From The Gay Divercee) 1935 : Lullaby Of Broadway (From Gold Diggers Of 1935) 1936 : The Way You Look Tonight (From Swing Time) 1937 : Sweet Leilani (From Waikiki Wedding) 1938 : Thanks For The Memory (FRom Big Broadcast Of 1938) 1939 : Over The Rainbow (From The Wizard Of Oz) 1940 : When You Wish Upon A Star (From Pinocchio) 1941 : The Last Time I Saw Paris (From Lady Be Good) 1942 : White Christmas (From Holiday Inn) 1943 : You'll Never Know (From Hello, Frisco, Hello) 1944 : Swinging On A Star (From Going My Way) 1945 : It Might As Well Be Spring (From State Fair) 1946 : On The Atchison, Topeka And The Santa Fe (From The Harvey Girls) 1947 : Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Dah (From Song Of The South) 1948 : Buttons And Bows (From The Paleface) 1949 : Baby, It's Cold Outside (From Neptune's Daughter) 1950 : Mona Lisa (From Captain Carey, U.S.A.) 1951 : In The Cool, Cool, Cool Of The Evening (From Here Comes The Groom) 1952 : High Noon (Do Not Forsake Me, Oh My Darling) (From High Noon) 1953 : Secret Love (From Calamity Jane) 1954 : Three Coins In The Fountain (From Three Coins In The Fountain)
Although it's focused more narrowly than the the other "movie song" albums, I think MEL TORME SINGS FRED ASTAIRE still fits the bill.
Track list: 1. Nice Work If You Can Get It 2. Something's Gotta Give 3. A Foggy Day 4. A Fine Romance 5. Let's Call the Whole Thing Off 6. Top Hat, White Tie and Tails 7. The Way You Look Tonight 8. The Piccolino 9. They Can't Take That Away From Me 10. Cheek to Cheek 11. Let's Face the Music and Dance 12. They All Laughed
I'm really digging this album I stumbled on today:
Frank Sinatra - Days of Wine and Roses, Moon River and Other Academy Award Winners (1964)
So looking around a bit for other movie song covers, I found this one:
Sarah Vaughan Sings The Mancini Songbook (which also has Wine and Roses, being from 1965)
And of course there's Monica Mancini's albums of her dad's songs and other film songs.
What are some other good movie-song albums?
One of my favorites is Tony Bennett's "The Movie Song Album" from 1965. One of the best albums by TB. Musical direction by Johnny Mandel who also arranged and conducted his "The Shadow Of Your Smile", which is my favorite version, and "Emily". Neal Hefti arranged and and conducted "Girl Talk" and "It's Never Too Late" arranged and conducted by David Rose. Other charts by Al Cohn and Larry Williams. TB does "Days Of Wine and Roses". If Mancini had arr. and cond. this it would have put a cherry on top.
For you jazzers there's Dizzy Gillespie's "Dizzy Goes Hollywood". Songs are Exodus, Moon River, Caesar and Cleopatra theme, Days of wine and roses, Walk On The wild Side, More, Love theme from Lolita (Bob Harris, not Ennio), Picnic , Never On Sunday, Lawrence of Arabia and Carioca from Flying Down To Rio. All arranged by Billy Byers.
Lena Horne: Lena in Hollywood With beautiful arrangements by Ray Ellis. The arrangement for "It had better be tonight" is outstanding. Michael Bublé based his recording of the song on it it seems.
Ms. Horn sings about five different verses never before heard to It's A Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World. A mind-blowing way to end her classic album.
She doesn't utter a single word that isn't in the version of the song that is on the original score LP (and leaves quite a few out). Still a good reading of the song though.
She doesn't utter a single word that isn't in the version of the song that is on the original score LP (and leaves quite a few out). Still a good reading of the song though.
Of course you're absolutely right, Bob. Proof is in the showing. But I do have a version somewhere of additional lyrics to Mad, Mad World. Now I have to search my 45's for it.
For you jazzers there's Dizzy Gillespie's "Dizzy Goes Hollywood". Songs are Exodus, Moon River, Caesar and Cleopatra theme, Days of wine and roses, Walk On The wild Side, More, Love theme from Lolita (Bob Harris, not Ennio), Picnic , Never On Sunday, Lawrence of Arabia and Carioca from Flying Down To Rio. All arranged by Billy Byers.
So glad you mentioned this one, Roy - didn't know about it, been listening on Spotify. I've got some other Jazz albums focusing mostly or entirely on film and tv music:
Earl Klugh Trio Vol. 1 & 2, which features winning covers of Goldfinger, The Cincinnati Kid, Barefoot in the Park, Bewitched, much Mancini, etc. (It's a jazz guitar trio, with orchestra in the second volume, maybe closer to smooth jazz than bebop, with orchestral interludes that sound just like film music.)
And Terence Blanchard's Jazz in Film, which has got some great covers of some great numbers.
"A Streetcar Named Desire" (Alex North) - 7:55 "Chinatown" (Jerry Goldsmith) - 8:23 "The Subterraneans" (André Previn) - 9:08 "Anatomy of a Murder" (Duke Ellington) - 8:25 "The Pawnbroker" (Quincy Jones) - 7:02 "Taxi Driver" (Bernard Herrmann) - 7:12 "Degas' Racing World" (Ellington) - 7:57 "Man With the Golden Arm" (Elmer Bernstein) - 4:13 "Clockers" (Terence Blanchard) - 8:01
There's more to come, including a LOT of Mancini cover albums, but no time now....
There is a lovely album of Henry Mancini and his chorus doing the Academy Award winners – “Henry Mancini Presents the Academy Award Songs – 31 Oscar Winners” -- some are instrumentals, but most are sung by his chorus. Very laid back and gorgeous.
Barbara Cook did an album of Disney songs that is superb.
Sharlene Spiteri, the British pop star belter, did “A Movie Songbook” – although some songs were included that were not really written for the movies in which they appeared: 1. Xanadu 2. If I Can't Have You 3. God Bless The Child 4. Between The Bars 5. The Sound Of Silence 6. What's New Pussycat? 7. The Windmills Of Your Mind 8. Take Me With You 9. Cat People (Putting Out Fire) 10. Many Rivers To Cross 11. Oh, Pretty Woman 12. This One's From The Heart 13. Take My Breath Away
Robert Goulet did “Hollywood Mon Amour” which is one of my all-time guilty pleasures.
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