Ron, I did actually take note with your first comment. Best of all, All Fall Down is paired with The Outrage, so it's an FSM 2 in 1 deal. In STE-REO.
You're probably thinking something along the lines of - if one were to ask North himself which score, out of all of them to go for, these two would probably have a higher chance of a thumbs-up.
If you ignore the filmic connections with Dragonslayer, what you get is an uncompromising work of modernity, while at the same time realizing it came from he who penned the specific titles you pointed out. Compromises in collector choice of material don't come any tougher.
The initial post in this thread listed all the traditional titles by North the originator has or had and was asking for recommendations of something he hasn't heard.
I find "All Fall Down" one of the best things North has done and not typical of North. I don't know how North, himself, felt about it. It's a more fleshed out score than the one he did for "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf", and yet it's similar in tone and style. It is interesting to me that you find it has something in common with "Dragonslayer".
I've tried to get folks interested in "All Fall Down" over the years since it's release on CD, but it just never seems anyone goes for it.
I was actually trying to suggest All Fall Down/The Outrage is undoubtedly stylistically quite removed from Dragonslayer and that they are at either end of the North spectrum, if you like.
Even more challenging than Dragonslayer is Journey Into Fear. It is the most kaleidoscopic North I know of.
Basically, if you want to experience everything from lyricism to intense rope burn from the one composer, then all these titles could do the job.
I especially love Streetcar and Hot Spell. He seems to really excel with steamy/southern/summer material. Should I seek out "Sound and the Fury" or "Long Hot Summer?"
Yes, I think you should search for (what I call) the William Faulkner trilogy by Alex North.
1) The Long Hot Summer was initially released on Roulette records in 1958. Much later, Varese Sarabande issued a Club CD on this but with the track selections in a different order than the LP plus cues which were never on vinyl. Both are very good albums. Don't know if you can locate the Roulette LP for a cheap price (I paid, around 1990, much more than $20 for a used copy of this LP). The Varese disc was in its catalogue for a long while but it has finally sold out. Good luck tracing either of these albums.
2) The Sound And The Fury is probably the cheapest one you can get. The Decca LP seems to circulate with regularity and was never considered as one of the rare LPs. The Varese Sarabande CD on this title is a straight reissue of the LP contents.
3) Sanctuary is my personal favorite of these 3. Sanctuary appears as the 2nd program on the Varese CD containing Long Hot Summer. If you like the bluesy and sordid aspects of Hot Spell, then you should love Sanctuary for much the same reasons.
If you love Streetcar Named Desire, then you should certainly check out Seddok on the Digitmovies CD. This is the best Alex North score than Alex North never wrote!
If you love Streetcar Named Desire, then you should certainly check out Seddok on the Digitmovies CD. This is the best Alex North score than Alex North never wrote!
Loves me some Armando! Italian film scores are at the center of my musical universe!
Somewhere I think North cited the low-key, bluesy MEMBER OF THE WEDDING as his own personal favorite score. Yet it gets absolutely no love around here.
Somewhere I think North cited the low-key, bluesy MEMBER OF THE WEDDING as his own personal favorite score. Yet it gets absolutely no love around here.
Well, there's no soundtrack album (just two tracks on a compilation), the film isn't available on DVD in the USA and doesn't seem to be available for streaming… not an easy score to appreciate!
