Richard wrote:
> I can't wait to see what others suggest.
And I answer: the contents of my latest CD compilation, the
tracks of which are below:
1. It's A Lonesome Old Town - Creed Taylor Orchestra 2.
Dragnet - Buddy Morrow Orchestra 3. Three Time Blueser (from
"Take Five") - Elmer Bernstein 4. Lonely Beat (from "M
Squad") - Stanley Wilson Orchestra 5. Blue Night On the Strip
(from "77 Sunset Strip) - Warren Barker Orchestra 6. Blue
Silhouette - Chris Connor 7. Blond Bombshell - Enoch Light
Orchestra 8. Mike Hammer Story - Stan Purdy Orchestra 9.
Sing-Sing Blues - Skip Martin Orchestra 10. Speakeasy Blues
(from "The Untouchables") - Nelson Riddle 11. Pete Kelly's
Blues (from the TV soundtrack) - Dick Cathcart Orchestra 12.
Velda - Stan Purdy Orchestra 13. Four Walls and One Dirty
Window Blues - Anita Ellis 14. Blue Satin (from "Mr. Lucky")
- Henry Mancini 15. Pink Lady - Buddy Morrow Orchestra 16.
Richard Diamond - Skip Martin Video All-Stars 17. This Is the
Naked City - Buddy Morrow Orchestra 18. Lonleyville - Creed
Taylor Orchestra 19. San Francisco Blues (from "The Line Up")
- Buddy Morrow Orchestra 20. Peter Gunn - Living Strings 21.
Lonesome - Henry Mancini 22. Lujon - Henry Mancini 23. I Wish
You Love - Keely Smith
Many of these are obvious choices--tracks from soundtrack
albums for example, or other versions of those songs. I'd
like to note a couple of tracks for RARA-AVIANS because their
literary connections--and to bring things back on topic.
Track 13, "Four Walls and One Dirty Window Blues" by Anita
Ellis is from the late 50s LP "I Wonder What Became Of Me,"
an early experiment in the "concept album" genre. The songs
are sung in the persona of an alienated, depressed woman who
is recovering from a love affair; there are short narrations
linking the songs--which were written by Davis Grubb. Tracks
8 & 12 are from a 1953 10" EP called "Mickey Spillane's
Mike Hammer;" the first side (from which these tracks are
taken) are sort of musical pictures of Mike Hammer and his
world. The second side is an amazing little skit set to
music, a sort of dialogue between Hammer & a woman (not
Velda) with typically overheated Spillane prose. Best of all,
Spillane himself acts the part of Hammer, years before he did
it on screen.
Interested in taking a look at what some of these old LPs
look like? Here's a link to give you an idea: http://kanu.ku.edu/retro/gallery/crime/gallery(crime).htm
Always spinnin' them tunes--
Jim Stephenson
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