Soundtracks — CDs  

A great one from Franz Waxman – a score penned for a lesser-known movie, but done with all the vibrant colors we've always loved in his work! There's a definite jazz current to the music, but there's also some sentimentality mixed in as well – the same sort of balance that you'd find in an Elmer Bernstein score of the time – with a very evocative, very seductive mix of modes that lives extremely well away from the images on the screen! Titles include "Detroit Theater", "Two Up On Me", "Sharon/Sharon Proposes", "The Surprise", "Man & Wife", and "Korea War" – and the CD also features some rare bonus tracks, including the great Sammy Cahn number "Love Is A Career".

Funky Japanese soundtracks galore – served up by the legendary DJ Muro! Muro's a name we can really trust for mixes of rare American funk and soul – but this time around, he turns his talents towards his homeland, and comes up with an incredible blend of rare Japanese grooves pulled from film scores – the kind of cool cuts we've been digging in the Hotwax & Trax series we've stocked from Ultra Vybe – but all filtered down into one sweet little set by Muro! The package has a whopping 38 tracks in all – all funky, and filled with loads of great beats, basslines, keyboards, and guitar – kind of a perfect distillation of the best cuts from a wide range of rare soundtracks – many of which have been reissued on CD over the years, but which are now out of print. The notes and titles are all in Japanese – but take it from us, the grooves are more than enough – and the set features over 70 minutes of rare funk!

Sweet female pop from Japan – most of it recorded in the mid 70s, and pulled together in a package that's similar to some of the soundtrack-related collections that Hotwax & Trax have done for the Ultra Vybe label! The sounds here are a bit smoother than those on the soundtrack set, but equally compelling – a blend of Western pop modes of the time with some uniquely Japanese touches – often set to instrumentation that includes lots of keyboards and some occasional funky rhythms. There's a surprisingly soulful feel to a number of the tunes, one that gets past the Japanese-only lyrics – and speaking of that, the notes and titles are all in Japanese so we can't tell you more – but the music's pretty compelling!

Shirley MacLaine as a geisha? Weirder things have certainly happened on screen – but the film still definitely stands out as one of the odder 60s cinematic moments! Fortunately, Franz Waxman scores the whole thing with enough of a serious air to offset the silliness – and actually, his soundtrack here almost stands perfectly well enough on its own – even without the story on the screen! There's a nice mix of sprightly and exotic to the music – although Waxman often gives things enough of a blue tinge to keep the score away from any comedy cliches, too – a surprisingly great balance that really makes the whole thing a delight throughout. Titles include "Goodbye Lover", "Arrival In Tokyo", "Koto Theme", "Call Me Paul", "Lucy's Arrival", and "One Fine Day". Also features a few bonus tracks too!

Some of the grooviest work so far in the excellent Hotwax Trax series of soundtrack reissues from Japan – very cool grooves that go way past the "blues" you might expect from the title! There's a really badass feel to the record – lots of heavy drums, hip horns, and some cool guitar bits too – mixed with occasional touches of eastern instrumentation, and some mellower bossa-styled moments too – in ways that easily match the charm of American exploitation soundtracks from the early 70s, but with a slightly more exotic feel! We're only slightly bummed that there's no information in English – which we'd appreciate to help us understand the music a bit more – yet we're also totally digging the CD even without the help of that information, just because it's so darn groovy!