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A lost treasure from the legendary Ennio Morricone – a soundtrack written for a crime film starring Charles Bronson & Telly Savalas, and handled with all the spare subtlety of his best work! Bruno Nicolai's directing the orchestra on this one – and isolated instruments include electric harpsichord and woodwinds that drift along nicely in the tunes – mixed with some harder arrangements on a few of the album's more driving cuts. Morricone strikes a great balance here – occasionally hitting sweet notes, but then often falling into these dark depths that perfectly fit the bleak world of the film. Tracks include the lovely slow groover "Riassunto", plus the tracks "Rito Finale", "Svolta Definitiva", "Dolcemente Acre", "Norme Con Ironie", "Citta Violenta", and "Mille Volte Un Grido". CD a whopping 21 tracks in all!

A sweet early western soundtrack from Ennio Morricone – scored with a bit more drama in later years, but already showing a magical sense of space and sound! The record begins with the excellent "A Gringo Like Me" – a totally catchy English language vocal number sung by Peter Tevis, and reprised later by Daicky Jones – then rolls into an all-instrumental batch of tracks that moves between a few period pieces and some other hipper styles – including a bit of jazz at times that feels a lot more crime than western! Reissue features a total of 20 tracks in all – including two versions of "A Gringo Like Me".

A killer soundtrack from Ennio Morricone – just the sort of work for which he's remembered so strongly today! Some of the best non-western Morricone elements are in place here – spacious scorings, wordless vocals, and odd twists and turns on instruments that are often hard to determine! Darker sounds jangle together with lighter ones beautifully – and a few cuts feature great vocals from I Cantori Moderni, sometimes quite spooky, sometimes a bit more mod. The title track has a great romping rhythm and echoey fuzz guitar – titles include "Escalation", "Dies Irae Psichedelico", "Collage No 1", "Funerale Nero", "Matrimonio", and "Secondo Rito". CD features new stereo remastering, and a total of 17 tracks in all – much better than the previous version!

A score that's arguably much better than the movie it was written for – a great Ennio Morricone moment for a 70s thriller that starred Rock Hudson! Morricone's a bit restrained, but in a way that's pretty nice – making for some lighter orchestral numbers that offset the darker mood of the film in a good way – that shift of music that often makes the soundtrack almost feel like a separate movie going on at the same time as the images on the screen! Titles include "Guns In The Tunnel", "Looking For A Partisan Doctor", "Bianca & Turner", "Research In The Wood", "Boy & German Officer Fighting", "Death Of A Boy", and "Blowing The Dam".

A spooky early score from Ennio Morricone – recorded in the mid 60s, but with some of the best dark touches of his 70s work! I Pugni In Tasca has a very spare sound – weird wordless vocals on the main title track, then really moody music that almost lies beyond the frontiers of hearing at some points – stepping slowly out of the darkness with muted horns, weird-tuned keyboards, and other instrumental elements that are hard to pick out, and which really keep things at an unsettling level throughout. Titles include "Subdolo", "Stranissimi Giochi", "Chiuso Nel Bagno", "I Pugni In Tasca", and "Non E Un Dramma". The CD also features 2 tracks from La Cina E Vicina – "Ninna Nanna 1968" and "La Cina E Vicina" – both dark orchestral tunes that really fit the feel of the rest of the work on the collection!

A cool change from the usual from Ennio Morricone – a later soundtrack, and one that features some surprisingly jazzy tracks! Part of the set features the more standard Morricone orchestrations you might expect – some really great tracks that have offbeat larger arrangements that are nicely unsettling, but in a completely charming way. But other tracks are even more striking – and feature performances by the trio of pianist Enrico Pierannunzi – working here at his most fluid and vibrant, with a style that's even more evocative than most of his standard albums! A few numbers have a groove we've never heard from Enrico, and some of the orchestral tracks are mighty groovy too – very different than what you might expect from the 1980 date of the film. Titles include "Cinque Quarti", "Double Face", "Citta Viva", "Madre Assente", "Stranamente Un Giorno", and "Per Enrico Riccardo E Roberto". CD also features 8 bonus tracks too!

A great Morricone soundtrack for a Jean-Paul Belmondo thriller – a score that starts out spare and brooding, then builds nicely as things move on – with lots of cool bottom-end sounds that make the whole thing really move up from the depths! Some tunes echo the sweeter side of Morricone, while others are a bit more brooding – and instrumentation includes some of the same offbeat piano you'd hear in The Burglars, plus light guitar, weird-tuned horns, and other nice bits that are sometimes abstracted beyond recognition! Titles include "Paura Sulla Citta", "Avvertire La Polizia", "La Scorta", "Le Tellier E Helen", and "Maichini". A tremendous package – with 22 tracks in all, and almost 75 minutes of music!

A heavenly soundtrack from Ennio Morricone – written for a film set in a convent, and scored with some really unique touches! Given the spiritual nature of the film, Morricone uses this spooky chorus – singing in a staccato style at first, but then opening up in a mode that's almost a Latinized version of the Swingle Singers! The album's got a fantastic track called "Veni Sancte Spiritus" that starts out slow and spooky, then gets funky with the chorus over the top – but other tracks have a similar juxtaposition too, bringing together darkly spiritual elements with some really redemptive touches – and some very weird funky moments! Titles include "Stabat Mater", "Dies Irae", "Lauda Sion", "Veni Sancte Spiritus", and "Victima Paschali Laudes".

One of Ennio Morricone's first groundbreaking scores for the western – a brilliant batch of tunes composed for The Big Gundown, handled in a way that mixed the typical western guitar-based themes with some of the maestro's other compulsions – like wordless vocals and isolated instrumentation amidst lush orchestral backdrops! There's barely any "spaghetti" on the plate of this one – as the sound is often quite lean and very clean – a real change from some of the more dramatic, romantic styles that were being used in American westerns. Titles include "La Corrida", "La Vedova", "La Resa Dei Conti", "Dopo La Condanna", "Rune Man Run", "Primo Deserta", "Corri Uomo Corri" and many more. 25 tracks on this great CD editon from GDM/

A groovy giallo score from Ennio Morricone – done for director Paolo Cavera's La Tarantola Dal Ventre Nero, aka Black Belly Of The Tarantula – full of spare, dissonant tension and hauntingly effective moodiness! The tunes Morricone did for the film are a perfect example of his haunting style of mixing keyboards, spare instrumentation, and breathy wordless female vocals, courtesy Edda Dell'Orso – and we'd rank this one right up there with classics like La Donna Invisible! Titles include "Coiffeur Pour Dames", "La Tarantola Dal Ventre Nero", "L'Abbraccio Caldo Della Tarantola", "Nell'Ultima Stanza", "Col Cuore In Gola", "Spirale Misteriosa", "Lugebre", "Ventre Nero", "Ragnatela" and more.

Sublime bossa tunes by the legendary Ennio Morricone – packaged in a hardcover book with beautiful color images from the films! The set was put together by the folks at Cinedelic Records, and goes for only the best of the best of the groovy side of Morricone's genius – those gently floating tunes that stand out as some of his best-remembered soundtrack work of the 60s and 70s – many of which have had a lasting effect upon current scenes in Italy, Japan, and elsewhere! And even though the music is great, the book is almost more amazing – done as a hardcover with a few pages on each film – showing a vintage poster for the movie, a scene or two, and other rare images – plus a dates and information for the films and soundtrack records! The whole thing's totally great, and a must-have for any Morricone collection – with a total of 16 tracks on the CD that include "Al Convento", "Walzer Bossa Nova", "Belinda May", "Alla Serenita", "Una Voce Allo Specchio", "Can Can Delle Filly", "Argomenti", "Un Salotto Borghese", "Matto Caldo Soldi Morto Girotondo", "Sestriere", and "Scherzo Un Po Triste".

One of the coolest collections of work by Ennio Morricone we've ever seen – a whopping 25 tracks pulled from some of his lesser-known soundtracks, all awash in inventive arrangements, odd instrumentation, and super-trippy production touches! The overall vibe here is slow, mellow, and spacious – but that doesn't mean that the work is sleepy at all – because as with Morricone at his creative best, there's a genius sense of understatement here – so much so that a simple note on an oboe, or a piano key pressed, can come off with a striking sound that simply leaves us breathless! CD features work from the soundtracks to Bluebeard (Barbablu), Burn, Crescente E Moltiplicatevi, La Cosa Buffa, Maddalena, and a few others of the Cinevox catalog – and titles include "Knowing The Ins & Outs", "Ballabile No 4",j "Samba In Tribunale", "Organo Allegro", "Zherzi A Parte", "Quemada Secondo", "Preludio Alla Prima Moglie", "Qui Ci Scappa Il Morto", "L'Aliante", and "Pazzia In Cielo".

A very dark little score by Ennio Morricone – written for an obscure 1969 period film that starred Marlon Brando (and a very disheveled Brando at that!) – filled with cool tunes that mix the Morricone western mode with some haunting elements that almost have a spiritual approach! Many numbers have these moody, airy notes floating through – on organ on some of the best cuts – and even the overall orchestrations tend to hang in the air, but with a lightness that's often different than the usual drama you'd find in such a score. CD features 31 tracks in all – with some vocals by I Cantori Moderni – on titles that include "Qaueimada", "Abolicao", "Jose Dolores", "Verso Il Futuro", and "Preparazione".

A lost western score from Ennio Morricone – directed with some nice musical flourishes by the great Bruno Nicolai! The work's got the feel of some of Morricone's more famous spaghetti western scores – with some great moody passages that hint at the offbeat instrumentation of his horror work, coupled with more driving action-related tunes that have a more driving feel overall – and together, these tunes weave a very visual tapestry of sound – possibly even more compelling than the actual film! Titles include "Viva La Revolucion", "Tepepa E Price", "A Meta Strada", "Una Povera Casa", "Consegna Delle Armi", and "Tradimento Secondo". New CD version features a whopping 28 tracks in all – over 70 minutes of music!

Quite different than the usual soundtrack reissue of work from Ennio Morricone – in that the album actually features two long compositions – each from a different movie! The set begins with the beautiful "Requiem Per Un Destino" – a large suite for orchestra and chorus penned for the 1966 film Un Uomo A Meta – and done in a way that's very slow-building and dramatic – sounds that start out on the edges of darkness, then only increase their tension as the music moves on! Next is "Venuta Dal Mare", from the film Ecce Homo I Sopravvissuti – a really cool work for a small combo that features vibes, flute, harp, and percussion – plus wonderfully moody vocals from Edda Ell'Orso! Each track is quite long – and together, they offer up even more moving Morricone music than usual.

Think that Ennio Morricone only made music for soundtracks? Guess again – because this groovy little set features a whole host of tracks that the maestro recorded with singers in the early 60s – great postwar pop numbers that already show his creative touch on the charts! Most of the music here is a bit more straightforward than Morricone's later soundtrack material, but still pretty darn sublime – Italian vocals, cool instrumentation, and lots of sweet production techniques that bring in moody, echoey, and mellow touches that definitely let you know you're in the hands of Ennio. Titles include "Corri Corri" by Gianni Morandi, "La Tua Stagione" by Tony Del Mnaco, "Queelo Che Conta" by La Cuccagna, "Faccio Finta Di Dormire" by Edoardo Vianello, "Se Fatto Tardi" by Helen Merrill, "La Donna Che Vale" by Alberto Lionello, "Arianna" by Nora Orlandi, and "Perdono" by Catherine Spaak.

Classic songs from Ennio Morricone – reworked in a lush orchestral format – and accompanied by great vocals from Romina Arena! Romina's a younger singer, but has the range that made Morricone's music with Edda Dell'Orso so wonderful back in the day – and unlike other re-recordings of Morricone work, which often focuses on longer symphonic passages, this album has a much stronger focus on the vocalist – and leans nicely towards themes which fit that approach the best. Titles include "What Can I Do", "Ti Ho Amato", "Return To Me", "Le Vent Et Le Cri", "E Un Attimo", "Requiem Of Love", "Il Tempo Sa", "Gioco D'Amore", "Saying Goodbye", and "Ritornerai Dolce Amore".

A dark and extremely avant garde soundtrack from Morricone! The score is performed by the Gruppo Improvvisazione Nuova Consonanza – and it's a mix of free improve-type playing with other styles that are a bit more straight ahead jazz – a really compelling mix that's plenty darn striking right from the start! Musical elements include electric guitar, percussion, trumpet, violin, and lots of weird effects and electronic bits. The whole thing's incredibly spooky – one of the most turgid scores we've ever heard from the pen of Morricone – and it's packaged with a passle of unreleased bonus tracks, for a total of 21 cuts in all – way more than the any previous versions of the score! Titles include "Sequita", "Evaporazione", "Dal Sogno E Ritorno", "Folle Folle", and "Notte E Misteri".

An incredible soundtrack from Morricone's best period ever! The score has that totally sublime Morricone quality that you'll find on on a small handful of his best works – like La Donna Invible, Photo Prohibite, Le Casse, and Metti Una Sera A Cena – and it's filled with amazingly precise orchestral washes of sound, pierced by smaller solo instruments, tuned with strangely angular qualities. If you've ever wondered why people think Morricone's one of the 20th century's best composers – this is the kind of LP that will open your mind. It's incredibly complex, yet never too academic – and always extremely pleasant and lovely to listen to! We love this one to death and it's an honor to have it in stock! Titles include "L'Assoluto Naturale", "Sempre Piu Verita", "E Facile", "Il Profumo Della Tua Pelle", and "Sembaravi Desiderare".

A fantastically beautiful record – easily one of Ennio Morricone's dreamiest scores of the 70s! Although the film itself is a western, Morricone's soundtrack is far different than usual – with hardly any traditional western themes at all, and mostly just music that's in that mellow, floating, dream-like style that's been so heavily represented in recent years by the Mondo Morricone series! Strange voices interweave with plucked instrumental passages, all underpinned by warm haunting washes of sound that carry the music on beautifully airy waves! Titles include "Giu La Testa", "Amore", "Mesa Verde", "Rivoluzione Contro", "Dopop L'Esplosione", "Scherzi A Parte", and "Invenzione Per John". Expanded 2CD version features a whopping 15 bonus tracks that are alternates from the film – all of them dreamy, and all of them wonderful!

Our favorite side of the genius of Ennio Morricone – and a really wonderful collection that completely illustrates why we love Morricone so much! In the mainstream world, Morricone's best known for his famous scores for spaghetti westerns and horror films – both of which have a trademark sound that's pretty well known to audiences at large. But during the same period he was penning soundtracks for those genres, Morricone was also working in a style that was even more completely his own – a gentle, mellow, easy-grooving mode that was inspired by jazz, bossa nova, and easy instrumentation – yet which emerged with qualities that were completely unique, and which still stand today as some of the most inventive work of its generation! There's a simple, economical approach here that's really mindblowing – rhythms that flow slowly like fog escaping from a riverbank, notes that fall in slight spare patterns like drops of rain from a leaf after a storm, and gently cascading waves of sound that float and shimmer in the mix – rising as carefully as the sun to give the music a wonderfully redemptive spirit. The tracks on the set are carefully chosen from films that include Scusi Faciamo L'Amore, Verushka, La Donna Invisible, Le Foto Proibite, and Il Gatto A Nove Code – and we can honestly say that the set is a perfect introduction to the Morricone that we love more than anyone else!

One of those wonderful Ennio Morricone moments where a little does a lot – where mellow moves us the most – and where simple, spare sounds can have a tremendous amount of power! The film's a creepy one (a young girl lets a hunted killer into her family's house, who then makes love to her, and is killed by her, as is her mother!) – but Morricone's soundtrack has a great way of mixing the optimistic with the offbeat – using these elegant little piano lines over gently lilting strings, and bringing in some occasional voice from Edda Dell'Orso, but used in ways that are even more spare than usual! The result is a set of variations on the film's main melody – swelling, dipping, and turning in ways that change up nicely, but without ever losing the core energy of the theme. Completely beautiful – and with titles that include "Perche", "E Domani", "Perche Simona", "La Voliera", "Il Giardino", and "La Villa".

Some of our favorite soundtracks by Ennio Morricone – 8 different scores originally issued by the Cinevox label – packaged here as a cool little set of CDs that come in LP-styled covers! The set only features 4 CDs, but each disc features two different film scores – an archetypal range of Morricone modes – with some sweet bossa groovers, some very weird atonal horror moments, and some beautiful action work that balances the two beautifully – creating the sort of tension that made Morricone greater than just about any other film composer at the time! Original album art for each record is offered on one side of the CD sleeve – and the set features the albums Metti Una Sera A Cena, Forza G, L'Assoluto Naturale, Anche Se Volessi Lavorare Che Faccio, L'Uccello Dalle Piume Di Cristallo, Quattro Mosche Di Velutto Grigio, Il Gatto, and Il Giocattolo – plus a booklet of notes too!

Wonderful work from Ennio Morricone – an obscure soundtrack that we somehow missed for years and years – even though we've always been huge fans of his music! There's a quirky, offbeat feel to the record at the start – some playful elements that bounce along with a slight touch of whimsy, but which are also offset by some more languid, mellow Morricone moments too – those slow-moving sexy sounds that can really make some of his best ones sparkle! The story features a violinist, and there's a bit of lead violin at points – but it's the compressed orchestrations that we dig the most. Titles include "Grande Overture", "Adagio Primo", "Largo", "Adagio Secondo", and "Allegretto" – and the CD features loads of bonus tracks too!

An amazing record – one that stands as one of Chico Buarque's greatest from the 70s! The set was recorded in Italy in 1970 – and features Chico singing lead vocals over backings handled by Ennio Morricone – all in a style that's a perfect blend of MPB with the best elements of the Italian scene of the time! The songs are all originals written by Chico – and have a light and dreamy samba/bossa feel, one that's inflected by the off-beat orchestral style of Morricone, and supported by vocals from I Cantori Moderni. The feel is halfway between Chico's work on RGE and some of the dreamier Morricone soundtracks of the time – and it's a wonderful thing to have a strong male lead vocal over backings from Morricone – a really rare thing for the time, with results that are tremendous. Titles include "Rotativa", "Samba E Amore", "Nicanor", "Tu Sei Una Di Noi", "In Te", "Ed Ora Dico Sul Serio", and "Quete E Quelle".

A really amazing soundtrack from Ennio Morricone – presented here with the full range of tracks for the first time ever! The music uses some wonderful vocals – sung in a style that's pop, but very creepy too – that way that Morricone vocals can have of being almost chant-like, and sort of satanic! Biance Di Renata Cortiglioni is the singer, and she's much more word-based than Edda Dell'Orso – and it appears that her vocals are overdubbed to create this cool sort of chorus effect – one that only makes the whole thing sound even creepier! In addition to the snapping rhythms of the vocal tunes, there's also some nice sprightly elements on the instrumental cuts too – not upbeat or funky, but an offbeat way that's got a jaunty snare for propulsion. Titles include "Fratello Biondo", "Guerra E Pace Polle E Brace", "Amore Col Cuore", and "Grazie Zia". 14 tracks – with images from the film too.

One of those wonderful Ennio Morricone moments where a little does a lot – where mellow moves us the most – and where simple, spare sounds can have a tremendous amount of power! The film's a creepy one (a young girl lets a hunted killer into her family's house, who then makes love to her, and is killed by her, as is her mother!) – but Morricone's soundtrack has a great way of mixing the optimistic with the offbeat – using these elegant little piano lines over gently lilting strings, and bringing in some occasional voice from Edda Dell'Orso, but used in ways that are even more spare than usual! The result is a set of variations on the film's main melody – swelling, dipping, and turning in ways that change up nicely, but without ever losing the core energy of the theme. Completely beautiful – and with titles that include "Perche", "E Domani", "Perche Simona", "La Voliera", "Il Giardino", and "La Villa".

A rare Ennio Morricone soundtrack from the late 70s – recorded at a time when the maestro was moving onto bigger fame in the US, yet could still create a great old school score when he wanted! The style here is nice and dark – lots of spare, isolated sounds – especially off-tuned piano – used in ways that recall some of the best dramatic Morricone moments of the earlier part of the decade – with all the sharp sounds and stark styles that might imply! A few occasional themes echo the political tone of the film, but the whole thing's still a Morricone masterpiece all the way through – with titles that include "Canto Basco", "Atto Di Dolore", "Notte Oscura Notte Chiara", "Antefatto E Preparazione", "Flashback", and "Camioncino Misterioso". CD also features 8 more bonus tracks – and great remastering too!

A killer Morricone soundtrack from the late 60s – filled with sweet tunes and moodier numbers – all served up with cool orchestrations, and some sweet work on electric harpsichord too! The score's lesser-known than some of the maestro's best from the time – but is equally great, and one we're very happy to discover – caught at a mode that still has Morricone using some of his best mod elements from the 60s, yet also beginning to explore the darker sounds that would unfurl even more strongly in the 70s! Bruno Nicolai conducts the group, and the set features a few great vocal moments from I Cantori Moderni – on titles that include "Scherzo Da Guerra", "Scherzo Da Baffone", "Filastrocca Per Cretini", and "Lo Sai Che Cosa Facevano Le Donne A Stalin".

Early darkness from Ennio Morricone – an obscure mid 60s action thriller that combines boldly driving numbers with other tunes that slip into some of the spareness of his work for westerns! The work here is as mod and cool as you might guess from the cover – a bit more in a conventional 60s soundtrack mode, but still touches with great inflections on the woodwinds, and undercut by plenty of great lines on electric bass, guitar, and organ – all used sparingly but really effectively against the larger orchestrations! Tracks are often short, but really evocative – given a nice punch by Bruno Nicolai, who conducted the orchestra for the recording. A few tunes feature vocals by I Cantori Moderni – and titles include "Una Stanza Vuota", "Un Uomo Solo", "Colpo Alla Gioielleria", "La Prima Vittima", "Sul Lago Di Lugano", and "Una Tromba A Dallas". This fab reissue is filled with bonus tracks too – a total of 26 numbers in all!

Ennio Morricone's beautiful score to one of the beautifully shot films of the 70s, or all time, really – Terrence Malick's legendary Days Of Heaven – the original 1978 soundtrack album and Morricone's cues programmed separately on one disc plus a bonus disc of extended score material and more bonus tracks! It's gorgeous stuff, from Morricone's haunting "Main Theme" and his more classically enthralling sounds, as well as the rootsy folk guitar by Leo Kottke and and equally swampy fiddle dance number by Doug Kershaw. It's all newly remastered on this great 2CD set from Film Score Classics. Nearly 2 1/2 hours of music on 2CDs: "Harvest", "Threshing", Kottke's "Enerlin", Kershaw's "Swamp Dance", "The Return", "The Chase", "The Fire", "Days Of Heaven" and many more.

A later score from Ennio Morricone, but done for a lower-budget film than most of his other productions from around this time – which almost seems to have the maestro returning to some of his best crime styles of the 70s! Instrumentation is slightly more modern – a different touch on the keyboards, or production of the other live instruments – but the sense of pacing and phrasing is all Morricone all the way through, and things especially warm up as the album gets going. Titles include "Diapositive Compromettenti", "Il Vecchio Principe", "Dimenticare Palero", "I Gelsomini", and "Ritornare A Palermo".

A lovely later score from Ennio Morricone – done for a lesser-known TV film, but with a sense of majesty and greatness that really rivals his classics! Edda Dell'Orso gets plenty of chance to sing here – in those moody, wordless styles she does so well – and the set also features great solo work from Oscar Valdambrini – who blows smooth flugelhorn lines that arch out beautifully over the larger orchestrations – which themselves have that gently-stepping way of folding the strings together that only Morricone can do this well! A gem throughout – with tracks that include "The Endless Game", "Anif", "The Game Goes On", "Sylvia's Game", "Just A Game", and "Summer Solitude".

The Voice is certainly the most beautiful sound in the world here – thanks to the vocals of the amazing Edda Dell'Orso! Edda's was THE voice heard in virtually all the best Italian soundtracks of the late 60s/early 70s era – that floating, dreamy singer who graced countless Morricone film scores, and also appeared on a fair bit of work by other composers too! And although Edda could also sing with some darker, sharper edges, the work here is all from the more beautiful side of the sound spectrum – and focuses on Dell'Orso's haunting wordless vocals, plus a few lyrical numbers – set amidst a backdrop of bossa rhythms, light instrumentation, and slightly groovy rhythms. The package features a whopping 21 tracks in all – with Edda's vocals on tunes that include "Con O Senzo Sole" and "Scacco All Regina" by Piero Piccioni, "Love Is A Woman" and "Let's Find Out" by Armando Trovajoli, "El Primo Baso" and "Delirio Secondo" by Ennio Morricone, "Eva's Beguine" by Roberto Pregadio, "Messalina Theme" by Giacomo Dell'Orso, and "Angelo E Giuditta" by Armando Trovajoli.

An expanded version of this classic – with 5 more bonus tracks, 4 of which were arranged by Ennio Morricone! The core album is incredible 70s work from the lovely Astrud Gilberto – a rare effort for the CTI label that has her teaming up with arranger Eumir Deodato and saxophonist Stanley Turrentine – all in a groove that's totally different than most of her earlier work! Astrud's breathy vocals are still wonderfully intact – but they're given a more spacious approach in the arrangements – strings mixes with rolling basslines, soaring keyboards, and stone cold tenor from Stanley – in a groove that's simply wonderful, and which takes off in a whole new direction than before! Other players include Airto, Sivuca, Hubert Laws, and Dom Um Romao – and tracks include classic versions of "Ponteio", "Vera Cruz", and "Zazueira" that are all some of the most grooving takes on the tunes ever – plus "Historia De Amor", "Where There's A Heartache", "Brazilian Tapestry", and "Wanting Things". Bonus tracks include "If Not For You", "Acercendome A Ti", "Argomenti", "En Tu Piel", and "Un Donna Che Ti Ama".

A pair of 60s albums from one of the more dynamic bandleaders at RCA! Something Special For Movie Lovers has Marty Gold taking on a host of movie themes from the early 60s – numbers by Ennio Morricone, Henry Mancini, Johnny Mandel, and others – all given a twist that's somewhere in the territory of some of Marty's earlier hi-fi material, but which also respects the sensitivity of the original soundtracks as well. There's some inventive arrangements on the set – just what we'd expect from Gold – and titles include "Sylvia", "Goldfinger", "Funny World", "Polly's Song", "A Heart Must Learn To Cry", and "Emily". Suddenly It's Springtime features lush strings mixed with occasionally dynamic touches – definitely one of the mellower albums that Marty Gold ever cut, but a set that's still got a wonderful sonic range overall! Titles include "The Story Of My Love", "Portrait Of Jennie", "I Wish You Love", "Don't Take Your Love From Me", "Smile", and "Suddenly It's Springtime".

One of the most obscure chapters in the career of Ennio Morricone – important avant garde work recorded in the mid 60s, just at a point when he was beginning to rise in soundtrack fame! The ensemble is a key Italian modernist group featuring Morricone, Giovanni Piazza, Mario Bertoncini, Egisto Macchi, Gualtiero Branch, Jesus Villa Rojo, and Francesco Evangelisti – mostly classically-trained musicians, but working here in a set of improvisations that are extremely spare, and which are very much at the lower end of the sound spectrum. Many of the sounds on the set are right at the frontiers of hearing – and others, while more present, disappear as quickly as they emerge – further enforcing the mystery and mood of the record. And while the overall style is quite different than Morricone's soundtrack work, the group was clearly a key testing ground for his ideas of sound and space that emerged later. Titles include "Soup", "Scratch", "Settimino", and "Eflot".

A classic 70s outing from The Gruppo Di Improvisazione – historically important Italian avant collective, similar to AMM or MEV – with a really groundbreaking approach to their sound! We say "sound" here instead of "music" – because the album's filled with dark textures and subtle instrumental touches – more sonic than melodic at most moments, and used in really stark, spare ways. Ennio Morricone's featured on some bracing trumpet lines – and other members include Egisto Macchi on percussion, and Giancarlo Schiaffini on trombone. Titles include "Schema 1, 2, 3" and "Ommagio A Giancinto Scelsi".

A groovy little Italian soundtrack – straight in some parts, but very nice in others! There's some sweet tunes that features wordless female vocals – in the mode of work by Armando Trovajoli or Ennio Morricone from the time – and there's other tunes that have a dancing groovy style that are right in the Easy Tempo mode. The tracks are very short, but groove around nicely – and really fit the feel you might expect from a title like The Wild Eye! Titles include "Bali Street", "The Sultan", "Don't Go Away", "The Kiss", "Two Lovers", "Love Comes Back", "Goodbye", and "Golden Age".

A gothic horror soundtrack with a nice undercurrent of adventure – scored by Franco Micalizzi with some surprisingly warm touches at times – that mode of starting out sweet, then going dark – a bit like Ennio Morricone on some of his best similar scores from the time! Woodwinds and strings are often used to lure you in with a sense of warmth, which then gets a bit colder and sharper as the score moves on – especially when some more offbeat notes pop out from around the corner, and really create a nice sense of tension. One of the more obscure Micalizzi moments from the time – and indeed, a film that's hardly ever been seen in later years too – brought back to CD with great sound throughout! Titles include "The Rising Truth", "The Church Choir", "Helpful Buffoon", "One Following", "Tyranny & Fury", "Tema Di Francoise", "Deadly Pool", and "Mamuia".

The "chorus" in the title is appropriate – as there's a flurry of wordless vocals in the mix of this one! The record feels a bit like some of Ennio Morricone's more vocal-oriented soundtracks from the early 70s – with breezy voices drifting over slightly funky arrangements, working together in a mix of moods and styles that could have only come from the pen of the godlike Janko Nilovic! Titles include "Boom Bang", "Ilion", "One Together", "Third Power", "Mrs Brown", "Down Down", and "Magical World".

Dreamy genius from Piero Piccioni – one of our favorite Italian composers ever! This set does for Piccioni what the Mondo Morricone sets did for Ennio – in that it pulls together an assortment of his best tracks from late 60s and early 70s soundtracks – with a focus on the loveliest work of the period! Bossa rhythms meet bubbling organ, tinkling piano, floating voices, and other soft and pillowy elements – creating tunes that have a groove, but which are also topped off by lots of sweet easy touches. The collection features 20 tracks in all – and honestly, if you'd asked us to pick our favorites by Piero, we'd hardly have done a better job ourselves! Titles include "Cera Una Volta-Finale", "Capriccio", "Coming To The Point", "Il Dopolotta", "Sycamore Trails", "Nolan Theme", "Mystery", "Una Colt In Mano Al Diavolo", "Easy Dreamer", and "Amore In Fiore".

A cool contemporary combo, but one who draw heavily from the sound of Italian film scores of the 70s – all with an approach that easily makes this album a perfect partner for any giallo soundtracks you might love! Instrumentation is nice and dark – a cool mix of strings and keyboards, with some slight and subtle rhythms – all used together in ways that are never too jamming, and which really preserve a strong sense of tension throughout – but also offer up some melodic moments as a respite, too – that balance between darkness and light you'd find in the best film scores by Ennio Morricone! The overall presentation is wonderful – truly classic, and worthy of the great cover as well – and titles include "Sotto Il Sole", "Gli Occhi Della Dolcezza", "Uccelare", "Canto Del Cigno", "Agente D'Oriente", and "Senza Calore".

Groovy tunes with a heavy soundtrack bounce – all great numbers lifted from older Italian scores, plus a few other tunes by recent Italian groups who have a definite retro groove! The feel is great – with lots of organ, bouncy drums, and weird little sounds, all humming some hip grooves that sound very very fresh to our ears. Beat, shake, and jerk tunes abound – and many of these numbers are making their first appearance ever on CD, too! Titles include "Laila Laila" by Ennio Morricone, "Gimme Time" by Sante Maria Romitelli, "Psycho Sitar" by Magnetic 4, "I Was A Yeh Yeh Girl" by Doing Time, "I Giovani Tigri" by Piero Piccioni, "Roma Bene" by Luis Bacalov, "Quand Ero Un Bebe" by Vip 2000, "Il Tallone Di Achille" by Franco De Masi, and "Il Divorzio" by Fred Buongusto.

A killer CD – filled with funky tracks all picked by Cinedelic Records, with an ear towards the kinds of drums, basslines, and keyboards that have helped these older Italian soundtrack gems stay alive with a younger funky generation! The disc was formerly part of a more expensive special box, but is now presented here in a more reasonable version with just a focus on the music. CD features a whopping 22 tracks in all – with titles that include "Il Grande Racket" by Guido & Maurizio De Angelis, "Montreal Non Stop" by Luis Bacalov, "Tira A Rezza Oj Piscatore" by Raoul, "Folk & Violence" by Franco Micalizzi, "Sangue Di Sbirro" by Alessandro Alessandroni, "L'Intoccabile Mr Cliff" by Riz Ortolani, "La Polizia Chiede Aiuto" by Stelvio Cipriani, "Preludio" by Osanna, "Gangster Story" by Guido & Maurizio De Angelis, "Inseguimento E Fuga (2)" by Ennio Morricone, and "Kidnap" by Piero Piccioni.

Way more than just a standard collection of soundtrack work – and instead, a great package that really shows how global styles can circulate even more strongly than usual when added to films! The package features a whopping 3 discs in all, with 38 tracks total – divided up into one CD of "classics", famous themes that helped spread new styles to the western world via film scores; one CD of "traditional and world fusions", soundtrack elements that mix both Hollywood and more exotic styles together; and one CD of "contemporary" tracks – really showing the growth in this mode in recent years. Titles include "La Java Bleue" by Frehel, "Zorba's Dance" by Mikis Thedorakis, "Gabriel's Oboe" by Ennio Morricone, "Sheltering Sky" by Ryuichi Sakamoto, "Brush On Silk" by John Williams with Yo Yo Ma, "Convite Para Vida" by Antonio Pinto & Ed Cortez, "Volver" by Estrella Mrente, "Wedding Celebration" by Richard Robbins & Zakhir Hussain, "Mantra Vishnu Shasranaman" by Srivasta Krishna, "Final Movement" by Clint Mansell, "Me & You" by Take It Easy Hospital, and "Les Parents Ne Nous Comprennent Pas" by Linh Dan Pham.

Bernardo Bertolucci in music and pictures – presented here with a 32 page booklet filled with images from his films! The CD offers up a full range of themes from famous Bertolucci movies – and includes "Cha Cha Cha Cantato" by Piero Piccioni, "Vecchia Hollywood" by Ennio Morricone, "Chi Pi Felice Di Me" by Georges Delerue, "Il Conformista" by Augusto Martelli, "Splash" by Ennio Morricone, "Why Did She Choose You" by Gato Barbieri, "Tema Di Ada" by Ennio Morricone, "The Last Emperor" by John Williams, "Little Buddha" by Ryuichi Sakamoto, and "La Tragedia Di Un Nomo Ridiculo" by Ennio Morricone.

An Italian horror extravaganza – a set devoted to the films of Dario Argento, and the music that went with them! The set's a distillation of a previous hardcover edition – and features a nicely-done 32 page booklet filled with gripping images from Argento's classic spooky films of the 70s and early 80s – and the CD features loads of great creepy music, with 16 cuts that include "Placcaggio" and "Ninna Nanna In Blue" by Ennio Morricone, "Profondo Rosso" and "Mad Puppet" by Goblin, "Inferno" by Keith Emerson, "Suspiria" and "Tenebre" by Claudio Simonetti, "Steel Grave" by Steel Grave, "Trauma" by Pino Donaggio, and "Dark Dreams" by Signor Wolf – a tribute track added to the package!

Life! Liberty! Vengeance! A wild and very cool soundtrack for Tarantino's dual Blacksploitation/Spaghetti Western homage Django Unchained – featuring bits from some of our favorite Italian western composers mixed up with classic and contemporary funky soul and hip hop! It's the kind of soundtrack that could only happen for Quentin Tarantino – with rare and hard-to-find compositions by Luis Bacalov, Ennio Morricone, Riz Ortolani and Jerry Goldsmith on one hand – along with a few seemingly antithetical new compositions on the other – including a track penned by star Jamie Foxx for Rick Ross, a James Brown "Payback" remix with a vocal from the 2Pac archive, plus ones by Anthony Hamilton, John Legend and others! Last but not least, it's got some great bits of film dialogue by Jamie Foxx, Christoph Waltz, Samuel L. Jackson and Leonardo DiCaprio. Titles include "Django" by Luis Bacalov, "The Braying Mule" by Ennio Morricone, "Nicaragua" by Jerry Goldsmith with Pat Metheny, "Day Of Anger" by Riz Ortolani, "Unchained (The Payback/Untouchable)" by James Brown with 2Pac, "Who Did That To You?" by John Legend, "100 Black Coffins" by Rick Ross, "Trinity (Titoli)" by Annibale E I Cantori Moderni and many more.

A beautiful tribute to Italian director Mario Monicelli – a book of images, packaged with a CD of music from his films! The images are wonderful – lots of black and white movie stills, mixed with color images of posters too – often in historical chronology with some additional data – so that the book acts as a visual filmography of Monicelli's rich career! The CD is sweet, too – with music from the 50s all the way up through the present – although mostly from the 70s overall – served up in a range of cinematic styles that's as varied as the movies Mario directed. Titles include "Avvolta In Un Boa Giallo" by Nino Rota, "Al Trani" by Carlo Rustichelli, "I Nuovi Mostri" by Armando Trovajoli, "Mia Cara Olympia" by Nicola Piovani, "Viaggio Con Anita" by Ennio Morricone, "Marcia" by Carlo Rustichelli, "Risate Di Gioia" by Lelio Luttazzi, and "Cala A Sera" by Vito Ranucci.

Fuzzy guitar, heavy drums, and some monstrously funky rock tracks – all hand-picked in the same style as the first great Cherrystones volume! The general era for most of these tracks is the 60s – but it's mostly an obscure 60s that goes way beyond the cliches you might know from oldies of the time – into a garage space where tripped-out combos plug away at some really hard-hitting little tunes! Most of the artists on the set were completely new to our ears, and the whole thing was lovingly put together by Gareth Goddard, with some great notes on the individual tunes! Titles include "Sister Sue" by Soul Men, "Neurotic Reaction" by Die Anderen, "Shadow Mann" by Shadow Mann, "Afraid Of Losing You" by Mashmakhan, "Scotch On The Rocks" by The Shadows, "I Can Tell" by Bugsy, and "Peanuts 68" by Little Joe Cook & The Thrillers. Surprising additions include "Svolta Definitiva" by Ennio Morricone and "I Walk On Gilded Spinters" by Cher!

Soundtrack funk doesn't get any better than this – thanks to a head-expanding of tracks from the Italian scene of the 60s and 70s – served up with the usual ear for a great cut by the folks at Easy Tempo! The groove here is far from the "easy" you might expect – and most numbers have tight drums, funky basslines, and other heavy elements – all put together with an approach to the music that's far different than anything happening in the US at the time, especially in the way the instruments sound in the end – and in the way that the production techniques make them do really crazy things! Titles include "Parangua" by Luiz Bacalov, "Flirt a Rio" by Piero Umiliani, "Side Sleep" by Berto Pisano, "Little Shakie Girl" by Armando Trovajoli, "Tremendous Stars" by Piero Piccioni, "Under Drama" by Giancarlo Gazzani, "Realta No 5" by Stelvio Cipriani, "So" by Lara Saint Paul, "Israelites" by Capuano, and "Citta Viva" by Ennio Morricone.

This great series keeps on redefining itself! While previous volumes have focused on funky, jazzy, and Latiny cuts – this fab 8th volume features a beautiful blend of tracks with a spare easy feel, and an exploration into the Italian minimalist groove – that ethereal, almost otherwordly style heard on some of the dreamiest soundtracks by Ennio Morricone! There's a floating, lilting groove here that's as lovely as the lady on the cover – and the set's overflowing with a whopping 21 titles in all – including "Tema Di Barbara" by Alberto Baldan Bembo, "Bai Des Anges" by Walter Rizzati, "A Ciascuno Il Suo" by Luis Bacalov, "To Jean" by Berto Pisano, "I Tuoi Sospiri" by Bruno Nicolai, "Metropoli" by Gino Marinacci Ensemble, "La Famiglia Nicotera" by Piero Piccioni, "Running Fire" by Lou Stein, and "Tema B" by Paolo Vasile.

A sublime second set of work from Orgasmo Sonore – even hipper than their first, and again a wonderful reworking of soundtrack modes from the Italian scene of the 70s! Compositions here are by Ennio Morricone, Stelvio Cipriani, Piero Piccioni, and others – but the group makes the music very much their own – by transforming the tunes with tighter, funkier instrumentation – almost giving the songs a small combo sort of feel, while still retaining all the majestic charm of the originals! The approach is mindblowing – easily one of the best contemporary experiments of this nature we've ever heard – and the record is pleasing both to ears that love vintage soundtracks, and to those that dig funky instrumentals too. Titles include "Too Risky A Day For A Regatta", "Incubi Ricorrenti", "Metropolis", "Summertime Bossa", "Volto Di Donna", "Pillage", "Les Dunes D'Ostende", "Un Ombra Nell'Ombra", "La Sconda Caccia", and "Pearls".

Rare work from this legendary Italian improvisational group – a lineup that features famous modernists Mario Bertoncini, Egisto Macchi, and Walter Bianchi – as well as soundtrack genius Ennio Morricone! The sounds are quite dark and abstract – often somewhere out in the space of Morricone's more atonal soundtracks from the early 70s, but even looser overall – as you can feel the improvisational energy of the players coming together – feeling out space between spare percussion, strings, and horns. The record actually has one famous funky number – "Haschich", which has this amazing break underneath some off-tuned sitar and other odd noises – but most other tracks are much darker and more outside. Other titles include "Orgasmo", "Eroina", "Aghi", "Warum", "Raptus", and "Stridori" – plus another take on "Haschich".

Sound Library grooves, but with a real soundtrack-styled feel – not the usual batch of funk you might expect, and instead some wonderfully sensitive numbers that still has a subtle sense of groove! The music reminds us a lot of better-known Italian soundtracks from the time – such as work by Ennio Morricone or Armando Trovajoli – no surprise, since the group here comes from the same scene! Keyboards are by Amadeo Tommasi, who plays some great electric moments, and a few acoustic ones as well – amidst these light orchestrations that bring in bits of strings, sweet-grooving rhythms, and a few other jazzy touches too. Titles include "Slalom", "Aria Pulita", "Venezia", "Distesa", "Itinerario Romantico", "Sunend", "Terrazza Sul Mare", "Lavoro Sereno", and "Camera Car".