Includes selections by The Pretenders, BB King, Talking Heads, Bob James, Rickie Lee Jones, Ric Ocasek, Ray Charles, David Sanborn, and Van Morrison. LP, Vinyl record album

Very cool – the London production of this hip musical adaptation of Othello – maybe even better than the American one! Singers include PP Arnold and PJ Proby – and backings are by the rock group Gass! LP, Vinyl record album

Nice one! Clint Eastwood will forever be remembered for his groundbreaking tough guy work in the Dirty Harry films – but equally famous are Lalo Schifrin's funky soundtracks for the movies! The work is some of Schifrin's best – a mix of the jazzy style he created in the late 60s, and a funkier 70s cop theme edge that was sort of the white answer to blaxploitation scoring that was happening at the same time. Titles include "Dirty Harry's Creed", "Scorpio", "This Side Of Forever", "Unicorn's Head", "Alcatraz Encounter" and "Rooftop Chase". LP, Vinyl record album

An incredibly untapped world of cinematic jazz – pulled from an array of Spanish films of the late 50s and early 60s – most of which have soundtracks as dynamic as work coming from France or Italy at the time! A good portion of the tracks here are scored by Jose Sola – who seems to draw inspiration from some of the west coast jazz soundtracks of the 50s – work by Elmer Bernstein, Shorty Rogers, Leith Stevens, and others – blending standout soloists with fuller backings, but in a way that matches the stark energy of the images on the screen! The CD's an unusual one in that many of the tunes are quite long – upwards of 10 minutes, and very different than the shorter snippets of jazz you might get on other soundtrack efforts from the same generation – and some numbers keep in bits of the dialogue, presenting the music with sound that's more "cinematic" than straight studio recording. Solo instruments include a fair bit of trumpet and alto sax – and the package comes with a great booklet with notes in English and Spanish, plus images from the films. Titles include "Un Vaso De Whisky", "A Sangre Fria", "Altas Variedades", "Los Cuervos", "Regresa Un Desconocido", and "El Salario Del Crimen" by Jose Sola; plus "091 Policia Al Habla" by Augusto Alguero, "Juventud A La Intemperie" by Enrique Escobar, and "A Tiro Limpo" by Federico Martinez Tudo. CD

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An action score from Jerry Fielding, but one that's done in a great mix of modes – definitely with some of the driving numbers you might expect, but also with these mellower, moodier tracks that are perfect for a film starring Alain Delon – and which really do a great job of linking it to some of his famous French cinematic efforts! Fielding's got his roots in American jazz, and always does a great job with action – but we're even more impressed here as he gets into some more deeply introspective passages, mixed with moments of subtle tension – served up with orchestrations that are completely sublime – and which rival those of 70s soundtrack contemporary Jerry Goldsmith. Jazz artists Lennie Niehaus and Greg McRitchie conducted the orchestrations, which might explain some of their strength – and titles include "The Imperial Vaults", "On The Plane From Paris", "The Russian Wags His Tail", "All Fall Down", "Hide & Seek Underground", and "The Parisian Connection". CD version features 24 tracks in all! CD

One of the greatest soundtracks ever – an archetypal album from French composer Francis Lai, and a record that set the tone for countless other imitations to come – yet which is still the best! The groove here is really unique – a spare blend of bossa influences, jazzy organ lines, and wordless vocals that are sung beautifully by French singers Nicole Croisille and Pierre Barouh – and although a mainstream success, the record was the initial force behind the legendary Saravah imprint that Barouh would form later, to record a wide range of groundbreaking work in a variety of genres. But history aside, the music here is plenty – and from the very first note the whole soundtrack grabs you with a sense of warmth and sentiment that defy description – modes never heard before in the soundtrack world, and which really broke the mold from Hollywood conventions! Titles include the seminal bossa number "Samba Saravah", plus "A Man & A Woman", "Today It's You", "In Our Shadow", "At 200 MPH", and "Stronger Than Us". LP, Vinyl record album

Rare soundtrack material from Waldemar Parzynski – maybe best known as the music director for the groundbreaking vocal group Novi Singers, but even more stunning here in an instrumental setting for an obscure documentary! The tracks are all very long – more musical suites than shorter cues for a film – and the album's awash in amazing sounds that range from modern orchestrations to unusual keyboard passages, and even some funky fusion touches too – all done in these great ways that shift effortlessly over the course of the extended tunes on the set – one of which stretches out well past the 20 minute mark! Titles include "Huta Katowice", "Wszystkie Moje Dzieci", and "Do Dnia". CD

A rare early moment from the legendary Austrian group Paternoster – sounds that predate their one and only cult-status album – originally created for the equally legendary film, Die Ersten Tage! The music here was never issued commercially at the time – and the release of these sounds adds a much-needed page to the slim book of Paternoster – especially since the creative flair of these songs really fleshes out our understanding of the group! As with their vocal music, most of the style here is slow, but jamming – kind of mellow prog, almost – but lighter, too – and with a moodier vibe, given the absence of lyrics – which lets the offbeat guitar parts do most of the speaking for the group. The whole thing's fragile, yet jagged – earthy, but cosmic – and the set features 30 tracks in all, appearing here on record for the first time ever! (Rock, Soundtracks) LP, Vinyl record album