A sexy soundtrack to a mid-70s film written and directed by Serge Gainsbourg – and starring Jane Birkin and a young Gerard Depardieu! The feel here is very much in the spirit of Serge's work of the time – especially that recorded with Birkin – but in a way, it's almost even better, because the soundtrack setting has most of the tunes stripped down to their barest elements – with a simplicity not heard in Gainsbourg's music since Melody Nelson! Instrumentation includes some great "watery" piano bits that kind of float over the main rhythmic theme – but other tracks get a bit more rockish, with heavy bunker rock-styled guitar, and a few more use a bit of banjo – but in a weirdly syncopated way. The score features a few great variations on the classic "Je T'Aime Moi Non Plus" – and the "Ballade De Johnny-Jane" is a great instrumental that stands as one of Serge's most compelling themes from the 70s! Other tracks include "Banjo Au Bord Du Styx", "Joe Banjo", "Le Camion Jaune", and "L'Abominale Strip-Tease". (French, Soundtracks) CD

A lost Burt Bacharach treasure – a bit later than classic vintage, but a wonderful album from the mature maestro – and sometimes overlooked, due to its status as a soundtrack! The work here is totally great – that mellow, easy-flowing style that Burt really perfected around the time of Living Together – served up here in a batch of sweet instrumental tracks, plus a few key vocal numbers with lyrics sung by Jackie DeShannon, Libby Titus, and Michael McDonald – all of whom slide down more into the Bacharach ethos than stand out as their usual selves – and we mean that in a good way! Titles include "I Don't Need You Any More", "In Tune", "If We Ever Get Out Of Here", "On The Beach", "I've Got My Mind Made Up", "Find Love", "Luisa", and "I Think I'm Gonna Fall In Love". LP, Vinyl record album

Biker time again – as Stu Phillips lays down a tight little soundtrack for this obscure motorcycle flick from the late 60s! Stu started out as a jazz man, but is best known to us for his very groovy work on the Beyond The Valley Of The Dolls soundtrack. The best cuts on here are Stu's instrumentals – a mixture of funky jazz with a twist, and a bit of funky flute, plus some other numbers that have a well-composed, more serious approach. Highlights include "Friendly Fuzz", which mixes heavy guitars, drums, and flute – and "Rescue", which has a very similar approach – plus the chase-y groover "Get It On". Tammy Wynette sings the title cut "Run Angel Run", and The Windows sing "True Believers", "You're Gonna Get A Piece Of My Mind", and "Love & Admiration Of The Brotherhood Society Of South Napa County". Also includes "Oversexed" – a nice mellow tune with a misleading title. LP, Vinyl record album

A solid bit of heavy funk – and one of the last strong-selling soundtracks of the blacksploitation era! Sure, you know the hit "Car Wash", but there's plenty of other great numbers that rank the 2LP set right up there with the best of its genre. There's a lot of nice instrumentals on the album that feature a tight smooth funky sound – with good work on clavinet, wah wah guitar, and horns – all quite different than the usual work of Whitfield and Rose Royce at the time. The group do a good job on the vocal cuts, working in that soulful early 70s Motown mode that Whitfield was working on with other acts – and the whole album's as great a debut for Rose Royce as anyone could have hoped for. Features the hit title cut, plus "I Wanna Get Next To You", "Put Your Money Where Your Mouth Is", "Zig Zag", "Mid Day DJ Theme", "I'm Going Down", "Crying", "Doing What Comes Naturally", and "Righteous Rhythm". The Pointer Sisters sing on one track, "You Gotta Believe". (Soul, Soundtracks) LP, Vinyl record album

One of the greatest soundtracks ever from Leonard Rosenman – and a key example of his strong talent for mixing acoustic instrumentation with very offbeat and eerie electronics! Rosenman had offered up this blend on other important science soundtracks of the 60s – but probably hit his apex with this gem – penned for mid 60s film about a bunch of scientists who shrink down, and take a trip inside the human body! The electronics are sublime – used in these stark, sharp ways that are very compelling, and downright evil in nature – providing a real contrast to some of the warmer woodwind touches in the orchestrations, even when they try to echo the electric energy. The whole thing's pretty darn great – a lot bleaker musically than the actual film – and titles include "Proteus Moving Through Sac", "Group Leaves", "The Proteus", "The Chart", "Pulmonary Artery", "Get The Laser", and "The Human Brain". CD

Not a bad little soundtrack – filled with sleazy 70s soul tunes! Given that the movie features Diane Keaton trawling her way through the singles underground of the time, the music goes pretty darn well with the film – and in fact is almost better, as it keeps a sunny optimism, without the darker turn of the narrative. Titles include "Don't Ask To Stay Until Tomorrow" by Marlena Shaw, "Don't Leave Me This Way" by Thelma Houston, "She Wants To Get On Down" and "She's Lonely" by Bill Withers, "Prelude To Love" and "Could It Be Magic" by Donna Summer, "Backstabbers" by The O'Jays, "Love Hangover" by Diana Ross, "Machine Gun" by The Commodores, and "Lowdown" by Boz Scaggs. LP, Vinyl record album