One of our favorite soundtracks ever – a jazzy swinging ode to love found and love lost – all penned by the legendary Michel Legrand! The work was composed in collaboration with director Jacques Demy for his 1966 film of the same name – and, like the previous Demy/Legrand collaboration, Umbrellas Of Cherbourg, the movie's a story in song – one that has much of the dialogue presented as sung lyrics to the tunes. The mode takes off from a Hollywood musical style, and pushes the genre into territory that's much hipper, very French, and with a soaring approach that's filled with plenty of mod 60s jazz grooves. Legrand's genius has never sparkled so brightly – and his ability to interweave different themes, stories, and grooves is simply amazing! Titles include "Chanson Des Jumelles", "Chanson De Delphine", "Nous Voyageons De Ville En Ville", "Chanson D'Andy", "La Femme Coupee En Morceaux", and "Marins Amis Amants Ou Maris" – plus lots of instrumental bonus tracks! CD

An amazing little soundtrack – written in mid 60s Peru by jazz pianist Jaime Delgado Aparicio, but easily on a par with some of the best American or Italian scores from the time! The music's got a really wonderful feel throughout – jazz at the core, but with touches of spy soundtrack scoring and some of the lighter, more comedic modes of the Italian scene. Delgado uses a core combo with heavy piano, percussion, and some great trumpet and tenor – almost with the tightness of the Basso-Valdambrini group – but he also expands the sound with bits of strings and some fuller orchestrations, used to shade in some amazing colors that roll, dip, and turn with the beautiful grooves penned for the set. The whole thing's tremendous, with equally great production that creates some odd twists and turns that further keep things interesting as the album rolls on. Titles include "Elm Embajador Y Yo", "Sexy Surf", "Llegando A La Capital", "Isometria", "Todo El Mundo Me Persigue", "Lucha En El Mar", and "La Arana". Added to the soundtrack is Jamie's 1964 album – Jaime Delgado Aparicio Y Su Trio – a crackling bit of piano jazz from the Peruvian scene of the 60s – and a record that's somewhere between the best of Horace Silver on Blue Note, and some of the Brazilian bossa trios of the time! There's a strong sense of rhythm throughout – round, rolling basslines punctuated by great work on the drum kit – all topped by beautifully lyrical lines from Delgado Aparicio on piano – filled with color, light, and life throughout – and soloing with a depth that's rare for such a young player! Titles include a great version of Horace Silver's "Sayonara Blues", plus "The Climate", "Autumn Leaves", "Walkin", and "Blue Daniel". CD

A trio of later comedy soundtracks – all served up by Italian maestro Detto Mariano! W La Foca has a really playful main theme – one that romps around in a very catchy theme, nicely lilting and served up here in ten different variations – including a very cool moog reading at the end! Cornetti Alla Crema has a wider variety of modes – including some more moogy keyboards, and a few clubbier moments as well – plus occasional sing-song female vocals that have a groovy wordless approach. Last up is the longest soundtrack in the set – La Moglie In Vacanza L'Amante In Citta – music that still has some of the keyboards and the theme-cycles of the other two, but which fleshes things out a bit more, shifting through different instruments that make the whole thing almost feel like a longer suite, based on the same melody. CD features 32 tracks in all! CD

One of the most wonderful soundtracks ever! Michel Legrand wrote the jazzy groovy score for this legendary French film from the mid 60s – and every word of dialogue in the film is sung throughout, making for a very cool, ever-changing array of vocal bits and jazzy styles. Embedded in here are lines that later became worldwide hits – like "I Will Wait For You" and "Watch What Happens" – but in this version, the songs are just themes in the huge pastiche of dialogue and narrative, and they lurk behind the score in a beautiful way. CDs features 30 tracks in all – with titles that include "Scene Du Garage", "Dans Le Magasin", "Diner", "Le Mariage", "Le Retour De Guy Chez Elise", "Guy Au Cafe", "Chez Dubourg Le Joallie", and "Sur Le Quai"–plus a few instrumental tracks as well! CD

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