The current poll asks for your music preference as applied to your movie music appreciation. Always been a die-hard romantic in love with mushy chords? Or a dusty wrangler who only rides to the tune of the big country? Once only liked comedy scores, now only like horrorific overtones and undertones?

Spill the beans, cuz it's about time....

Gimme a sweeping, full-orchestral piece and I'm a happy man.

Roy Stegner

A little bit of everything.

I can't just chose one and I think it's almost impossible for someone to do that. It gave me a headache trying to pick just one

quote:

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Originally posted by PeterK:
New poll! Yessssssssssssss.

The current poll asks for your music preference as applied to your movie music appreciation. Always been a die-hard romantic in love with mushy chords? Or a dusty wrangler who only rides to the tune of the big country? Once only liked comedy scores, now only like horrorific overtones and undertones?

Spill the beans, cuz it's about time....

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None of those - much as I love movie music, I only very rarely listen to it outside of its intended medium - the movie itself.

Don't get me wrong - I adore all forms of music (except for Riverdance and the current trend to bastardise my beloved Irish folk music for wannabe Irish-American audiences), but I believe that 99% of film music is simply unsuitable for stand-alone consumption. The main problem with film music is that it is designed to compliment the images that inspired it, and on its own most film music is rendered meaningless, repetitive and simply not good enough to be enjoyed in its own right. This is true of every type of movie score, be it 'romantic', action, horror, or whatever.

I too have a great admiration for many film composers, some of whom were/are fine composers and arrangers of non-film music. The recent death of the very talented British composer, Ron Goodwin, prompted me to purchase the recently released 'The Cheesy Listening Album' (EMI) to which he contributes five excellent orchestral-pop versions of Burt Bacharach songs.

Indeed, I love cheesy music - and let's face it, film music is predominantly of the 'cheesy' variety. But being 'cheesy' does not alone make film music 'good enough' for album consumption.

With the current resurgence of interest in easy listening, kitsch, exotica, muzak, bossa nova and all things cheesy and 'no-holds-barred' in music, EMI have recently released a marvellous selection of over-the-top 'orchestral pop' classics from the '50s, '60s and '70s. The album is cleverly (and accurately) titled 'The Cheesy Listening Album' and contains the kind of music which we've all heard in and around elevators and shopping malls as well as in many film scores, but it is only now that people are truly beginning to appreciate the wacky, cool nature of many of these 'monstrous' creations - the 101 Strings Orchestra, Mantovani, Bert Kaempfert, Percy Faith, Paul Mauriat, Henry Mancini, James Last, Michel Legrand, Norrie Paramour, Stanley Black, Ray Conniff and Andre Kostelanetz and all of the other great cheesemongers of the 20th century are now being rediscovered and fully appreciated by a generation of music lovers (and people in general) keen to broaden their knowledge and appreciation of music to the limits.

Just witness how many of today's 'chill-out' trip-hop masters such as 'Bent', Thievery Corporation, Lemonjelly, Bonobo, Groove Armada, Blue States, Lamb, and so on are utilizing the 'upbeat melancholia' of bossa nova in many of their oh-so-cool 'lounge' albums. And 'Bent' even sample Norrie Paramour's 'string orchestra' in their wonderful debut album 'Programmed to love', and such luminaries of the world of trip-hop as Portishead and Massive Attack regularly utilize cheesy over-the-top classics of yesteryear, such as Isaac Hayes' world-famous and 'so naff it's cool' "Ike's Rap II", as samples in their wonderfully all-encompassing albums.

For too long, much 'orchestral pop' and 'lounge jazz' has been sneered at by a public too keen to preserve some misplaced sense of 'I only listen to what everyone else tells me is acceptable' rather than succumb to the 'guilty pleasures' to be found in the jazzy, 'cocktail hour', way-out work of Martin Denny, Les Baxter, Elliot Fisher, and so on, not to mention the 'orchestral funk' of Isaac Hayes, Barry White, Luther Vandross, Lionel Richie and many of the often unfairly derided funkmasters and lurve-Gods of the '70s. Britain's wonderful Jamiroquai continue to hold aloft the banner of funk and soul with great distinction however, because once you've accepted the cheesy and 'naff' sounding nature the music, you soon begin to realize just how good much of it actually is.

I'm not talking about 'film music' here, as such. Many of the tracks found on the superlative 'Ultra Lounge' series of recent CD releases are certainly derived from film music - but just as Hank Mancini developed his film music for album enjoyment, so too are these cheesy arrangements for jazz ensemble, orchestra, and vocals adapted and expanded for purely listening (and dancing) enjoyment. For instance, although some sections of Jerry Goldsmith's 'Flint' scores are very enjoyable on album, not least 'New York Skyline' and 'Tell me more about that volcano', overall, the score makes for a typically disjointed and musically meaningless listening experience so typical of 95% of all film music in its raw state - which is why hardly anyone listens to movie music. However, the great arrangers such as Nelson Riddle and Hugo Montenegro (and even Goldsmith himself) took Goldsmith's music and created some wonderfully enduring arrangements of the Flint scores designed purely for listening pleasure which turn up on albums all over the place.

So how does Ron Goodwin fit into all of this? Well, as has already been pointed out, Ron spent much of the last twenty years of his life conducting concerts all over the world. And 'The Cheesy Listening Album' contains no less than 5 tracks featuring 'Ron Goodwin and His Orchestra' performing orchestral arrangements of Burt Bacharach songs. The album also features such doyens of the easy listening world as Joe Loss, Geoff Love and 'Manuel and the Music of the Mountains'. I'll go into more detail about 'The Cheesy Listening Album' at Daniel's off-topic thread 'Recommended Listening' some time in the future.

Anyhow, anyone who enjoys listening to slushy film music will certainly appreciate the hilariously hyperemotive and yet jauntily poptastic arrangements found on this album - perfect for that 'cocktail hour'.

It used to be the case that when someone put this kind of music on he risked emptying the room (perhaps that was his aim?), now the reverse is true and people can't get enough of the nostalgic cheesy lounge exotica of the past and the delightfully chilled trip-hop masterpieces of the present, rather than endure the 'safe' and dismally formulaic tedium of such mainstays of the musical establishment as Meat Loaf, Bon Jovi and Tori Amos. Bring on Chas & Dave, that's what I say......!

I can thoroughly recommend the work of Royksopp (such as their fantastic use of Bacharach's Blue on Blue), Bent, Kid Loco, Fila Brasilia, Bonobo and numerous other modern 'groups' as prime examples of sublime 'feel good' 'chill-out' music which incorporates the bossa and 'cheesy' aesthetic both discreetly and overtly - their work makes for perfect background listening, but can also be enjoyed as a more intense listening experience. So whether you're enjoying a vodka and tonic on the porch or entertaining guests, Royksopp et al fit the bill as perfectly as Jobim's bossa masterpieces. At the other end of the modern trip-hop spectrum, there is the often dark, brooding work of the genre's originators, Massive Attack and Portishead, but even here the music is anything but depressing, boring or limited in scope, thanks in no small part to the use of 'cheesy' samples from yesteryear. These Bristol-based bands have completely changed the face of contemporary music during the past ten years (though not everyone realizes it) - in fact, their impact has been just as great as Jobim and Bonfa's back in the '60s.

Having said that, all of the 'cheesy' music and albums I have mentioned above are sumptuously produced, expertly arranged and well performed by some of the best musicians in the business.

So it's not a case of 'elevator music' being 'bad', uninventive, bland, poorly performed or suffering from poor sound quality - I would not give it a moment of my time if it was any of those things.

James Last, Mantovani and Percy Faith may be scorned and sneered at by many music snobs and equally rejected by a significant proportion of society who will only listen to music which they perceive conforms with the rest of society's tastes, but these arrangers are extremely gifted and skilled professionals. So, whether one likes their music or not, nobody can deny their abilities and talent.

Take the superb 'Ultra Lounge' series of CDs that have been released in recent years (with enormous success) - so far there's about twenty separate album compilation releases with such evocative titles as Mondo Hollywood and Mambo Fever - and just look at the contributors - Nelson Riddle, Martin Denny, John Barry - the list of luminaries is endless, so there is no question about the music's technical merits.

But beyond that, the music is also (most of the time) very good - whether it's Mantovani, Stevie Wonder, Marvin Gaye, Paul Mauriat, Norrie Paramor or Isaac Hayes - they are all song writers/arrangers with remarkable ability and their music frequently transcends the norm, which is part of the reason why many people regard them as the 'unacceptable face of music'.

Too many people dismiss Stevie Wonder simply on the basis of the admittedly anaemic 'I just called to say' and 'Ebony and Ivory' - but this is to ignore the man's remarkable '70s albums such as 'Innervisions' and 'Songs in the key of life' - this is music that tells a story, attacks the racist establishment of the time and warms the soul - it is also music that continues to have a profound influence on the development of music today.

Of course, it was the bossa king Antonio Carlos Jobim who virtually invented 'elevator music' - and sure enough, you're quite likely to hear the strains of Jobim, Kaempfert and Mauriat's music wafting through many a hotel lobby. And it's easy to dismiss when the detail in the music is muffled by the sound of the elevator or the general hubbub in and around a shopping mall. But give this music a chance, give it some attention, and its quality and merits (if it has any) soon become apparent. The clichéd lush string sound, cheesy guitars and light rock beats often distract the listener from the music's intrinsic value - this is particularly the case with Paul Mauriat's arrangements. Mauriat's arrangement of Somethin' Stupid is a prime example - it's just the kind of thing you're likely to hear on the telephone after hearing the dreaded words - 'all of our operators are busy at present, please hold the line until.....' And under those circumstances who could be blamed for equating such 'ghastly muzak' with the overwhelming sense of frustration at waiting in a queue. But, listen to the music when you *want* to listen to the music and one's attitude may be different. Suddenly the la la choruses, strumming guitar, sliding strings, smooth brass and gentle rock beat take on a wholly different complexion - and one may even grow to like the music (as I have done). The key is not to take the music too seriously. Music *can* be funny, and anyone who listens to music solely to wallow in self-pity or look for 'social conscience' messages is missing out on music's primary ability to uplift one's mood and soothe the soul.

Of course, not all elevator music is good (far from it) - but my point is that not all elevator music is necessarily bad - certainly not the majority of Mantovani, Percy Faith, Paul Mauriat, and all of the usual suspects I've listed at this thread (and many I haven't).

Anyway, I would like to thoroughly recommend the Ultra Lounge series - the music is often ridiculously over-the-top, but surely that's no reason to dislike it. My favourites in the series so far include, Saxophobia, Mondo Hollywood (which includes John Barry's early and remarkable Beat Girl), Rhapsodesia, Bachelor Pad Royale, and Bottoms Up! This is very much the jazz/lounge/cocktail side of things (and the music is often adapted from film music), although there are strings, horns, vocals and full orchestras too. Check out individual Percy Faith, Mantovani, 101 strings orchestra and Mauriat albums for the massive-scaled orchestral cheese which is just as entertaining in its own way but also incorporates jazz, rock and vocal elements in the mix. And that's the beauty of all of this cheesy 'orchestral pop' and 'lounge jazz' stuff - it's so unpredictable - one minute there's a vigorous tango with guitars, bongos and violins, and the next you're enjoying the mandolins and accordions of Paris and Rome and the next the balalaikas and cymboloms of Hungary and Russia - and it's all done in the worst possible taste.