George Fenton's 'White Mischief' (CDJAY 1347) is a rare (very rare) example of a soundtrack album I thoroughly enjoy as a purely listening experience, thanks largely to the fact it simply doesn't sound like film music. In other words, each of the 16 tracks on the album works as a self-contained composition, and Fenton was obviously keen to make sure his music didn't just Mickey Mouse the events on screen. In fact, rarely for a film score, rather than work as a 'dramatic score' Fenton's music is primarily aimed at heightening the atmosphere of the movei - but rather than merely sinking unobtrusively into the background, the music is prominent throughout, rather like in a musical.

The other extraordinary thing about this 'period jazz' score is Fenton's unique orchestration. The movie is set during WWII amongst the decaying remnants of the British Empire's East African colonies, thus the music has the sound of Charleston, Fox-trot and dancehall of the era, but is given a veneer of sadness and loss which perfectly captures the mood of a British colony in terminal decay.

The instrumentation is fantastic - solo violin and viola, solo clarinet, four saxophones, trumpet, trombone, ukelele, guitar, accordion, piano, percussion (including lujon), bass harmonica, double bass and violin sextet give some idea of the unique makeup of the music. If you like this kind of eclectic mix of instruments and styles (as I very much do), then check out the wonderful work of the Penguin Cafe Orchestra (famous for their 'Telephone and Rubber Band' which is known to everyone through tv adverts and suchlike). Indeed, the Penguin Cafe Orchestra have created much famous music which is used in the same way as Lemonjelly, Bent and Zero 7's for instance. If you're new to the Penguin Cafe Orchestra, start off with their 'Preludes, Airs and Yodels' album which features extracts from their various albums of the past 25 years - oh, and don't worry, there isn't any yodelling, but there's just about every other musical form in existence. I should point out I do love authentic Swiss and Austrian yodelling - check out the wonderful album 'All the Best from Austria & Switzerland' which features all manner of authentic Alpine folk music, complete with the full range of exotic instrumentation and harmony, but with the yodelling remaining firmly in the spotlight.

As I say, Fenton's 'White Mischief' has that wonderful '20s dancehall sound, the era of the exuberant Charleston, close in texture to the wonderfully piquant ballroom dance music of Victor Silvester, or Vincent Price's magical clockwork band from the Dr Phibes movies. Certainly, I pride myself on owning a large number of Charleston era CDs featuring both the original bands of the day and contemporary renditions of the era's music by the Piccadilly Dance Orchestra and Lawrence Welk for example - there certainly is something uniquely thrilling about '20s dance music (and German cabaret music - check out Ute Lemper's wonderful German Cabaret Songs album), and Fenton's score certainly evokes that bygone soundworld very effectively here.

As Fenton says in the album's liner notes, 'White Mischief is the true story of a displaced community in Kenya during WWII. Its infamous decadence, an unsolved murder and an extraordinary combination of period and location, led me to experiment with an unusual group of instruments.....the idea for the score began with the dance band. I wrote some 'source' music for the club scenes before the film was shot and the director was keen that the identity of the music should be preserved throughout the score.'

And what a score! The wild sexual and political shenanigans of the infamous ranch-owning 'happy valley' set are brought vividly to life in this thoroughly successful screen adaptation of James Fox's excellent novel. Set in British East Africa during WWII, WHITE MISCHIEF succeeds as a movie for a variety of reasons, not least as an appropriate symbol of the British Empire's general decline during the late 1930's and 1940's.

Unlike most movies dealing with the British colonial era, WHITE MISCHIEF is an authentic representation of life within the British Empire.....the drugs, booze, orgies, greed, promiscuity, lust, jealousies, decadence, revenge and the exploitation of the indigenous peoples are uncompromisingly depicted, and, quite properly, the jingoistic and heroic myths that usually bedeck such movies are refreshingly absent. And, most importantly, the depiction of the British people themselves is far more accurate.....the foppish, crypto-homosexual Englishman of American movie-making fantasy is replaced by the driven, tough and often cynical Briton that is reality. The women too, are depicted as hard-as-nails and intelligent manipulators, rather than the pale-faced shrinking violets of Hollywood make-believe.

The story itself, based on fact, focuses on the philandering of a British officer, Lord Erroll (superbly played by Charles Dance), and his subsequent murder......in reality his slaying became one of the most famous crimes of the British Empire. The movie is crammed full of incident, as well as being tremendously involving, you really feel drawn into the movie, thanks largely to the authenticity of the characters and scripting. A superb cast brings each character to life, Joss Ackland is at his best as the distraught husband who agonisingly watches his young wife (a gorgeous Greta Scacchi) fall for the charms of Lord Erroll. John Hurt, Trevor Howard, Hugh Grant, Geraldine Chaplin are also notable amongst the strong British supporting cast. Sarah Miles is particularly impressive as a promiscuous 'former-love' of the recently deceased Erroll. One particularly moving and poignant scene has many of Erroll's female conquests congregating around his dead body in the mortuary. Overcome with grief, Miles rubs her quim and then places her fingers on the rigor mortised Erroll's lips....a tremendously powerful symbol of grief and yearning.

George Fenton's wonderful score successfully mirrors the wistful 'End of Empire' atmosphere of the movie, indeed, one can point to Fenton's 'period jazz' score as being instrumental in creating WHITE MISCHIEF's mood and character. And, for once, the movie maintains its mesmerizing and haunting ambience right up to the devastating climax.

I heartily recommend 'White Mischief', both film and score, to all movie enthusiasts and music lovers alike.

Although I have this album, I have never seen the film. The score is ok, more 30s source jazz than the kind of dramatic scoring I prefer from Fenton.

Also, although I think I know already, will you enlighten this colonist on just what a quim is?