Monster Music Strikes Back!

By: Randall Larson
Date: Monday, January 09, 2006

MIGHTY JOE YOUNG (And Other Ray Harryhausen Animation Classics) is the long-awaited new spectacular release from Monstrous Movie Music. Following on the heels of MMM's first three acclaimed classic horror music CDs, this one features the first recordings from movies whose characters were brought to life by stop-motion special effects genius Ray Harryhausen.

The CD begins with a long suite from the 1949 fantasy, MIGHTY JOE YOUNG, with a rousing score by Roy Webb. Filled with exotic African underscore, fanfares galore, nightclub music, and outrageous orchestration, this amazing music will have you thumping your chest like a gigantic irate ape! As a bonus, this suite contains a "special musical guest appearance" by Harryhausen himself!

Next comes a suite from Harryhausen's renowned 1957 monster-from-space film 20 MILLION MILES TO EARTH, scored from the Columbia music library circa 1957. In addition to lovely and atmospheric cues written especially for the picture by Mischa Bakaleinikoff, this recording contains famous library cues re-used in dozens of Columbia films. Composers like Max Steiner, David Raksin, Daniele Amfitheatrof, George Duning, David Diamond, Frederick Hollander, and Werner Heymann are represented in this varied score that evokes a wide range of dramatic situations and memorable films. Finally, there's a four-minute suite from the Holy Grail of Harryhausen films: THE ANIMAL WORLD. This 1956 documentary by Irwin Allen featured animated dinosaurs by Ray, and Paul Sawtell's pulse-pounding music recreates the prehistoric thrills!

MMM's second new CD release, THIS ISLAND EARTH (And Other Alien Invasion Films) contains never-before-released music from four outer space films of the 1950s

and '60s. THIS ISLAND EARTH was Universal-International's only big-budget color sci-fi thriller of the fifties, and it's one of the classics of the genre. This recording features the entire unforgettable score by Herman Stein, with minor assistance from Henry Mancini and Hans Salter, and it includes music cut from the film and heard for the first time since the original scoring sessions. The music ranges from beautifully-evocative passages to mysteriously atmospheric cues, not to mention some amazingly inventive musical sound effects sequences and cues of pure action and terror.

Next is a lengthy suite from Ron Goodwin's masterful THE DAY OF THE TRIFFIDS, a 1962 British film about killer plants who attack when a meteor shower renders most of humanity blind. Goodwin's music includes lovely pastoral cues, shock hits, and one of the most powerful Main Titles in all of monsterdom! This unique score stands apart from most monster movie soundtracks.

Closing out the album are two Main Titles of note. 1958's WAR OF THE SATELLITES is a breakneck excursion into low-budget film scoring, so evocative of the era. And then there's the opening from Ray Harryhausen's 1956 classic EARTH VS. THE FLYING SAUCERS, which perfectly sets the stage for the alien menace that will follow. Each CD includes 40-page liner books, complete with never-before-released photos and music score samples. MMM's new performances have been vividly recorded through close-miking techniques to recapture the dynamic full-orchestral sound heard at the original Hollywood scoring sessions.

www.mmmrecordings.com  

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