Paramount and Victor Young – one of the greatest studio/composer relationships in history. Over the course of his career, Victor Young received an astonishing twenty-two Oscar nominations (in 1940 and 1941 he was nominated four times in the same year!). But he would not win the golden statuette during his lifetime – he won the Oscar for Best Music (Dramatic or Comedy Picture) posthumously for Around the World in Eighty Days. Some of his themes are among the most beloved of all time. For this CD, we are proud to present four world premiere releases. They are a diverse gathering that beautifully illustrates how he could write for any kind of story.
First up is the 1956 Perlberg-Seaton war film, The Proud and the Profane. The film was directed and written by George Seaton, and starred William Holden, Deborah Kerr and Thelma Ritter. Young wrote a memorable and beautiful main theme for the drama, which weaves in and out of the score in many guises. It's a wonderful score and classic Young.
Next up is the 1953 film Forever Female, starring Ginger Rogers, William Holden, Paul Douglas and Pat Crowley. This time it's Victor Young in full-out sparkling mode, beginning with a lilting and lovely waltz that then morphs into some fun big-city music. The score is like a glass of champagne – bubbly, effervescent and sophisticated.
Also from 1953 we have another George Seaton film, Little Boy Lost, a drama starring Bing Crosby. It's a compelling film about a World War II correspondent whose French wife was killed by the Nazis, returning to France after the war to try and find his son. Little Boy Lost has a superb Victor Young score, right up there with his best. Originally there were only three surviving cues from this brilliant score, but in a last-minute bit of serendipity, almost all of it was found and so it's a real treat to be able to present just about everything from this Victor Young classic. The score has just about everything that made Victor Young one of the greats.
Finally we have My Favorite Spy, a great 1951 Bob Hope comedy, directed by Norman Z. McLeod (who also directed the Marx Brothers' Horse Feathers and Monkey Business). Young's music suits the film perfectly, underscoring the comedy and intrigue with panache and a grand sense of fun.
All scores have been carefully transferred and restored by Chris Malone from the elements in the Paramount vaults.
Track listing
THE PROUD AND PROFANE
1. Prelude°
2. Service Club Juke Box 1
3. Perseverance°
4. Red Cross Juke Box 2 ''The Nearness of You'' (Hoagy Carmichael and Ned Washington)
5.Red Cross Juke Box 3 ''Lovable Sort of Person'' (Victor Young and Frank Loesser)
6. A Friend at Sea°
7. Little Sam/Christmas Party
8. Attempted Murder
9. Casualty Montage
10. End Title°
°incorporates ''To Love You'' by Mack Gordon and Victor Young
FOREVER FEMALE
11. Prelude
12. Sardi's 1
13. Bea's Apartment*
14. Sardi's 3 (''Just for Today'')
15. Sardi's 4 (''Poochie'')
16. A Siamese Kitten**
17. Opening Night*
18. The Pep Talk*
19. ''Stella by Starlight'' (Victor Young and Ned Washington)
20. First Fox Trot (''My Ideal'') (Leo Robin, Richard A. Whiting and Newell Chase)
21. Bea Confesses*
22. Finale*
*incorporates ''Change of Heart'' by Victor Young and Edward Heyman
**incorporates ''Say What You Will'' by Victor Young and Edward Heyman
LITTLE BOY LOST
23. Prelude†
24. Dunkirk Montage
25. The Silent Radio/Lisa's Death/Another Lead – Part 1
26. Another Lead Part 2/Following the Lead††/The Orphanage
27. The Boy††
28. Piece of Evidence†† †††
29. Intro to ''Cela m'est égal''
30. Trip to Paris†††/If It's All the Same to You (Johnny Burke and James Van Heusen)/Bridge to Paris†††/Paris Wonderland
31. Another Disappointment††† ††††
32. The Magic Window (Johnny Burke and James Van Heusen)
33. The Laundress Revisited††/The Little Boy Lied
34. Nellie's Idea††/Another Puppy Love††
35. Farewell Montfort†††
36. Return of Binkie/End Title†
†incorporates ''The Magic Window'' by Johnny Burke and James Van Heusen
††incorporates ''A Propos de Rien'' by Johnny Burke and James Van Heusen
†††incorporates ''If It's All the Same to You'' by Johnny Burke and James Van Heusen
††††incorporates ''Mon Coeur Est un Violon'' by Miarka Laparcerie
MY FAVORITE SPY
37. Prelude
38. Lily Dalbray•
39. Intro to Comedy Camel/The Comical Camel
40. The Fire Part 2••
41. Music Jewel/Finale
•incorporates ''Just a Moment More'' by Jay Livingston and Ray Evans
••incorporates additional music by Leigh Harline, Gerard Carbonara and John Leipold (see booklet for details) |
