OST- The Dirty Dozen

I no doubtly got this to write a post about Lee Marvin.  It was a bit on the high end at $4.

In the era of the tough guy actor, there was no tougher actor than Lee Marvin.  Born in New York City in 1924, Marvin was wounded serving the Marines in the Pacific Theater of WWII.  After the war, when asked to replace an ailing actor in a local theater production, Marvin worked his way up from Off-Broadway to Broadway, and then to the big screen.  He started in small supporting roles, most times as a heel, including The Big Heat and The Wild One, playing a foil to Marlon Brando’s character (as well as perhaps influencing the Beatles along the way).

He started getting bigger parts including a stint of movies where we played heel to John Wayne (Sidenote: I always stop watching The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance after Marvin is done.  Eventually lead roles started coming Marvin’s way, leading to his Oscar winning performance in Cat Ballou.

I believe The Dirty Dozen is the work Marvin is best known for.  This film, released in 1967 and directed by Robert Aldrich, features a big roster of talent, including Ernest Borgnine, Charles Bronson, John Cassavetes, Robert Ryan, and football star- turned actor, Jim Brown in his first role.  I like how the army brass, for the most part are played by establishment type actors who have worked Hollywood for awhile while the Dirty Dozen are mostly newer, anti-establishment actors.  That is why it so fitting for Marvin to play the groups’ leader.

The soundtrack was done by Frank DeVol (1911-1999).  De Vol was an accomplished musician who became a composer and arranger as well as an occasional actor.  After having much success in records and radio, De Vol took his efforts to Hollywood where he worked on soundtracks for both the small and big screen.

This album is ok.  It is not like the movie was known for its music.  However, the soundtrack work is quite apt for the film.  I lot of the songs have the old standard “You’re In The Army Now” woven in to them.  It makes for a good effect during the training scenes at the beginning for the movie. For a sample, I decided to pick a song that shows this.  I chose “The Sham Battle” which played during the war-games sequence.  Not only does this song reference “In The Army”, it also quote “Don’t Sit Under The Apple Tree”.

Since Trini Lopez was in the movie, the album also features a full out version of his song “Bramble Bush”.  This cross promotion was probably why Lopez was in the movie in the first place. I believe Lopez plays an acoustic segment of this song in one of the barrack scenes.  Lopez is still alive as of this writing. Anyway, I am using his song as a sample as well.

Satisfactory record.

The Kingston Trio- Time To Think


DSCN5090 (1024x1014)This was a dollar.  I like the Kingston Trio so if I come across anything with songs that I like on it by them, I will pick it up.  On a side note, I just flew back in last night from Arizona and besides playing two periods of hockey on the fly after racing across town, I am beat.  I could have gone a bit more in depth with this, yet I choose not to today.636011859806677838-Kingston-Trio

The Kingston Trio formed in 1957 by Dave Guard, Nick Reynolds, and Bob Shane. They scored five #1 albums and sold over 8 million records by 1961.  Although they started singing Hawaiian and calypso tunes, they came to embody the growing folk movement and in that regard, were true innovators.  While typing this, I realized that calling the re-interpretation of songs that have been played for ages may not sound like innovation, but alas, that is the world of folk music.  Tensions mounted within the band, however, and by 1961, Guard left the band.  He was replaced by John Stewart of later Gold fame. The band continues to have success with top ten albums and big singles such as “Where Have All The Flowers Gone” and “Greenback Dollar”.  However, as the movement they started started to get more topical and political, coupled with pressure from the British Invasion, the trio’s fortunes began to wane.  The group sort of split in 1967 with several offshoots and reformations throughout the following years.  In 1981, a version of the band lead by Shane was joined on stage by Reynolds, Guard, and Stewart.  Kingston_Trio_312046_1964_t940

Despite their massive popularity and success, the Trio kind of found themselves in a funny situation.  Many equated folk music with leftist politics, while others felt the band was too vanilla.  In truth, the Trio skillfully mastered a wide range of styles and songs, turned people on to radicals like Pete Seeger and Woody Guthrie, and paved the way for new artists such as Joan Baez, Phil Ochs, and Bob Dylan.  And as stated above, despite this misguided criticism, they were massively successful. A version of the band continues today despite the death of Guard and Reynolds, and the retirement of Shane.

The band’s Webpage with a better bio since I am still getting over traveling.

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This album was around the band’s 17th or so.  It came out in 1963.  It was a move into more meaningful and pointed songs as their contemporaries were moving into more socially conscious music and in turn, perhaps, was the beginning of the end.  The album has a pretty good track list,  Thier version of “Season’s In The Sun” is pretty good.  I also liked “The Patriot Game” (which I would have used as a sample had it not skipped), “If You Don’t Look Around”, and “Alley Ally Oxen Free”.  I bought this for “Deportee” which I felt fell flat.  Other than that, it is  a decent album.2-folkways-lp-s-by-woody-guthrie-bound-for-glory-sings-folk-songs-w-inserts_1318057

As a side note, I was pleasantly surprised to find a booklet from a Woody Guthrie album inside this one.  Titled Bound For Glory, the booklet contains lyrics to several Guthrie songs, some thoughts and quotes, and a few cartoons drawn by Guthrie.  I believe it was printed in 1961 or so.woody-guthrie-bound-for-glory-folkways-w-insert-songs-story-nice_6471891

For a sample, I decided to go with “Coal Tattoo”.ktrbw21

Satisfactory enough album.

Steeleye Span-Parcel of Rogues

DSCN4506This album represents my big score from last year’s Memorial Day Sale at Half Price Books Sale.  I got it at the HPB at Hwy 6 and Veterans’ Memorial. They have a huge dollar section.  It was 80 cents with discount.  I was ecstatic.  There was a guy next to me in the dollar racks talking to himself.  He asked me a question if I was buying a certain album but it took me a while to answer.   I did not realize he was talking to me.Steeleye_span_mk42-600

This was Steeleye Span’s fifth album and the most successful to date (although it would be eclipsed soon thereafter).  This was made with its classic lineup that produced a good string of hit records in the seventies.  It was formed out of a theater project the band was working on at the time, a stage version of Robert Louis Stevenson’s Kidnapped.  The book and play focused on a time in the aftermath of the 18th century Jacobite Rising, where Charles Edward Stuart attempted to regain the British throne for the House of Stuart with a march south from Scotland. In preparation for this, the band became familiar with a good deal of 18th century Scottish poetry and songs.The_Battle_of_Culloden

Wikipedia page on said rebellion

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The albums title comes from the Robert Burn’s song, also on this album, “Such a Parcel of Rogues in a Nation”.  The song was a decry against the members of the Scottish Parliament who signed the Act of Union with England in 1707 and were suspected of taking bribes.  The song continues to this day to be associated with Scottish Nationalism.Photo-of-STEELEYE-SPAN-001

The rest of the album is pretty good.  It reached #13 in the UK.  The underlying theme of the album can be the contrast between the old and the new both in theme with song selection, song themes , and the interplay between acoustic and electric instruments which Steeleye Span is known for.  The album contains three of their classic numbers, “Allison Gross”, “One Misty Moisty Morning”, and “Cam Ye O’er Frae France”.  The latter is a satirical Jacobite song mocking the court of King George I or Geordie Whelps in the song.  I was tempted to write a summary about it on this page but my Lord is there already too many words in this post.  If you have any interested you can read about the song here.

Meaning of Cam Ye O’er for France

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For samples, I went with the above mentioned “Cam Ye O’er for France” because it is one of my favorite Steeleye Span songs.  I also decided to include “Parcel of Rogues” for what few Scottish friends I have and not to stroke any nationalistic fires.steeleye-span_2767432k

Anyway, this is the third Steeleye Span album I have posted so it should go without saying that I would call this a Top Rated Album.

Steeleye Span- Now We Are Six

DSCN1149This was $1.  I am a fan of Steeleye Span.

imagesTYCUE1GZSteeleye Span was a British folk rock band, who along with Fariport Convention, headed the British Folk Revival of the Seventies.  Formed in 1969 by folk couples Maddy Prior/Tim Hart and Terry/Gay Woods along with Fairport’s bassist Ashley Hutchings, Steeleye Span played folk songs, ballads, reels, and jigs with an sound that relied on electric instruments.  The Woods would leave after one album (Terry would later join the Pogues in the 80’s).  Hutchings would leave after three albums.  Whereas he was more of a folk traditionalist, the musicians that replaced him would add to the more modern, electric sound.  The band would sign to Chrysalis Records and begin a string of  hit records, including their biggest hit, “All Around my Hat”.  The lineup would change throughout the years and Tim Hart would pass away in 2009.  However, a version led by Prior is still in business and actually touring select US cities in July.

As much as a hot mess Sandy Denny was, it is kind of a shame she became the dominant voice of this revival.  To me, Maddy Prior is an excellent singer with a voice that can be subtle at times and powerful at others.  She ranks right up there with Denny.  The electric guitars bring a new dimension to this folk genre, which differs greatly from US folk mainly because England has 1000 years to draw from compared to the US’ 200.

Steeleye Span Website

DSCN1150This album, released in 1974, was their sixth (hence the title).  As stated above, this was in the middle of their highly successful run of albums in the 70’s.  Composed mostly of traditional songs as well as an instrumental jig, the album would contain such band staples such as “Seven Hundred Elves” and “Mooncoin Jig”.  “Thomas the Rhymer” would become known as the quintessential Steeleye Span song.***(See footnote). There are two songs done in a style of school children and cheekily credited to ST Eleye Primary School choir.  The last song on the album presented quite a controversy among critics and fans.  It is a Phil Spector penned song, “To Know Him is to Love Him” and one of the few departures the band took from its traditionalism.  According to lore, the band had taken to playing a 50’s style rock and roll encore after their shows.

An Index of Steeleye Span and British Folk Songs if one was curious

For a sample, I went with “Thomas the Rhymer” (Roud Folk Song #219/ Child Ballad #37), a ballad about a 13th century Scottish Laird.  I also went with the controversial Spector tune “To Know Him is to Love Him”.  The saxophone on this track is done by no other than the White Duke himself, David Bowie.steeleye_span

This is a Top Rated for me because I like Steeleye Span.  I acknowledge that it isn’t for everybody.

 

 

***  After some thought ( and scant sleep), I decided that I should post the source material or at least something close to it for comparison.  If you still made it this far, below is a more traditional version of “Thomas the Rhymer” by UK folk legend ( and Kristy’s pop), Ewan Maccoll.  I imagine I lost you somewhere mid article, but if you went this far, well, there you go.  At the very least, hopefully you can appreciate what Steeleye Span was trying to do.