National Youth Jazz Orchestra (NYJO) - Jazz In Film (2004)

Forget the word 'youth'. This is one of the best bands you will ever hear.
Jazz music and the Film industry have enjoyed a long, creative relationship and the acclaimed British based National Youth Jazz Orchestra have brilliantly captured the very best of film related jazz.12 tracks of classic, cool and sultry film jazz - ranging from 60's cult spy romp Modesty Blaise to the mean ackstreet sounds of Bullitt and Dirty Harry.Also a Tribute to the late Dudley Moore featuring his film scores 30 Is A Dangerous Age, Cynthia and Bedazzled, the track Field Day For Shirley from the album "Authentic DUD"

About the Artist

The National Youth Jazz Orchestra is regarded as the prominent showcase for the finest young jazz musicians in the United Kingdom and has, since it began in 1965, helped to establish a rising generation of talented jazz artists. Recognised as a world-class jazz orchestra, NYJO regularly tops the bill at festivals and major concert halls. Under its founding musical director, Bill Ashton MBE, the orchestra has performed hundreds of concerts in Britain and abroad. From theatres to schools, NYJO has helped raised the profile of jazz to as wide an audience as possible, and the orchestra has appeared in such prestigious venues as Ronnie Scott's, The Barbican, The Birmingham Symphony Hall, Usher Hall in Edinburgh, The Royal Albert Hall, and The Royal Festival Hall. They have also performed in most European countries, as well as North America and Australasia. Much of NYJO's vast repertoire is written specifically for them by leading British jazz composers, often past or present members of the orchestra. The orchestra's musical catalogue is enormous, covering a diverse variety of musical styles, ensuring their performances garner attention and praise from in-experienced concert-goers and jazz aficionados alike. Indeed, on the strength of their appeal, the orchestra has made numerous television and radio programmes, and have recorded around forty albums. In July 2002, NYJO was voted Best Big Band for the fourth time in the British Jazz Awards by both the critics and the public. Founder, and Musical Director, Bill Ashton also received the BBC Radio 2 Jazz Award in 1995 for his services to jazz. As legendary jazz saxophonist John Dankworth OBE says, "Forget the word Youth, this is one of the best bands you will ever hear".


TRACK LIST:

1.Modesty Blaise
2.Suite from Bullitt
3.Touch of Evil
4.Cinderella Liberty
5.Dudley Moore Tribute
6.The Gauntlet
7.The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3
8.Who Framed Roger Rabbit
9.The Man with the Golden Arm
10.Walk on the Wild Side
11.Dirty Harry Suite
12.Austin Powers Soul Bossa Nova

Recording Time - 72:32


Modesty Blaise (1966): Although the horns could be stronger in the mix, and the solo could have been more inspired, this is a nice upbeat version of John Dankworth's main theme.

Suite From Bullit (1968): A compilation piece that joins Lalo Shifrin's main theme, with other cues from the Steve McQueen crime thriller. The piece loses energy after it transitions to the second section, but manages to come back forcefully, before moving into the free-flowing and improvisational third section.

Touch of Evil (1958): With that classic Mancini sound, this Latin flavored number takes you somewhere romantic south of the border.

Cinderella Liberty (1973): A beautiful piece by John Williams that seems to evoke the emotions and feelings of being in a big city.

Dudley Moore Tribute: Moore was a skilled composer and musician, providing the music for several films. Featured here are themes from Bedazzled (1967) and Thirty Is A Dangerous Age Cynthia (1968). This is a meandering improvisational composition, featuring piano, guitar and sax, that is a bit hard to get a handle on.

The Gauntlet (1977): Jerry Fielding's theme is slow traditional jazz with a bayou flavor, and stands out from the rest of the album. It's fine as a change of pace, but seems out of place in this collection.

The Taking of Pelham 1, 2, 3 (1974): Menacing and rumbling along with to a swinging mechanical beat, this version of David Shire's theme goes on long enough to get a little repetitious, but still manages to retain most of its initial energy.

Who Framed Roger Rabbit? (1988): Light and somewhat aimless, Alan Silvestri's theme, like The Gauntlet, seems a little out of place.

Man With The Golden Arm (1955): This is the earliest film in the collection. Elmer Bernstein is a composer who is not that well known today. Favoring bold brass and percussion, it takes a little while for this tune to hit its stride.

Walk On The Wild Side (1962): More of Bernstein, this is version has perhaps a more modern sound than what is commonly associated with his work. Like his previous selection, this one features an improvisational section that seems an odd fit. Neither tune is outstanding, so it might have been better to have chosen just one tune from the composer.

Dirty Harry Suite: Versatile Lalo Schifrin provided the music for all five Dirty Harry films. Although the music from each is very different, this composition does a pretty good of job stitching the main themes from Dirty Harry, Magnum Force, and Sudden Impact. The result is not particularly cohesive, but it's still an interesting listen.

Austin Powers (Soul Bossa Nova) (1997): A perfectly shagalicious version, but this tune is so recent compared to the others that it does not quite seen to fit.