Kenyon Hopkins THE HUSTLER - Expanded! From Intrada!

[Teasing the Korean]

http://store.intrada.com/s.nl/it.A/id.10730/.f

Kenyon Hopkins fans celebrate! Legendary soundtrack from legendary Academy Award-winning film finally gets CD world premiere! Expanded, too! Robert Rossen directs from book by Walter Tevis, gifted Dede Allen edits, Eugen Schüfftan nabs Oscar for his stunning widescreen black-and-white cinematography, Piper Laurie, George C. Scott both provide unforgettable, Academy Award-nominated supporting roles. Lead actor Paul Newman vividly plays “Fast” Eddie Felson, arrogant pool shark, who determines to best legendary “Minnesota Fats”, played with dignified class by Jackie Gleason. Detailed characterizations, events and powerful outcome create one of the defining pictures of the sixties. Stunning score by Kenyon Hopkins roots score in smoky pool hall jazz, then adds emotional depth, flavor to dramatic tale. Numerous musical devices are worthy of spotlight: Hopkins has trumpets, trombones typically utilize mutes, playing open in select passages only. Orchestration is equally unique: requisite sax-led big band forces appear but widening rainbow of sound comes from decidedly symphonic colors courtesy English horn, oboe, French horn, flute. Even electric guitar has its say. In another move of genius, Hopkins frequently writes in very transparent manner with exposed solos often heard without accompaniment. Jazz sequences play to tempo of montages, pulse of pool games while solos, woodwind colors play to inner drama, love story. Hopkin’s harmonic vernacular is also striking. This is serious, jazz-influenced original music! Inexplicably, prolific 50’s and 60’s film composer Hopkins has been mostly ignored in CD universe. The Hustler joins Baby Doll, The Fugitive Kind as lone trio from large LP catalog that boasts The Yellow Canary, Lilith, The Strange One, This Property Is Condemned, Eleven Against The Ice, The Reporter, East Side West Side, others.

Courtesy 20th Century Fox, all-new Intrada CD presentation of The Hustler offers original 1961 Kapp stereo LP program, then doubles length with treasure-trove of previously unreleased outtakes, unused cues, demos, all from absolutely pristine condition stereo master tapes, mixed by Mike Matessino. Hopkins fans will be delirious! Julie Kirgo provides informative essay about picture and composer, Kay Marshall assembles dramatic “flipper-style” booklet with both original Kapp artwork plus 1961 film poster design, Nick Redman supervises production. Interesting movie footnote: Decades later, reprise of Eddie Felson role brought Paul Newman an Oscar for 1986 Martin Scorsese sequel, The Color Of Money. It’s hard to overstate importance of getting Kenyon Hopkins’ most important film score out on CD at last. Savor it! Kenyon Hopkins composes, conducts. Intrada Special Collection CD available while quantities and interest remain!

 

Edited February 21, 2017 by Teasing the Korean

[brownie]

Great film with awesome music.

Roswell Rudd and Phil Woods were among the musicians playing during a party sequence. 

[jlhoots]

Ordered! 

[Teasing the Korean]

My copy arrived today.  It sounds great, and the bonus tracks are very worthwhile, not just a bunch of needless add-ons.  Well worth the money - and the wait!  

[jlhoots]

4 hours ago, Teasing the Korean said:

My copy arrived today.  It sounds great, and the bonus tracks are very worthwhile, not just a bunch of needless add-ons.  Well worth the money - and the wait!  

Mine arrives Mon. according to USPS. Looking forward to it.

[Teasing the Korean]

12 hours ago, jlhoots said:

Mine arrives Mon. according to USPS. Looking forward to it.

Tell us what you think!  I listened to it on repeat at work yesterday, and then last night my wife and I listened again.  

Hopkins has such a distinctive sound, something about the way he uses woodwinds, electric guitar, and vibes.  He often has the vibes on fast vibrato, and he often has saxes/woodwinds playing melodies in two-part harmony.  His music comes off to me like some kind of secretive mid-century jazz that is written in code.  It communicates this sad, late-night mood. 

[Teasing the Korean]

Interesting that Jackie Gleason was credited as "Minnesota Fats" on the LP cover.  Supposedly, this is because Gleason was a recording on Capitol at the time, and The Hustler was released on Kapp. 

[ghost of miles]

Just ordered this as well--saw it in the latest Screen Archives email.

[jlhoots]

I've listened to it once now. Very nice. Well worth it.

[Teasing the Korean]

1 hour ago, jlhoots said:

I've listened to it once now. Very nice. Well worth it.

I've had it on repeat for a couple of days.  It hasn't gotten old yet. 

[medjuck]

1 hour ago, Teasing the Korean said:

I've had it on repeat for a couple of days.  It hasn't gotten old yet. 

Ditto. Lots of Phil Woods  and the NY jazz quartet (Johnson, Hinton, Jones and Galbraith. ) 

[medjuck]

Listening to this led me to rewatching the film which is streaming on Netflix.  It's even better than I remember it.   The liner notes to the cd list the musicians who play on The Louisville Party Sequence  including Roswell Rudd and Billy Bauer. In the film you see some musicians playing a sort of Dixieland but they include a clarinet  which is not listed in the notes and this music is not on the cd. (Or did I somehow miss it?) 

[Teasing the Korean]

15 hours ago, medjuck said:

Listening to this led me to rewatching the film which is streaming on Netflix.  It's even better than I remember it.   The liner notes to the cd list the musicians who play on The Louisville Party Sequence  including Roswell Rudd and Billy Bauer. In the film you see some musicians playing a sort of Dixieland but they include a clarinet  which is not listed in the notes and this music is not on the cd. (Or did I somehow miss it?) 

Source music recorded for a film may not have the involvement of the composer, and/or may be recorded under different circumstances than the rest of the score.  The tapes for this segment may have been lost, or may not have had the involvement of Kenyon Hopkins.  (It has been years since I've seen the film.)

[jlhoots]

Listened again. Really enjoying.

[sgcim]

The highlight of the score is Phil Woods' altissimo high note to end the movie.

One could read that as symbolic of 'Fast Eddie's' vengeance on George C. Scott's character for his treatment of Piper Laurie and/or Fast Eddie's overcoming his character flaws to beat Minnesota Fats.

Hopkins used Woods on many of his film scores, and there was a good reason for that...

Sadly, with Hopkins and Woods gone, we'll never get anything even approaching the greatness of those film scores again...

[skeith]

I just got my copy... and it is great....the compositions and performances.

 

Thank you TTK for bringing this to our attention!!

[Teasing the Korean]

I watched The Hustler for the first time in ages recently, and was reminded at how good the film was, and also how effective Kenyon Hopkins' score is in that context.  This prompted me to pull out the Intrada CD again.  I don't know what it is about this album, but every time I spin it, I want to play it about 4 or 5 more times in a row.  

Aside from Hopkins' music being so good on its own terms, his dramatic instincts are also spot-on. (Check out the track "Contract with Depravity.")  I love how the main theme uses ever-ascending intervals of thirds. When he hits the 11th in the first half, it is natural, and in the second half when the theme repeats, the 11th is sharp.  It is a perfect melody for Paul Newman's character, expressing drive and optimism, but also sadness and poignancy.  It's like a theme for a fighter who keeps getting up every time he's knocked down.  

I'm surprised that Hopkins was not hired for higher-profile films after this.  Prior to The Hustler, he had scored some Tennessee Williams adaptations, and was recording mood music albums for Capitol and ABC-Parmount.  After The Hustler, it was primarily B-films and TV shows.  Interestingly, Hopkins was apparently considered for Torn Curtain after Hitchcock fired Bernard Herrmann.

Kenyon Hopkins is a mysterious figure.  No one seems to know much about him, and the info I've found on the interwebz is minimal. 

Edited March 2, 2018 by Teasing the Korean

[sgcim]

I went on a Kenyon Hopkins frenzy a few weeks ago, after listening to all the out takes featured in the Jazz In the Movies that featured Phil Woods, Billy Bauer and others in some fantastic music that never made it into the movie. I wanted more!

He was another composer/arr. from that period that included Oliver Nelson, Manny Albam, Michel Legrand, Quincy Jones, Gary McFarland, Gunther Schuller, George Russell and others from NY who were lucky enough to be able to still use Phil Woods, before PW fled the studio scene in NY for Europe.

Hopkins wrote a wonderful feature for Woods in 'Lillith', and features him consistently in Hopkins' LP 'The Sounds of NY'. He also wrote the theme song for a TV series about a lawyer(played by George C. Scott) that featured Woods playing the melody.

There's an interesting re-issue of the 'Sounds of NY' LP that also has another LP from 1959 called 'Rooms', that is nothing like any of his other music. It's written for a quintet in a kind of neo-primitive bag, and features Teo Macero and Bobby Collins on piano, and is way out there.

Here's the best summation of his career I've found:

https://www.allmusic.com/artist/kenyon-hopkins-mn0000086822/biography

[jlhoots]

I love that CD & the movie.

[paul secor]

I wonder how Roswell Rudd ended up playing on this.

[sgcim]

Roswell was a highly skilled musician capable of playing in any situation. A trumpet player friend of mine used to play with him at the resorts in the Catskill Mountains!

[paul secor]

I know that he was a skilled musician, but he wasn't among the usual crew who played on soundtrack albums. I just wondered how it came about.

[Teasing the Korean]

12 hours ago, paul secor said:

I know that he was a skilled musician, but he wasn't among the usual crew who played on soundtrack albums. I just wondered how it came about.

Actually, the usual soundtrack crew in the US was on the West Coast, and Hopkins seemed to prefer recording with East Coast cats. 

16 hours ago, sgcim said:

Hopkins wrote a wonderful feature for Woods in 'Lillith', and features him consistently in Hopkins' LP 'The Sounds of NY'. He also wrote the theme song for a TV series about a lawyer(played by George C. Scott) that featured Woods playing the melody.

There's an interesting re-issue of the 'Sounds of NY' LP that also has another LP from 1959 called 'Rooms', that is nothing like any of his other music. It's written for a quintet in a kind of neo-primitive bag, and features Teo Macero and Bobby Collins on piano, and is way out there.

I have all of those.  Rooms is indeed different, but you an certainly hear some of his devices in that one.  

Have you ever heard the albums he arranged for Joe Bushkin on Capitol?  I never have. 

[Teasing the Korean]

I read that Gerry Mulligan included Johnny Mandel's "I Want To Live," which Mulligan played on the soundtrack, in his sets for many years.  Is there any evidence that Phil Woods ever played "The Hustler" at his gigs?

[paul secor]

13 hours ago, paul secor said:

I know that he was a skilled musician, but he wasn't among the usual crew who played on soundtrack albums. I just wondered how it came about.

 

1 hour ago, Teasing the Korean said:

Actually, the usual soundtrack crew in the US was on the West Coast, and Hopkins seemed to prefer recording with East Coast cats. 

 

You're correct that most soundtracks were recorded on the West coast, but there were plenty of regular studio musicians in the East then, and Roswell Rudd wasn't among those guys. I just wondered how he was chosen. Perhaps Hopkins knew him?