BruceH Posted April 4, 2004 Report Share Posted April 4, 2004 Inspired by the Brew Moore thread, here's another talented guy who would have been 80 about now (April 16th, I believe). While he's a bit more tangential to jazz, he clearly had a grounding in the music, as a brief listen to the Pink Panther Theme will demonstrate. He also composed the deathless Peter Gunn theme, the grandaddy of all "danger" TV/movie themes (including the James Bond and Mission Impossible themes), and he also composed the theme to Mr. Lucky. (Nice cover of that on the recent Byrd/Adams At the Half Note RVG.) In addition, he did the score for Orson Welles's film Touch of Evil. Here's to you, Henry! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Free For All Posted April 5, 2004 Report Share Posted April 5, 2004 Remember the Mancini thread we had a while back, Bruce? I said then I love Mancini for his orchestration skills/fondness for unique colors (love those alto flutes!) and general melodic sense. Quite commercial, yes, but he had his own identity. And he had some great jazz moments here and there. I remember on a Pink Panther soundtrack that I have there's an extra cut with some really "out" writing that was almost Gil Evans-like. I think much of his music stands up well to being re-examined and re-interpreted. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brownie Posted April 5, 2004 Report Share Posted April 5, 2004 The score Mancini wrote for Welles' 'Touch of Evil' is reason enough to salute him in a jazz forum. One of the most effective use of music (and WestCoast jazz music to boot) in film history. The film is a masterpiece and the music is right up to masterpiece standards. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shrdlu Posted April 5, 2004 Report Share Posted April 5, 2004 He was a wonderful writer, conductor and arranger. I think the first "Peter Gunn" album (which was one of my first two LPs!) is an absolute masterpiece of jazz. I've played it countless times, but it still sounds fresh. The follow-up album, made about 6 months later, has some excellent jazz on it, too, together with some more "commercial" tracks. The success of these albums is due partly to the use of many top West Coast jazz guys, certainly, but Hank Mancini must be given a lot of the credit. Let's not forget the "Remington Steele" music, too, from much later. There were several different versions of the theme at the end, and one was slow, with a very lush sounding big band; it was very beautiful. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JSngry Posted April 5, 2004 Report Share Posted April 5, 2004 Love that Baby Elephant Walk! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
clinthopson Posted April 5, 2004 Report Share Posted April 5, 2004 I don't know about the other thread but IMHO Hank Mancini is one of the best song writers of the last 50 years, along with Jobim and Johnny Mandel. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tjobbe Posted April 5, 2004 Report Share Posted April 5, 2004 (edited) Love that Baby Elephant Walk! The Dave Grusin Two for the road is one of the Elephant interpretations I like most.... and the Peter Gunn on my favourite DVD... The Blues Brother (in restored length with a full 4minutes of Peter G. Theme) Happy Birthday Henry.... Cheers, Tjobbe Edited April 5, 2004 by tjobbe Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Man with the Golden Arm Posted April 5, 2004 Report Share Posted April 5, 2004 (edited) Some great SHAG art work on this site. pinkpanther.com click the paw for party Edited April 5, 2004 by Man with the Golden Arm Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Man with the Golden Arm Posted April 5, 2004 Report Share Posted April 5, 2004 ...oh, and "Something for Sophia" is the coolest! it's like lush spy bongo fondue Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim R Posted April 6, 2004 Report Share Posted April 6, 2004 I don't know about the other thread but IMHO Hank Mancini is one of the best song writers of the last 50 years, along with Jobim and Johnny Mandel. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan Gould Posted April 6, 2004 Report Share Posted April 6, 2004 I don't know about the other thread but IMHO Hank Mancini is one of the best song writers of the last 50 years, along with Jobim and Johnny Mandel. Eddie Higgins told me a wonderful story about Mancini and Mandel in our interview, but you'll have to wait til Cadence publishes it to hear it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sheldonm Posted April 6, 2004 Report Share Posted April 6, 2004 I have a friend that played drums for Henry for about 30 years (Jack Gilfoy). He said he was a great guy to work for. Mark Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BruceH Posted April 7, 2004 Author Report Share Posted April 7, 2004 I don't know about the other thread but IMHO Hank Mancini is one of the best song writers of the last 50 years, along with Jobim and Johnny Mandel. Eddie Higgins told me a wonderful story about Mancini and Mandel in our interview, but you'll have to wait til Cadence publishes it to hear it! Damn! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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