uring the 1950s, almost every young American boy dreamed about being Superman. For much of that decade--and for years afterward, in reruns--the man of steel kept America and the world safe from menacing mobsters, devious spies and the occasional bumbling robot on the popular TV series Adventures of Superman. Each story also contained electrifying music. Now, nearly a half-century after the program's debut in 1953, a new CD is available, offering many of the original cues used during the show's earliest episodes.
This collection--the first of a proposed trilogy of discs devoted to melodies from the classic series--presents 36 cuts. The album opens with the familiar "Superman Main Title" (complete with announcer Bill Kennedy's rousing "faster than a speeding bullet" voiceover), and is followed by numerous potent, brassy selections with expressive names like "Brawl," "Murder Will Out," "The Fight" and "Revenge!" Agitated works such as "Creeping Misterioso," "Spectral Thumps" and "Tragic Tension" suggest an anxious and, at times, rather aggressive air, while "Tender Secret," "June Waltz" and "Smallville Pastorale" provide more poignant accompaniment.
A brief four-cue suite is devoted to those compositions introduced on the show's premiere episode, "Superman on Earth," along with a similarly succinct five-tune sequence from "The Monkey Mystery." The recording ostensibly concludes with the "Superman End" theme, although, after a few seconds, a "hidden" track surfaces, which showcases a vintage commercial for Kellogg's Corn Flakes featuring Daily Planet editor Perry White (John Hamilton).
Up, up and away!
As album producer Paul Mandell reveals in his detailed liner notes, nearly all of the music heard on Adventures of Superman was recycled from a trio of low-budget movies released during the late 1940s. However, for anyone who grew up watching the man of steel undertake his "never-ending battle for truth, justice and the American way," such pedestrian origins are insignificant. These cues--which for many fans were an important part of childhood--remain delightful and downright unforgettable.
Wailing horns, screeching strings and dynamic percussion impart a potent, urban ambiance to "Last Reel Fight," evoking images of Superman pursuing a band of tough thugs--who have likely just abducted Lois Lane or Jimmy Olsen--through the busy streets of Metropolis. The thunderous cymbals and resonant drums of "Beating Heart" fashion an apprehensive atmosphere. The invigorating "Brawl" offers an extraordinary trumpet motif that serves as a powerful battle cry. Meanwhile, the regal "Moleska's Plight," which actually begins with a snippet of Johannes Brahms's Symphony No. 1, generates a stately yet somewhat melancholy feeling.
Two key cuts--"Superman Main Title" and "Superman End"--are unfortunately a bit murky, but overall Adventures of Superman is an exceptional CD. In fact, listening to these melodies more than 50 years after they were initially composed simply reaffirms their energy and effectiveness.
Anyone even marginally familiar with this time-honored TV series will find that hearing this exhilarating music will lift their spirits--where else?--"up, up and away!"
