or the past couple of years, Film Score Monthly--a specialty
magazine for movie and television music aficionados--has issued
limited-edition CDs showcasing tunes from vintage motion pictures. As part of
its "Silver Age Classics" series, it recently released the soundtrack to
Batman, the campy 1966 flick based upon the popular TV series starring
Adam West and Burt Ward.
The album spotlights 23 potent cuts from the film. "Acknowledgment/Main
Title" is propelled by a jazzy rendition of the famous television theme and
introduces brief motifs for the movie's cornucopia of crooks: Catwoman (Lee
Meriwether), the Joker (Cesar Romero), Penguin (Burgess Meredith) and the
Riddler (Frank Gorshin). Selections like "Just Ring/Yo Ho, Sir/Let's Find
Out," "Tricky Buoy" and "Filthy Criminals/Chamber 17" similarly intermingle
melodies for the various villains. There's also a versatile theme for the
miscellaneous Bat vehicles. "Batmobile to Airport" introduces this
tumultuous, horn-infused motif, which is revamped for the Batcopter, Batboat
and Batcycle on such cues as "A Good Job," "Torpedoes" and "False
Feathers/Swallow This Pill."
All of the numbers are composed and conducted by famed big-band leader
Nelson Riddle, who provided much of the music for the television show as well.
Additionally, there are four "Bonus Bat Tracks," including the original
Batman TV theme written by Neal Hefti, and "Again," a source cue from
Lionel Newman first used in the 1948 picture Road House. The 16-page
booklet accompanying the disc features over a dozen photos from the movie and
lengthy liner notes by Film Score Monthly senior editor Jeff Bond.
Making music of Biff! Bam! Pow!
While there have been a few ersatz full-length Batman soundtrack
albums issued over the years (even Hefti's own Batman Theme LP
primarily featured works "inspired" by the TV program) and numerous cover
versions of the show's title track, it has been difficult for collectors to
obtain genuine Batman melodies. The rarity of the previously
unavailable tunes heard here, combined with Riddle's considerable
compositional skills, guarantee die-hard film score fans and longtime
Batman buffs a splendid Bat-time.
Riddle's big-band background (he'd previously worked with such
entertainers as Frank Sinatra and Bing Crosby) is evident throughout the
collection, especially on those cues that complement the fight scenes. Horn
"stings" accentuate every punch (Biff!), kick (Bam!) and swing (Pow!) on
lively cuts like "Credulous Creatures/Fine Finkish Friends" and "Attack/Take
It in Tow." As Bond points out in his commentary, the picture's highly
choreographed battles were essentially intricate dances, and the accompanying
music served, at least in part, to drive the action forward.
However, not all of the melodies are high-energy romps. Smoky, mysterious
woodwinds and light percussion highlight Bruce Wayne's seduction on "Kitka,"
while "Dehydrated/Stand Clear" displays a lighthearted, sneaky atmosphere
perfect for the accompanying on-screen activities, which feature the Penguin
turning his henchmen into powder and--a bit later in the number--Batman and
Robin scaling the side of a building. Yet, regardless of the tempo, the
compositions invariably retain that brassy Batman sound. At times the
recurring themes can be a mite repetitious, but the music always remains
joyful, vivacious and utterly Bat-tastic.
