Keeping Score with New Releases by Intrada and Kritzerland

The last few weeks have seen some great catalogue soundtracks released, including a set of LPs from a beloved Golden Age composer and a pair of heavy hitters at 20th Century-Fox.

Last week saw Intrada release two score titles. The first is the world premiere of Maurice Jarre's score to Distant Thunder, from the 1988 John Lithgow-Ralph Macchio film about a Vietnam War veteran uneasily returning to his family after a decade spent in the American wilderness. Jarre's small-scale electronic ensemble balances the tentativeness of Lithgow and Macchio's burgeoning father-son relationship with sudden bursts representing the fear and violence that Lithgow's Mark Lambert so often lived with.

Elsewhere, Intrada unleashes no less than six albums on three discs from acclaimed composer Elmer Bernstein's tenure on the MGM-distributed label Ava Records. Recorded and released between 1962 and 1965, The Ava Collection features original soundtrack albums from such classics as The Carpetbaggers, To Kill a Mockingbird and Walk on the Wild Side, as well as a compilation of stray movie and television themes by Bernstein. Not only is this the first collection of all six of these releases, it's also the first time all six of them have been mastered from the original first generation stereo masters! This mix of quality and quantity make it a must-have for not only Bernstein fans, but for fans of great '60s film scoring.

Last, but certainly not least, Kritzerland uncovers two classics from the scoring sessions of 20th Century-Fox: Alfred Newman's O. Henry's Full House (1952) and Cyril Holdridge's The Luck of the Irish (1948). Full House is quite an interesting picture: five adaptations of short stories by the popular American author, including "The Last Leaf," "The Ransom of Red Chief" and the enduring "The Gift of the Magi" - all put on by five different directors and five different casts (including Charles Laughton, Marilyn Monroe, Farley Granger and others) and narrated by John Steinbeck, in a rare film appearance. Newman's five mini-scores, ably arranged by Ken Darby, are treats for any fan of his work. Full House is paired with the score to The Luck of the Irish, a fantasy about a man (Tyrone Power) torn between his wealthy fiancé in New York and a beautiful stranger he met on the Emerald Isle. His journey is guided by Cecil Kellaway as Horace, an honest-to-goodness leprechaun he also makes the acquaintance of.

The Kritzerland two-fer is limited to 1,000 copies, while the Intrada sets are available "while quantities and interest remain." Make your orders and check out the track lists after the jump!

Maurice Jarre, Distant Thunder: Music from the Motion Picture (Intrada Special Collection Vol. 271, 2014 - original film released 1988)

Main Title
Mark in Pond
Louis Walks the Track
Louis Kisses the Train
Mark Leaves Mountains - Insert
Char Meets Mark
It's a Deal
Mark in the Park/Jack Gets Letter
Haircut
Mark Leaves Town
Headlines/To the Mountains (Revised)/The Forest At Night
Larry and Jack (After Shooting)/Mark and Jack Meet (Revised)
Mark and Jack Meet (Original Version)
Larry Consoles Mark
Remember Billy
No Trespassing
Looking for Nitz
Down the Hill
You're a Real Amigo
Mark in Hospital/It's Not Your Fault
After the Train Has Passed (Revised)/Mark and Jack Reunion
To the Mountains (Original Version)
After the Train Has Passed (Original Version)/Mark and Jack Reunion

All tracks previously unreleased

Elmer Bernstein, The Ava Collection (Intrada Special Collection Vol. 262, 2014)

Disc 1: Walk on the Wild Side and The Carpetbaggers

Walk on the Wild Side
Somewhere in the Used to Be
Hallie’s Jazz
Rejected
Doll House
Teresina
Night Theme
Walk on the Wild Side Jazz
Dove
Kitty
Oliver
Reminiscence
Finale
The Carpetbaggers
Love Theme from The Carpetbaggers
Speak of the Devil
Forbidden Room
The Carpetbaggers Blues
Main Title from The Carpetbaggers
New Star
The Producer Asks for a Divorce
Jonas Hits Bottom
Finale

Disc 2: The Caretakers and Baby the Rain Must Fall

Black Straight-Jacket
Blues for a 4-String Guitar
Take Care
Birdito
Party in the Ward
The Caretakers (Main Title)
The Cage
Electrotherapy
Day Hospital
Seclusion
Finale
Baby the Rain Must Fall
Henry’s Heap
Shine for Me - The We Three Trio
Travelin’ Lady
Treat Me Right - Jim and Johnny
Gospel Time
Pecan Grove Rock
Baby the Rain Must Fall - The We Three Trio
Wagon Wheel Watusi
Main Title Theme from Baby the Rain Must Fall

Disc 3: To Kill a Mockingbird and Movie and TV Themes Composed and Conducted by Elmer Bernstein

Main Title
Roll in the Tire
The Search for Boo
Jem’s Discovery
To Kill a Mockingbird
Tree Treasure
Lynch Mob
Footsteps in the Dark
Children Attacked
Scout & Boo
Summer’s End
Rat Race (from the Paramount Picture)
Three Time Blueser (from the TV Show Take Five)
Radio Hysteria (from the R.K.O. Picture Sudden Fear)
Anna Lucasta (from the United Artists Picture)
Hop, Skip But Jump
Saints and Sinners (from the Four Star TV Production)
Sweet Smell of Success (from the United Artists Picture)
The Man with the Golden Arm (from the United Artists Picture)
Jubilation
Walk on the Wild Side (from the Columbia Picture)

Disc 1, Tracks 1-13 released as Ava LP AS-4ST, 1962
Disc 1, Tracks 14-23 released as Ava LP AS-45ST, 1964
Disc 2, Tracks 1-11 released as Ava LP AS-31, 1963
Disc 2, Tracks 12-21 released as Ava LP AS-53ST, 1965
Disc 3, Tracks 1-11 released as Ava LP AS-20ST, 1963
Disc 3, Tracks 12-21 released as Ava LP AS-11ST, 1962

Alred Newman/Cyril Mockridge, O. Henry's Full House/The Luck of the Irish: Original Motion Picture Soundtracks (Kritzerland KR 20027-9, 2014 - original films released 1952/1948)