John Barry's Soundtrack to "Zulu" Gets Expanded Presentation from Quartet

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John Barry's score to director Cy Endfield's 1964 film Zulu has been released on CD numerous times in the past, but Quartet Records can stake claim to the definitive version. The label's new mono/stereo expanded edition, released late in 2021, makes a vivid case for the album's significance in Barry's oeuvre.

With only four years of film scoring behind him - including 1963's From Russia with Love, his first full score for the James Bond series of movies - Barry had already evinced a remarkable talent for the art. With Zulu, he created memorable symphonic themes which were accessible enough to attract pop listeners; indeed, the soundtrack was released on the Ember label for which Barry was serving as recording manager. (He had left his previous home base of EMI for the upstart Ember in June 1963.) Zulu chronicled the Battle of Rorke's Drift between the British Army and the Zulus during the 1879 Anglo-Zulu War.

Starring Stanley Baker and Michael Caine in his first major role, the epic war film was shot on location in South Africa and featured the participation of hundreds of Zulus in roles large and small. Mangosuthu Muthelezi portrayed his great-grandfather, Zulu King Cetshwayo; he later became a civil rights champion during the era of apartheid. Zulu opened in London on the 85th anniversary of the actual battle. While it hasn't been entirely immune to criticism as to its racial depictions, the film was notable for its portrayal of the relationship between the British military forces and the Zulus. Jon Burlingame's excellent liner notes for Quartet's reissue quote Muthelezi: "Of course race is a central theme in the film. But something more emerges from the film: the deep respect that develops between the warring armies, and the nobility of King Cetshwayo's warriors as they salute the enemy, demanded a different way of thinking...Indeed it remains a film that demands a thoughtful response." Zulu was an immediate box office success in Britain and remains a television mainstay to this day.

Barry only composed less than 20 minutes of musical material for Zulu, but it left quite an impression. Recorded with about 70 musicians at CTS Bayswater, the score featured variations on the central theme introduced in the main title - stirring, majestic, dramatic, and throbbing with punchy brass, primal percussion, and cascading strings. He took his inspiration for the theme from hours of Zulu tapes as he strove to blend both the British and Zulu influences into his music. But because there was so little score, Barry needed to get (even more) creative for the soundtrack album. His solution was to fill Side Two of the original LP with pop songs inspired by the film. He tapped into his experience as leader of The John Barry Seven (and enlisted its musicians) for these short and catchy, largely guitar-centric pieces including the perky "High Grass" and "Big Shield" with playful dancing flute. "Stamp and Shake" and "Zulu Maid" featured chanted African lyrics, and "Monkey Feathers" modernized the main theme. The film's producers tried to push the "Zulu Stamp" as a dance craze; Burlingame informs us that they went so far as to hire choreographer Lionel Blair to create a dance to Barry's upbeat track. Richard Burton's spoken word contributions to the film were also preserved on the Ember soundtrack.

The score to Zulu anticipates much of Barry's future work on the James Bond franchise (and beyond) where he spun off hit songs from his powerful, dramatic scores. Quartet's new presentation offers the mono and stereo albums as beautifully remastered by reissue producer Chris Malone; both are valid listening experiences, and there are some subtle differences between the two mixes (longer fades and even different takes utilized for parts of "Big Shield" and "Zulu Stamp"). A handful of alternates have also been appended. Burlingame and Malone both have essays within the 24-page booklet which boasts numerous color film stills.

John Barry's Zulu: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack is available now from Quartet Records at the below links.

John Barry, Zulu: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack (Ember NR 5012, 1964 - reissued Quartet QR476, 2022)

Stereo