Mighty Joe Young and Other Ray Harryhausen Animation Classics

Mighty Joe Young and Other Ray Harryhausen Animation Classics
World premiere recordings from three movies featuring Ray Harryhausen animation, Mighty Joe Young, 20 Million Miles To Earth and The Animal World! 40 tracks from Mighty Joe Young(1949) composed by Roy Webb and Stephen Foster 24 tracks from 20 Million Miles To Earth (1957) composed by Mischa Bakaleinikoff and the Columbia Pictures music library 1 track from The Animal World (1956) composed by Paul Sawtell and 1 Bonus Track:Heaven composed by Frederick Hollander Masatoshi Mitsumoto conducts the Radio Symphony Orchestra of Slovakia. 66 tracks total.
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As a big fan of classical music, and orchestral scores in particular, it has struck me that my liking for music of this type is probably in part linked to hearing music from the movies I grew up with, including "King Kong", "The Alamo", "Moby Dick", and so forth. As an adult, I collected recordings of not only symphonies by the masters, but also soundtracks by such film composers as Bernard Herrmann, Miklos Rozsa, Erich Korngold, Max Steiner, and before I go on forever, I'll add John Williams to the list and stop. Sure, all of the "classic" movies had soundtracks which were recorded for the consumer market, but I had secretly always wanted a recording of my favorite of all movies, "MIGHTY JOE YOUNG". In this film, a lonely girl (Terry Moore) raised as an only child in Africa by her father, adopts a baby gorilla, who she names "Joe". All is well, until a money-making schemer from New York, Max O'Hara, (Robert Armstrong, of KING KONG fame) dupes her into coming to Hollywood so that he can feature her and her ape in his night club. Things go from bad to worse - but before Jill can manage to return to Africa with Joe, they are belittled in "civilization" beyond belief. Mighty Joe Young is fed a round of liquor by some drunks, and goes berserk (see - I resisted the temptation to say "goes ape"), and trashes the nightclub, terrorizing people, and lions, alike. The court order is to have him shot, but O'Hara hatches an escape plan, that nearly works. At the climax to this touching tale, the fugitives arrive at a burning orphanage, and Joe saves a child, and in the process himself, from disaster, in a fabulously sequenced and realized rescue scene. What makes this film superior to the Disney remake, and to other films, are the following (a) Ray Harryhausen's stop-motion skill, (b) the personality given to Joe (yes, we were made to believe this could be a real animal), (c) all the (human) main characters are highly sympathetic, and are given to very good actors, (d) the pace and timing of the film are excellent, and then of course, there is (e) composer Roy Webb's wonderful score. This was my favorite movie as a child, and remains so. The most original and exciting moments include when Joe first appears at the camp in Africa and approaches a caged lion; when the cowboys attempt to chase and rope him; when Joe is unveiled by O'Hara, holding Jill aloft on a pedestal as she plays his favorite tune, "Beautiful Dreamer" on piano; when Joe wins the tug of war with O'Hara's hand-picked legion of strongmen (what a lineup - from Primo Carnera, to "the Swedish Angel", a Rondo Hatton look-alike); when Joe goes on a rampage - one scene in particular that is so well done has Joe over by a corner, messing with some lions (Joe doesn't like lions!) and his movement and his shadow - and the lighting - make him appear real; and then there's the final rescue at the orphanage - Joe's true compassion toward humans (and bond to Jill) revealed. That such complex contrasts can be evidenced by an inanimate stop-motion figure, and that this was 1949 technology, is still amazing. On to the music on this CD (I will focus my commentary on "Mighty Joe Young" in this review). Regarding the forerunner to all "gorilla movie scores", Max Steiner's "King Kong" music clearly influenced Webb's "Mighty Joe Young" (e.g., the use of the low brass and wind colors throughout; the orchestral scoring and percussion in the African dance segments). I have come to own two realizations of "Kong", the first was issued on LP first (Fred Steiner, 1975: excellent) and the more recent Morgan/Stromberg CD on Naxos (very good); but "Joe" never made it to audio disc. So, after decades, I had given up hope of ever hearing this stunning Roy Webb score, other than through viewing the film. But to my surprise and delight, an enterprising company named Monstrous Movie Music and its producer David Schecter have filled the void, and quite nicely, too! Working with conductor Masatoshi Mitsumoto and an eastern European orchestra, quite thrilling results have been obtained. The team has succeeded in making the musicians sound close to a "Hollywood orchestra" steeped in film music, and that is no small accomplishment. Regarding the extent of music presented, we get a "suite", so it is not the entire soundtrack of music, but at 35+ minutes, gets the job done. There are some omissions, such as the dramatic moment when Joe snatches an orphan child from the flames toward the end of the film, but most of what fans want is here. I love the opening of course, and the tracks which introduce Joe in his native Africa ("Joe and the Lion" 2:38). You can close your eyes and "see" the scenes from the movie as you listen to this CD ("Help, help!" yells O'Hara in your mind, as Joe grabs him: "Tragedy Averted Part 2", 1:20). I am in love too with ALL the strongmen fanfares; also the "escape" tracks (especially "Chase Part 3" 1:43, which contains some very recognizable music to fans of this movie), and the finale ("End Title" 1:19), which provides the happy ending that "Kong" and "Son of Kong" never had. Unlike in many classical recordings that strive for a sonic "concert hall perspective", the orchestra on this CD is miked "close-in", and as a result all sorts of wonderful instrumental details emerge that are obscured in the film. Producer Schecter maintains that they are present in the original score, and I believe him. The recording also captures instrumental timbral differences. As an example, bass drum rolls are clearly heard (and felt), and sound distinct from timpani rolls. The audio engineering presents a very "plush" orchestral sound, with ample bass, plus sweet strings, and excellent percussion (you will hear many details here, pitched percussion and melodic). The brass voices are realistic, and the winds come through full of character. While the original music-making in the film is extraordinarily intense and "hair-raising", in the recreation on this CD, many tempi are broadened slightly. While I felt that at times more ferocious musical accents and more forceful brass attacks were in order, overall the conductor's approach works nicely, and bears repeated listening. It is no surprise either that the more intimate music succeeds extremely well in conductor Mitsumoto's hands. I have come to appreciate the performances on this CD more and more; it's so nice to hear "Mighty Joe" in a modern recording. The favorite track to fans will probably be "Beautiful Dreamer" (2:28), which starts innocently with that instantly recognizable Stephen Foster melody - rising to great heights, literally! All told, this is a "must have" recording for fans of this film, for fans of the genre, and for those interested in what is composer Roy Webb's finest musical score (not to forget those who simply love the sound of a symphony orchestra in full sail). Like the film, this CD of music from "Mighty Joe Young" is a winner, and is highly and enthusiastically recommended!