KHCD-ST001 (STEREO) Spartacus - Soundtrack Album - Music by Alex North - North's "Spartacus" score has a truly pagan flavor, as does the film itself. Arming his orchestra with a wonderful array of percussion and an early electronic instrument called an ondioline, North captured the decadence, fantastic excesses, and especially the military precision of the Romans. He also composed a love theme of such delicacy that jazz musicians adopted it as a near-standard. Certainly, "Spartacus" is classic movie music, in a class with the best "modernist" scores by Bernard Herrmann, Jerry Goldsmith, Toshiro Mayuzumi,  Ennio Morricone, even Prokofiev. Derived from a near-mint Decca (US) early pressing red label LP in  the deluxe gatefold album complete with booklet found in first releases, the pomp, savagery and tenderness of the film is brought to life in this transcription.

KHCDS-ST002 (STEREO) - Man of La Mancha - 1968 London Cast Production - Keith Michell/Joan Diener/Bernard Spear/Oliver Gilbert/Alan Crofoot and supporting cast - Dale Wasserman's non-musical play was transformed into this classic musical, with the brilliant music of  Mitch Leigh with lyrics by Joe Darion. This 2-CD set is a transcription of the 2-LP complete musical play as performed by the 1968 London cast,  produced for records by Albert Marre, and includes dialog. Never before reissued on CD, now available for repeated listening 

KHCD-ST003 (MONO) - Rodgers/arr. Bennett: Victory At Sea - Symphonic Suite - First Recording (1954) - Members of the NBC Symphony/Robert Russell Bennett - Most LP collectors are familiar with the three-volume RCA stereo recordings of music from the award-winning 1952 epic 26 half-hour episode television documentary "Victory at Sea". This 1954 mono recording, restored from a near-mint LP, was the first taping of the nine-movement symphonic suite. It was recorded at Rockefeller Center Theatre with members of the legendary NBC Symphony. There are telling differences between the stereo performances and this well-recorded mono transcription; perhaps more attention to inner voices, tempi a bit quicker, tighter ensemble. This is a  recording well worth preserving, with music by a truly immortal American composer.

KHCD-ST004 (STEREO) - Gould: World War I - Soundtrack to the 1964 CBS Documentary - Orchestra and Band conducted by Morton Gould - One feature that placed "World War One" far and above other TV documentaries of the time (1964) was the soundtrack composed by Morton Gould. Each episode opens with the introduction which was equal in dramatic quality to the "Song of the High Seas" from "Victory At Sea" composed by Richard Rodgers (see KHCD-ST003, above). The rest of the music for the series is dramatic, poignant, and simple. RCA records released a soundtrack album soon after the series was run on its classical LSC-series Red Seal label, and also briefly reissued in the 70s on the budget ANL-series label. This transcription offers this wonderful score again to collectors of soundtracks, and also to those who admire Morton Gould's compositions.

KHCD-ST005 - Newman: The Robe (1953) - Soundtrack to the 20th Century Fox Cinemascope Production - The Robe is a 1953 American Biblical epic film that tells the story of a Roman military tribune who commands the unit that crucifies Jesus. The film was made by 20th Century Fox and is notable for being the first film released in the widescreen process CinemaScope. The music was composed by distinguished film composer Alfred Newman. When the original soundtrack album was issued on LP by Decca Records, it used a remix for only monaural sound rather than the stereo sound that was originally recorded. MCA, which acquired the rights to the American Decca recordings, issued an electronic stereo version of the mono tape in the mid-60s. This transcription is from a second-generation rainbow-bar label Decca (US) LP in mint condition. I have remixed the sound to the original mono, which eliminated the ringing caused by the electronic separation and the echo plates used to create reverb. The results are true to the original movie sound source (which subsequently have been reported as deteriorated beyond restoring). 

KHCD-ST006 (STEREO) - Holocaust - Soundtrack to the NBC-TV Production (1978) - National Philharmonic Orchestra/Morton Gould - Morton Gould arranged musical cues from the four-part, nine-and-a-half hour movie into an extended suite, following the story-line sequence of the production. Music that is at once chilling, tender, and ultimately triumphant, this CD restores an important soundtrack to circulation. A must-have for Morton Gould admirers and followers of his art.

KHCD-ST007 (MONO) - Eleven Against The Ice - Soundtrack from the 1957 NBC-TV Special - Music by Kenyon Hopkins - “Eleven Against the Ice” was an NBC-TV Color Special documentary broadcast in September 1957. The show followed 11 men who trailed the 640 mile safe route across the Antarctic to build the original Byrd Station. Operation Deep Freeze was an annual mission from 1956 to 1969 for geophysical scientists and topographic personnel of the National Science Foundation in Antarctica in remote areas of the South Pole.The soundtrack for the show was scored by Kenyon Hopkins (1912-1983) and released as a mono LP on RCA LPM-1618 in 1958. Some of the score is variations on a song, “Ballad of the Cowboy-Sailor” with lyrics by Robert Emmett Ginna (sung by Jimmy Simmons). Kenyon Hopkins remains one of the most unrepresented score composers on CD, and his mostly jazz influenced scores remain prized collectibles. An excellent-condition LP was used for this transcription, and was produced by customer request.  

KHCD-ST008 (STEREO) - The Hustler - Soundtrack from the 1961 Movie - Music by Kenyon Hopkins - Kenyon Hopkins, formerly an arranger for Paul Whiteman, became prominent as a film composer best known for writing music for Tennessee Williams films that did not become classics. Probably the most memorable aspects of films such as This Property Is Condemned, The Fugitive Kind, and Baby Doll were Hopkin's scores. There were a few acknowledged classics that featured his music, and  director Robert Rossen's 1961 film The Hustler is one such classic. This film's music is in what would be later dubbed the "Crime Jazz" style, fitting the noir elements of the story. The english horn, oboe and flute are prominent instruments throughout the score, underscoring the more calm moments of the story, along with the usual jazz  instrumentation. A top-flight roster of musicians sit in on the sessions, including trumpeters Joe Wilder and Doc Severinson, trombonist Jimmy Cleveland, reedmen Phil Woods and Jerome Richardson, with pianists Hank Jones and Bernie Leighton. This reissue is transcribed from a near-mint Kapp LP, and was produced by customer request. 

KHCD-ST009 (STEREO) - East Side-West Side - Soundtrack from the 1963 CBS-TV Production - Music composed and conducted by Kenyon Hopkins - This dramatic series featured stories about child abuse, drug abuse, rip-offs of the welfare system, crime; all of the problems of the inner city. The series centered on George C. Scott in the role of Neil Brock, a New York City social worker who worked for the private agency Community Welfare Service, with his secretary, Jane Foster, played by African-American actress Cicely Tyson. The series aired for only one season, despite the high quality of both the writing and acting,  because of the show's penchant for taking on touchy topics forcing many potential advertisers to avoid sponsorship of the show. The music fit the mood and scenes of the show admirably, as composed by Kenyon Hopkins. The CD is derived from a clean Columbia stereo LP, and this reissue brings the exciting score back to life 

KHCD-ST010 (MONO) - The Yellow Canary - Music from the Soundtrack of the 1963 20th Century Fox Movie Production - Music composed and conducted by Kenyon Hopkins - Soundtrack from the 1963 thriller starring Pat Boone as a nightclub singer whose child is kidnapped  (Boone's  performance surprised many a moviegoer with his focused intensity) and Barbara Eden as his wife. Kenyon Hopkins' score fits the searing mood of the film plot, with a world-class collection of session players on the recording: Clark Terry,  trumpet;  Billy Byers, Dick Lieb, Jimmy Cleveland, trombones; Zoot Sims, tenor sax; Romeo Penque and Jerome Richardson on reeds; Bill Costa on vibes; Lalo Schifrin, piano; Kenny Burrell, guitar; Milt Hinton, bass; and Ed Shaughnessy on drums. This CD is a transcription of a good-condition mono Verve LP; if I happen across a stereo copy, I will remaster this disc. In the mean time, this wonderful soundtrack rarity is brought back into circulation.

KHCD-ST011 (MONO) - The Strange One - Music from the Soundtrack of the 1957 Columbia Pictures Movie Production - Music composed and conducted by Kenyon Hopkins - The film, based on the story "End as a Man" by Calder Willingham, is about the strange power that a cadet has over underclassmen at a Southern military academy. This film marked the debuts of Ben Gazzara (the star of the film) and George Peppard. Kenyon Hopkin's score blends jazz with some (then) emerging rock and rockabilly styles with a searing touch, befitting the film's unsettling storyline. The mono  Coral LP used for this transcription was in fair condition, but the end result, after some careful restoration, is very satisfying. Click on the thumbnail for an MP3 sample. A welcome reissue.

KHCD-ST012 (STEREO) - Slaughter On Tenth Avenue - Soundtrack to the 1957 Universal-International Motion Picture - Music by Richard Rodgers - Joseph Gershenson/Universal-International Orchestra - The book  "The Man Who Rocked The Boat" by William J. Keating and Richard Carter was the basis of this movie, dubbed a "documentary" drama about New York City docks. The music by Richard Rodgers was taken from the 1936 ballet score of the same name (which is featured at the end of Rodgers and Hart's musical comedy On Your Toes) but has nothing to do plot-wise with the movie. The music adapted very well, though, to the film's "mayhem, mobsters and murder" theme. This transcription is from a near-mint (pre-MCA) Decca (US) black with silver print label LP. I've added a bit of "air" to the sound to compensate for the rather dry studio-bound acoustic.. The result is quite satisfying, and brings an important movie score back into circulation. Produced by customer request - thanks to Bill Gilardon for suggesting this reissue.