Mantovani v Mancini for the championship title
... and his orchestra!
It's time for another grudge match. This time our contenders hail from the world of film and television sountracks. In the blue corner, weighing in at 1962, the Menace of Venice, Annunzio Paolo Mantovani. And in the red corner, needing no introduction, at a close 1963 (those few months aren't going to make or break him), Henry Mancini. They touch gloves and head to their corners. We're in for a real treat tonight, folks. These heavyweights of film score are true titans. Gonna be a great fight. There's the bell, and they come out swinging.
And it's Mantovani on the attack, with a vicious left hook. Some referees might frown on leading off with your opponent's own piece, but bottle is no stranger to back-alley brawls and he knows this London release has a different track order from the first run Decca version, so he lets it pass. Plus, it didn't really connect, i mean there's a reason Moon River and Drunk Trumpet are two different Kid Koala pieces.
Mantovani is certainly testing the waters, but he sounds a bit shrill. He'll loosen up pretty soon, though. Ooh, the accordion connected. That's gonna leave a mark. The Mancini crew will definitely be checking that Welk over his right eye at the break. He's moving high and low, checking for any signs of weakness, but a strong showing overall from the challenger from Italy. We'll see how Mancini responds in the second round.
Let's take this interlude to say both these men have impressive pedigrees. One or the other might seem more famous to you, but both men have cast their influence far and wide. A little bit of trivia for you, we've got a secret highlight reel showing Mantovani's little joke about David McCallums Sr. And Jr., "We can afford the father, but not the son!" But that's an album for another night because we're back to the action.
Mantovani came out strong in the first round, let's see if Mancini can turn the tables (covers mic: i don't care if anyone got it, that's a damned fine joke if i do say so myself). Green Onions? That's certainly an interesting approach. But my word does it work in his favor. Mancini's saxophonist wiped the floor with Mantovani's trumpeter, and i can see the judges scribbling furiously. If he can keep this up he'll be taking home the belt for sure. He's really turning up the heat with the horns and bass flutes, hoping to counter Mantovani's accordion. And the tenor sax sends the Italian reeling. He's got him up against the ropes and we're barely halfway. Just when you thought he'd reach maximum sultry he switches gears with his own take on Ellington's C Jam. He's not letting up folks, we may have to call it early out of mercy. Oh no, he might have got a little too cocky with that much too mushy Rhapsody in Blue. He's ahead on the scorecards, but running out of steam is the wrong way to keep it out of the judges' hands. Cheers seems to be working, though. That tiny setback might not be a problem after all. Oh my goodness! Can you believe it? That Lonesome came out of nowhere, and the challenger is stunned. Now Mancini's just toying with him, turning down the treble for a deep dark grammaphone style coup de gras.
And it's all over! The Mantovani camp has thrown in the towel. They trained hard, and it shows, but Mancini was just too much. Any lesser opponent and the outcome would have been different, but Mancini pulled out all the stops and retains the title of heavyweight champion of the 60s film score conducters league.
What an incredible evening that was. From all of us here at bottle of beef, thanks for watching and we'll catch you on the flip side.
Next
Comments
Post a Comment