Rob Price
Gutbrain Records
rob + gutbrain.com = email

2016 September 26 • Monday

Westerns and private eye shows with jazz soundtracks were hugely popular on American television in the late 1950s and early 1960s. It was only a matter of time before somebody launched a private eye western with a jazz soundtrack. Gerald Fried's music for Shotgun Slade is the 432nd Soundtrack of the Week.

This isn't the original soundtrack recording but an album re-recording.

The music is driving and modern with especially good parts for harpsichord and electric guitar. Often the electric guitars are played by two guitars in unison, which seems to me like an unusual approach. It becomes common enough later for really heavy rock and metal bands but to hear it done with two light, jazzy electric guitars is something else and it works great.

There's very little "western" sounding music though occasionally you'll hear a tune like "My Darling Clementine" quoted and some of the pieces, like "Open Skies" and "Saddle Swing" do give an impression of swingin' home on the range.