“This bitter earth/On the nature of daylight” is the song that concludes Martin Scorsese’s 2010 psychological thriller Shutter Island. None of the music for the film’s soundtrack was actually composed for the film but it was (expertly) curated by musician and long-time collaborator Robbie Robertson, whom Martin Scorsese originally met on the set of The Last Waltz in 1976.
The soundtrack consists of several pop songs from the 1950s combined with contemporary classical pieces from composers like György Ligeti, John Cage, Alfred Schnittke or Brian Eno and Max Richter. Dinah Washington’s “This bitter earth” was originally released in 1960 while “On the nature of daylight”, a minimalist piece by modern classical composer Max Richter first appeared in The Blue Notebooks (2004).
The latter appears twice in Shutter Island: once in its original version and then remixed with “This Bitter Earth”‘s vocal track. Working from distinct musical eras and styles, Robbie Robertson’s remix impressively manages to generate something entirely new. A haunting and flawless creation.
Comments
As a fan of Dinah Washington I have listened to this interpretation of her music from Shutter Island and find that whoever did this took a GREAT song/singer and ruined it. I don’t know how you can classify this other than an interpretation of something that the person DID NOT understand what it meant other than something he had heard and thought it sounded good.
The piece is also an interpretation of a Max Richter’s song and as a “mashup” exercise, I believe it pays a lot of respect to both songs.
Stopped me in my tracks, it did.
I never saw the movie & didn’t know about the Dinah Washington connection until a few weeks ago.
Omg. A pairing of heavenlies.
I’m glad I stumbled upon it. I can’t imagine my life without it.
Patricia, when two songs are combined so masterfully (and created 44 years apart, no less) the body of music produced by the merge is considered its own unique piece. To say that either original work was ‘ruined’ by the combination of two separate pieces is quite incognizant. A mashup is never intended to replace the original. In this case, it brought Dinah Washington’s music out of obscurity to an entirely new generation of listeners and brought composer Max Richter much-due praise and acknowledgment. This mashup is more like a contemporary revitalization which brought a more culturally-appealling product of two parent pieces to a modern audience, and in the way that audience would most appreciate it, which brings praise and attention to both original works involved. I and many others adore the modern interpretation, and some more so than the originals alone. I am part of this camp because I feel like both pieces contributed missing elements to each other and magnified the significance and emotion behind both works. Hopefully this has helped you to understand why the marriage of classical and contemporary (or any) pieces of art is no replacement of the first, or subversion of the original sentiment, but rather can do wonders to magnify and multiply that sentiment and garner modern recognition as well. Thanks.
I am sad you don’t like it. I have accidentally seen shudder island a million times (cause showtime has awful programming lol and I just leave tv on out of habit lol) and tonight for the first time, I stopped in my tracks over this musical compilation. I absolutely love it! I’d never heard either song before and it took me forever to find who was singing. I think it shows Robbie Robertsons brilliance. I will definitely be listening to Max Richter and Dinah Washington now because of this haunting, soothing, intriguing compilation. Tho I’m surprised u don’t like it, it’s ok. That’s what makes the world go round…our differences. Good night!
Hi Guillaume,
I have been trying to figure out copyright owners are for this piece of music (I assume there are multiple) as I would like to contact them to request a license to use it for a dance project. Would you happen to know who the owners are? Thank you.
Robbie Robertson supervised the entire soundtrack for the movie and created the Dinah Washington/Max Richter mashup – I would try to contact him first.
As much as I like Dinah Washington, her version (and other versions) of This Bitter Earth doesn’t make sense. The lyrics simply do not go with the music. Robbie Robertson’s mashup of her vocal track with Max Richter’s On the Nature of Daylight is astonishing. Its beauty and profound sadness transcend the work of either artist. The works of two artists from different eras and genres work together seamlessly to create a wonderful, an amazing, song.
I think it is a modern masterpiece.
What insight to combine them… a stroke of genius, and wonderfully executed
The combination of Dinah Washington and Max Richter is brilliant . It brings out the best of both artist..Richter has reached back into another era and Gave us a beautiful rendition to a timeless and most beautifull song
I only heard this song after I had immediately watched Shutter Island. If I had listened to it, not knowing about the movie, than maybe this would not of had an impact on me as much. Great Collaboration between the artist and composer!
I first heard this masterpiece last night. Can’t believe I’ve gone so long without this in my life. It is the most hauntingly beautiful piece of music! I cried many times listening to it!
As an African American child of the 50s our home was full of the bluesy angst of Bessie,Billy,Dinah, Etta, Big Mama and many others. Their brilliance and talent was greatly mitigated by the racial bigotry of that era. Any exposure these artists gain today is relished by true lovers of great music and artists.
Artists experiencing hardship (be it racism, depression, alcoholism, drug abuse, poverty) has resulted in some of the greatest works
I like Max version but I also like the simplicity of the original
If you want to hear how Robbie Robertson put this mashup together check out his chat with legendary producer Rick Rubin on the Broken Record Podcast. The entire interview is fantastic. But if you want to jump to the chat about the mashup jump to minute 48.
https://brokenrecordpodcast.com/#/episode-34-robbie-robertson/
This is EXACTLY what I came here for. Thank you!
I find this mashup to be brilliantly mesmerizing. I am so glad to have had and will continue to have a wonderful experience listening, feeling and absorbing this music.