Michael Caine once named the type of music that has long been “neglected”
Michael Caine is a master of his craft. The stage name he adopted in the mid-1950s has been put up in lights and pasted onto billboards for decades while the Cockney actor consistently proves himself to be the best of the best. Between a starring role in con movie classic The Italian Job, his suave portrayal of spy Harry Palmer, and a contemporary string of collaborations with director Christopher Nolan, he has become a staple on our screens and a national treasure.
While we may know him for his appearances on screen, acting isn’t Caine’s only passion. The London-born star is almost as enthusiastic about music as he is about film, though his interest in the medium is slightly less participatory. Rather than taking to the stage with a microphone or spending hours poring over a mixing desk, Caine seems to prefer to collect knowledge about music in order to curate it.
As revealed during a conversation with GQ, there is one type of music that Caine is particularly well-versed in and enthusiastic about: chill-out music. It was this genre that soundtracked a dinner the actor attended with popstar Elton John, who noticed his passion for the music and encouraged him to curate a collection of it.
“Elton said I should release my own compilation CD,” Caine recalled, “and promptly rang Lucien Grainge, who runs Universal: ‘I’m going to get you a record deal,’ said Elton.” John was a man of his word. He secured Caine a deal which would result in an 18-track compilation titled Cained.
“The weird thing about this type of music,” Caine commented, “is that no one really knows anything about it – who writes it, who records it. It’s actually very neglected.” If you’re one of those people who have neglected the genre, or if you’re unsure exactly what chill-out music even concerns, perhaps a closer look at Caine’s masterfully curated collection will clear things up.
The meaning of chill-out music really doesn’t seem to stretch much further than its name. Caine’s curation appears to follow no harsh constrictions of genre or style, merely picking tunes that are guaranteed to calm you down. Served with a glass of white and a scented candle, it’s the perfect soundtrack for a chilled night in.
Running with the deal John had secured him, the Cockney actor compiled an album that featured everything from the smooth saxophone stylings of Stan Getz to the electronic productions of Chicane. He also included a track by the late jazz film composer Roy Budd, who scored one of Caine’s most well-loved movies, 1971’s Get Carter.
Chill-out music may be neglected, but perhaps that’s because the rest of us don’t really think of it as a genre. It’s something that you stick on while making dinner or while reading in the park, something that can often merely fade into the background. But Caine’s appreciation for the art of chill-out music goes beyond tuning it out to focus on the task at hand. He sees the beauty in its subtleties and softness, making him the perfect person to curate a collection of it to ensure that it avoids more neglect.