Two classic '70s soundtracks resurface for Record Store Day 2024
Black Girl ost
Orca ost
(Both Reel Cult/Craft Recordings)
Not a single release but two fabulous '70s soundtracks out on the streets once more, Black Girl with its so groovy post-Shaft blaxploitation licks firmly in place; Orca the musical accompaniment to the savage deprecations of a killer whale. And let it be vaguely remembered here that it really wasn’t as bad as it now sounds.
The soundtrack, meanwhile, is stunning.
It’s true. They don’t make movie soundtracks like they used to. Too many years, presumably, of being allowed to get away with grabbing a bunch of old songs, or commissioning bespoke new bollox from whoever’s hip this week… oh my goodness, I can’t believe Shep Hearingaid is recording the theme to Stairwell Of Terror VII. I wonder what oldie it’ll sound like this time.
Of course, such populist stunts aren’t exactly a new development… look at the Bond films. But still, even the most dedicated soundtrack collectors have a tipping point, that moment when they looked at the line-up that populated some fresh action flick and thought, I might as well be buying old K-Tel collections.
So back they go to the wants list, to spend their money instead on soundtracks from… well, from the days when the music actually had something in common with the movie. When the composer would spend countless hours trapped in a dark room watching the rushes, capturing movement in sound; momentum in symphony.
There are squidillions to choose from, almost literally, and the used racks groan with the weight of most of them. But the new releases shelves turn up some cool surprises occasionally, and so does Record Store Day.
Why, this very year… this weekend, in fact, RSD is delivering two of the great lost tracks of the '70s, in the form of Ennio Morricone’s dynamic dance through Orca — possibly the best of all the post-Jaws scary sea creature flicks, if only for the fortitude shown by its cast (Richard Harris and Charlotte Rampling took the top billing; Bo Derek was in there too) as they waded through the plot; and the Blaxploitation classic Black Girl, with its then-revolutionary blending of classic soul singers and contemporary jazz giants.
Reel Cult, the label behind them both, has a proud heritage — it’s the newborn vinyl wing of the legendary Varese Sarabande, and this pair hopefully set the stage for future operations.
Black Girl appeared in 1973, within the first wave of post-Shaft movies; fired off at least one future classic in the form of Betty Everett’s title track; and the soundtrack has oft been described among the most inventive in its particular genre. Which does not, however, make it easy to find — even in VG+, copies rarely turn up for less than $40-$50, while its only reappearance was a U.K. CD in 2010. Meaning, there’s several generations worth of collectors for whom a 180-gram pressing on clear black swirl vinyl is worth any amount of RSD kerfuffle. It sounds fabulous, too, remastered from the original analog, and as punchy as it ought ot be,
Orca was released to the theaters in 1977 and it’s safe to say that it didn’t exactly devour the box office returns (reviews and audiences alike couldn’t help but think they’d seen it all before). A soundtrack album was released in Japan, however, and for the next decade and a half, that appears to have been it. No great loss to audiences in general, but a major bone of contention for Morricone fans.
A 1996 Italian CD took off some of the pressure; and a French remaster a few years ago. But this marks Orca’s first appearance on wax since its original release, and its North American debut as well. Again, it’s been remastered from analog and sounds fantastic — plus it’s on blood red vinyl, and that’s exactly how it should be.
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