The Friends Of Eddie Coyle - Three Days Of The Condor (CD)

Of all the composers who have achieved success in both film music and jazz, Dave Grusin is perhaps the most successful crossover artist, earning an Original Score Oscar as well as 10 Grammys (including seven for his non-film work). This FSM twofer presents the premiere CD release of 2 Grusin scores from the 1970s, when the composer first became an A-list film talent.

The Friends of Eddie Coyle (1973) was Peter Yates’s naturalistic crime drama about a small-time criminal from Boston (portrayed by Robert Mitchum) whose “friends” comprise an assortment of unsavory characters on both sides of the law. Grusin’s jazzy score features a raw, edgy character that emphasizes the film’s low-key, naturalistic approach. The music mostly highlights the film’s milieu (with several loud, funky cues) and accentuates the suspense scenes, leaving the story’s tragic undercurrent largely unaddressed until the melancholy finale. This premiere release of the complete score to The Friends of Eddie Coyle is newly mixed from the 16-track 2" master tapes.

Three Days of the Condor (1975) is the story of C.I.A. agent Joseph Turner (Robert Redford) who stumbles on an agency plot that, although fictional, turned out—to the surprise of the writers—to be remarkably close to contemporary reality. In his first collaboration with director Sidney Pollack, Grusin created an upbeat and modern R&B sound—emphasizing romance,escapism and the then–cutting-edge technology employed by the C.I.A. Throughout the film the composer’s alternation of lighthearted jazz and more traditionally sinister scoring helps confound the audience’s expectations. This FSM CD features the 1975 Capitol soundtrack album for Three Days of the Condor (SW 11469), presented from the ¼" two-track stereo album master, as well as cues either omitted from or abridged on the album, newly mixed from the original 2" 24-track multitracks.

FSM’s 24-page booklet, designed by art director Joe Sikoryak, includes numerous film stills and extensive notes on both productions by Scott Bettencourt and Lukas Kendall, including the usual track-by-track analysis. FSM is pleased to contribute to this great jazz master’s burgeoning film music discography—the disc is a must for all jazz lovers, Grusin fans and anyone who appreciates the unique character of a perfectly gauged jazz film score.  

The Friends of Eddie Coyle

Music by Dave Grusin

Theme From The Friends of Eddie Coyle  3:06 

Mr. Connection 1:12 

Guns to Artie/Artie Examines the Guns 1:11  

Partridge Robbery/Take a Walk 7:40 

Jackie Meets Pete and Andrea (Mr. Connection) 1:16 

Clean Cut 2:24 

Baylis Robbery 2:44 

Shopping Center (Mr. Connection) 0:52 

The Stakeout 1:36 

Whalen Robbery 2:28 

Eddie Is Hit 0:46 

Friend's Requiem/End Title (Theme from The Friends of Eddie Coyle) 2:15    

Total Time: 27:51

Three Days of the Condor

Music Composed and Conducted by Dave Grusin

1975 Soundtrack Album Produced by Neely Plumb for Neely Plumb Productions; Vocal by Jim Gilstrap, courtesy Roxbury Records

Condor! (Theme From 3 Days of the Condor) 3:33 

Yellow Panic 2:14 

Flight of the Condor 2:26 

We'll Bring You Home 2:22 

Out to Lunch 1:57 

Goodbye for Kathy 2:16 

I've Got You Where I Want You (Dave Grusin-Tom Bahler) Vocal by Jim Gilstrap 3:09 

Flashback to Terror 2:22 

Sing Along With the C.I.A. 1:30  

Spies of a Feather, Flocking Together (Love Theme From 3 Days of the Condor) 1:54 

Silver Bells (Livingston & Evans, arr. Bahler) Vocal by Marti McCall 2:34 

Condor! (Theme)/I've Got You Where I Want You 1:55  

Total Time: 28:32

Three Days of the Condor Bonus Tracks

We'll Bring You Home #1 (Joubert Intro)/Heidegger Dead, Part I &II 2:44 

More Flight/Sing Along With the C.I.A., Part I, II & III 2:17 

Carrion Search, Part II/Higgins Caper, Part II/Bell System Blues,  Part I & II 2:25 

Bell System Blues, Part III/Electric Aviary/Goodbye for Kathy (coda) 2:00 

Life and Death Introspection 2:11 

End Title (Condor) 0:57 

Jingle Bells (James Pierpont, arr. Tom Bahler and Jack Elliot) 2:11 

TV Commercial (Bahler) 0:24 

Total Time: 15:28

Total Disc Time: 72:03