The comfort of strangers

Quartet Records and Gruppo Sugar are proud to present the first complete release of Angelo Badalamenti's masterpiece (and his personal favorite score)—The Comfort of Strangers (1990).

Directed by Paul Schrader, written by Harold Pinter (from the enigmatic short novel by Ian McEwan), and starring Chrisopher Walken, Rupert Everett, Natasha Richardson and Helen Mirren, The Comfort of Strangers is a fascinating, even grotesque and unclassifiable film set in a dark and forbidding Venice.

Angelo Badalamenti (Blue Velvet, Cousins, Twin Peaks) provides an elegant combination of Byzantine and Turkish-Arabian music, dominated by a memorable main theme distilling the pure essence of love and death. The score was recorded by The City of Prague Philharmonic Orchestra under the baton of the composer.

Previously issued twice on CD by CAM in Italy, the essential 36-minute album was sequenced and produced by Badalementi himself, but was full of edits and omitted some passages that certainly deserved to be released. This new CD, fully remastered by Claudio Fuiano from the first-generation master tapes, includes the original Badalamenti album plus the complete film score in film order. The package includes a 12-page full-color booklet with liner notes by Tim Greiving.

Tracklist

THE ORIGINAL ALBUM
01. Roberto's Theme (Main Title) (4:04)
02. At the Window (2:34)
03. Getting Lost (4:04)
04. Days of Passion (3:56)
05. On the Speed Boat (3:19)
06. Packing Books (4:22)
07. To the Pleasure Dome (Theme A) (3:34)
08. The River Styx (Theme A) (1:19)
09. Behind the Mirror (5:47)
10. End Credits (3:05)

THE COMPLETE FILM SCORE
11. Roberto's Theme (Main Title) (4:04)
12. At the Window (0:59)
13. In the Church (Theme A) (1:22)
14. Gondolas in Mist (1:14)
15. Neck Rub / Pouring Tea (1:13)
16. Glass Factory (0:41)
17. On the Speed Boat (0:53)
18. Getting Lost (4:02)
19. Mary Gets Sick (2:11)
20. To the Pleasure Dome (Theme A) (1:44)
21. Days of Passion (3:56)
22. Lover's Fantasy (1:44)
23. A Bad Dream (0:43)
24. Venice Theme (1:01)
25. Brooding on Beach (0:45)
26. Packing Books / Packing the Desk (2:23)
27. The River Styx (Theme A) (1:19)
28. Behind the Mirror 1 (2:07)
29. Behind the Mirror 2 (2:11)
30. Death of Colin (1:49)
31. End Credits (3:05)
32. Venice Theme (Alternate) (2:28)
Total Disc Time: 79:18