Addio zio Tom

Quartet Records, in collaboration with GDM and Universal Music Publishing Italia, presents a revised, remastered and expanded edition of Riz Ortolani’s famous score for the shocking and successful mondo movie ADDIO ZIO TOM, directed by Gualtiero Jacopetti and Franco Prosperi in 1971.

This epic re-creation of the atrocities of the American slave trade was both condemned as depraved exploitation and hailed as an unprecedented cry of black anguish and rage. The DETROIT CHRONICLE hailed it as “a graphic, moving, nerve-racking film.” Legendary film critic Pauline Kael called it “the most specific and rabid incitement to race war.” It became one of the most reviled films of its time, despite being an international success.

Composer Riz Ortolani’s versatile career needs little introduction, especially when it comes to mondo films. He has been the genre’s foremost composer since his conception of MONDO CANE and his Grammy-winning, Oscar-nominated song “More.” Ortolani’s filmography includes several mondo movies such as AFRICA ADDIO, MONDO CANDIDO, BRUTES AND SAVAGES and the most quintessential example of the genre, CANNIBAL HOLOCAUST. While the quality of the films may have varied over the years, Ortolani created a solid, almost foolproof recipe for adorning these colorful shock documentaries with a fitting score.

ADDIO ZIO TOM’s iconic theme song, titled “Oh My Love,” was performed by the composer’s wife, Katyna Ranieri, and became a hit, being performed by various singers over the years. Instrumental versions of the theme are interspersed throughout the movie, usually reserved for some of the more poetic images. The composer provides everything from dramatic motifs to prog rock, driving rhythms and even circus marches, in an ironic counterpoint that bridges historical differences, used to show the amoral ways of contemporary society, while it is also memorably used for a slave escape sequence.

The original 13-track program (RCA OLS 8) was released on CD in Japan in 1994 (RCA BVCP 1042), and the first European reissue added five more tracks (GDM CD CLUB 7089). This edition presents another five previously unreleased tracks, bringing the total to 50 minutes and making it the most complete presentation of ADDIO ZIO TOM. The album was conceived by Claudio Fuiano, restored and mastered by Chris Malone from the original stereo master tapes, and includes liner notes by the much-missed Gergely Hubai in one of his last collaborations with us.

Oh myLove 2:52

Maple 2:24

Mister Ling 1:48

Rito di Mezzanotte 2:35

Mamie 1:11

Sosta Nel Lago 3:33

Addio Zio Tom 2:36

Il Mercato Degli Schiavi 3:28

La Fiera Delle Meraviglie 2:50

Oh my Love (Solo Orchestra) 2:51

Fort Bastille 3:11

Cadets’ Waltz 3:01

Miami 2:38

Oh my Love (Solo Orchestra #2) 1:42

Miami (# 2) 1:22

Oh my Love (Solo Orchestra #3) 1:18

Miami (#3) 1:22

Addio Zio Tom (#2) 1:05

La Fiera Delle Meraviglie (#2) 2:25

Il Mercato Degli Schiavi (#2) 2:05

La Fiera Delle Meraviglie (#3) 4:06

Miami (#4) 1:34

Il Mercato Degli Schiavi (#3 – Alt. Mix) 1:10

Total Disc Time: 52:56