PETER
THOMAS SOUND ORCHESTER
- THE PERFECT MARRIAGE
( OT: Van De Velde: Die vollkommene Ehe)
& EVERY NIGHT OF THE WEEK
(OT: Van De Velde: Das Leben zu zweit - Sexualität in der Ehe)
2 soundtracks to German sex education-movies (1968/69) composed
by Peter Thomas
The genre of sex education-movies boomed
massively in Germany in the late Sixties. Based on a (more or less)
scientific plot the audience was for the first time confronted with
bare facts in form of nudity. In this category successful director
Franz Josef Gottlieb shot several pictures even for Oswalt Kolle,
the originator of the genre. For production company “Rialto
Film” however he adapted a 40 year old book by the Dutch gynecologist
Theodoor Hendrik van de Velde to create two (pseudo-) scientific
movies for the eager audience: ”The Perfect Marriage“
(1968) and ”Every Night of the Week“ (1969).
Producer Horst Wendlandt asked his friend Peter Thomas (“Space
Patrol”, “Jerry Cotton”) to compose original scores
for both films. Until then they had worked together on numerous
“Edgar Wallace” films and other blockbusters.
Peter Thomas got honoured with the German Composers Award for his
lifework in 2009.
Atypically for veteran sound pioneer Thomas his score to “The
Perfect Marriage“ is outrageously romantic and of an eroticizing
intensity, and the work holds an exceptional position in the composer’s
ouvre. Unfortunately this supreme accomplishment could be heard
infrequently. Almost the complete opposite is the score to “Every
Night of the Week“. Here the composer is in his element again;
contemporary jazz and beat arrangements, and unconventional use
of the human voice dominate. Together both scores deliver a fascinating
insight into the mastery of one of the most prominent composers
of the German motion picture industry.
Besides this release is a real world premiere: Most of the tracks,
so the complete score of “Every Night of the Week” have
been discovered in the archives only now, 40 years after their recording.
Just some titles from ”The Perfect Marriage” have been
released once in Canada on one of the rarest soundtrack LPs ever.
The CDpackaging is as always designed stylish and comes with a
24 pages booklet including detailed liner notes by Peter Thomas’
biographer Gerd Naumann (”Der Filmkomponist Peter Thomas“,
ibidem-Verlag 2009) and an essay on sex education-movies by film
journalist Marco Geßner, both in German and English language,
as well as some extraordinary full size color film stills.
Additional tracks can be downloaded from several internet music
platforms.
Press
Scorebaby.com [December 2009]:
"Thomas shows his stylistic range, from jaunty brassy pop and
sexy lowdown groovers to languid floaters with wordless female vocals
and exotic moodsetters... Overall, the musical arrangements have
a great deal of '60s easy listening charm, favoring Tijuana-type
brass, frolicking flutes, jangling guitars and crisp jaunty rhythms
Jeff Hall, Screensounds [November
2009]: "... if you like European film music of the sixties,
or maybe if you're a James Last fan, this will very likely appeal
to you. It's undeniably a very tuneful and infectious little disc."
Boomkat [November
2009]: "... this is priceless lounge exotica of the highest order."
Darren Allison, Cinema Retro magazine
[October 2009]: "... a quality CD capturing a unique corner
of the soundtrack market. A stylish 24 page booklet is included
with informative notes and some damn, dapper sexy colour stills;
in fact the only thing missing was the Government health warning,
Baby boom Imminent!"
Tracklisting:
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