The beat goes on: Black Bag

Big-screen jazz scores clearly have become an endangered species, but good grief; I’ve not been able to showcase a new film release since Confess, Fletch came out in October 2022.

Thank goodness for director Steven Soderbergh and Belfast-born DJ-turned-composer/musician David Holmes, who’ve worked together since 1998’s Out of Sight, which was followed by Ocean’s Eleven and its two sequels. All four boasted sleek, groove-laden jazz scores that were long on percussion, electronic keyboards, fuzz guitar, sleek vibes, walking bass and plenty of rhythmic four- and eight-bar ostinatos.

 

But Holmes’ approach is a bit different this time out. Black Bag isn’t a larkish adventure like the four films mentioned above; David Koepp’s sleek, sexy and — above all else — smart script is solidly in the chill, back-stabbing spyjinks realm of John Le Carre and The Ipcress File. As a result, many of the cues in Holmes’ score are deliberately unsettling atmospheric synth and tension-laden ostinatos. Even so, true jazz elements are present in sufficient number to warrant mention here.

 

Veteran intelligence officer George Woodhouse (Michael Fassbender), an elite operative at Britain’s closely guarded National Cyber Security Unit (NCSC), is summoned to an off-site meeting by his boss, Philip Meacham (Gustaf Skarsgård). A dangerous top-secret software cyber-worm, code-named Severus, has been leaked: likely to Russian agents. Five of George’s colleagues are suspected, one of whom happens to be his beloved wife, Kathryn (Cate Blanchett), a powerful and trusted NCSC agent.

 

George hosts a dinner party that gathers all the suspects: his longtime friend, Freddie Smalls (Tom Burke), whose messy personal life has made him a security risk; ultra-cool upper-echelon agent Col. James Stokes (Regé-Jean Page); staff psychiatrist Dr. Zoe Vaughan (Naomie Harris); and satellite imagery specialist Clarissa Dubose (Marisa Abela).

The after-dinner chit-chat devolves into psychological warfare, with stakes that continue to raise during George’s week-long investigation.

 

As he explained during an interview with Edith Bowman on her Soundtracking podcast, Soderbergh asked Holmes for a score that often would make viewers “feel the clock.” The composer obliged with a score that evokes memories of Jerry Goldsmith’s work on 1964’s Seven Days in May, and Quincy Jones’ score for 1967’s The Deadly Affair.

 

The album’s 18 cues are arranged chronologically, with titles that match on-screen events. Thus, the first cue — “I’m Here to See Mr. Meacham” — sounds like foreboding footsteps and a heartbeat, as one of Soderbergh’s beloved lengthy tracking shots follows George into the restaurant where he’ll be given this difficult assignment. The subsequent cue, “Black Bag,” is a peppy blend of jazzy percussion and mildly disconcerting synth.

 

“Dark Windows” is a hypnotic drum ostinato, while “Iron Maiden” delivers the desired ticking-clock ambiance with rumbling percussion, snare drum and bass licks.

 

The aforementioned dinner party remains unscored, Soderbergh preferring to let Koepp’s psychologically fraught conversational exchanges emerge like verbal gunfire.

 

Contemplative bass riffs, bongos and a snare drum (“Fishing”) back George’s lake sojourn on his small outboard boat, the following morning, as he mulls over what he learned.

 

But then, an unfortunate twist: Something feels wrong about Kathryn’s brief visit to Switzerland (“Zurich”), and George’s suspicions are backed by propulsive drums and synth effects. Duplicity, double- and triple-crosses subsequently multiply among these six individuals, and the anxiety mounts as the week concludes; George’s apprehension is fueled by the suspensefully energetic “Friday.” The next several atmospheric cues employ unnerving single keyboard notes, drawn-out synth and rumbling percussion with another round of tick-tock elements, as Answers Are Revealed.

In the aftermath, playfully snarky bass riffs, bongos and that snare drum fuel “Feet First” during a telling elevator encounter. The final fleeting cue, “Of Course,” is a triumphant blast of drums, bass and keyboards.

Holmes’ entire score is brief, running just shy of 29 minutes. The two longest cues run 3 minutes, the shortest a mere 28 seconds. The album isn’t available on physical media, but can be obtained digitally from Amazon, Apple Music and numerous other options. Qobuz offers CD quality and Hi-Res 48 kHz tracks. 

Fallen Angels redux ... and redux!

As I discussed in this blog’s previous post, Dragon’s Domain finally rewarded the patience of those who enjoyed Showtime’s film noir anthology series, Fallen Angels, by releasing the full scores for the initial 1993 season’s six episodes. I concluded that post with the hope that the label intended similar treatment of 1995’s second season; that wish has been granted with the release of Fallen Angels Vol. 2.

Showtime changed things slightly for that final season. 1993’s episodes were introduced by a slinky femme fataledubbed Fay Friendly (a smoldering Lynette Walden), who set up each premise while slithering — in noir-drenched black-and-white cinematography — to a sensuous title theme by Peter Bernstein. The theme continued against a leisurely montage of noir leitmotifs — swirling cigarette smoke, a sparkling cocktail, a gun slipped into a woman’s purse — until the camera glided back to Fay, whereupon she archly set the stage for the playlet to follow. She was greatly missed during the second season prologues, which offered similar smoke-laden montages, but were introduced instead by an off-camera Miguel Ferrer ... hardly the same!

 

Peter’s celebrated father, Elmer Bernstein, contributed the end credits theme employed during both seasons.

 

As Peter Bernstein explained, during an interview excerpted within my earlier post, most of the episode directors initially requested the sultry, smoky saxophone sound that they mistakenly believed was typical of 1940s and ’50s noirs... which, in fact, had moody orchestral scores. The “sexy sax” ambiance actually was common to much later neo-noir films, such as Body Heat (John Barry), Chinatown (Jerry Goldsmith) and Taxi Driver (Bernard Herrmann).

 

Sadly, for fans of that sound, this new disc contains even fewer jazz elements. Peter Bernstein scored only seven of the nine episodes; the other two — “A Dime a Dance” and “The Black Bargain” — employed various bits of source cues.

 

Evan Hunter’s short story “Return,” about a washed-up boxer with marital troubles, is backed by a mournful orchestral theme. Bernstein relies entirely on synth for his brief score for David Goodis’ “Professional Man,” and hearkens back to the 1940s for his orchestral score for Bruno Discher’s “Good Housekeeping.” That said, the latter has one cue — #10 — which builds considerable tension with “ticking clock” percussion.

 

Dashiell Hammett’s “Fly Paper,” which features his unnamed detective The Continental Op, is a Prohibition-era story; Bernstein’s initially playful score evokes elements of Scott Joplin and Kurt Weill, before turning nervous and twitchy. The musical palette is ominous and foreboding in Raymond Chandler’s “Red Wind,” which features Danny Glover handling the author’s famed shamus, Philip Marlowe (who wasn’t in the original short story, which featured a detective named Dalmas).

 

Mickey Spillane’s “Tomorrow I Die” once again is mostly synth, albeit highlighted by a mournful single trumpet theme. Walter Mosley’s “Fearless,” finally, has the strongest jazz elements. Most of the story takes place in a nightclub that features a jazz singer, played by Cynda Williams, who hires a couple of friends to steal her contract from the club’s manager. Bernstein’s vibrant score makes excellent use of trumpet, trombone, slide guitar and the usual percussion trio of piano, bass and drums.

 

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Jazz fans seeking that “modern” noir sound likely will be happier with a couple of albums recently added to my collection.

The first, 2006’s coincidentally titled Fallen Angel, features a septet dubbed the Bob Sneider & Joe Locke Film Noir Project: Bob Sneider, guitar; Locke, vibes; Paul Hofmann, piano; John Sneider, trumpet; Grant Stewart, tenor sax; Phil Hanigan, bass; and Mike Melito, drums. The album features nine (mostly) noir covers — including the aforementioned title themes to 1981’s Body Heat and 1974’s Chinatown — along with a pair of similarly themed originals: Locke’s pensive, melancholy “Fallen Angel” and Hoffman’s similarly brooding ode to lost love, a piano/guitar duet titled “Last Kiss.” Most of the tracks run close to 6 minutes, allowing plenty of space for solos.

 

Sneider’s mournful trumpet opens the title theme to Chinatown, which then kicks into feistier gear and boasts a tasty solo by Locke. Sultry sax kicks off an initially slow reading of the title theme to Body Heat, which then is backed by a 1-2-3-4 vibes vamp behind sax and trumpet solos. Dave Grusin is represented by two tracks: his title theme from1996’s Mulholland Falls — this album’s tastiest track — which again opens with mournful horn against a vibes vamp, and then accelerates into a moody sax solo; and “Hurricane Country,” an interior cue from 1990’s Havana, which is another lovely piano/guitar duet, with both Hofmann and Sneider wandering in and out of the melody.

 

Hofmann’s solo piano kicks off David Shire’s title theme from 1975’s Farewell, My Lovely; vibes then takes the melody against gentle trumpet shading, backed by forceful 4/4 percussion and Hanigan’s lovely walking bass. Jerry Goldsmith’s “Katya,” a character theme from 1990’s The Russia House, is a wistfully nostalgic ode to the story’s ill-advised love affair.

 

The final three tracks stretch the album’s concept a bit. Sneider’s cheerful guitar and Sneider’s trumpet trade Mark Isham’s title melody from 1988’s The Moderns, about an expat American artist living in 1926 Paris; lyrical solos on trumpet, bass, piano and vibes highlight the tasty arrangement of Vladimir Cosma’s “Promenade Sentimentale,” from the 1981 French thriller Diva. Vibes, piano and trumpet wander through “A Farewell to Maria,” one of many somber tracks from the highly disturbing 1993 Polish Holocaust drama, Pozegnanie z Maria.

 

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Locke, Hoffman, Stewart and Bob and John Sneider returned for a sequel three years later — Nocturne for Ava — this time joined by Martin Wind, bass; Tim Horner, drums; and Luisito Quintero, percussion. The latter adds plenty of fire to many tracks, employing all manner of bongos, whistles and other percussive instruments.

The album’s title and theme are an affectionate tribute to actress Ava Gardner, who played femme fatales and damned dames in numerous noir classics. 

 

“I’m poison, Swede, to myself and everybody around me,” her character says to Burt Lancaster, in 1946’s The Killers. “I’d be afraid to go with anyone I love, for the harm I do to them!”

 

As with the previous Film Noir Project album, all of this disc’s 11 tracks run at considerable length, granting plenty of space for solos. Jazz critic Jack Garner’s liner notes also promise that careful listeners will be witness to a murder ... and he ain’t lying!

 

The album kicks off with a mid-tempo reading of Gato Barbieri’s title theme to 1972’s Last Tango in Paris; pensive percussion introduces the sultry melody, backed by bursts of unison horns. Improv solos on sax and guitar follow, along with a furious bongo solo by Quintero. A prologue of shimmering piano and bowed bass yield to Locke’s gentle handling of David Raskin’s classic title theme for 1944’s Laura; the lovely melody pauses for solos on vibes, piano and guitar, and then Locke brings the tune home.

 

Slow bass and piano open a suitably ominous reading of Johnny Mandel’s title theme for 1958’s I Want to Live; Locke introduces the melody, followed by a sassy guitar solo against piano comping, and a vibrant trumpet solo. Bass and vibes return to the melody, to close the track. Slow, sexy piano and vibes alternate with soft bass shading, in a cool arrangement of Mark Isham’s title theme to the 1997 neo-noir Afterglow; sassy unison horns, vibes and piano duel their way through a feisty reading of Duke Ellington’s “Flirtibird,” from 1959’s Anatomy of a Murder.

 

The album also includes three original compositions. Tick-tock percussion and unsettling sax introduce John Sneider’s “Black Dahlia,” inspired by the infamous 1947 mutilation murder; the tune is highlighted by a pensive piano solo against brooding bongos. Solo piano and brushed cymbals introduce the album’s title track, by Locke, which blossoms into a similarly moody anthem dominated by a lengthy vibes solo against a five-note piano vamp. The entire combo opens Hofmann’s “Kiss Me, Kill Me,” which offers sweet solos by bass, trumpet, guitar and sax ... and then suddenly shifts gears, as Locke delivers a hard-charging vibes solo.

 

The set concludes with an occasionally unstructured handling of Marcus Miller’s “Los Feliz,” which Miles Davis played on the soundtrack for 1987’s Siesta. Piano and guitar wander their way through the introduction, followed by another lengthy vibes solo against piano comping; the arrangement definitely evokes the film’s Spanish setting and atmosphere.

Sadly, Locke subsequently turned his attention to other projects and albums. Perhaps some day he’ll deliver a third Film Noir Project compilation.