ScottWorks: The Raymond Scott Festival

RECKLESS NIGHT MUSIC PRESENTS: ScottWorks | The Raymond Scott Festival is coming to Los Angeles on September 8th. Check it out: here

Twisted Toons Vol. 2

Stu Brown's first Twisted Toons album explored the music of maverick bandleader, composer, inventor and electronic music pioneer Raymond Scott, whose music featured heavily in the Warner Bros. cartoons of the 1940s onwards. His new release, Twisted Toons Vol. 2, delves deeper into the zany world of cartoon soundtracks, including the pioneering work of Carl Stalling, whose brilliantly detailed scores accompanied the antics of Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck and co., as well as the equally groundbreaking music of Scott Bradley, which underscored the slapstick violence of Tom & Jerry and Tex Avery cartoons. Most of this music has never been recorded or performed live since the original cartoons were made. Expect to hear complete Tom and Jerry, Droopy, Roadrunner and Porky Pig scores alongside new arrangements of Carl Stalling’s commonly used themes (including Raymond Scott’s ‘Powerhouse’ and his own ‘Screwball Theme’), a selection of kitsch 1950’s library music cues that appeared in Ren and Stimpy and Spongebob Squarepants, and some of Bill Frisell’s atmospheric writing for Gary Larson’s Tales From the Far Side.

Preorder the album here: http://stu-brown.com/album/383764/twisted-toons-vol-2-the-music-of-carl-stalling-scott-bradley-and-more

The Aural Films Biography Series

"The Aural Films Biography Series re-presents artists by featuring retrospective collections that re-introduce the public to those who have been working for decades in music and art. Following our initial Biography release featuring artist Thomas Park. Aural Films continues with volume 2 in the Biography Series that will pay special tribute to the work of Raymond Scott." Complete details: here

Concert: West Point Band’s Quintet 7

ABOVE: The West Point Band's Quintette 7

Raymond Scott Quintette drummer Johnny Williams once remarked about his boss's penchant for exhaustive rehearsals: "All that discipline helped. It had to. I developed a technique way beyond what I'd had." The West Point Band's Quintette 7 understands discipline, and it pays off in their performances of Scott's quirky tunes, which they'll offer in a FREE concert at the Chappaqua Library Theater on Sunday, May 7th, 2016. (The program will also feature the Q7 performing non-Scott selections such as "Misty" and "Big Noise from Winnetka.") RSVP via Facebook: here

Info from the Library: http://bit.ly/1q0Zm6j

Hear—and buy—tracks from the BEST-SELLING album "Quintette 7 Plays the Music of Raymond Scott": http://apple.co/1Ma1vXW

Growing up with Raymond Scott

Raymond Scott fan Christine Lorraine writes:

I wanted to take a moment to express something — in the mid-1990s you gave me a Raymond Scott CD (Reckless Nights and Turkish Twilights) when my son and daughter were babies. Now they are grown up. Nicole plays sax, and Nicholas plays French horn, drums, cello, and anything else he touches. Nicholas (who also plays drums with my band) recently hopped in the car when I picked him up from work, opened the console, and immediately inserted the Raymond Scott CD into the player. He listened to his favorites since childhood: "Manhattan Minuet," "Tobacco Auctioneer," and "At an Arabian House Party." He can point out where the clarinet squeaks in "Powerhouse" and how the trombones are intentionally dissonant in "House Party." My daughter Nicole does the same thing with the same CD, and she said it has struck her since early childhood that music could ever sound like that.
This is a roundabout way of saying thanks for playing such an indirect yet profound influence on their musical development. Raymond Scott's music is such a treasured part of our lives. 

Nicholas (above) had been listening to Raymond Scott since age 3 and wanted to play drums. Being a musician mom, well, it was no holds barred.

Ages 8 and 10 (above) they performed together playing "Jingle Bells" in the school talent show. She doesn't play sax so much now, but fronts an all-original punk group and writes their lyrics. I wish there were a way to expose more young children to intricate music like Raymond Scott's. I did so experimentally, but what an amazing outcome. 

Ghost Train Orchestra, Feb 28, Brooklyn

Our friend Brian Carpenter, leader of the fabulous Ghost Train Orchestra, whose Book of Rhapsodies CD contains several cleverly arranged works by Raymond Scott, writes:

Don't miss our last show with the Book of Rhapsodies band on Saturday February 28 before we head into the studio to record Book of Rhapsodies Volume II (all of which can be heard live at this show). We'll debut new arrangements of strange and beautiful chamber works penned by Raymond Scott, Alec Wilder, Charlie Shavers, and Reginald Foresythe, as well as a special treat — some pieces by a seemingly unknown bandleader/composer from the '30s and '40s recently discovered by Irwin Chusid. We can't wait to debut these pieces live (and tell you who it is.)

Saturday February 28

Jalopy Theater

315 Columbia Street

Red Hook, Brooklyn

8pm doors / 9pm show

Note: I won't reveal the name of the "unknown" bandleader/composer, but I didn't discover him. His work was discovered by our friend Takashi Okada of Tokyo, who passed the recordings along to me, and I sent them on to Brian certain that he would appreciate them. It was Brian's idea to arrange and perform them.

Here's GTO's recording of Scott's "New Year's Eve in a Haunted House."

A mixed-up, mashed-up composer

Coming from the Basta label in February 2014.

We turned over the entire Raymond Scott catalog ...

... to three celebrated mixologists who work under group names: The Bran Flakes, The Evolution Control Committee, and Go Home Productions.

They were given hundreds of recordings owned by the Scott estate, in all genres, including unreleased material, spanning the mid-1930s to the mid-1980s. Jazz, orchestral, electronic, experimental, studio chatter, one-of-a-kind rarities.

These gents were invited to have fun, keep it rhythmic, and make it percolate. Each contributed six audio montages with new titles, and they collaborated on Scott's signature tune, "Powerhouse."

The project is titled RAYMOND SCOTT REWIRED.

It's finished. Mixed, mastered, designed, packaged, and manufactured. You can preview three tracks on Soundcloud. Official release date is February 18.

Note: This post was originally published in May 2013. However, the US release was postponed due to a change of distributor for this release. 

Gotye puts Raymond back on the charts

It's probably been at least half a century since Ray scored a new hit, but thanks to Belgian-born Australian recording artist Gotye, Raymond Scott is back on top of the charts. Kinda. The Gotye song "State Of The Art" features a brief but memorable cameo of Raymond's voice as the track's finale, which was lifted from our Manhattan Research Inc. 2-CD/book compilation. The Gotye album, titled Making Mirrors, reached the Top 10 on the US Billboard 200, is currently the #2 US Rock Album (behind Bruce Springsteen, who holds the top slot at the moment), is the #1 US Alternative Album, and has already achieved global Gold, Platinum, and Triple Platinum sales status. Gotye will be this week's music guest on Saturday Night Live. • UPDATE: Gotye recently gave us this quote:

"Raymond Scott recorded some of the most unique and beguiling electronic sounds. An incessant inventor, designer, tinkerer — he's a big inspiration for me as a producer. His tightly orchestrated preudo-jazz with his Quintette was truly singular too. He was a real musical visionary."

New videos: Steve Bartek & Ego Plum's live show at WALT DISNEY CONCERT HALL • "Lightworks" and "Powerhouse"

ABOVE: Ego Plum's electronic band performs

"Lightworks" featuring Tara Busch vocal

ABOVE: Steve Bartek's band performs "Powerhouse"

2 new videos: Steve Bartek and Ego Plum's live show at WALT DISNEY CONCERT HALL • "Oil Gusher" and "In The Hall Of The Mountain Queen"

ABOVE: Ego Plum's electronic band performs

"In The Hall Of The Mountain Queen"

ABOVE: Steve Bartek's band performs "Oil Gusher"

Stay 'tooned for 2 more videos from this concert next week.

Listen to 3 Sneak Previews from Upcoming Mash-Up/Remix Album

The Bran Flakes (Otis Fodder, Canada), The Evolution Control Committee (TradeMark Gunderson, U.S.), and Go Home Productions (Mark Vidler, U.K.) were given hundreds of recordings owned by the Raymond Scott estate, in all genres, including unreleased material, spanning the 1930s to the 1980s. They were invited to have fun, keep it rhythmic, and make it percolate. Each contributed six audio montages with new titles, and they collaborated on Scott's signature tune, "Powerhouse." Approximately 250 sample sources were used in the construction of 19 tracks. Those samples have been edited, looped, flipped, and stretched; they were tweaked with equalization, pitch-shifting, compression, and all manner of digital cosmetology. Scott fans will recognize some passages, but in countless cases, the source recordings have been rendered unrecognizable. Album produced by Irwin Chusid and Otis Fodder, to be released on Basta in 2013. Listen to 3 preview tracks below:

2 new videos: Steve Bartek & Ego Plum's live show at WALT DISNEY CONCERT HALL

ABOVE: Ego Plum's electronic band performs "Dinner Music For A Pack Of Hungry Cannibals"

ABOVE: Steve Bartek's band performs "The Penguin"

Stay 'tooned for 2 more videos from this concert next week.