September 16, 2021

20,000 vinyl LPs 308: Angel Heart ~ Mickey Rourke & Robert De Niro

~       
Angel Heart movie poster
 
 
Today, September 16, is the birthday of Mickey Rourke, an actor who seemed to specialize in weird film roles but his weirdest role has to be as Harry Angel in Angel Heart, a 1987 American neo-noir psychological horror film which was an adaptation of the William Hjortsberg 1978 novel Falling Angel.     
 
 
 
 
 
Written and directed by Alan Parker, the film stars Rourke in the lead role, with Robert De Niro, Lisa Bonet and Charlotte Rampling. Angel Heart is not for the timid, it is graphic, grim, grisly and gruesome but it is brilliant and profound.       

De Niro himself is no stranger to bizarre roles as witness the paranoid Taxi Driver in 1976 and the self-destructive and obsessive boxer, Jake LaMotta (link below), in the 1980 film Raging Bull.     
 
 

Raging Bull - 1980 
photographers unknown
 
 
Robert De Niro appears as Louis Cyphre (read: Lucifer, the devil incarnate). He is suave, impeccably dressed, sinister, dangerous and completely evil.                 


Robert De Niro as Louis Cyphre 


American folk music and Piedmont blues singer and guitarist, Brownie McGhee, appears in the film as Toots Sweet. After Angel uses force to try to extract details of Favorite's last known whereabouts, Toots refers him back to Margaret Krusemark (Charlotte Rampling). The following morning, police detectives inform Harry that Toots has been murdered.           
 
 
vinyl LP front cover 
 cover photo by Terry O'Neil 
photo of album cover by Styrous®


William Hjortsberg also wrote the screenplay for the 1985 Ridley Scott film, Legend, which starred Tom Cruise and Tim Curry. Now, there's a bizarre teaming!     


vinyl LP back cover 
 cover photo by Terry O'Neil 
photo of album cover by Styrous®

 
Dustin Hoffman and Robert Redford were originally considered for the role of Harry Angel. Parker began meeting with actors for the lead role of Harry Angel. After meeting Rourke and walking the streets of New York through the night with him, Rourke declared that Parker should stop looking for other actors, the role was his. Impressed by Rourke’s confidence, Parker made him his Angel.         


vinyl LP back cover detail
detail photo of album cover by Styrous®


Harry Angel (Rourke), a New York City private investigator, is hired to solve the disappearance of a man known as Johnny Favorite. His investigation takes him to New Orleans, where he becomes embroiled in a series of brutal murders. The key to everything is "heart" in every form of its meaning and perception. It is not a pretty film; it gets gritty and graphic in every way possible. But it is a great film and one not to be missed. I do not want to give away anything but there is a blog that tells all, if you are into spoilers (link below)    


vinyl LP back cover detail
detail photo of album cover by Styrous®

 
The score was produced and composed by Trevor Jones, with saxophone solos by British jazz musician Courtney Pine. Jones composed the score electronically on a Synclavier. In it director Alan Parker chose to reference the 1937 song, Girl of My Dreams by Glen Gray.  
 
 
 
 
Saxophonist Pine utilized an Echoplex much as Stan Getz did on his 1978 song, Another World in which he referenced Alice Blue Gown by Joseph McCarthy and Harry Tierney.    




Alan Parker also directed Bugsy Malone, a 1976 gangster musical comedy which featured only child actors playing adult roles. The cast included Jodie Foster, Scott Baio and John Cassisi. He also directed the 1978 film Midnight Express, written by Oliver Stone, based on the Billy Hayes 1977 non-fiction book Midnight Express. It featured Brad Davis and John Hurt.        










Midway through the film there is a very weird scene with a sexy Louisiana Voodoo Queen, Lisa Bonet who has the female lead as Epiphany Proudfoot. Proudfoot had an affair with Johnny Favorite, the man Johnny Angel is searching for. Confused? Well, that's the aim of the film!     




The book, Falling Angel, was also adapted into an opera by J. Mark Scearce to a libretto by Lucy Thurber. Titled Falling Angel, it premiered at the Brevard Music Center on June 30, 2016.         



























vinyl LP record label, side 1 & 2 details
detail photos by Styrous®




   
Tracklist:
       
Side 1:
        
        Harry Angel
Performer [Performed by Courtney Pine, Trevor Jones
Written by Trevor Jones - 6:55
A1.1        Kingdom Mission   
A1.2        Introducing Mr Cyphre   
A1.3        Fowler's   
A1.4        Harlem Chase   
A1.5        Lanza's    

A2        Honeyman Blues
Performer [Performed by Bessie Smith
Written by G. Brooks* - 1:18

        Nightmare
Performer [Performed by Courtney Pine, Trevor Jones
Written by Trevor Jones - 2:14

A3        Secret Loves    

A4        Girl Of My Dreams
Performer [Performed by Glen Gray & The Casa Loma Orchestra
Written by Sunny clapp - 1:20

A5        I Got This Thing About Chickens
Performer [Performed by Courtney Pine, Trevor Jones
Written by Trevor Jones - 3:47

A6        Keyhole Song
Written by Clarence Williams, Eddy Green* - 3:23
       
Side 2:
       
        Harry Angel
B1        Rainy Day
Performer [Performed by Brownie McGhee
Written by Brownie McGhee - 2:50

        Looking For Johnny
Performer [Performed by Courtney Pine, Trevor Jones
Written by Trevor Jones - 7:34

B2.1        Cajuns   
B2.2        Epihany   
B2.3        I Am An Atheist   
B2.4        Frightened Eyes Never Lie   
B3        Soul On Fire
Performer [Performed by Performed By] – Laverne Baker*
Written by Ahmet Ertegun/Gerald Weffer* - 2:53

        Bloodmare
Performer [Performed by Courtney Pine, Trevor Jones
Written by Trevor Jones - 3:02

B4        Dog Tags    

B5        Johny Favourite
Performer [Performed by Courtney Pine, Trevor Jones
Written by Trevor Jones - 4:38

Remaining Time -1:13
       
Companies, etc.
       
    Record Company – Island Records
    Phonographic Copyright ℗ – Ariola Eurodisc GmbH
    Copyright © – Island Records Ltd.
    Distributed By – RCA/Ariola-Ariola/RCA
    Distributed By – Ariola/RCA-RCA/Ariola
    Mixed At – Trilion Studios
    Mixed At – CTS Studios
    Pressed By – Sonopress
    Published By – Anabasis Music
    Published By – Copyright Control
    Published By – Lawrence Wright Music Ltd.
    Published By – Walter Brownie McGhee Publishing Co.
    Published By – Chappell Music Ltd.
       
Credits:
       
    Composed By, Arranged By, Conductor [Conducted By] – Trevor Jones
    Coordinator [Album Co-ordinator] – Richard Manners
    Coordinator [Music Co-ordinator] – Victoria Seale
    Engineer [Assistant] – Buster Field
    Executive-Producer – Marc Marot
    Keyboards – David Lawson*, Trevor Jones
    Mixed By – Paul Hulme
    Producer [Album Produced By] – Trevor Jones (tracks: A1, A3, A5, A6, B1, B2, B4, B5)
    Recorded By [Dialogue, Sound Effects] – David Wooley*
    Sleeve – Island Art
    Sleeve Notes – Alan Parker (2)
    Soloist [Solo], Saxophone – Courtney Pine
    Synthesizer, Sound Designer [Sounds Realized By] – David Lawson*
    Voice [Bass, Baritone] – Simon Grant (4)
    Voice [Coloratura] – Catherine Bott
       
Notes:
       
[On back]
Music co-ordinator: [...] for Contemporary Media Music Productions.
℗ 1987 [...] © 1987 [...]
Printed in Germany • Imprimé en Allemagne
[Island Visual Arts logo]

[On labels]
O.S.T. ANGEL HEART
ANABASIS MUSIC [tracks: A1, A3, A5, B2, B4, B5]
COPYRIGHT CONTROL [tracks: A2, A6]
LAWRENCE WRIGHT MUSIC LTD. [tracks: A4]
WALTER B. McGHEE PUBL. CO. [tracks: B1]
CHAPPELL MUSIC LTD. [tracks: B3]
       
Barcode and Other Identifiers
       
    Barcode (Scanned): 4007192083961
    Barcode (Text): 4 007192 083961
    Label Code: LC 0407
    Rights Society (Boxed): GEMA STEMRA BIEM
    Pressing Plant ID (Side B label, embossed): [Bass clef]
    Matrix / Runout (Label side A): S 208.396 A
    Matrix / Runout (Label side B): S 208.396 B
    Matrix / Runout (Side A runout stamped, variant 1): DM 208396 A-1/5-87
    Matrix / Runout (Side B runout stamped, variant 1): DM 208396 B-1/5-87
    Matrix / Runout (Side A runout stamped, variant 2): DM 208396 A-1/5-87
    Matrix / Runout (Side B runout stamped, II etched, variant 2): DM 208396 B-1/5-87 II

Various – Angel Heart (Original Soundtrack Music By Trevor Jones. Featuring Courtney Pine, Saxophone.)
Label: Antilles New Directions – 208 396, Antilles New Directions – 208.396
Format: Vinyl, LP, Album, Stereo
Country: Europe
Released: 1987
Genre: Electronic, Jazz, Blues, Stage & Screen
Style: Soundtrack, Louisiana Blues, Delta Blues, Cool Jazz   



   
         
Viewfinder links:        
          
David Carradine           
Stanley Clarke        
Chick Corea        
Tom Cruise             
Tim Curry
Robert De Niro         
Clint Eastwood        
Stan Getz          
Stan Getz ~ Another World  album       
Glen Gray         
Dustin Hoffman     
Trevor Jones                 
Jake LaMotta        
Robert Redford         
Mickey Rourke        
        
Net links:        
         
          
DVD Talk ~ Angel Heart (spoiler ALERT)       
Fiction Machine ~ Angel Heart (review)       
Mad Monster ~ De Niro Does the Devil         
Alan Parker ~ The Making of Angel Heart       
        
YouTube links:        
        
Angel Heart ~   
             Angel Heart  movie trailer         
             Boiling Pot of Murder Scene      
             Church meeting Scene     
             Epiphany Proudfoot Character Analysis (8 mins.)     
             Evil Reflections     
             Harry Angel vs Louis Cyphre    
             I Know Who I Am!      
             Toots Sweet Character Analysis (8 mins.)      
             Twisted Fans (12 mins., 18 secs.)    
             Movie review    
Stan Getz ~ Another World song        
J. Mark Scearce ~ Fallen Angels         
         
        
        
         
"The egg is the symbol of the soul."
      ~ Louis Cyphre (Robert De Niro)     
        
         
        
        
        
Styrous® ~ Wednesday, September 16, 2020       
       
















No comments:

Post a Comment

PLEASE NOTE: comments are moderated BEFORE they are posted so DO NOT appear immediately.

Thank you.