Bob Thompson (musician)
Bob Thompson | |
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RCA Victor | |
Website | bobthompsonmusic |
Robert Lamar Thompson (August 24, 1924 – May 21, 2013) was a composer,
In an interview, Van Dyke Parks, who hired Thompson to arrange "Canon in D" for his 1976 album Clang of the Yankee Reaper, said: "In terms of raw invention, I place Bob in the pantheon of Spike Jones, Les Paul, and Juan García Esquivel. Like Beethoven, they were 'populists' in good heart. They meant to appeal to the masses, and did so, by enlightening them."[3]
Thompson is considered a prime exponent of what has belatedly been termed "
Education
Thompson was born in San Jose, California, in 1924.[1] He was a music student at UC Berkeley composing shows and creating arrangements with noted philosopher Stanley Cavell.[5] Although he did not graduate, Thompson apprenticed with Professor William Denny of UC Berkeley after graduation.[6]
Early career
Thompson played piano in bands in Sacramento and sat in with Barney Bigard, who was the clarinetist in Duke Ellington's band. He moved to San Francisco and got his first arranging job at radio station KGO writing arrangements for The Standard Hour. Next, he went to Paris and arranged for Jacqueline Francois and Gloria Lasso, before returning to Los Angeles. He toured as the arranger and bandleader for actress Mae West.
Space Age pop records
Thompson's albums as a bandleader are Just for Kicks, Mmm, Nice!, and On the Rocks
Just For Kicks and Mmm, Nice! were recorded at
The Sound of Speed was described by Irwin Chusid, who produced several reissues of Thompson's work, as:
a 'concept' LP [that] rhapsodizes the technology of human transport, from Vespa scooters to Le Mans racers, from tricycles to rocket ships. Each of the dozen vehicular vignettes is book-ended by authentic sound effects, with vivid stereo motion.
Thompson was one of the arrangers for Bing Crosby's
Thompson provided the arrangements for a number of
Film and television
Thompson provided the theme music for
Offbeat projects
Thompson composed music Mae West's lyrics for a song called "Criswell Predicts," about the flamboyant American psychic, The Amazing Criswell.[11] He wrote the music for That Agency Thing, an Industrial musical for CBS Radio Sales, with lyrics by Alan Alch (1963). Alch and Thompson also wrote Candelabra Boogie, a comedic homage to Liberace, sung by Jerry Lewis.[12] Thompson provided the arrangements for Dan Blocker's Tales for Young'uns.[13] Thompson composed "Happy Hobo" for Felix Slatkin's Conducts Fabulous Percussion and "Marching the Blues" for Felix Slatkin's Fantastic Brass Marches the Blues.[14][15] He arranged Katie Lee's Songs of Couch and Consultation[16] that was a comedic salute to psychoanalysis.
Commercials
Although not responsible for lyrics or ad copy, Thompson composed and arranged for approximately 1000 commercials. "Bob made a study of rock, soul, how the
Thompson received several awards in the 50s, 60s, and 70s including Clio Awards for excellence in advertising music and an International Advertising Festival Award.
Reissues and contemporary uses
The Sound of Speed was reissued by itself on CD by Bacchus Archives in 2004[2] and on vinyl by Sundazed Music in 2010.[18] The three RCA albums were reissued together with bonus tracks by the Spanish reissue label Blue Moon Producciones as a two-CD set in 2011.[19] Bertelsmann Music Group, that purchased RCA Victor Recordings, included Thompson in its History of Space Age Pop series (1994).[20] The Space Age Pop Records also contain original compositions, which have been anthologized on the Sound of Style (2008).[21] Over the last 30 years, these songs have been selected to appear on television and film including "The Big Journey" episode of Sex and the City (2002), an Old Navy commercial, and the I'm Reed Fish soundtrack (2006).
Thompson died in Los Angeles in 2013, his LA Times obituary stating: "Thompson's music set a mood, but was more than mood music."[22]
Discography
- Seven Men From Now / Goodbye Old Girl (Zephyr Records, 1956)
- Just For Kicks (RCA Victor, 1958)[2]
- The Sound of Speed (Dot Records, 1958)
- Mmm, Nice! (RCA Victor, 1959)
- On the Rocks (RCA Victor, 1959)
- The Sound of Speed (Dot Records, 1960)
- Music From Wildcat (RCA Victor, 1961))
- That Agency Thing (Private pressing, 1963)
References
- ^ a b c d e f "Bob Thompson Interview". Cool and Strange Music Magazine. 12 April 1999. Retrieved 1 June 2013.
- ^ a b c d e f Vigil, Delfin (26 June 2005). "Hey, Mr. Space Man". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved 1 June 2013.
- ^ "The Art of Music Arranging: Van Dyke Parks Interview". Bob Thompson Music. Archived from the original on 2018-07-16. Retrieved 2018-07-16.
- ^ Chawkins, Steve (9 June 2013). "Bob Thompson dies at 88; 'Space Age pop' composer". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2018-07-17.
- OCLC 761486013.
- ^ "University of California: In Memoriam, 1980". content.cdlib.org. Retrieved 2018-07-16.
- ^ Clooney, Rosemary, "Girl Singer: An Autobiography"
- ^ "Clap Hands! Here Comes Rosie! -- The Tasteful Pairing of Rosemary Clooney & Bob Thompson". Bob Thompson Music. Archived from the original on 2018-07-16. Retrieved 2018-07-16.
- ISBN 9780767905558.
- ^ ACE. "ACE Repertory". www.ascap.com. Retrieved 2018-07-16.
- ^ "About Bob Thompson at BobThomsonMusic.com". Archived from the original on 2015-12-23. Retrieved 2015-12-23.
- ^ "Jerry Lewis (3) - The Capitol Collector's Series". Discogs. 1990. Retrieved 2018-07-16.
- ^ "Dan Blocker - Tales For Young'uns". Discogs. 1961. Retrieved 2018-07-16.
- ^ ACE. "ACE Repertory". www.ascap.com. Retrieved 2018-07-16.
- ^ ACE. "ACE Repertory". www.ascap.com. Retrieved 2018-07-16.
- ^ "Katie Lee - Songs Of Couch And Consultation". Discogs. Retrieved 2018-07-16.
- ^ Thompson, Spenser, "The 1,000 TV Commercials of Bob Thompson," Perfect Sound Forever, June 2018
- ^ "Thompson, Bob - The Sound of Speed LP". SUNDAZED MUSIC. Retrieved 2018-07-16.
- ^ Gasten, David (18 March 2012). "Bob Thompson, His Orchestra and Chorus - Just For Kicks / Mmm, Nice! / On the Rocks". This is Vintage Now. Archived from the original on 12 January 2015. Retrieved 1 June 2013.
- ^ "The History of Space Age Pop, Vol. 2: Mallets in Wonderland - Various Artists | Songs, Reviews, Credits | AllMusic". AllMusic. Retrieved 2018-07-16.
- ^ The Sound of Style by Bob Thompson, 1960-01-01, retrieved 2018-07-16
- ^ "Bob Thompson dies at 88; 'Space Age pop' composer"; Steve Chawkins, Los Angeles Times, June 10, 2013
External links
- Bob Thompson at IMDb
- Official website
- "Return of a Space Age Swinger", article from Atomic Magazine, 2002
- "Hey Mr. Space Man!", article from The San Francisco Chronicle, 2005
- " The Sound of Style, album of original compositions