Some months back I picked this up for a penny under $4 at the wonderful downtown must-go treasure trove @lastbookstorela for two specific reasons:
1) to have a vinyl take of Christopher Cross’s title theme, for which I’ve had a soft spot ever since being charmed silly by this flick when I was a kid; and 2) to fill in another gap in my Burt Bacharach collection, as the late maestro composed the score after director Steve Gordon deemed Cross too inexperienced to handle the job on his own. I see no further purpose in procuring a copy. That isn’t a bash on the three other acts involved — Nicolette Larson, Stephen Bishop and Ambrosia — so much as an acknowledgement that their material here is forgettable, despite Bacharach’s pedigree and the savvy (if stultifying) skills of lyricist Carole Bayer Sager. For me, all that matters are two jaunty bits of score (‘Money’ and ‘Moving Pictures’) and their collective Oscar winner, presented in chart-topping single form as well as an instrumental best described as, well, more Bacharachian. Also interesting to note the differences between the players on those versions: the hit is mostly Toto and friends; the slinkier, vocal-free arrangement swaps in Lee Ritenour and Andrew Gold. Another oft-forgotten detail: Gordon, who raked in widespread praise, nominations and awards for this comedy, never made another film, dying of a heart attack at 44 in November ’82.
#SoundtrackSunday 027
‘Arthur’
Warner Bros., 1981
d: Steve Gordon