Flying Start

In its late 1960s and ’70s heyday, the KPM 1000 Series recorded music library was the source of much superb music. During that era, Robin Phillips, a brilliant man who did much to usher in the modern era of library music, headed the 1000 Series and he commissioned music from many of Britain’s leading arranger-composers. Several of them feature on 'Flying Start', which compiles 28 of the finest 1000 Series compositions recorded between 1968 and 1978.

The emphasis here is very much on majestic orchestral and big band sounds with contemporary rhythm, and yet there’s also room for romantic interludes, avant-garde spacey jazz, abstract underscores and more besides.

Johnny Pearson’s thunderous orchestral pieces Fight for Survival and Menace sit alongside brilliantly conceived underscores like Nick Ingman’s Automation, The Rat Race and Project Titan (part two), all of which harness Stravinskyesque orchestration to powerful modern rhythms and instrumentation.

James Clarke contributes three examples of his characteristically lyrical small group jazz (featuring the inimitable Shake Keane on flugelhorn), and two of the jazz world’s greatest names – Stan Tracey and John Dankworth – are featured. Tracey’s angular Mood Macabre and the beautiful pastel shades of Sublimation demonstrate his immense harmonic knowledge, while John Dankworth’s Tension is a forceful big band number that builds to an exciting climax.

Track Listing:
1. GUIDE PATH (Neil Richardson) - DRAMATIC BACKGROUND
2. FIGHT FOR SURVIVAL (Johnny Pearson) - PROGRESS AND PRESTIGE VOL.2/FIGHT FOR SURVIVAL
3. MOOD MACABRE (Stan Tracey) - DRAMATIC BACKGROUND
4. THRU THE VALLEY (James Clarke) - MINIATURE MOODS
5. PROJECT OF IMPORTANCE (Neil Richardson) - PROGRESS AND PRESTIGE/FOURTH DIMENSION
6. WORLD SERIES (Keith Mansfield) - LIFE IS FOR LIVING
7. AUTOMATION (Nick Ingman) - INDUSTRY/AWARDS
8. ACQUITAL (David Lindup) - DRAMATIC BACKGROUND
9. MENACE (Johnny Pearson) - PROGRESS AND PRESTIGE VOL.2/FIGHT FOR SURVIVAL
10. PROJECT TITAN (PART TWO) (Nick Ingman) - INDUSTRY/AWARDS
11. LONELY THOUGHTS (John Cameron) - THEME SUITES/MUSTANG
12. SUNNY START (James Clarke) - MINIATURE MOODS
13. COLOURFUL CAVALCADE (Neil Richardson) - FLAMBOYANT THEMES VOL.4
14. WONDERAMA (A) (Keith Mansfield) - PROGRESS AND PRESTIGE/FOURTH DIMENSION
15. LOVE POEM (Keith Mansfield) - GENTLE SOUNDS VOL.2
16. SUBLIMATION (Stan Tracey) - GENTLE SOUNDS VOL.3
17. HAPPY TO BE ALIVE (Nick Ingman) - DISTINCTIVE THEMES/RACE TO ACHIEVEMENT
18. BASIE ’77 (Nick Ingman) - DISTINCTIVE THEMES/RACE TO ACHIEVEMENT
19. GREEN ROOM (Keith Mansfield) - GENTLE SOUNDS VOL.2
20. ACROSS THE FLATLAND (James Clarke) - MINIATURE MOODS
21. SANDALS IN THE SAND (John Shakespeare) - GENTLE SOUNDS VOL.2
22. TENSION (John Dankworth) - DRAMATIC BACKGROUND
23. FLYING START (David Lindup) - METROPOLIS
24. CUT AND THRUST (David Lindup) - METROPOLIS
25. FAST LANE (David Lindup) - METROPOLIS
26. COMPUTOLOGY (John Cameron) - THEME SUITES/MUSTANG
27. THE RAT RACE (Nick Ingman) - INDUSTRY/AWARDS
28. STRANGE MOONS NEW SUNS (Duncan Lamont) - INDUSTRY VOL.2