Classic or Dud: Raymond Scott

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Is he a "Powerhouse" or merely the chinstrokers Spike Jones? And was Carl Stallings use of his music a benefit or a blight to civilization?
(This thread also doubles as a Search and Destroy. Or a Taking Sides against...um, er...Danny Elfman?)

― Lord Custos Epsilon (Lord Custos Epsilon), Friday, 11 July 2003 14:55 (twenty-two years ago)

Lets NOT return to that, C*lum.

― Lord Custos Epsilon (Lord Custos Epsilon), Friday, 11 July 2003 14:59 (twenty-two years ago)

sub-Calumesque at best.

― Lord Custos Epsilon (Lord Custos Epsilon), Friday, 11 July 2003 15:00 (twenty-two years ago)

ok, well anyhow,

STONE MF'ING CLASSIC

― amateurist (amateurist), Friday, 11 July 2003 15:23 (twenty-two years ago)

A genius who not only invented some highly influential hardware, but created the most beautifully outerwordly music ever.

Super duper classic times 10.

― David Allen, Friday, 11 July 2003 15:25 (twenty-two years ago)

classic in every way, from composition, performance to musical technology development.

― jack cole (jackcole), Friday, 11 July 2003 15:27 (twenty-two years ago)

Custos - I'm fairly sure we've done a couple of Raymond Scott threads covering the schizo orchestrations and the beep borp zorp zim stuff (which omigod search out btw). anyhow, either way, genius genius genius

― James Blount (James Blount), Friday, 11 July 2003 15:29 (twenty-two years ago)

i read in Turkish Delights booklet that he did electronics technology for Motown in the early-mid 70's. anyone know what he was working on? Stevie Wonder records, Smokey records, what?

― abeta, Friday, 11 July 2003 15:55 (twenty-two years ago)

from what I can remeber of the manhattan research, inc. liner notes (incredible comp btw) he was strictly developing technology for them, synthesizers, etc., not actually working on any records.

― James Blount (James Blount), Friday, 11 July 2003 15:59 (twenty-two years ago)

Anyone heard of Raymond Scott?
Raymond Scott - C or D?
raymond scott's "soothing sounds for baby" C or D

― Sean Carruthers (SeanC), Friday, 11 July 2003 16:10 (twenty-two years ago)

He's still classic, btw.

― dleone (dleone), Friday, 11 July 2003 16:18 (twenty-two years ago)

if you go to the wfmu.org site and look in their links there's a link to irwin chusid (fmu dj/raymond scott liner note king)'s scott site

― James Blount (James Blount), Friday, 11 July 2003 16:23 (twenty-two years ago)

I just interviewed Chusid a couple of weeks ago about his Raymond Scott Orchestrette band, some NYC jazzbos who play his tunes.

― s1utsky (slutsky), Friday, 11 July 2003 16:30 (twenty-two years ago)

They're ok, but they do all their own arrangements.

― dleone (dleone), Friday, 11 July 2003 16:50 (twenty-two years ago)

the record label doing most of his archival releases, basta, is in overdrive right now with many other projects (check out that 4 CD Kid Baltan & Tom Dissevelt set due this year: http://BastaMusic.com/news.html). But I hope they don't wait too long to put out that 2 CD set of Scott's Electronium work, the wait is becoming painful.

― Jon L (Jon L), Friday, 11 July 2003 16:56 (twenty-two years ago)

Yeah, their whole thing is not to replicate exactly what Scott did. Which is fine in principle, I guess.

― s1utsky (slutsky), Friday, 11 July 2003 17:45 (twenty-two years ago)

borrowed manhattan research whatever from my friend and it bored the hell out of me, the average shitty library music comp is funkier and weirder and much less smug, i do like some of the looney tunes jazz stuff but fuck his 'proto electronica' that sounds like fucking sub blevin blechdom atari bleep loops, completely a case of indie revisionist mythology lending undeserved 'quality' to the actual music, i love persona building but i could give a fuck about the mad laboratory genius schtick

― trife (simon_tr), Friday, 11 July 2003 19:23 (twenty-two years ago)

also responsible for some of the most forced uncomfortable 'whimsy' ive ever had to sit through

― trife (simon_tr), Friday, 11 July 2003 19:23 (twenty-two years ago)

For a second I thought you were talking about Manhattan Transfer.

― Ned Raggett (Ned), Friday, 11 July 2003 19:24 (twenty-two years ago)

the "reckless nights and turkish twilights" cd is much less determinedly silly, and probably a better precis of scott's talents.

― amateurist (amateurist), Friday, 11 July 2003 19:24 (twenty-two years ago)

trife, please. Raymond Scott was doing that stuff completely apart from all the other "experimental" electronic musicians of the time, and much of it for commercials - how smug could he be? It isn't indie revisionism, it's credit where credit was due -- Scott was an engineer making sounds and equipment that nobody had ever made before AND sounds that had some relation to pop music, unlike any other electronic music composer of his time. He did this in virtual isolation, and because of that is often glossed over in the anals of music history, so I hardly see a problem giving him props now. As an added bonus, some people actually like his music.

― dleone (dleone), Friday, 11 July 2003 19:32 (twenty-two years ago)

also his songs are really catchy especially the ones he stole from ravel and people like that.

― amateurist (amateurist), Friday, 11 July 2003 19:33 (twenty-two years ago)

im not denying his rep with circuitry or whatever the fuck it just seems totally extramusical and not in any way that usually makes me care about music, like having breasts or a rap clothing line... i cant imagine actually listening to that stuff even at my most embarrassing idm-jocking phase

― trife (simon_tr), Friday, 11 July 2003 19:37 (twenty-two years ago)

Maybe you should sample the Soothing Sounds for Babies stuff. Anyway, it at least doesn't have all that krazy Jim Henson blip action.

― dleone (dleone), Friday, 11 July 2003 19:42 (twenty-two years ago)

trife 99% of "library music" is wretched. Now THERE's a case of useless hipster revisionism. Talk about scraping the bottom of the barrel.

― Mr. Diamond (diamond), Friday, 11 July 2003 19:47 (twenty-two years ago)

well yes i said 'shitty library music' comp!! i just remembered i also have the raymond scott tribute with bogdan and cex and marumari etc, i got it for like four bucks cuz it was supposed to be included with some magazine!!! its a trib to soothing sounds for baby not the wacky 50s 'hey kids!!' stuff so maybe i would dig that stuff

― trife (simon_tr), Friday, 11 July 2003 19:53 (twenty-two years ago)

or maybe not. the 'soothing sounds' records feature the same sounds & arrangements, allowed to go on much longer. one decade before subotnick / german electronic pop, three decades before trance, etc.

trife, these are historical recordings by the guy who essentially invented the first sequencer. they remained obscure because they'd never been widely released on albums. that said they are primitive and not listening-music for everyone. but as scott's works are all 40 years earlier than all of the records you're mentioning, I'm not sure what you're saying about 'revisionism'...

― Jon L (Jon L), Friday, 11 July 2003 20:18 (twenty-two years ago)

I love 'turkish delights' but there's an earlier comp of private Scott broadcast performances recorded to 78s called 'The Raymond Scott Project' which I listen to more often... fidelity not as good as 'delights' but it cooks hotter. Anyone heard 'Microphone Music' and in a position to compare?

― Jon L (Jon L), Friday, 11 July 2003 20:24 (twenty-two years ago)

I really think the Basta Electronium stuff is going to establish Scott's rep once and for all, for better or worse as an electronic music composer. The songs I've heard from that instrument are my fave by him, but ithey're so few -- that they haven't released it yet makes me wonder. Perhaps the stuff already released hasn't sold well, so they're waiting; or maybe it's just not as great as I'm hoping it will be. Anyway, I'll follow that rec above with this: trife, download "Cindy Electronium" (found on the OHM box). If you hate that, then Scott may not be for you.

― dleone (dleone), Friday, 11 July 2003 20:25 (twenty-two years ago)

trife in hating cartoons and beeps for 'story' and 'artistry' shocker!

― James Blount (James Blount), Friday, 11 July 2003 20:29 (twenty-two years ago)

someone's been breathing that athens air too long!

― James Blount (James Blount), Friday, 11 July 2003 20:30 (twenty-two years ago)

"play a song already!"

― James Blount (James Blount), Friday, 11 July 2003 20:30 (twenty-two years ago)

oh yeah. 'cindy electronium' 1959. that's a great gateway track. It's also on 'manhattan research', but just start with that track with a clear head. also listen to his version of 'Night and Day', listen to those eq'd drum lines.

apologies to anyone who read me saying this before on another thread, I didn't actually listen to 'Manhattan' too often before I ripped a single CD of just the instrumental tracks. I love the intact advertisements and documentaries but wish they'd gone on a seperate disc.

― Jon L (Jon L), Friday, 11 July 2003 20:36 (twenty-two years ago)

FYI, just found out that you can order the 3 CD Soothing Sounds for Baby set from raymondscott.com for a mere $24 (+ 4 s/h), on this page:
http://raymondscott.com/Misc.html

Re: Microphone Music - this stuff is from 1936-39; considering, the fidelity is decent. So far, nothing has jumped out as being a revelation, but it's all pretty solid.

― Ernest P. (ernestp), Friday, 11 July 2003 23:36 (twenty-two years ago)

A few corrections for the above... The title of the CD is "RECKLESS NIGHTS AND TURKISH TWILIGHTS" (not 'Delights'), and the official Raymond Scott website is owned/operated by Jeff Winner (who, with GJ Blom produced the "MANHATTAN RESEARCH INC." release), not Irwin Chusid. I wrote to Basta a couple weeks ago and asked them about the next electronic release -- they told me it was definitely coming -- but probably not until next year. (And, BTW, Raymond Scott build MANY Electroniums over many years...)

― , Saturday, 12 July 2003 12:50 (twenty-two years ago)

P.S. "MICROPHONE MUSIC" is AMAZING -- it contains all the Scott Quintette recordings from the (now out of print) CD from Stash PLUS tons more tracks -- a 2-CD set in total. Sound quality is mind-blowing too... AND check the quote about it from the KING CRIMSON guy on this page: http://RaymondScott.com/mic.html

― , Saturday, 12 July 2003 12:54 (twenty-two years ago)

"the Mahavishnu Orchestra of the 1930s." -Pat Mastelotto, drummer, KING.CRIMSON

ha ha

― Jon L (Jon L), Saturday, 12 July 2003 21:31 (twenty-two years ago)

(many thanks for the link, helpful mp3 samples. thanks also for correcting my false 'delight' echoes.)

(and it's not like Pat doesn't have a point, it was just funny to think for a moment about something like Scott's 'The Penguin' suddenly opening into a McLaughlin solo for three minutes)

― Jon L (Jon L), Saturday, 12 July 2003 21:43 (twenty-two years ago)

Mastelotto did I guess have a point about them being the first prog, but he should have compared them to Gentle Giant or someone who didn't really play "solos". Did Raymond Scott's bands improvise at all?

― dleone (dleone), Sunday, 13 July 2003 06:28 (twenty-two years ago)

Influenced Soul Coughing = classic beyond yr wildest dreams.

― j.lu (j.lu), Sunday, 13 July 2003 12:31 (twenty-two years ago)

four years pass...

Trailer for Raymond Scott: On To Something

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FX6uO90Vmc0

― Milton Parker, Thursday, 7 February 2008 19:49 (seventeen years ago)

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