Everybody knows about Phil Spector and his “Wall of Sound” but Spector had a lot of help from Jack Nitzsche who was a key arranger and conductor. Nitzsche’s career spanned decades, but I think he did his best work in the Sixties. He worked with dozens of groups like the Righteous Brothers, Buffalo Springfield, Crazy Horse, the Crystals, the Rolling Stones, and the Everly Brothers. The Lonely Surfer is an oddity in the Jack Nitzsche oeuvre. It’s an instrumental album from 1963. Later in his career, Nitzsche wrote film music for several movies including One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest and An Officer and A Gentleman. That film music owes a debt to “The Lonely Surfer.” To listen to “The Lonely Surfer” just click here.
Track list:
1. The Lonely Surfer (Album Version) 2:35
2. Puerto Vallarta (LP Version) 2:30
3. Stranger On The Shore (LP Version) 2:09
4. Theme From Women Of The World (LP Version) 2:56
5. Old Town (LP Version) 2:53
6. Ebb Tide (LP Version) 2:18
7. Theme From Mondo Cane (More) (LP Version) 3:08
8. The Magnificent Seven (LP Version) 2:10
9. Baja (LP Version) 2:20
10. Theme For A Broken Heart (LP Version) 2:49
11. Beyond The Surf (LP Version) 2:16
12. Da Doo Ron Ron (LP Version)
Hey, if the Ventures and the Tornadoes were going to turn an honest buck that way, no reason for JN not to jump in!
Loved THE VENTURES, Todd! Instrumental rock & roll seems to be a dead genre today.
He also co-wrote “Needles and Pins” with Sonny Bono.
You’re absolutely right, Jeff. Nitzsche was arranging and composing with dozens of artists back then. His discography goes on for pages!
The cover alone makes me yearn for those brighter times.
I was 14 in 1963, Patti. It was the perfect age for this kind of music.!
I always associate him with Neil Young. I hadn’t realized he had such a wide-ranging career. Thanks for opening my eyes.
BTW, was he married to Buffy St. Marie?
Yes, Jack Nitzsche was married to Buffy St. Marie in the 1980s, but then they divorced, Deb. Since 1993, she’s been in a “committed relationship” with Charlie Wilson.
Cool. That song would have worked just fine in a Sergio Leone western.
You’re right about that, Evan. Nitzsche’s music for AN OFFICER AND A GENTLEMAN had some of that same soaring music.
George…try Smart Went Crazy’s instrumentals (albeit they’re nearly a 20 year old band now). Actually, the likes of Man or Astro-Man? sparked a real surf/instrumental-rock revival in the 1990s.
I will definitely check out SMART WENT CRAZY and MAN OR ASTRO MAN, Todd. You are a fount of obscure information!