They Call it the Shatter Soundtrack… On Vinyl LP!
In news that will come as music to the ears of Hammer fans everywhere, we’re delighted to confirm that the original soundtrack to Shatter (1974) will soon be available on vinyl for the first time ever. The critically acclaimed score by David Lindup has been restored and remastered, and will be released accompanied by brand new, bespoke material.
It’s part of a new range that sees a broad selection of Hammer soundtracks released on vinyl, allowing the original, iconic music to be appreciated and enjoyed in the best possible sound quality. The score from The Curse of Frankenstein (1957) recently launched the new range and has already won plaudits. Reviewer Kevin Stanley, writing for At The Barrier, declared, ‘There’s something wonderful about dropping the needle on a mono 45, especially when it’s tied to classic Hammer Film Productions horror… This isn’t just a record… it’s a time machine taking me back to 1957.’
This time the vinyl time machine takes us back to Hong Kong in the mid-70s and Shatter, also known as Call Him Mr. Shatter. We asked Hammer’s Steve Rogers, why the film was chosen as a follow-up to The Curse of Frankenstein.
‘The Hammer archive is a broad church that covers many genres – horror, of course, but also war films, crimers, comedies, swashbucklers, dinosaur pics and so forth. And, in the case of Shatter, a punchy, high-octane East-meets-West action caper, filmed in Hong Kong and featuring Peter Cushing's final performance in a Hammer film. What's not to love?’
He added, ‘As fans will know from our Limited Collector's range of 4K and Blu-ray releases, we like to show the inherent variety in the archive by programming in a heady mix of all types into our schedule – and it's the same with our music releases, though it's a bit different to 4K/Blu-rays, as clean music isn't always available to use.’
German promotional material for Shatter often emphasized the presence of Ti Lung, the actor and martial arts expert who’d recently won a number of awards for his role in The Blood Brothers (1973).
Shatter is an action thriller with a martial arts edge that involves the eponymous assassin, portrayed by Stuart Whitman, joining forces with the deadly fighting machine, Tai Pah, played by the legendary Ti Lung. Throw in Lily Li, Peter Cushing and some exceptional location work and you’ve got a great-looking mashup packed with intrigue, cool and kung fu.
But you’ve also got a great sounding movie. When Shatter was released as part of the Limited Collector's Edition range, Love Horror pointed out the production, ‘…features a stylish score from David Lindup, whose music remains one of the film’s standout elements.’ And earlier, critic Mark Tinta called it, ‘…an admittedly awesome score by David Lindup, filled with gratuitous waka jawaka, vibraslap, and shrieked “Shatter!”s.’
Well, quite.
The entire movie is an aural delight. From the early, horrified scream that segues into the roar of the plane whisking Shatter to Asia, to the amplified diegetic sounds of the bustling Hong Kong streets and exaggerated cracks and thwacks featured in the fight sequences, this is a film for the ears as well as the eyes. Nothing epitomises this more than its celebrated music, and it means the Shatter soundtrack is an LP that proves to be as immersive as it is entertaining.
Philip Martell was also a composer and had previously written the score for Hammer’s The Anniversary (1968).
Lalo Schifrin’s music for Dirty Harry (1971) had already helped usher in an era in which traditional soundtrack melodies blended with jazz-funk rhythms, atonal outbursts and sparse, outré vocals to create a soundscape that felt perfect for 70s thrillers set in gritty urban environments. But Lindup cranks up the jazz quotient and gives us something which brings to mind Schifrin’s work for Enter the Dragon (1973), as well as Isaac Hayes’s glorious score for Shaft (1971).
There’s a gorgeous velvet quality to many of the dreamier cues. Some melancholic riffs seep through to its quieter moments, but the party really gets going when we swerve into faster-paced territory. Talking about the music for an interview included in its recent Blu-ray release, Mike Lindup, David’s son, commented that his father, ‘…was always very good at action stuff… You know, there are echoes of James Bond-type archetypes in the film and I think he would have loved that!’
Some of the music carries a playful, early 007 vibe—unsurprising, considering Lindup’s work on ITC Entertainment adventure series such as The Persuaders! and The Return of the Saint.
He began making his way in the business in the 50s, gaining a reputation as a talented composer, arranger and orchestrator. His career really took off when he met and forged a partnership with John ‘Johnny’ Dankworth, one of the most popular jazz musicians of his generation, and a frequent collaborator with the singer Cleo Laine who memorably appeared in Hammer’s Murder by Proxy (1954).
Stuart Whitman as Shatter alongside Lily Li as Mai-Mee. The latter made her feature film debut in 1964 and went on to enjoy an award-wining career in film and television that spanned over half a century.
But Lindup also continued to forge a separate career, and by the early 1960s was working on high-profile pictures including The Criminal (1960), Saturday Night and Sunday Morning (1960) and The Servant (1963). His active association with film and TV scores would continue for over twenty years, and one of his later jobs saw him working on the anthology series, Hammer House of Horror, composing incidental music for the highly regarded episode, Charlie Boy.
His involvement with Shatter came about after the film’s original soundtrack reportedly appalled Hammer’s longstanding musical supervisor, Philip Martell. Adamant that new music needed to be written and recorded for the production, Lindup was hurriedly brought onboard, and managed to create a soundtrack that still sounds fabulous today.
We asked Steve Rogers about the record’s production, and he told us, ‘The extant materials for Shatter are about thirty minutes of theme tune and incidentals, including some unused and alternate cues. When music supervisor Philip Martell mixed David Lindup's score into the film's final mix in 1974 it was an integral part of the film's audio soundscape but heavily overlaid with action FX in places ,and remixed and post-processed in others. These cues are clean.’
But you may have already heard some of Lindup’s other works without knowing it… Many horror fans will recall DJ Stevie Wayne in The Fog (1980), playing soothing, occasionally sultry melodies as the murderous mist rolled towards the cursed Antonio Bay. A number of those tracks were by Lindup, with lush, laid-back pieces like Take It Steady and Midnight Serenade forming an effective contrast to the threat faced by the townsfolk and mariners.
And if you’ve ever watched the staggeringly successful The Full Monty (1997), you’ll know it opens with an archive promotional film bigging up Sheffield. The boldly energetic, feel-good music that accompanies it was a piece called Zodiac, originally entitled The Killing of Brother Dragon. Written by Lindup for his 1970 album, When the Saints Go, the composer could never have known that, at the turn of the century and beyond, its opening track would be enjoyed across the globe in one of cinema’s most enduring comedies.
In this terrifying scene, Shatter endures a nightmare in which he forgets to pre-order a copy of his own film’s soundtrack.
But for music as smooth as Shatter, whilst as powerful as Tai Pah, we have to turn to his Hammer soundtrack. Placing the needle on the vinyl and listening to the title music (‘Shatter, Shatter, Shatter!’) is to enter a world of 70s sass and cool. A world of suave hitmen, savvy martial arts masters and Peter Cushing, who effortlessly brings his inimitable class to the whole shebang.
The score captures and enhances it all perfectly, and, over 50 years after Shatter flew to Hong Kong on his deadly mission, this is your ticket to fly alongside him and relive the adventure in the funkiest way possible!
We’ll give the last word to Steve Rogers, who, while reflecting on the music commented, ‘It's an absolute banger of a score – right up there with the best of high-energy, 1970s film soundtracks like David Shire's The Taking of Pelham 123, Lalo Schifrin's Charley Varrick, Dave Grusin's The Friends of Eddie Coyle and Bobby Womack and JJ Johnson's Across 110th Street… It's a complete earworm – once you hear it then you're hooked!’
The Shatter vinyl LP soundtrack is available to pre-order now, and, if all this talk about Mr Shatter has made you want to watch the film again – and who could blame you? – it’s part of the Limited Collector's Edition range. The release contains a raft of accompanying material including, as mentioned above, a new interview with David Lindup’s son Mike, who shares a fascinating and heartfelt insight into his father’s life and work.
You can also find out more about the soundtrack range and take home The Curse of Frankenstein Limited Edition Vinyl EP Soundtrack today.
