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Now listen to me … Michael Caine is accompanied by one of John Barry’s finest soundtracks
Song of the Day: Completing a Michael Caine leading role trio, the beautiful, haunting theme composed by one of film and TV’s all-time great composers who is best known for the James Bond films
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Original record sleeve from the Alfie soundtrack
Song of the Day: From one jazz giant to another, this time led by tenor saxophone, with Sonny Rollins’s superb soundtrack composition to another Michael Caine film, 1966’s tale of that cheeky Cockney lothario
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Miles Davis in 1958
Song of the Day: Returning to film scores but remaining on the jazz genre, a sublime example of Miles Davis in his early modal style, from his 1958 soundtrack to Louis Malle’s adaptation of a crime novel, starring Jeanne Moreau
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Oscar Peterson and friends
Song of the Day: Continuing from yesterday’s jazz ode to freedom by Billy Taylor, with a version by Nina Simone, let’s move onto another piano great, and an instrumental number from 1963 that definitely echoes it
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Billy Taylor (1920-2010) with his trio
Song of the Day: Moving on to another TV theme, best known for the original Barry Norman BBC TV film review programme that began in 1972, this wonderful jazz piano piece was originally associated with the 1950s civil rights movement
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John Schroeder
Song of the Day: After three belters from Quincy Jones, today let’s move on to full fat funk TV and movie orchestra sounds from the 60s and early 70s, with tracks rarely recognised, but whose still hits home instantly
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Conductor in chief - Quincy Jones
Song of the Day: He’s best known the high-profile producer for Michael Jackson and Frank Sinatra, but continuing a mini-series, a small selection of key moments in the conductor and composer’s film and TV work
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Get Carter (1971) starring Michael Caine, with soundtrack by Roy Budd
Song of the Day: Resuming a thread of film soundtrack music that transcends their original source - this time the classic thriller starring Michael Caine and directed by Mike Hodges from 1971
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Bullitt (1968)
Song of the Day: Continuing the funk-orchestral movie-theme thread, another colossus of the genre, the Argentina-born American composer and conductor famous for so many outstanding film and TV soundtracks
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Shaft (1971) with the lead role played by Richard Roundtree, but perhaps best known for Isaac Hayes’s music
Song of the Day: Who is the man? Isaac Hayes - that is. Damn right! Today’s choice of orchestral funk, and another film theme, comes from the great Stax songwriter and singer from Tennessee, king of the deep voice
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Curtis Mayfield on The Old Grey Whistle Test in 1972
Song of the Day: After yesterday’s Baby Huey, whose brilliant only album was produced by Curtis Mayfield, let’s turn to the man himself with a trio classic tracks from 1972 that show the full range of his funk and orchestration prowess
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At work and play: Baby Huey, as shown on his sole album of 1971
Song of the Day: We move from Britain’s Labi Siffre to a funk-soul legend from Indiana, who died at the age of just 26 and whose album, The Baby Huey Story: Living Legend was released posthumously in 1971
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Labi Siffre
Song of the Day: After Véronique Sanson, more mid-70s soul-funk full-orchestral music, this time from the influential British artist sampled by Eminem, and two classic songs fully using fat bass and rhythmic violin and brass sections
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Véronique Sanson
Song of the Day: Following from the previous but one song, Bernardette by the Four Tops, a switch of gender, and style, with funk and soul number from the acclaimed artist from the 1970s nouvelle chanson française
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The cover of Lee Moses’s classic 1971 album
Song of the Day: After the Four Tops, two superb and passionate songs about tricky relationships from a hugely under-rated artist who worked in the same circles, and made a classic 1971 album
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The Four Tops
Song of the Day: Another helpless love song in the form of a stone-cold 1967 classic marked by superlative, heartfelt lead vocals by Levi Stubbs fronting the Motown band, and written by Brian Holland, Lamont Dozier and Eddie Holland
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Pub perfection: Chas Hodges on piano, with Dave Peacock on bass
Song of the Day: Moving from Otis Redding to a rolling rockney number may seem unlikely, but it’s a fitting tribute on the passing of pianist and singer Chas Hodges with this song’s strong melody and seamlessly emotional key changes
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Otis Redding, 1941-1967
Song of the Day: After yesterday’s classic blues number best known for Lead Belly, another simmering jealousy classic from one of the great soul stars whose life was tragically cut short in a 1967 plane crash aged only 26
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Lead Belly
Song of the Day: Also known as In The Pines, and Black Girl, today we move onto another traditional song variously interpreted, dark and brooding, haunting in its melody, and simmering with suspicion and jealousy
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The Animals may have done the best-known cover version, but there are arguably others than better it
To some it’s a masterpiece, to others a dirge, but from 17th century England to 20th century New Orleans, with artists that include Woody Guthrie, Nina Simone, The Animals and alt-J it’s a song that keeps evolving
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