Library Music

The funky, atmospheric, evocative and sometimes downright weird output of companies such as DeWolfe, Cavendish, Burton and the ubiquitous KPM have always been a guiding inspiration for ATA Records, as evidenced in the spooky soundtrack works of The Sorcerers, the big band brass of The Yorkshire Film & Television Orchestra and even in the soul-jazz of The Lewis Express ('Theme From The Watcher).Everything released on ATA is written and guided by the label heads Neil Innes and Pete Williams, who frequently dip their toes in the Library pond while working on other projects. These occasional one-off tracks have accumulated over the past few years and have now found a home on the first volume of an ongoing series : The Library ArchiveRanging from heavy big band brass (Whack, Slap & Blow, Kaye Okay) to evocative thriller soundtrack (Midnight Heist, Wiretap, The Needlenose) via introspective ethereal soundscapes (Nuclear Wind, Siren's Sea) these 11 tracks faithfully recreate the feel of the Library music catalogues of the 60s and 70s.

Une aura de mystère plane autour de Jacky Giordano, musicien de studio ayant majoritairement oeuvré dans l’illustration musicale. On lui doit le fantastique label Freesound (Schifter, Philopsis, Challenger), on le retrouve sur Montparnasse 2000 avec Pop in Devil’s Train, mais aussi chez Timing avec Timing N°1 et Timing N°5 sous le pseudo Jacky Nodaro, chez Musax avec Boucles Rythmiques sous le pseudonyme José Pharos ou Black Devil Disco Club dont la paternité sur ce disque est encore disputée entre Bernard Fêvre et lui. Car Jacky Giordano n’était pas un enfant de coeur, loin de là, et aura malheureusement été plus connu pour ses démêlés avec la justice que pour sa musique. C’est son travail pour le label l’Illustration Musicale (IM) qui peut maintenant être redécouvert grâce à cette réédition du Très Groove Club.Organ Plus (IM 26) est la suite d’Organ (IM 24), également réédité par Le Très Groove Club. Le titre est ici un peu mensonger, l’orgue n’étant pas un élément prépondérant de l’album qui fait la part belle au Fender Rhodes, string machine, grosse basse de synthé et clavinet. "Be Carefull", "Riffologic", "Twilight" : Jacky Giordano nous offre un jazz-funk au tempo ralenti, sans se départir de sa mélancolie et de son groove low-fi qui rendent ses morceaux immédiatement identifiables quelque soit le label ou le pseudonyme qu’il utilise.

Une aura de mystère plane autour de Jacky Giordano, musicien de studio ayant majoritairement oeuvré dans l’illustration musicale. On lui doit le fantastique label Freesound (Schifter, Philopsis, Challenger), on le retrouve sur Montparnasse 2000 avec Pop in Devil’s Train, mais aussi chez Timing avec Timing N°1 et Timing N°5 sous le pseudo Jacky Nodaro, chez Musax avec Boucles Rythmiques sous le pseudonyme José Pharos ou Black Devil Disco Club dont la paternité sur ce disque est encore disputée entre Bernard Fêvre et lui. Car Jacky Giordano n’était pas un enfant de coeur, loin de là, et aura malheureusement été plus connu pour ses démêlés avec la justice que pour sa musique. C’est son travail pour le label l’Illustration Musicale (IM) qui peut maintenant être redécouvert grâce à cette réédition du Très Groove Club.Organ (IM 24), comme son nom l’indique, fait honneur à cet instrument et tout le génie de Giordano est de le mélanger avec des basses de synthétiseurs et du Rhodes pour nous projeter dans des grooves teintés de mélancolie. Une boite de banlieue à moitié vide un dimanche soir, un ciel gris sur l’esplanade de la Défense, la bande-son d’un film policier français de seconde zone… Voilà où nous emmène Jacky Giordano avec Organ et ses morceaux déjà cultes comme "Interrogation Point", "Project Problematic", ou "Owls Night" pour ceux qui ont eu la chance de mettre les mains sur un pressage original de ce disque.

Athens of the North is very pleased to introduce part two of our nod to the world of library. This time round Greg Foat journeys into the world of synthesis with good friend James Thorpe. This new LP was recorded in the old Bees Studio on the Isle of Wight earlier this year,a special, different piece of work which I was delighted to receive on ¼ inch tape without warning. Greg's output continues to be prolific without ever tiring, he never plays it safe and is always looking forward whilst having an ear for our musical heritage.

In the vast world of Library Music, Philopsis with its enigmatic cover artwork stands as an exception.Philopsis was released in 1978 on Freesound – a sub-division label dedicated to French composers of the UK based publisher Ambient Music.At the source of the project - which has gained cult status in recent years - there is Jacky Giordano, a mysterious musician whose name rhymes with excitement to any of those who have heard his productions on mythical labels such as Montparnasse 2000, l’Illustration Musicale, Musax, Sonimage, Timing.Very little is known about this French musician and producer, who remained mostly in the shadow: once an accountant and later a label boss, Jacky Giordano produced and co-signed many titles under many pseudonyms. For a period of time he was the conductor for the Crazy Horse revue. He also composed for maverick film director Jean-Pierre Mocky. He is even co-credited on Bernard Fèvre’s masterpiece: Black Devil Disco Club.Later on, his setbacks with the justice in the late 2000s revealed a darker side of the persona, yet Jacky Giordano remains one of the most fascinating creators of the golden age of Library music. Among all of his confidential discography, Philopsis is undoubtedly his masterpiece.Library Music has its detractors: some will say it is uninspired music for documentaries, radio jingles or erotic productions but it is unlikely that Giordano had in mind to illustrate this kind of productions while recording Philopsis, an album of an astonishing coherence.Accompanied by Yan dY's - probably Yan Tregger (an alias for Edouard Scotto Di Suoccio, another forgotten hero of Library Music) and by Francis Personne - an obscure musician who later worked as a sound engineer on many zouk productions of the 80s - Jacky Giordano experimented a lot: the result is an airy and rough jazz-funk with clear inspirations from the musics by Lalo Schiffrin, Herbie Hancock's Headhunters, Ennio Morricone, Jean-Jacques Perrey, Nino-Nardini and even Brian Eno.Confidentially distributed at the time of its release, original copies are now almost invisible, and market price have reached crazy amounts in recent years. Making Philopsis available again sounded like an evidence.Digger's Digest and Listen! Record Store team up to offer you a strictly limited reissue of one of the cornerstone of Library Music, rehabilitating at the same time the work of one of the most intriguing desperados of the French music industry.Liner Notes from Digger's Digest / Listen! Websites.Limited to 500 copies / High Quality Tip-On Sleeve / Remastered.Reissue supervised by Frédéric Ménétrier at Audio Gecko, France.Original record digitized by Karen Beun and restored by Emiliano Flores.

This Hampshire & Foat project should not come as too much of a surprise to those familiar withGreg& Warren's music, influenced heavily by not just Jazz but the library sound of the 60s and 70s along with film soundtracks from the same golden era.Greg& Warren are avid collectors of this music,Gregsends me links night and day to LPs he has picked up digging on his travels. This constant search sends him down new musical pathways and often sparks a whole new concepts for projects. Warren and Gregare both fiercely creative talented individuals which means we have to keep them working, a challenge for us all, but the music rewards the effort many times over.We had talked for a long time about doing a Library style LP (somethingGregis very passionate about) so during different recording sessions Greg& Warren started laying down various tracks with a view to the LP we have here.Side one is 5 tracks in very distinct styles, musical paintings for the big screen. The vast sound of the Japanese influenced Jasmine, The Spaghetti Western melancholy of Mariposa Lily, The call to action that is Antonio's Theme, The Breezy Vintage sports car in the sun that Coastal Drivepaints, and Lost in Nostalgia, a late night Poirotesk piece.Side two is a classic library suite, whichGregdescribes as a Detective's theme with different variations on the motifs.