Attention Aussie music fans – Festival Records has another great release for you out on November 11!
Entitled ‘A LIFE IN THE SUN – AUSTRALIAN SURFING FILM SOUNDTRACK MUSIC OF THE ‘60S & ‘70S’, this new 2CD set / download is a celebration of a hugely significant era in Australian film, culture and music.
‘A Life In The Sun’ contains the best and some of the rarest material from some of Australia’s greatest surfing films – some of it unheard since the films themselves were screened – by TAMAM SHUD (including 3 tracks never before released), THE SUNSETS (including the first time on cd for the recently discovered extended soundtrack versions of their four greatest tracks), TULLY, RICHARD CLAPTON, SVEN LIBAEK, G. WAYNE THOMAS, PYTHON LEE JACKSON (7 tracks never before released!), HANS POULSEN, BILLY GREEN (with MIKE BRADY doing his best Doug Parkinson on vocals), FINCH, PETER MARTIN (including two wonderful tracks with FINCH’S OWEN ORFORD on vocals), FROG HOLLOW, DOLPHIN RODEO and more.
It includes amidst its 49 tracks material the following films: SURFING ROUNDABOUT (1965), THE SURFING YEARS (1966), A LIFE IN THE SUN (1966), THE HOT GENERATION (1967), RIDE A WHITE HORSE (1968), THE WAY WE LIKE IT (1968), EVOLUTION (1969), OVER UNDER SIDEWAYS DOWN (1970), SEA OF JOY (1971), GETTING BACK TO NOTHING (1971), MORNING OF THE EARTH (1972), CRYSTAL VOYAGER (1973), DROUYN (1974), ROLLING HOME (1974) and HIGHWAY ONE (1977). Original soundtrack albums for these films, where they exist, are now in high demand by music collectors internationally and often exchange hands for hundreds of dollars.
Curated and annotated by Australia’s internationally recognised vintage surf music and culture expert STEPHEN J. MCPARLAND (author of classic Australian and Californian surf books like ‘Waltzing the Plank’, ‘The California Sound’ and ‘In the Studio with Brian Wilson & The Beach Boys’), the collection takes its name from PAUL WITZIG’S classic 1966 surfing film ‘A LIFE IN THE SUN’, which is itself celebrating its 50th anniversary this year.
Also featuring a 28 page with McParland’s illuminating notes and some great eye candy, ‘A Life In The Sun – Australian Surfing Film Soundtrack Music of the ‘60s & ‘70s’ is a slice of history, a great way to kick off summer, and most importantly, a great listen.
More details to come. In the meantime check out these great trailers to some of the featured films by Paul Witzig (‘The Hot Generation’ with great theme by The Sunsets):
You can pre-order A Life In The Sun on 2CD set or Digital Download here