The Top of His Head (soundtrack)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

For the film of the same name, see The Top of His Head.

Professional reviews
The Top of His Head

Soundtrack by Fred Frith
Released	1989
Recorded	Canada, 1988
Genre	Avant-progressive rock
Length	51:29
Label	Crammed Discs, Belgium
Producer(s)	Fred Frith
All Music Guide link
Fred Frith chronology
The Technology of Tears (1988)	The Top of His Head (1989)	Step Across the Border (1990)

The Top of His Head is a soundtrack by English guitarist, composer and improvisor Fred Frith, of the 1989 Canadian comedy-drama film, The Top of His Head. Frith wrote and composed all the music, with the exception of "This Old Earth", which was written and sung by Jane Siberry, and a cover of "The Way You Look Tonight". The music was recorded at l'Office National du Film, Montreal, Canada in August and September 1988, and was released on LP and CD in 1989 by the Belguim independent label, Crammed Discs. The CD release contained two extra tracks, "Driving to the Train" and "Lucy".

All Music Guide described the album as "A less aggressive work compared to [Frith's] other releases, though not exactly gentle by any means." ^[1]

Siberry's song, "This Old Earth", was nominated for Best Original Song at the 1990 Genie Awards. A rerecorded version, retitled "Something About Trains", also appeared on her 1989 album Bound by the Beauty.

1 Track listing
2 Personnel
3 References
4 External links

[edit] Track listing

"TitleTheme" (Frith) – 1:49
"Driving to the Train" (Frith) – 2:45 ¹
"Wheels Within" (Frith) – 2:31
"Hold on Hold" (Frith) – 2:22
"Lucy Leaves a Note" (Frith) – 2:25
"Gus Escapes" (Frith) – 2:19
"Gravity's a Rule" (Frith) – 2:15
"Channel Change" (Frith) – 3:20
"Orbit" (Frith) – 1:24
"Fall to Call" (Frith) – 3:52
"Underwater Dream" (Frith) – 2:29
"This Old Earth" (Siberry) – 3:21
"Donuts" (Frith) – 2:54
"The Long Drive" (Frith) – 4:51
"Lucy" (Frith) – 2:05 ¹
"The Premonition" (Frith) – 1:26
"Questions and Answers" (Frith) – 2:47
"The Performance" (Frith) – 2:56
"The Way You Look Tonight" (Kern, Fields) / "Title Theme (Conclusion)" (Frith) – 3:38

Note 1: These tracks were omitted from the LP release.

[edit] Personnel

Fred Frith – all other instruments, machines, radios, tapes, programming
Anne Bourne – cello, accordion
Jean Derome – saxophones
Jane Siberry – voice, guitar, accordion
Christie Macfadyen – voice
Ken Myhr – slide guitar ("This Old Earth")
Peter Mettler – additional tapes, influence, advice

[edit] References

^ Mills, Ted. The Top of His Head. AllMusic.com. Retrieved on December 8, 2006.

[edit] External links

v • d • e Fred Frith
Bands
Art Bears • Henry Cow • Keep the Dog • Massacre • Skeleton Crew Death Ambient • Fred Frith Guitar Quartet • French Frith Kaiser Thompson Aksak Maboul • Material • Naked City
Solo discography
Guitar Solos (1974) • Gravity (1980) • Speechless (1981) • Live in Japan (1982) • Cheap at Half the Price (1983) • Quartets (1994) • Eye to Ear (1997) • Stone, Brick, Glass, Wood, Wire (1999) • Clearing (2001) • Prints (2002) • Eye to Ear II (2004) • Eleventh Hour (2005)
Music for Dance: The Technology of Tears (1988) • Allies (1996) • The Previous Evening (1997) • Accidental (2002) • The Happy End Problem (2006)
Soundtracks: The Top of His Head (1989) • Step Across the Border (1990) • Middle of the Moment (1995) • Rivers and Tides (2003)
Composer only: Pacifica (1998) • Freedom in Fragments (2002) • Impur (2006)
Related articles
Fred Frith discography • Fred Records