In my less than expert opinion, this second volume of John Barry's EMI work is worth listening to for two reasons. The first is track #1 on this 28-song collection: the John Barry Seven's theme from "The Magnificent Seven." It's one of those pieces that evokes a setting and a time; in this case, the first time you watched John Sturges' adaptation of "The Seven Samurai". It was a pop hit in the UK, reaching No. 45 on the UK charts, and a really cool version of Elmer Bernstein's original score.
The second is that Volume Two presents Barry's first solo work, "Stringbeat", which proves why this fits well on the Scamp roster. It's killer mood music, edgier than most of the sonic wallpaper that fell under the broad category of "easy listening". If anything, to me, it's a precursor to Swinging London, something you can spin between Who and Desmond Dekker singles. It's outstanding cocktail music and if you don't dig it, I don't know what to do about you.
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