I get occasional questions that are random, related, and most often unrelated topics. My usual response “is it worth $75-$150 to you?”
That covers the minimum amount of time it takes to look things up and come to a reasonable answer. This one though came on the right day, and had an interesting, adjacent topic. After writing about Quincy Jones “Walking In Space“, user @flightdeckcafe[1]Doug Neal (@flightdeckcafe) • Instagram photos and videos on Instagram asked
Your post caused me to ask a question for which that you may know the answer. There is an old film called THE ADVENTURERS that supposedly has a music score by @eumirdeodato but, as I search for the old vinyl, I see that it is credited to @quincyjones and both co-credit #jobim. Any thoughts or ‘pearls of wisdom?’
THE ADVENTURERS was a 1969-1970’s film by Lewis Gilbert and stared Candice Bergen and Bekim Fehmiu. Music is credited to Jobim and the story is based on a book by Harold Robbins. The film score seems to be arranged and orchestrated by Deodato, but the album is then credited to Quincy. Perhaps it was more palatable to the US marketplace to go with a more ‘known’ arranger.
User @flightdeckcafe aka Doug Neal on Instagram.
This one was pretty simple, after double checking I thought it was worth writing up. To be clear I have not seen the film, but after reading some of the plots maybe I should?.
First up, here is the trailer. There are loads of films called “The Adventurer”, including a French/Italian film from 1968 about fast cars. What gives this one away, and makes it interesting is it was a film of a Harold Robbins book. As I noted in the “Walking In Space” post, right around this time, Quincy, Ray Brown and Harold Robbins teamed up top form Symbolic Music Productions. It didn’t last long, but does give a backdrop to what happened with this recording.
First, the trailer.
The film was produced by, and included a star-studded cast.
Plot: The wealthy playboy son of an assassinated South American diplomat discovers that his father was really murdered on orders of the corrupt president of the country–a man who was his father’s friend and who, in fact, his father had helped put into power. He returns from living a jet-set life in Europe to lead a revolution against the government, only to find out that things aren’t quite as black and white as he had assumed.
The plot below, combined from the 1980 edition of the “Golden Turkey Awards”[2]The golden turkey awards : nominees and winners, the worst achievements in Hollywood history : Medved, Harry : Free Download, Borrow, and Streaming : Internet Archive, which nominated Candice Bergen for a “lifetime Achievement Award” as Worst Actress Of All Time” for her performance in “The Adventurers”, combined with the review in in 1993″Bad movies we love”[3]Bad movies we love : Margulies, Edward : Free Download, Borrow, and Streaming : Internet Archive seems to make the film somehow compelling.
Harold Robbins’ tacky book becomes a trashy movie with Ernest Borgnine, Candice Bergen. Olivia de Havilland, Charles Aznavor and that sensational discovery Bekim (who?) Fehmiu.
This smorgasbord—based on the Harold Robbins bestseller—offers kinks for everyone: Orgies! Drugs! Miscarriages! Lesbianism! High fashion! Thinly disguised characters based on real celebrities! A private torture chamber! And starring Jaclyn Smith as the overly bright Teen magazine reporter!
Movie plot combined from multiple sources.
A fascinating addition is according to a review in the March 3rd issue of the Boston Globe: “the world premiere of the film was held onboard the premiere flight of TWA’s new gorgeous 747, which holds more than 350 passengers”.
The Soundtrack
So, what about the soundtrack and “flightdeckcafe’s” question?
Music From The Soundtrack Of The Paramount Picture “The Adventurers”
The July 19th, 1969 of Billboard Magazine announced in its International News Reports column on page-71 that “Anton Carlos Jobim will do the soundtrack for Paramount’s “The Adventurers” based on the book by Harold Robbins.”
Over 30 [Brazilian artists]-live and work in the U.S. They include Antonio Carlos Jobim, the bossa nova composer who is now in demand for film and television soundtracks. He recently completed the score for the film “The Adventurers” with fellow expatriate Eumir Deodato in charge of the arranging.
MAY 2, 1970, BILLBOARD – P74
The actual film soundtrack was indeed written and arranged by Anton Carlos Jobim and Eumir Deodato. The album credits for “Music From The Soundtrack Of The Paramount Picture The Adventurers”. This album is literally music that was arranged, recorded, edited and mixed for the film soundtrack and produced by Tom Mack[4]Music From The Soundtrack Of The Paramount Picture The Adventurers | Discogs.
Jobim described how he had met Robbins:
Later I met him[Harold Robbins] in California and he said: “it is a major him, a $14 million dollar film”. I forgot about it. Came back to Brazil. But then I was at home, minding my own little business, trying to lead my own little life, when he phones and says: “it’s time, come to England.”
Tom Jobim took his family and invited pianist Eumir Deodato to work with him and thus he came to know Europe at the age of 42. As a matter of fact, from Europe he only came to know the city of London, because he remained there for six months, for the duration of his work in the film.
Tom Jobim.: Texto de Sergio Cabral – 1987 – ISBN 9788585144012
The soundtrack album was released, as was the film, by Paramount. Asides from old vinyl copies, it has disappeared without a trace. At least based on youtube video comments, at least in Brazil, some of the tracks are held in high regard.
Here is the Jobim theme
Music From “The Adventurers”
The answer to Doug’s question though comes from an interview with Harold Robbins by Sherry Woods published in “The Palm Beach Post”.
If anybody can turn out X-rated music, Harold Robbins probably can. The master of the super slick, sexy novel has turned his talents to the recording industry with the formation of a company with Grammy Award-winning composer Quincy Jones.
Their first album, “Music from the Adventurers,” is an expansion of the score of the movie, “The Adventurers,” which opened Friday at Loew’s Cinema 70. Robbins, in Miami with Jones and the album’s director Ray Brown, gestured for a waiter to bring a mounted cover from the album to the table. “It’s the only X-rated record in the history of the industry,’’ he said, adding that the sex theme comes more from his book than the movie.
Palm Beach Post”(West Palm Beach, Florida) on 29 Mar 1970, Page 58
I will ask Morgan Ames if she would like to add some color, especially since she has the credit for the Quincy Jones produced “Love Theme”. The Quincy Jones, Ray Brown Orchestra version isn’t a simple cover or rerecording. It’s an expanded soundtrack with different arrangement and different track titles but still using some of Jobim’s writing.
The film was released in two versions, the R-rated original, and then a later PG-related release. It’s not clear if the Q soundtrack was used for that, or if there was a plan to re-release the film with a new soundtrack. However, the Robbins interview seems to confirm the actual soundtrack album was the Jobim/Deodato one. The website “Dail Motion” has a better clip/trailer for the music, I’m not providing a link or reference to avoid accidental exposure to their many other videos.
More likely, as they formed their new company, expecting the film to be a hit, Q just did his own arrangement, Ray Brown recorded it and it was released on the Jones/Brown/Robbins Symbolic record label[5]Music From “The Adventurers” | Discogs and distributed by Buddah Records as a low budget entry into the music business for symbolic. The Jones/Brown version has been released on CD, and is the version found on streaming services.
Here is the Love Theme from the Adventurers by Quincy Jones and the Ray Brown Orchestra sung by Morgan Ames. Norman Gimble wrote the English lyrics, as he had with “Girl From Ipanema”.
Neither album is for sale on ebay. Discogs has copies of both, plus a couple of copies of the CD version. If you want the OST, you need one of these releases Doug!
So, who wants to pay $2.99 or $3.99(HD) to watch the film on youtube and report back?
As the movie poster said “Nothing Has Been Left Out Of The Adventurers”
“The Adventurers adds up to about 191-minutes (that’s about three hours of sitting plus time out for a mid-revolution stretch) of slick, fast-paced action. Just don’t go expecting anything anymore culturally Enriching than an afternoon at a street fight.”
Sherry Woods, Palm Beach Post”(West Palm Beach, Florida) on 29 Mar 1970, Page 58