The sensual sounds of classic adult movie soundtrack LPs.
These days, there seems to be no end to the number of cult movie soundtracks being issued on vinyl, and as the horror films start to run out, then more erotic movies – hardcore or softcore – are finding their scores dug up for release. Often, this isn’t so much scraping the bottom of the barrel as unearthing overlooked gems; just as the movies themselves have been ignored and dismissed by critics until recently, so the music has been overlooked or dismissed as nothing but wah-chikkah-wah guitar sounds by the same sort of people who think that all porn films (even modern ones) feature Seventies moustaches and hair. In truth, there are some extraordinary scores to be found in the adult film world, sometimes by big names hiding under pseudonyms, sometimes by underrated musicians. check out the soundtrack to The Devil in Miss Jones and the heartbreaking theme song I’m Coming Home sung by Linda November, and tell me that it isn’t as good as anything you would hear on a mainstream movie. Or check out our post on the ultra-rare soundtrack album to Lasse Braun’s Sensations for a classic example of 1970s Porno Chic.
Few adult movies saw their scores released on vinyl in the glory days of the film soundtrack album, and those that did were mainly softcore titles, often Italian films (the Italians seemingly released soundtrack albums for everything) or big-name French movies such as the Emmanuelle movies. There were XXXceptions, of course – assorted Deep Throat editions, soundtracks to funky blaxploitation porn films Tongue and Lialeh, Klaus Schulze’s score for Body Love and the new wave hooks of Chemical People’s Black Throat among them.
Here’s a selection of original releases – no reissues, no new editions of scores from old movies – that are worth investigating. As ever, we welcome additions to this collection.
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The Nico Fidenco scores are killer.