Yes, Uan Rasey's great trumpet solo. Big sound, great tone, on an Olds trumpet. Guys like him, John Clyman, Manny Klein, Conrad Gozzo, and others put the top on the sound. Thanks for posting.
i'm too young to have seen this movie when it came out, but i love it so much. That last shot- "forget it jake, it's chinatown"- and then they walk away while all the little chinese people are crowding the street and this music's playing...gives me chills man. you'll never see an ending half as good or memorable for any movie that comes out today. chinatown's great, and jack nicholson's the man.
@pigeonpsycho Do not, I REPEAT, do...not..start...something you will not be able to finish. Im going to take your comment as a minor offense. Someone like you should have some decent manners and should learn to just enjoy the moment and not ruin it for others...others like me. However, if you wish to start a verbal tangle with me, It is going to be you that will end in sorrow, and I will continue enjoying this post a whole lot more than you. So please, take kindly what you say, and be courteous.
This superb film score was inspired by the music of Bunny Berigan. Uan Rasey, who played the Beriganesque trumpet solos on that soundtrack, like many of the great trumpeters in the Hollywood studios from the 1940s well into the 1980s, completely understood what the "Berigan Magic" was all about.
For the complete story of Berigan's life and music, check out "Mr. Trumpet--the Trials, Tribulations and Triumph of Bunny Berigan," a new biography by Michael P. Zirpolo. Go to "Mr. Trumpet" follow...
Just a note--the trumpet player who did the solo--Uan Rasey--died Sept. 26, 2011. What a legacy he left. The musicians on these soundtracks go unheralded, but without them, there's no music.
It was such an incredible loss. Sadly most people just love his music, in particular what he did in Chinatown, but few could name the artist. As so many things go with great studio musicians.
@harrysmallenburg Sad that both he and Goldsmith are gone; hope they are enjoying that big session in the sky. Thanks for the credits to the trumpet soloist - great performance.
@Gracie0935 na dude it wouldn't have worked in black and white. B&W has turned into a gimmick. I feel that the muted browns and greys of 1930's LA worked perfectly. It added the flavor of the times as well as keeping the film tied to it's noire roots.
@Gracie0935 I have wrestled with this one over the years, but think color works for two reasons. (1) Cinematographer John Alonzo's genius with the color palette he chose of browns, blues and blood reds, and the bleached-out look he gives to the midday scenes. (2) It's been said many times that CT turns film noir on its ear by having no rain and few night scenes, so color works for me on that score, too. Like many others, I've watched this close to 50 times; never tire of it.
I wonder if the original score (by Philip Lambro? - spelling?) was replaced because it didn't clearly indicate the tragic element of the film to the audience from the opening credits on. This is only a hunch on my part. I'm surprised that the initial previews of Chinatown were negative and the only reason I can think of is that the preview audiences were expecting one kind of film noir and ended up getting another.
One of his astounding works from one of the greatest music composers of the last century. Jerry Goldsmith could simply composed just about anything from dramas,to westerns and even science-fiction. Speaking of "Chinatown",the film won the Oscar in 1974 for Best Original Score(Jerry Goldsmith),and was nominated for an impressive 11 Oscars including Best Picture,and won three for Best Original Score,Best Supporting Actress,and Best Original Screenplay.
@rayssonation Chinatown only won Best Original Screenplay. It was unlucky to come up against The Godfather - Part II, which also won Best Score, although I prefer Goldsmith's score to Rota's.
It should be noted, the trumpet solo is performed (masterfully, as always) by the great Uan Rasey. Uan (pronounced "YOO-ahn") was lead trumpet for the MGM studio orchestra from 1949 to the mid 70's. He is THE sound of the Golden Age of Hollywood, and arguably the most respected of the legendary session players in Hollywood. He played lead on "Singin in the Rain," "West Side Story," "Cleopatra"...it's hard to get your head around the level of "legend" this cat is. And he's still alive, too.
@LeathanL My father lived in LA in the very early 1940's during his time in the military. This was immediately before WW2. As an older man he later saw the movie Chinatown and said that was as close to what LA looked like as it was possible to be in a movie. I mourn the passing of LA into a 3rd World Cesspool. It was a beautiful town during those days from what people have said. One called it paradise. Now it's paradise lost.
@zypherax Your comment is asinine. If they were living in LA why were they Mexican? That is unless they were illegal immigrants. LA in the 1930's and 1940's wasn't a creation of Mexican Culture. Tijuana in all it's beauty and splendor is an example of Mexican Culture. If that suits your taste, then fine. If East LA is paradise for you, fine. But the LA depicted in the movie Chinatown was in fact a magical place and it was made magical because of the people who created it. Now it's a cesspool.
@juscurious Your entire perception of Los Angeles is completely naïve. Magical place my ass. It had one of the most racist police forces in the country. Most whites thought the teenagers (Pachucos) in the zoot suit riots were somehow axis conspirators. L.A was a beautiful place, but you close your eyes at the ugly side of the city, you think it was the immigrants who made the city a "cesspool", that cesspool existed in the corrupt minds of the people that you call "magical" from the start.
@zypherax It's not my perception at all. I too lived in LA County briefly (Redondo Beach) in the early 1980's. I went back there in 2002 and didn't even recognize the place. LA was a wonderful place but I don't remember it in the 1940's because I wasn't born. I'm going on my father's description. If it was such a bad place, then why did so many people flock there after WW2? Now the whole place is gang members and graffiti. No it's clear why LA and inescapable why LA is the dump it is now.
I first saw "Chinatown" in my Scriptwriting class at my college about 2 years ago, and I was blown away at the beautiful theme song . The movie was excellent also, but the music, I just can't explain it.
This musical theme is like the best of great sex: you want more and can never get enough. And, "Chinatown" is Polanski's masterpiece and that is saying a mouthful. And, of course, thank you Robert Towne. I was going to bed early, now I'm going to watch my DVD copy of, what else? . . . . . "Chinatown."
Wow, what beautiful, lush trumpet playing. Trumpet player Uan Rasey is certainly one of the finest studio players that has ever been on the sound stages of LA. From the late 40s to the late 70s Uan played some of the great movie themes for MGM. Thank you Uan for your wonderful talent.
ahh.. 1:30 on is my favorite. the resolution... I must say, looking down and reading 'smoky trumpet' and 'fitting frosting'... I'm not the only emotional perv savoring this song.
Whenever I listen to this melody I'm transported to another time and place. It's so hauntingly beautiful and generates such feelings in the listener. I'll never tire of this melody. And the movie is my all time favorite film.
@redskiesfan Perfectly described. Saw the film the first week it opened, and still try to watch it at home at least once every two or three years. And oh that music!
The trumpet player was the great LA studio man Uan Rasey. His solo studio credits go back to "An American in Paris" and beyond. As far as I know, he's still alive at 90.
ME TOO....IS UNREACHABLE....ASTOUNDING...IT MAKES ME FELL LIGHT.....IT TRANSMITTE ME SOMETHING OF SERENITY.....GREAT SOUNDTRACK..GREAT MOVIE...WONDERFUL SCRIPT....DIRECTION POLANSKY WE ALL REMEMBRER AND FORGIVE HIM.
Damn, so haunting.... Perhaps the greatest movie theme ever. Can anyone remind me of other ones that can rival this?
StillAtMyMoms 4 days ago
@StillAtMyMoms Body Heat theme by John Barry to name just one.
617wax 3 days ago
L.A. Noire, i c wut u did thar. :) watch?v=xiGKxCAg_0o
sirrvs 1 month ago
Yes, Uan Rasey's great trumpet solo. Big sound, great tone, on an Olds trumpet. Guys like him, John Clyman, Manny Klein, Conrad Gozzo, and others put the top on the sound. Thanks for posting.
rmo52 1 month ago
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i'm too young to have seen this movie when it came out, but i love it so much. That last shot- "forget it jake, it's chinatown"- and then they walk away while all the little chinese people are crowding the street and this music's playing...gives me chills man. you'll never see an ending half as good or memorable for any movie that comes out today. chinatown's great, and jack nicholson's the man.
georgefeeny69 1 month ago
Comment removed
georgefeeny69 1 month ago
What a beautiful haunting score to accompany a magnificent movie !!!
donpkra 2 months ago
I have this movie on DVD.
timewzrd3 2 months ago
@timewzrd3 good for you bitchfucker
pigeonpsycho 2 months ago
@pigeonpsycho Do not, I REPEAT, do...not..start...something you will not be able to finish. Im going to take your comment as a minor offense. Someone like you should have some decent manners and should learn to just enjoy the moment and not ruin it for others...others like me. However, if you wish to start a verbal tangle with me, It is going to be you that will end in sorrow, and I will continue enjoying this post a whole lot more than you. So please, take kindly what you say, and be courteous.
timewzrd3 2 months ago
@timewzrd3 me too.
antonietto1 2 months ago
Nicholson,"How much are you worth?" Huston, "How much do you want?"
OPS5255 2 months ago
There may not be a movie I like better than Chinatown.
OPS5255 2 months ago
This superb film score was inspired by the music of Bunny Berigan. Uan Rasey, who played the Beriganesque trumpet solos on that soundtrack, like many of the great trumpeters in the Hollywood studios from the 1940s well into the 1980s, completely understood what the "Berigan Magic" was all about.
For the complete story of Berigan's life and music, check out "Mr. Trumpet--the Trials, Tribulations and Triumph of Bunny Berigan," a new biography by Michael P. Zirpolo. Go to "Mr. Trumpet" follow...
mikezeee722 3 months ago
@mikezeee722 Thanks for the formation, certainly interesting.
SyntheticEspionage 2 months ago
Better than the whole taxi driver soundtrack in my opinion
ChazzMcNas 3 months ago
probably the best movie theme ever and only 50k views ?
hydropolite 3 months ago 2
RIP, Uan. Sleep well, my friend.
bicoastalmusic 4 months ago
One of the greatest movie themes of all time, so beautiful, poignant and perfect.
Nighthawk5210 4 months ago
@Nighthawk5210 top drawer movie as well. basically the way it is.
take care
UPTHElRS 4 months ago
@UPTHElRS It's one of those movies that I can watch repeatedly and never get tired of it.
Nighthawk5210 4 months ago
I would marry this song if it was a person.
pearlsfortheflight 4 months ago 15
Just a note--the trumpet player who did the solo--Uan Rasey--died Sept. 26, 2011. What a legacy he left. The musicians on these soundtracks go unheralded, but without them, there's no music.
harrysmallenburg 5 months ago 33
@harrysmallenburg
It was such an incredible loss. Sadly most people just love his music, in particular what he did in Chinatown, but few could name the artist. As so many things go with great studio musicians.
jen4jazz 1 month ago
@harrysmallenburg Sad that both he and Goldsmith are gone; hope they are enjoying that big session in the sky. Thanks for the credits to the trumpet soloist - great performance.
monkeywho 1 month ago
That film just missed perfection; it should have been in B&W. Then it would have been the ultimate noir.
(Yeah I know, B&W doesn't sell, Raging Bull excepted)
Gracie0935 5 months ago
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MStrikerPictures 5 months ago
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@Gracie0935 na dude it wouldn't have worked in black and white. B&W has turned into a gimmick. I feel that the muted browns and greys of 1930's LA worked perfectly. It added the flavor of the times as well as keeping the film tied to it's noire roots.
MStrikerPictures 5 months ago
@Gracie0935 I have wrestled with this one over the years, but think color works for two reasons. (1) Cinematographer John Alonzo's genius with the color palette he chose of browns, blues and blood reds, and the bleached-out look he gives to the midday scenes. (2) It's been said many times that CT turns film noir on its ear by having no rain and few night scenes, so color works for me on that score, too. Like many others, I've watched this close to 50 times; never tire of it.
LWOPP 2 months ago
I wonder if the original score (by Philip Lambro? - spelling?) was replaced because it didn't clearly indicate the tragic element of the film to the audience from the opening credits on. This is only a hunch on my part. I'm surprised that the initial previews of Chinatown were negative and the only reason I can think of is that the preview audiences were expecting one kind of film noir and ended up getting another.
Numinous20111 5 months ago
great theme partly because hints at what's coming in the movie: it won't have a happy ending.
555paint 6 months ago
And this, the song, is why John Williams will never be Jerry Goldsmith! Goldsmith FTW!!!! ;)
we3575 6 months ago
It is so nice to hear a trumpet solo in the middle register !!!!
furyfan2 6 months ago
One of his astounding works from one of the greatest music composers of the last century. Jerry Goldsmith could simply composed just about anything from dramas,to westerns and even science-fiction. Speaking of "Chinatown",the film won the Oscar in 1974 for Best Original Score(Jerry Goldsmith),and was nominated for an impressive 11 Oscars including Best Picture,and won three for Best Original Score,Best Supporting Actress,and Best Original Screenplay.
rayssonation 7 months ago
@rayssonation Chinatown only won Best Original Screenplay. It was unlucky to come up against The Godfather - Part II, which also won Best Score, although I prefer Goldsmith's score to Rota's.
Numinous20111 5 months ago
simply amazing.
50L3Warri0R 7 months ago
God iI love this theme
r3i6nm8n 7 months ago
YOU CAN REALLY HEAR THE INFLUENCE OF MANCINI IN THIS PIECE.......
apachescalp 8 months ago
Genius.
danhughart 8 months ago
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i love this, i made a remix, its on my page if you want to hear.
thesupercode 9 months ago
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It should be noted, the trumpet solo is performed (masterfully, as always) by the great Uan Rasey. Uan (pronounced "YOO-ahn") was lead trumpet for the MGM studio orchestra from 1949 to the mid 70's. He is THE sound of the Golden Age of Hollywood, and arguably the most respected of the legendary session players in Hollywood. He played lead on "Singin in the Rain," "West Side Story," "Cleopatra"...it's hard to get your head around the level of "legend" this cat is. And he's still alive, too.
dogmatic1954 9 months ago
I swear the theme from The Bodyguard is taken from this. Gorgeous theme nonetheless.
MonroeSmile 10 months ago
this song reminds me of a chicago night in the 1950's
jaredweisman31 10 months ago
My God but this is a Beautiful piece...such soul from the horn section.
TeaBag43 10 months ago
pretty
TennderPoisson 10 months ago
Does anybody know who's playing the trumpet solo on this?
cws1961 11 months ago
ahhhh
KimboDiddy 11 months ago
Perfect.
shoreleave666 11 months ago
The first 18 seconds remind me of a hot, dry summer day.
wannawatchu66 11 months ago
This music gives me an immediate mental image of "Old Hollyood" with it's glamour and mystery. Really wish L.A. were still like that.
LeathanL 11 months ago
@LeathanL My father lived in LA in the very early 1940's during his time in the military. This was immediately before WW2. As an older man he later saw the movie Chinatown and said that was as close to what LA looked like as it was possible to be in a movie. I mourn the passing of LA into a 3rd World Cesspool. It was a beautiful town during those days from what people have said. One called it paradise. Now it's paradise lost.
juscurious 11 months ago
@juscurious Yeah, those damn Mexicans who had already been living there ruined it.
zypherax 10 months ago
@zypherax Your comment is asinine. If they were living in LA why were they Mexican? That is unless they were illegal immigrants. LA in the 1930's and 1940's wasn't a creation of Mexican Culture. Tijuana in all it's beauty and splendor is an example of Mexican Culture. If that suits your taste, then fine. If East LA is paradise for you, fine. But the LA depicted in the movie Chinatown was in fact a magical place and it was made magical because of the people who created it. Now it's a cesspool.
juscurious 10 months ago
@juscurious Your entire perception of Los Angeles is completely naïve. Magical place my ass. It had one of the most racist police forces in the country. Most whites thought the teenagers (Pachucos) in the zoot suit riots were somehow axis conspirators. L.A was a beautiful place, but you close your eyes at the ugly side of the city, you think it was the immigrants who made the city a "cesspool", that cesspool existed in the corrupt minds of the people that you call "magical" from the start.
zypherax 10 months ago
@zypherax It's not my perception at all. I too lived in LA County briefly (Redondo Beach) in the early 1980's. I went back there in 2002 and didn't even recognize the place. LA was a wonderful place but I don't remember it in the 1940's because I wasn't born. I'm going on my father's description. If it was such a bad place, then why did so many people flock there after WW2? Now the whole place is gang members and graffiti. No it's clear why LA and inescapable why LA is the dump it is now.
juscurious 9 months ago
juscurious is obviously an irrational xenophobe.
zypherax 10 months ago
you'd think Jerry would need to spend 5 weeks on such beauty. Nope. Wrote the whole damn score in 10 days. Genius.
IliveinMA 1 year ago
Have ALWAAAAAYS adored this...enraptured,enchanted.
vir2ohso 1 year ago
I first saw "Chinatown" in my Scriptwriting class at my college about 2 years ago, and I was blown away at the beautiful theme song . The movie was excellent also, but the music, I just can't explain it.
coolwafferman 1 year ago
This theme and movie are both classic. Body Heat has the same effect on me...
recovering16 1 year ago
This musical theme is like the best of great sex: you want more and can never get enough. And, "Chinatown" is Polanski's masterpiece and that is saying a mouthful. And, of course, thank you Robert Towne. I was going to bed early, now I'm going to watch my DVD copy of, what else? . . . . . "Chinatown."
nogrits4me 1 year ago
This piece is so evocative. Thanks for the post.
steffsstuff 1 year ago
A really stunning piece of music ! DK
donpkra 1 year ago
Love it, lazy but not too passionate. Just like a 30's detective movie theme should be.
jkoff76 1 year ago 3
Uan Rasey is playing that trumpet. His sound is gorgeous.
SteveFallon1 1 year ago
makes me think of warm nights, tobacco, old cars and whiskey... it's nostalgia in a tune
AHafan1 1 year ago 3
Wow, what beautiful, lush trumpet playing. Trumpet player Uan Rasey is certainly one of the finest studio players that has ever been on the sound stages of LA. From the late 40s to the late 70s Uan played some of the great movie themes for MGM. Thank you Uan for your wonderful talent.
QUOZO86 1 year ago
First time I heard this, blew away all my expectations. What a beautiful song
FAVOURITE FAVOURITE FAVOURITE FAVOURITE FAVOURITE
DaNooch669 1 year ago
Merci pour la vraie beauté.
BERTRAMCAT 1 year ago
Trumpet player was Uan Rasey. Supposedly he was told it was supposed to sound like "sex, but not good sex".
rdangelo 1 year ago 2
ahh.. 1:30 on is my favorite. the resolution... I must say, looking down and reading 'smoky trumpet' and 'fitting frosting'... I'm not the only emotional perv savoring this song.
Holdthesausage 1 year ago
The soundtrack in whole is good to the movie. It´s sparse and relatively simple but very effective. :)
henryburner 1 year ago
A hauntingly beautiful love theme song from a much more gentle place in time.
rf1013 1 year ago 2
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rf1013 1 year ago
Fantastic!
botswanky 1 year ago 2
This one gets through to me everytime.
tone143 1 year ago 3
Forget it Jake, it's Chinatown.
Such a powerful line to the finale.
SquareBooth29 1 year ago 3
Whenever I listen to this melody I'm transported to another time and place. It's so hauntingly beautiful and generates such feelings in the listener. I'll never tire of this melody. And the movie is my all time favorite film.
redskiesfan 1 year ago 7
@redskiesfan totally agree with you... Jerry was from another planet.-
antonietto1 1 year ago
@redskiesfan Perfectly described. Saw the film the first week it opened, and still try to watch it at home at least once every two or three years. And oh that music!
survivoraras 1 year ago 2
@redskiesfan i'm totally agree with you.wonderful comment.
antonietto1 2 months ago
i want this score in my coffin
antonietto1 1 year ago
hypnotically addictive music....and such a fitting frosting for Polanski's masterful film.
karenrchaves1105 1 year ago
theme from"Blade Runner", " Dressed to kill", "Lujon byMancini"and this one we're listening......
antonietto1 1 year ago
There's nothing like that smoky trumpet. What an evocative song.
Flazzenzap 1 year ago 37
@Flazzenzap agreed
RonyMexico 1 year ago
@Flazzenzap
The trumpet player was the great LA studio man Uan Rasey. His solo studio credits go back to "An American in Paris" and beyond. As far as I know, he's still alive at 90.
69Ellsworth 1 year ago
One of the best movie and scores ever composed.. Simply wonderful. We all miss and love you Jerry Goldsmith.
conzalez94 2 years ago 3
Jerry may be gone but when you create something like this you never really die......beautiful.
MrDigger1969 2 years ago 41
@MrDigger1969 yes, he doesn't.
antonietto1 1 year ago
saw the movie, went home...bought album next day---LOVE IT.
prunellapussywuggums 2 years ago 5
One of the most romantic melodies I've
ever heard - indescribably beautiful!
earthboundJim 2 years ago 5
you like this song reall?
ME TOO....IS UNREACHABLE....ASTOUNDING...IT MAKES ME FELL LIGHT.....IT TRANSMITTE ME SOMETHING OF SERENITY.....GREAT SOUNDTRACK..GREAT MOVIE...WONDERFUL SCRIPT....DIRECTION POLANSKY WE ALL REMEMBRER AND FORGIVE HIM.
antonietto1 2 years ago