MIKE'S
MURDER (1983)
Directed by James
Bridges. Starring Debra Winger.
Joe's first film score, written during the "Night And Day" Tour. Side
One of the A&M soundtrack album consists of songs, including "Memphis"
which was left over from the "Night And Day" sessions and got a fair
amount of airplay. The other songs and the instrumental Side Two were
written for the film. Unfortunately the film was drastically re-cut
after the music was recorded, and not much of Joe's score made it into
the final cut.
SHIJIN
NO IE ('The House of the Poet') (1985)
This orchestral
score was commissioned by the Daiei Corporation for an IMAX film shown
at Science Expo 85, in Tsukuba, Japan. Joe was flown out to Tokyo to
supervise the rehearsals and recording with the orchestra. A re-written
version of this score appeared on Joe's Instrumental album "Will Power,"
entitled "Symphony in One Movement".
PRIVATE
EYE (1987)
2-hour
pilot episode for Michael Mann/Tony Yerkovich TV series.
This series only lasted 6 episodes, but the pilot was released in cinemas
and/or on video in certain territories. The score, one of Joe's best,
features a big horn section and lots of latin percussion, as well as
Joe on piano and Gary Burke on drums.
TUCKER
(The Man And His Dream) (1988)
Directed by Francis
Ford Coppola, Produced by George Lucas
Starring Jeff Bridges, Martin Landau, Fredric Forrest, Joan Allen
Joe's most 'high-profile' movie project to date. A soundtrack album
was released by A&M Records. It was recorded in London using some distinguished
British jazz players along with the horns from the "Jumpin' Jive" album
and Body and Soul band members Gary Burke, Ed Roynesdal and Vinnie Zummo.
QUEENS
LOGIC(1990)
Directed by Steve
Rash, produced by Taylor Hackford
Starring Joe Mantegna, Kevin Bacon, John Malkovich, Jamie Lee Curtis
Not much original music in this one, but if you listen carefully you
can hear Joe playing piano and organ, along with the band from the "Big
World" album. The soundtrack album consists of old hit songs used in
the film - no score.
INTERFILM
- I'M YOUR MAN (1992)
Directed by Bob
Bejan
This was the first Interactive movie to be shown in a theater. During
a limited run in New York, LA and a couple of other cities, cinema seat
arm-rests were fitted with three buttons connected to a computer enabling
the audience to "vote" on which direction the story would take. Since
there were always three alternatives, Joe had to write nearly an hour
of music for a 20-minute film. The score was performed entirely by Joe
on synthesizers. No soundtrack album.
THREE
OF HEARTS (1993)
Directed by Yurek
Bogayewicz
Starring Kelly Lynch, Sherilyn Fenn, and William Baldwin
Bisexual romantic comedy for which Joe was called in at the last minute.
Despite having just two weeks to write and record the score, it's his
favourite, next to "Tucker". It is scored for eight string players,
acoustic bass, and percussion, with Joe on piano. No soundtrack album.
THE
WHITE CAT (1994)
Narrated by Emma
Thompson; illustrated by Barbara McClintock
This is part of the "We All Have Tales" series by Rabbit Ears productions
- 'video story-books' for children. Many distinguished actors and musicians
have contributed to this series. "The White Cat" is a French folk-tale.
The music was written right after the recording of "Night Music" and
features a similar blend of electronic and acoustic instruments. Available
both as a video and as a storybook with cassette.
IRONBOUND
(1995)
Directed by Mitchell
Walker; produced by Francis Ford Coppola
(from 1995 press release):
"Ironbound" is one of a series of short films made for VH-1, each
based on the music of a particular artist. (Joe is no. 3 after Van Morrison
and William Burroughs). All the music is from the album "Night Music."
The film represents a creative reunion for Jackson and Coppola, who
worked together in 1988 when Joe wrote the score for "Tucker - The Man
And His Dream."
"Ironbound" was shot at an ancient wreck of a steel mill in Fontana,
California. The narrative revolves around a young boy meeting and gradually
befriending a mysterious old man who, like him, is trying to escape
from this bizarre industrial environment. The film is largely driven
by the music, with little dialog. Writer/director Mitchell Walker describes
the film as "a mystical fantasy from a child's point of view." He has
created an original, eerily beautiful and visually stunning piece of
work which strikingly compliments Joe's atmospheric music.
Francis Coppola said: "Ironbound" successfully uses music and cinema
in a way that holds the audience's interest for its duration. I was
pleased and impressed to see Joe Jackson's music used as an integral
part of this work." Jackson, who was closely involved in the making
of the film, commented: "I don't like videos, but I'm very interested
in genuine collaborations with film-makers. "Ironbound" isn't my story,
but it does pick up on some of the album's themes: aging and mortality,
the logic of dreams, and trying to find beauty in an ugly world."
("Ironbound" was shown several times on VH-1, and also on Canadian,
German and Italian TV. It was also shown at several film festivals,
and won an award at the 1995 New Orleans Film Festival).
