RUSHMORE [1998]

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A few years back, HERC worked a job where he regularly scored tickets to advance screenings of movies.  In 1998, two passes came his way for a film called Rushmore.  HERC knew nothing about the movie other than the three stars' names printed on the front of the passes along with the film's title.  One of those names was Bill Murray so HERC was in.  Mrs. HERC went along because that's what she does - goes and sees movies with HERC.

HERC found the movie PHENOMENAL.  Everything about it from the performances down to the slightest details in any given shot, from the screenplay (co-written with college roommate Owen Wilson, who also co-wrote Bottle Rocket) and it's brilliant dialogue to the story of bottoming out, fighting back, reconciliation and redemption.  But what does HERC usually like most in the movies he blogs about on Friday Hideaway Film Fest?  The MUSIC.

Along with his contemporaries Quentin Tarantino and Paul Thomas Anderson, director Wes Anderson (no relation) has since developed a reputation as including unique soundtracks on his films but this is where it all gelled.  It's been reported that Mr. Anderson licenses the music ahead of filming so he can film with the soundtrack in place.  

His first film was Bottle Rocket, an expanded feature based on his short film of the same name.  DEVO dude Mark Mothersbaugh provided the original soundtrack to that one but there were also 8 other songs included from the likes of The Rolling Stones ("2000 Man") and Love ("7 and 7 Is" and " Alone Again Or").

The above song plays during the opening credits of Rushmore and sets the tone for the first half of the film, which is loud and defiant.  Digging into his Audio Archives, HERC found the Rushmore soundtrack compact disc and extracted the original liner notes which he will now quote verbatim in an effort to convey Wes's thought process in compiling the soundtrack:

I originally wanted to score the whole movie of 'Rushmore' with songs by the Kinks.  I thought this made sense because the Kinks played loud, angry teenage rock songs, and they wore blazers and ties: and our movie is about a teenager who is loud and angry, and he is almost never seen without his blazer and tie (until he switches to a green velvet suit).  I eventually expanded this concept to include the whole British Invasion, because they all basically dressed like that.

Then we did movie research started making tapes labelled SCHOOL MOVIE MUSIC, which I listened to on road trips while we were writing the script.  Sometimes I put the same song on a tape five or six times in a row, because your mind wanders when you're on the road, and repetition helps you focus your concentration.  We played lots of this music on the set during the shoot in Houston with a Bose stereo that Bill Murray got for us.  My assistant had to lug the Bose around and get electricians to give her extension cables, and the inconvenience of that eventually led her to quit, although there were probably other factors which I don't know about. At the end of the shoot,  Murray gave the Bose to one of the make-up people. The only song we used that's not British Invasion (except Zoot Sims and Mark Mothersbaugh) is the Yves Montand rendition of 'Rue Saint Vincent,' but I think that's a good one to stand on it's own.

Thanks very much, and I hope you enjoy this album.

Wow, all Kinks.  That could have been cool, too.  In the end, one lone Kinks song remained on the soundtrack:

Mark Mothersbaugh is back to provide much of the underlying music - he even recycles one track ("Snowflake Music") from Bottle Rocket.  The Rolling Stones also carry over from that film; this time with a track that does not appear on the released soundtrack album called "I Am Waiting":

Cat Stevens songs are featured twice on the official soundtrack and there are appearances by John Lennon, The Faces and a few others.  There are four other songs featured in the film that failed to make the official soundtrack including the one below by Donovan:

Other than the opening song by Creation, HERC's favorite song on the soundtrack is the epic "A Quick One While He's Away" by The Who.  It is almost nine minutes long, features six distinct movements and appears very briefly in the movie.  Pete Townshend refers to it as "Tommy's parent" referencing his later rock opera.  HERC refers to it as an important predecessor to Queen's "Bohemain Rhapsody" and Meat Loaf's "Paradise By The Dashboard Light".  Below are the brief scene from the film and a cover by Green Day that was featured as a bonus track on their album 21st Century Breakdown:

A Songza playlist of music from Wes Anderson films.

Thanks to Spotify, we are able to listen to a more complete version of the soundtrack.