The Return of the Pink Panther (The Original Sound Track Recording) Henry Mancini & His Orchestra (Blake Edwards)

• 1The Pink Panther Theme03:06
• 2The Greatest Gift02:21
• 3Here's Looking at You, Kid02:52
• 4Summer in Gstaad02:02
• 5So Smooth04:06
• 6The Return of the Pink Panther05:12
• 7The Greatest Gift03:21
• 8The Orange Float03:09
• 9Dreamy03:22
• 10Disco02:07
• 11Naval Maneuver02:15
• 12Belly Belly Bum Bum02:15
• 13The Wet Look03:08
• Total Runtime39:16

Info for The Return of the Pink Panther (The Original Sound Track Recording)

Sellers and Mancini stole the show (both earning Golden Globe nominations) when Clouseau returned in '75. This was the best Pink Panther movie-the slapstick and the big-band accompaniment were turned up a notch for this one; the main theme joins The Greatest Gift; So Smooth; The Orange Float, and more!

'The Pink Panther Theme' is an instrumental composition by Henry Mancini written as the theme for the 1963 film The Pink Panther and subsequently nominated for the 1964 Academy Award for Best Original Score. The eponymous cartoon character created for the film's opening credits by David DePatie and Friz Freleng was animated in time to the tune. The tenor saxophone solo was played by Plas Johnson.

The tune was included on the film's soundtrack album and issued as a single in 1964; it reached the Top 10 on the Billboard adult contemporary chart and won three Grammy Awards.

'Moon River' might be Henry Mancini's biggest hit, but it was Mancini's score for Blake Edwards's 1964 farce The Pink Panther that introduced his music to generations of children; the haunting, jazzy main theme was used in dozens of cartoon shorts that were broadcast on television for years. Aside from that familiar tune, the majority of this soundtrack consists of swinging-'60s jazzy pop exotica with a Continental flair and a sly sense of humor, most notably the madcap 'Shades of Sennett.' You also get one of Mancini's finest pop songs, 'It Had Better Be Tonight,' here in both an instrumental and a vocal version, with lyrics by Johnny Mercer. (Sadly, the version in Italian sung in the film by Capucine has never been on any of the soundtrack releases.) This HighRes-Remaster also includes four tracks from 1974's The Return of the Pink Panther.

Recorded 1964 at RCA Victor's Music Center Of The World, Hollywood, California
Engineered by Jim Malloy
Digitally remastered by Elliott Federman at SAJE Sound, New York
Produced by Joe Reisman

Digitally remastered

Henry Mancini (1924-1994)
(Enrico Nicola Mancini) was born on 16 April 1924 in Cleveland, Ohio, but he grew up in Pennsylvania. His father, an Italian immigrant, taught him to play the flute and piccolo. As a young boy, he played the flute in a youth band for several years. After graduating from high school he received musical training from Max Adkins, the musical director of the Stanley Theater in Pittsburgh, who encouraged Henry to pursue further musical studies. Mancini decided to attend the Carnegie Institute of Technology in Pittsburgh (now Carnegie Mellon University). Adkins introduced Henry to Benny Goodman, who encouraged Henry to move to New York. Mancini took Goodmans advice and left Philadelphia. Soon after his move to New York, he was accepted into the Julliard School of Music.

After only a year in New York, Mancini was drafted in into the Air Force in 1943 during WWII. After his service ended, he moved to Los Angeles with his new wife, Ginny OConnor and began working as a freelance musician. He received a wonderful opportunity in 1952 when he was hired for a temporary assignment at Universal studios, working on an Abbott and Costello film. His talent earned him a permanent position at Universal Studios where he remained for 6 years, building his reputation as a skilled film composer and arranger. One of his earlier projects, The Glenn Miller Story, earned him an Oscar in 1954 (Best Adaptation of a Score). Mancini went on to receive eighteen Academy Award nominations, winning two Oscars for Breakfast at Tiffanys, one for The Days of Wine and Roses, and one for Victor/Victoria. Mancini was also nominated for 72 Grammys. Among the twenty Grammys that he was awarded are five for Breakfast at Tiffanys and three for The Pink Panther. He also received two Emmy nominations and was given a Golden Globe Award for his work in Darling Lili in 1970 (Best Song).

In addition to his motion-picture work, Mancini did work for television films (including The Thorn Birds), wrote the themes of many popular television shows (including Newhart, Peter Gunn, and Remington Steele) and recorded more than ninety albums. Through the nineteen-eighties, Mancini continued his work on film scores, while also working as a conductor and performer.

After a long battle with Cancer, Henry Mancini passed away in Beverly Hills, CA on 14 June 1994.

This album contains no booklet.