Trunk records and most noticeably headman Jonny Trunk is gradually building a raft of excellent releases of half forgotten treasures .Coming hot on the heels of the superb re-issue of the soundtrack to "Blood On Satan's Claw" and Basil Kirchin,s "Abstractions Of The Industrial North" comes music from two of Oliver Postgates children shows.
The Heath Robinson enterprise known as Smallfilms gave us such enduring shows as "The Clangers" who were blessed by a Trunk release in 2001 "Pogles' Wood" and "Ivor the Engine" are now included on this latest CD that assembles the rest of his work. The music for all of them was written by Vernon Elliott, a founder member of the Philharmonia Orchestra, and occasional performer at the Royal Opera House, who also had a taste for jazz.
The programmes originally broadcast in the 1960,s are from an era when children's programmes and music didn't have to resort to gaudy colours, jingly repetitive music and brash storytelling . The music here led by the conspicuous bassoon of Elliott is a beguiling and intoxicatingly organic experience. Elliott was clearly a highly inventive and resourceful composer, not restricting himself to an instrumental palette but going so far as to record sound effects for the show, from coal being shovelled to the actual sound of Ivor in motion." Cruising Theme" is the most joyous thing I've heard all week while the piano /flute workouts on "Donkey Theme" and "Fast Theme" make you want to skip around like a toddler after overdosing on E numbers. Not a good idea for a bloke in his forties. You even get to hear outtakes as Elliott and his artists try out different techniques , a sort of running commentary that can actually become a little tiresome as it interrupts the flow and atmosphere engendered by the music. The music for "Ivor The Engine" is for all that brilliantly evocative of its subject, a work of unprocessed lo-fi dexterity
The music for "Pogles Wood" however, is something else altogether . Eerie, full of character, portentous in truth it was wasted on a children's TV show. "Witch's Theme" with it's slashing violin motif is truly disconcerting, more Blair Witch than cartoon witch and after complaints from parents the theme was shelved along with the character it heralded. "Pogles Walk" is redolently dark and creepy while "Apprehensive Music" sounds like it could come of a Brian Eno masterwork in title and in it's jazzier sinister tones.
Beautifully packaged this is truly a work of unbridled love and attention .It's the sort of thing you would never contemplate listening to ordinarily but now the opportunity has arisen thanks to those diligent people at Trunk it seems churlish not to. For people of a certain age this could be a magically nostalgic experience but even those who have no chronological connection to the TV shows will find this a rewarding , beguiling and enriching musical encounter.