Well, I’ve taken almost all of my CDs out of their jewel cases. A kind member of the exotica list is going to drive over and take the empty cases off my hands. Around 200 discs will now fit in a shoebox. This is pretty handy.

Lalo Schifrin: 'Black Widow' (CD; CTI; 1976)
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Schifrin doing disco is entertaining, as you might have expected. I find the title track a little boring, but the familiar 'Flamingo,' a favorite tune of mine, stands up rather well. There's a Doobie Brothers-style electric guitar and a strict beat. The tune is carried by electric piano and synthesizer.

'Quiet Village' is fun as well, with a big beat and a cheesy bassline. The tune isn't very obvious or recognizable in this arrangement. There are some nice wordless vocal touches, but overall, this is a much more abstract 'quiet village' than the classic disco take recorded a couple of years later by the Ritchie Family. Schifrin chose some great tunes for this album, and this CD reissue includes some extra tracks, 'Frenesi,' 'Tabu,' and 'Con alma.'

'Moonglow/theme from Picnic,' another great tune, is quite good, with some great moody electric piano work, but I'm not really into that CTI saxophone sound that appears in the middle. 'Jaws' is dramatic and fun, but I can imagine it was more gripping during the summer that the film was a hit (when is a remake due?)

All in all, there's some fun stuff on this disc, but for me, it becomes old rather quickly. It's not hard to hear why the bonus tracks were not included on the original LP. They are even more noodley than the original tracks! That's not to say this isn't a good record. But it's not exactly to my taste.