Music from Jump! by Van Dyke Parks
A while back, I mentioned Van Dyke Parks’ adaptations of the Brer Rabbit stories. Parks published three books (with beautiful illustrations by Barry Moser), plus one album — Jump! — based on the stories.
I finally got around to embedding the (quite impressive and catchy as all get out) album below.
If you’re pressed for time, the Wren’s Nest Staff recommends “Opportunity for Two,” “Come Along,” “Home,” and “Hominey Grove.”
In the words of one astute Amazon reviewer —
“Jump! must be the best score in the history of Broadway rejects. A gifted melodist and arranger, Parks digs deep into his Southern roots and pulls out this Brer Rabbit of a bouncy, melancholy masterpiece. Not for those who like their pop predictable, ironic or cynical, I predict that Jump! will be Van Dyke Parks greatest legacy, the truest reflection of his extraordinary grasp of the heart of American music.”
Indeed. Parks has toured for this album before, and he told me that he’d be into playing at the Wren’s Nest.
Previously: Illustrations and Music from Jump!, That Time Van Dyke Parks Left an Amazing Comment on This Blog
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Amelia Trace Lerner
Program Director
Lain Shakespeare
Executive Director
1 Comment to Music from Jump! by Van Dyke Parks
[...] music (see: Miley Cyrus’s “Zip-a-dee-do-dah,” Van Dyke Parks’s Jump!, Henry F. Gilbert’s unfinished Uncle Remus Opera, Devin the Dude’s NSFW [...]