Breakfast at Tiffany's: Music from the Motion Picture

Last updated
Breakfast at Tiffany's:
Music from the Motion Picture
Batsoundtrack.jpg
Soundtrack album by
Released1961 (1961)(LP)
1988 (1988)(CD)
Recorded1960–1961 [1]
Studio RCA (Hollywood, California)
Genre Soundtrack
Label RCA Victor Records
Producer Dick Peirce
Singles from Breakfast at Tiffany's: Music from the Motion Picture
  1. "Moon River"
    Released: 1961

Breakfast at Tiffany's: Music from the Motion Picture is the soundtrack from the 1961 movie Breakfast at Tiffany's starring Audrey Hepburn. The tracks were re-arranged parts of the film music composed and conducted by Henry Mancini. At the 1962 Academy Awards, Mancini and lyricist Johnny Mercer won Oscars for Best Original Song for "Moon River", while Mancini picked up a second statue for Best Original Score. The album also stayed on Billboard's album charts for over ninety weeks. [2]

Contents

Background

Because of his success with title themes, such as the theme to the television show Peter Gunn , Henry Mancini was asked by director Blake Edwards to compose the soundtrack to Breakfast at Tiffany's, a symphony jazz soundtrack. A protégé of jazz musician Glenn Miller, he created the Academy Award-winning score for The Glenn Miller Story . [2] After a preview screening of the film an executive from Paramount Pictures was convinced that the song "Moon River" was dead weight and it was due to be cut. Upon learning this, Hepburn responded, "Over my dead body." [3] This response was likely due to the friendly relationship that she had with Mancini. Subsequent to the insistence that the song stay in the film it was not cut and went on to be a hit.

Collaborations

Blake Edwards and Henry Mancini met through Mancini's wife whom Edwards had known for a number of years. After connecting, they decided to collaborate on the television show Peter Gunn, for which Mancini created the title theme. When Edwards learned he would be directing Breakfast at Tiffany’s he chose Mancini as his partner. Their partnership produced successful themes, and they collaborated on numerous other films together. [4] Johnny Mercer provided the lyrics for the song. The artists had a smooth relationship, which resulted in the creation of the song. [3] After Mancini played the melody for Mercer, he offered three different variations of lyrics and the two decided on a final combination. Mancini believed that Hepburn's recording was the best. He is quoted saying, “Moon River was written for her. No one else has ever understood it so completely. There have been more than a thousand versions of "Moon River", but hers is unquestionably the greatest.”* Mancini had respect for Audrey Hepburn, and the feeling was mutual; after watching the film Audrey wrote a letter to Mancini saying, “Your music has lifted us all up and sent us soaring. Everything we cannot say with words or show with action you have expressed for us. You have done this with so much imagination, fun and beauty. You are the hippest of cats - and the most sensitive of composers!” [5]

Track listing

All music composed by Henry Mancini.

Side 1:

  1. "Moon River" (Henry Mancini, Johnny Mercer)
  2. "Something for Cat"
  3. "Sally's Tomato"
  4. "Mr. Yunioshi"
  5. "The Big Blow Out"
  6. "Hub Caps and Tail Lights"

Side 2:

  1. "Breakfast at Tiffany's"
  2. "Latin Golightly"
  3. "Holly"
  4. "Loose Caboose"
  5. "The Big Heist"
  6. "Moon River Cha Cha" (Mancini, Mercer)

As with many soundtrack albums by Mancini and others at the time, the album released alongside the film was a re-recording. In 2013 Intrada released the complete score in its original film performance, along with the first inclusion of Hepburn's recording on a soundtrack album:

  1. Main Title (Moon River) (3:07)
  2. Paul Meets Cat (1:24)
  3. Sally's Tomato (4:57)
  4. The Big Blowout (1:05)
  5. Poor Fred (3:22)
  6. Moon River (Cha Cha) (2:32)
  7. Latin Golightly (3:05)
  8. Something For Cat (4:48)
  9. Loose Caboose – Part 1 (À La Cha Cha) (3:22)
  10. Loose Caboose – Part 2 (2:11)
  11. Moon River (Vocal By Audrey Hepburn) (2:03)
  12. Meet The Doc (With Organ Grinder) (1:37)
  13. An Exceptional Person (2:57)
  14. You're So Skinny (0:57)
  15. Turkey Eggs (2:43)
  16. Hub Caps And Tail Lights (2:19)
  17. Rats And Super Rats (2:27)
  18. The Hard Way (0:55)
  19. Rusty Trawler (0:26)
  20. Holly (1:56)
  21. A Lovely Place (1:33)
  22. Bermuda Nights (0:22)
  23. The Big Heist (4:02)
  24. After The Ball (1:14)
  25. Just Like Holly (1:41)
  26. Wait A Minute (0:44)
  27. Feathers (1:14)
  28. Let's Eat (1:39)
  29. Where's The Cat? And End Title (Moon River) (3:50)
  30. Moon River (Audrey Hepburn & Guitar) (1:38)
  31. Moon River (Piano And Guitar) (1:38)
  32. Moon River (Harmonica And Guitar) (1:36)
  33. Meet The Doc (Without Organ Grinder) (1:37)
  34. Piano Practice No. 1 (1:38)
  35. Piano Practice No. 2 (1:48)
  36. Piano Practice No. 3 (0:54)
  37. Moon River (New York Version) (2:01)
  38. Moon River (Whistling) (0:10)

Personnel

Chart positions

YearChartPosition
1962Billboard Pop Albums (Billboard 200) (stereo)1

Certifications

RegionCertification Certified units/sales
United States (RIAA) [6] Gold500,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Henry Mancini</span> American film composer (1924–1994)

Henry Mancini was an American composer, conductor, arranger, pianist and flutist. Often cited as one of the greatest composers in the history of film, he won four Academy Awards, a Golden Globe, and twenty Grammy Awards, plus a posthumous Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 1995.

<i>Breakfast at Tiffanys</i> (film) 1961 film by Blake Edwards

Breakfast at Tiffany's is a 1961 American romantic comedy film directed by Blake Edwards, written by George Axelrod, adapted from Truman Capote's 1958 novella of the same name, and starring Audrey Hepburn as Holly Golightly, a naïve, eccentric café society girl who falls in love with a struggling writer while attempting to marry for money. It was theatrically released by Paramount Pictures on October 5, 1961, to critical and commercial success.

The 4th Annual Grammy Awards were held on May 29, 1962, at Chicago, Los Angeles and New York. They recognized accomplishments by musicians from the year 1961. Henry Mancini won 5 awards.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Moon River</span> Song from the 1961 film "Breakfast at Tiffanys"

"Moon River" is a song composed by Henry Mancini with lyrics by Johnny Mercer. It was originally performed by Audrey Hepburn in the 1961 film Breakfast at Tiffany's, winning an Academy Award for Best Original Song. The song also won the 1962 Grammy Awards for Record of the Year and Song of the Year. In 1999, Mancini's recording was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Holly Golightly (singer)</span> British musician

Holly Golightly is a British singer-songwriter. Her mother christened her after the main character of Truman Capote's Breakfast at Tiffany's. Her musical style ranges from garage rock to R&B.

<i>Sacrebleu</i> (album) 1996 studio album by Dimitri from Paris

Sacrebleu is the debut studio album by French electronic music producer Dimitri from Paris. It was first released on 11 June 1996 by Yellow Productions in France and later released by Atlantic Records in North America and EastWest Records in Europe and Japan.

<i>The Audrey Hepburn Story</i> 2000 television film biopic directed by Steven Robman

The Audrey Hepburn Story is a 2000 American biographical drama television film based on the life of actress and humanitarian Audrey Hepburn. Covering the years 1935 to the 1960s, it stars Jennifer Love Hewitt, who also produced the film. Emmy Rossum and Sarah Hyland appear as Hepburn in her early years. The film was shot in Montreal, Canada, and premiered on ABC on March 27, 2000.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Breakfast at Tiffany's (song)</span> 1995 single by Deep Blue Something

"Breakfast at Tiffany's" is a song by American alternative rock band Deep Blue Something. Originally appearing on their 1993 album 11th Song, it was later re-recorded and released on their 1995 album Home. Released as a single in July 1995 by Interscope and Rainmaker, the song was the band's only hit in the United States, peaking at number five on the US Billboard Hot 100 in January 1996. Outside the United States, "Breakfast at Tiffany's" topped the UK Singles Chart and peaked within the top ten on the charts of Australia, Flanders, Canada, Denmark, Germany, Iceland, Ireland, and Sweden.

<i>Breakfast at Tiffanys</i> (novella) 1958 novella by American author Truman Capote

Breakfast at Tiffany's is a novella by Truman Capote published in 1958. In it, a contemporary writer recalls his early days in New York City, when he makes the acquaintance of his remarkable neighbor, Holly Golightly, who is one of Capote's best-known creations. In 1961 it was adapted into a major motion picture of the same name.

Richard Taylor Nash is an American jazz trombonist most associated with the swing and big band genres.

<i>Breakfast at Tiffanys</i> (musical) Musical

Breakfast at Tiffany's is a musical with music and lyrics by Bob Merrill and a book originally by Abe Burrows but rewritten during pre-Broadway tryouts by Edward Albee. It is based on the 1958 Truman Capote novella and 1961 film of the same name about a free spirit named Holly Golightly.

The main title is the music, often later recorded on soundtrack albums, that is heard in a film while the opening credits are rolling. It does not refer to music playing from on-screen sources such as radios, as in the original opening credits sequence in Touch of Evil.

<i>Holly Cole</i> (album) 2007 studio album by Holly Cole

Holly Cole is a studio album by Holly Cole. It was released in Canada in 2007 on Alert Records. The title of this release was originally announced as This House is Haunted.

<i>Quincy Jones Explores the Music of Henry Mancini</i> 1964 studio album by Quincy Jones

Quincy Jones Explores the Music of Henry Mancini is an album by Quincy Jones that contains music composed by Henry Mancini.

"Charade" is a Parisian waltz with music by Henry Mancini and lyrics by Johnny Mercer performed in the 1963 film of the same name starring Cary Grant and Audrey Hepburn. It was nominated that year for the Academy Award for Best Original Song.

<i>Close Enough for Love</i> (Andy Williams album) 1986 studio album by Andy Williams

Close Enough for Love is the thirty-ninth studio album by American pop singer Andy Williams, released in 1986 by Atco Records. Williams writes in the liner notes: "This is essentially a ‘live’ album. Our objective was to get real performances from both the orchestra and myself, as opposed to the sometimes sterile perfection of countless overdubs and tracking sessions. To my amazement, we used the first takes on most of the songs. The excitement of first hearing Jeremy's arrangements affected me so, that I found a quality in my singing that wasn't there in later takes."

<i>Dizzy Goes Hollywood</i> 1964 studio album by Dizzy Gillespie

Dizzy Goes Hollywood is a 1964 studio album by Dizzy Gillespie and his quintet, featuring the saxophonist James Moody.

<i>Jazz for "Breakfast at Tiffanys"</i> 1961 studio album by Eddie Harris

Jazz for "Breakfast at Tiffany's" is the third album by American jazz saxophonist Eddie Harris recorded in 1961, featuring a jazz interpretation of Henry Mancini's score for Breakfast at Tiffany's, and released on the Vee-Jay label.

<i>In the Pink</i> (James Galway and Henry Mancini album) 1984 studio album by James Galway and Henry Mancini

In the Pink is a 1984 album of songs by James Galway and Henry Mancini on RCA.

<i>The Pink Panther: Music from the Film Score Composed and Conducted by Henry Mancini</i> 1964 soundtrack album by Henry Mancini

The Pink Panther: Music from the Film Score Composed and Conducted by Henry Mancini is a soundtrack album from the 1963 movie The Pink Panther starring David Niven and Peter Sellers. The music was composed and conducted by Henry Mancini.

References

  1. "Henry Mancini – Breakfast At Tiffany's (Music From The Motion Picture Score)". Discogs . 9 March 2012. Retrieved February 25, 2017. Notes: RCA Victor's Music Center Of The World, Hollywood, December 8, 1960 – April 20, 1961 – April 27, 1961
  2. 1 2 Jeffrey Paul Smith (1998). The Sounds of Commerce: Marketing Popular Film Music . Columbia University Press. pp.  288. ISBN   9780231108638.
  3. 1 2 SuddenlySenior (2004). "Katharine and Audrey Hepburn (More Than Just Stars)".
  4. Timothy E. Scheurer (Spring 1996). "Henry Mancini: An Appreciation and Appraisal". Journal of Popular Film & Television .
  5. "Breakfast at Tiffany's - The Music". University of Michigan. Archived from the original on 2012-06-06. Retrieved 2012-08-05.
  6. "American album certifications – Henry Mancini – Breakfast at Tiffany's". Recording Industry Association of America . Retrieved July 20, 2021.