During their peak in the months before the Summer of Love, appropriately enough, New
York City's own Lovin' Spoonful was ridin' high on their string of chart successes that included such blockbuster
songs as "Do You Believe in Magic," "Daydream" and "Summer In The City." During that time, they were
approached by two young filmakers who have since gone on to become Hollywood legends: Woody Allen and
Francis Ford Coppolla. The Lovin' Spoonful, led by John Sebastian recorded the soundtracks to two of their
early works: Allen's What's Up Tiger Lily? and Coppola's You're A Big Boy Now, collected here on one CD for
the first time.
The films themselves were about as diverse as it gets, but each was treated with the same tender lovin' care
from the Spoonful. Both Woody Allen's What's Up Tiger Lily? and Francis Ford Coppolla's You're A Big Boy
Now have sprawling soundtracks that include pop hits ("Darling Be Home Soon" from You're A Big Boy Now
went Top 20) and incidental music whose styles range from meandering country rock instrumentals and delicate
suites to dixieland rags and Sousa style marches. The latter two styles were very popular in mid to late sixties
cinema to accentuate the surreal, a quality that proved to be integral to Allen's ...Tiger Lily? The film was
originally a Japanese spy picture that had the dialogue cut out and replaced by Allen's own comedic script and
plot involving agent Phillip Moskowitz, on a deadly mission to secure the recipe for the "world's greatest egg
salad." Coppola's film, on the other hand, is a coming of age story that began as the director's UCLA thesis.
Whether you're a collector of soundtracks, a fan of The Lovin' Spoonful, a sixties buff or all of the above, this
collection is an endearing look at an immensely talented band, who went on to influence many of the
psychedelic pop bands so prevalent in underground music today.
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