Search - Various Artists - Soundtracks :: Brewster McCloud (1970 Film)

True to his iconoclastic nature, director Robert Altman followed up his hit MASH with this unlikely counterculture fable about a young man (Bud Cort) who lives in the Astrodome, but dreams of flying--with his own wings. The eclectic score is by Gene Page, and it covers a loopy array of stylings that includes songs in R&B, Gospel, and C&W, sung by soul singer Merry Clayton and Papa John Phillips. Especially notable is a grating performance of "The Star Spangled Banner" delivered with all the charm of a D.I. by character actress Margaret (Wicked Witch of the West) Hamilton. And, as if that Oz connection weren't enough, Page serves up a 1960s MOR version of "Over the Rainbow," along with some other jazzy, Lalo Schifrin-influenced cues. --Jerry McCulley