Children of Sanchez

Chuck Mangione

Chuck Mangione composed this music for a film soundtrack in 1978, but it quickly took on a life of its own when it was released as a two LP set, garnering a loyalty the film never enjoyed. Its film origins certainly show both in the purely atmospheric quality of some of the music and in the earnest vocals and awkward lyrics that introduce the suite and later reappear. However, the simple themes and the powerful, minimal orchestrations--brass and drums for funereal military music; cello, flute, guitar, and eerie voice for the very pretty "Consuelo's Love Theme"--retain a strong appeal. Mangione's own performance on flügelhorn--sometimes hinting at Miles Davis's Sketches of Spain transported to harsher terrain--is frequently riveting, a darkly expressive, soulful element that conveys undiluted passion, sorrow, and joy. --Adam Rains

Children of Sanchez Album: