Published: October 25, 2004
Oscar-Winner Kevin Spacey Sings Bobby Darin on BEYOND THE SEA Soundtrack Out November 23
Bobby Darin Pic Soundtrack Out November 23, Includes 18 Darin Classics Performed by Oscar-Winner Kevin Spacey
Film Opens Nationwide on December 29th

ATCO/Rhino Records salutes a performer who
chose artistic expression over professional expectation on the soundtrack
to the upcoming Bobby Darin film, BEYOND THE SEA. Academy Award-winning
actor Kevin Spacey stars as the Rock and Roll Hall-of-Famer and sings 18
classics on the movie's soundtrack.
BEYOND THE SEA will be released by Lions Gate Films, the motion picture
acquisition, production and distribution arm of Lions Gate Entertainment
, on December 10 in New York and December 17 in Los
Angeles. The film features a stellar supporting cast which includes Kate
Bosworth as Sandra Dee, John Goodman, Bob Hoskins, Brenda Blethyn, Gretta
Scacchi, Caroline Aaron and Peter Cincotti.
The soundtrack will be available November 23 at all retail outlets and at
www.rhino.com for a suggested retail price of $18.98. On the CD, Spacey
traces the remarkable arc of Darin's career on 18 songs that show Darin's
evolution from teen idol ("Splish Splash" and "Dream Lover") to nightclub
sensation ("Mack the Knife" and "Beyond the Sea") and folk artist ("If I
Were a Carpenter" and "Simple Song of Freedom").
The actor and his subject share a musical connection: "Bobby got into music
through his brother-in-law's big band record collection; I got into music
through my dad's collection of big band and jazz 78s," recalls Spacey. "I
was the kid standing in the living room singing into a hairbrush to my
family. Bobby did the same thing except he was singing along to Frank
Sinatra records and I was singing along to Bobby Darin records."
Not content to just lip-sync Darin's songs, Spacey spent years developing
his voice and studying Darin's nightclub act before the cameras rolled. "I
began working with Roger Kellaway in 1999 long before there was a script or
money to make the movie. Kellaway worked with Bobby as a musical director
and accompanist. After three years of playing at home and in clubs with
Roger, he and I started working on a soundstage at Universal Studios where
there was room for a band. We also set up a big screen next to some mirrors
so I could watch any of Bobby's performance on screen while watching my
performance in the mirrors."
In 2002, Spacey went into the Capitol Records studio with legendary record
man Phil Ramone (Billy Joel, Paul Simon, Frank Sinatra). Backed by a
16-piece orchestra, Spacey cut more than 20 tracks, which he later used as
rehearsal tapes. "When I started working with him, no one -- including
Kevin
-- knew if he could sing Bobby's songs," notes Ramone. "When the filming
began, Kevin had Bobby's nightclub act down. He wasn't an actor imitating a
singer anymore; he'd developed Bobby's instincts as a singer and was
playing off the audience and the musicians like Bobby would."
The recordings heard on the BEYOND THE SEA soundtrack were arranged with a
73-piece orchestra
led by John Wilson and cut in Abbey Road's legendary Studio 2. Darin's son
Dodd and manager, Steve Blaumer, provided all of Bobby's original
arrangements and charts to re-create specific sessions and shows
note-for-note.
Born with a rheumatic heart, an awareness of mortality fueled Darin's
restlessness and his constant reinvention. After scoring a hit in 1958 with
the seminal rocker "Splish Splash," Darin ignored everyone's advice and cut
an album of standards -- one of them being "Mack the Knife," which earned
him the Grammy for Best New Artist and Record of the Year in 1959.
Darin spent the early '60s playing nightclubs in Vegas and acting in movies
(where he met his wife Sandra Dee), but nonetheless developed a strong
social conscience. Before politically aware performers were in vogue, Darin
marched for civil rights and recorded protest songs, which he incorporated
into his Vegas shows. "In some ways, Bobby's career mirrors the changes
people went through in the 1960s and early '70s," Spacey says. In 1973,
Darin died during open-heart surgery, leaving behind an influential and
diverse body of work.
Based in Burbank, California, Rhino Entertainment was founded in 1978 in
Los Angeles. Beginning with novelty records, then branching into archival
reissues and definitive anthologies and various-artists series, the company
is recognized as the world's leading pop culture label. With a commitment
to a superior experience for the consumer, Rhino packs its products with
bonus tracks, informative liner notes, photos, and the best sounding audio
possible. Rhino's Home Video division is home to everything from oddball
cult films and classic TV programs to long-form live music performances and
a line of action sports releases. Rhino is a part of the Warner Music
Group. For more information, visit www.rhino.com.
Lions Gate Entertainment is the leading, diversified independent producer
and distributor of motion pictures, home entertainment, family
entertainment, television programming and video-on-demand content, and its
prolific and prestigious library of more than 8000 titles is the largest in
the indie world. The distinctive Lions Gate brand is synonymous with
original, daring, quality entertainment in markets around the globe. For
more information, visit www.lionsgatepublicity.com.
BEYOND THE SEA Track Listing:
1. Hello Young Lovers
2. Once Upon A Time
3. Fabulous Places
4. Simple Song Of Freedom
5. Mack The Knife
6. The Curtain Falls
7. Beyond The Sea
8. By Myself/Lover Has Gone
9. Some Of These Days
10. Change
11. If I Were A Carpenter
12. Artificial Flowers
13. That's All
14. As Long As I'm Singing
15. Lazy River
16. Charade
17. Dream Lover
18. Splish Splash
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