Audio By Carbonatix
The pianist and composer Raymond Scott, born Harry Warnow in Brooklyn in 1908, is probably best-known for his cartoon music, which he didn’t even originally write for cartoons. But his history is way more more interesting than that: Scott was not only a pioneer in sound engineering and multi-track recording a la Les Paul, but he’s also been credited with inventing the polyphonic sequencer, was an inspiration to synthesizer maven Bob Moog and produced ambient music in the ’60s that was way ahead of its time. Though he died in 1994, musicians as diverse as Don Byron, the Kronos Quartet and the locally based Pack of Hungry Cannibals have continued to cover his brand of screwball klezmer jazz tunes with precarious names (“Twilight in Turkey,” “Egyptian Barn Dance,” and yes, “Dinner Music for a Pack of Hungry Cannibals”), which has also popped up over the decades in places like these:
Betty Boop, “Siberian Sleigh Ride”
“Powerhouse” Cartoon Medley
Puss N’ Booty, including “Dinner Music for a Pack of Hungry Cannibals”
Garbage Pail Kids, Episode 1
Ren and Stimpy episode, “Monkey See Monkey Don’t,” Part I.
And here’s a quick peek into the Raymond Scott mystique:
Trailer for Raymond Scott: On To Something
Intrigued? Hear Scott’s ditties live at An Acoustic Dinner with a Pack of Hungry Cannibals, 7 to 10 p.m. June 12 at Dazzle, 930 Lincoln Street. That’s all, folks!
