The Night Stalker and other Classic Thrillers
Composed and Conducted by Robert Cobert
Varese Sarabande 302 066 156 2
10 Tracks - 76:40

In recent months we have covered the horror film scores of some fine musicians. These have come from the Hammer films, Universal horrors of the forties, and American International’s Poe series. There was another man who was master of the horror genre for the large and small screen and that was Dan Curtis. His concept of a daytime soap opera being a continuing gothic horror series was unique and nobody has ever copied that. His cast for Dark Shadows consisted of a repertoire of actors who played various parts (the better to kill some of them off and then bring them back as another character). Jonathan Frid was the guilt-ridden vampire, Barnabas Collins, who hated what he did. Actually, this was the most original idea on the show. Curtis admitted that he stole many of his stories from the classics as fodder for continuing stories. Quentin was based on The Turning of the Screw and Adam and Eve was based on Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein. Barnabas was just based upon the fact that after 6 months on the air Dark Shadows was heading for the TV pasture. It spoke about the supernatural; but never showed it. First, Curtis introduced a ghost and then the Phoenix story. It was time to introduce a vampire who would be killed off in a few weeks. Curtis nor anyone else ever knew that the vampire would become a star. So the character had to be sustained. That is when Curtis added the guilt-ridden side of Barnabas Collins. The show was a hit and it spawned two films made in 1970 and 1971. Also it was revived as a prime time series in 1991. Unfortunately the Gulf War started and interest faded after only 3 months.

This show also started Curtis off making spooky films for TV. His first was based upon Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde starring Jack Palance. This was a very enjoyable picture. His television version of the Night Stalker was a huge hit. A vampire TV movie of the week. Curtis was hitting new ground with old concepts and it worked very well indeed. During the 60s, there was a man who was writing music for daytime television and his name was mentioned to Dan Curtis. Curtis needed someone to score his daytime gothic series. This was still the days of using organ music for soap operas and Curtis wanted symphonic music for his show. Robert Cobert provided the right kind of sound. He came up with grim melodies that became standards. The only problem was that he was writing themes that would be tracked in. Nothing was ever written specifically for the events happening on the small screen. Eventually, pieces of this music became themes for some of the characters. Barnabas has a dark theme that always gave me the willies (no pun intended). This same music would be used as his theme in House of Dark Shadows (the first movie based on the series). With Dr. Jekyll, Cobert was proving that he could write for a film. Eventually some of his Dr. Jekyll music was re-recorded for the show providing additional creepy music. This music was eventually tracked into the soundtrack of House of Dark Shadows (the budget didn’t allow for a brand new score).

This new CD provides us with a good sampling of Cobert’s music. Even though Rhino released House and Night of Dark Shadows on CD four years ago, this suite lets us listen to some of the music the way it was originally written. His music for Dracula was a breakthrough, as we hear Romanian strains (no one has ever written ethnic music for a Dracula film). I’m not all too crazy about the pop sound of the Night Stalker or its sequel, The Night Strangler. But there is more than enough on this 76 minute CD to appeal to the serious horror film music buff. Burnt Offerings is another theatrical horror film that starred Oliver Reed and Bette Davis. And of course the popular Trilogy of Terror is represented here too.

I remember in 1991 how much I loved Cobert’s music for the new version of Dark Shadows. He used old themes mixed with some new haunting ones. The music he wrote for Barnabas and his guilt-ridden ways was top notch gothic stuff. He used a chorus in a very beautiful and chilling way. Now he was writing for the actual show and the music was the best he ever wrote. I saw most of these programs, TV movies and theatrical movies when they were released. I was very privy about Cobert’s music from the time I started watching Dark Shadows in early 1970 (I was a late bloomer). At the time of the 1991 show, I was hoping that a CD would be released of this music. But an early dismissal of the program brought any CD release to a grim end. Now, with this CD we have at least an 8-minute suite of some of the best music Cobert has written. I can only hope that Jim Pierson at Dan Curtis Productions (who co-produced the Rhino CD) can get a CD out of just this magnificent 1991 Dark Shadows music. Meantime, this release is a real joy. This is a great addition to the numerous CDs of original Dark Shadows music that has been released in the last ten years.

I wouldn’t say that Cobert’s music comes up to the standards of James Bernard, Hans Salter or even Ronald Stein, but in the annals of horror film music, his music certainly stands tall and spooky! "I am just a cousin from England who just happens to look exactly like the man in this portrait . . .but seriously . . . . . . .!"
Marc Harwood

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