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Grammy winning musician Ry Cooder has carved out a successful career as one of music’s most talented guitarists and composers. Cooder’s collaboration with some of film’s most revered directors (including Wim Wenders for The Buena Vista Social Club) has also garnered acclaim, and Rhino is releasing a retrospective boxed set spotlighting his film music work.
Ry Cooder: Soundtracks contains seven CDs from Cooder’s cinematic output from the 1980s and early 1990s. The set, available September 30 at retail outlets and as a digital download, will contain the soundtracks for The Long Riders, Alamo Bay, Paris Texas, Blue City, Crossroads, Johnny Handsome (which features a haunting Mickey Rourke performance), and Trespass.
Artwork for the boxed set was executed by Tornado Design, the outfit that has worked on several of Cooder’s recent studio albums, as well as the 2008 Rhino release The UFO Has Landed. Muscians featured on the collection include guitarist David Lindley, drummer Jim Keltner, and eclectic composer Van Dyke Parks.
Cooder’s moody, atmospheric, and ultimately evocative work is evident in these films (most of which were directed by Walter Hill). Paris, Texas was a collaboration with director Wim Wenders and yielded the sublime, Harry Dean Stanton performance of “Cancion Mixteca” (Stanton performed the tune at the 2013 LA Film Festival).