I had the pleasure of viewing the production of a 50th anniversary special honoring Michel Legrand at MGM Grand in Las Vegas on Saturday. For those who remember the great films of the 50's, 60's, and 70's he wrote scores for, it was a truly memorable experience! Hosted by Jon Voight and Jennifer O’Neill, there were clips from many of the films, and live performances by many pop and jazz artists from those great years. Filming took about 2 1/2 hours. It will be shown on PBS as a special, but no date announced yet. I was in the 4th row and the roving camera caught me several times; who knows if it will be used, but look for the fellow in the tan jacket and a shiny bald spot [g].

For our younger collectors who don't know who Michel Legrand was, here are some of his movie credits for scores, and a couple of his many pop songs that are still heard.

There were movie montage salutes to Michael’s Summer of ’42, Brian’s Song, Lady Sings the Blues, Best Friends, The Umbrellas of Cherbourg, The Thomas Crown Affair, Yentl, The Young Girls of Rochefort and Never Say Never Again as the various artists performed the theme songs. Melissa, Dionne and Patti teamed for “Windmills of Your Mind,” and Michel himself sang “Once Upon a Summertime” that he wrote for Barbra’s 1989 album.

In a City of mostly recorded music for the shows, it was great to hear a live 66 piece orchestra on stage. Jerry Lewis conducted the orchestra for one number!

See the Robin Leach review linked below for more info.