Mannheim Steamroller: Saving the Wildlife (1986)
No animals were harmed in the recording of this album, although I’m not sure many were saved either.
Kronomyth 8: Lions and tigers and bears (oh my).
Saving the Wildlife is the soundtrack to a PBS special of the same name, which focused on endangered species around the world. It was subsequently released as the new Mannheim Steamroller album, though it didn’t sell particularly well. As soundtracks go, Wildlife is a fun record. The Wizard of Omaha and Jackson Berkey get some support from fellow C.W. McCall alum Ron Agnew, local musician (and touring member) Joey Gulizia and American Gramaphone artist Ric Swanson in creating short pieces that evoke the personalities and localities of various animals. The opening “Rhinos and Elephants,” with its African percussion, is fair warning that Saving the Wildlife isn’t business as usual. Instead, Davis and company are earnest in their efforts to create suitably exotic landscapes for their animals. It’s a playful bestiary, accessible enough for children, clever enough that Vangelis and (of course) Mannheim albums past come to mind. As I pointed out in my awesome review on AMG, Saving the Wildlife is guilty of perpetuating musical stereotypes; I’ve docked the album an imaginary and invisible star for this. If it had been Jean-Michael Jarre lampooning Americans on “Florida Suite” or “Grizzly Bears, and not Chip Davis, we would be storming the French embassy with baguettes a-blazing. While it’s not quite a match for the Fresh Aire albums, Saving the Wildlife is no stuffy PBS soundtrack either. In many ways, it’s the lighter side of Mannheim, and a harbinger of what was to come in the 90s.
Original elpee version
A1. Rhinos and Elephants
A2. Dolphins and Whales
A3. Wolfgang Amaedeus Penguin
A4. Florida Suite: Barbecue / Everglades / Sunset
B1. Wolves
B2. Tamarin Monkeys
B3. Grizzly Bears
B4. Tigers and Lions
B5. Eagles
B6. Amanda Panda
Composed by Chip Davis.
The Players
Ron Agnew (guitar), Jackson Berkey (keyboards), Chip Davis (drums and recorders), Joey Gulizia (ethnic percussion), Ric Swanson (percussion) with Wayne Jesz (noises), Louis F. Davis, Sr. (keyboard technician). Produced by Chip Davis; engineered by John Boyd and Don Sears.
The Pictures
Cover photo by Dr. Lee G. Simmons. Art direction and production by Les Hayes Studio.
The Plastic
Released on elpee, cassette and compact disc in 1986 in the US (American Gramaphone, AG/AGC/AGCD-2086) with gatefold cover.
