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Alhambra Records proudly presents on this CD the world premiere release of Angelo Francesco Lavagnino's complete original score in stereo for the 1963 Italian peplum movie ERCOLE SFIDA SANSONE (US title: HERCULES, SAMSON AND ULYSSES) which was directed by Pietro Francisci who had initiated the popular genre with the smash hit HERCULES in 1958. As Steve Reeves was not available at the time of production, the Italian bodybuilder Kirk Morris who had already starred as Maciste in a handful of peplums during the early 1960s was dyed blonde and cast in the role of the Greek strongman. His antagonist is the Iranian-born Iloosh Khoshabe who took on the English pseudonym Richard Lloyd and portrays the biblical character Samson. Ulysses (played by Enzo Corusico), the third of the ancient world heroes in this adventure yarn, is merely a boyish sidekick to the hero who sometimes gives some good advices, but not much more.
ERCOLE SFIDA SANSONE was one of the last of the big Italian muscleman epics of the early 60s. It makes no pretense about any historical authenticitiy in the way of Francisci´s first two HERCULES entries and wildly mixes up Greek mythology and vague biblical references with pure inventions. The story begins at the court of King Laertes in Ithaca: Hercules and his men set out to hunt down a hideous sea monster. When a storm comes up, their ship is wrecked and the survivors land in Judea where Hercules is mistaken for Samson who is hiding out from the villainous Philistines and their King Seren. After an epic battle between Hercules and Samson and some more entrapments – mainly due to the manipulative Delilah (played by Liana Orfei) who tries to seduce Hercules –, both decide to join forces and literally throw the temple of Dagon against the approaching Philistine army.
Since the end of the 1950s Lavagnino had become an expert in scoring many sword and sandal movies which above all during the early 1960s were at the peak of their popularity. He had also already worked together with director Francisci on the two peplums L´ASSEDIO DI SIRACUSA and SAFFO, VENERE DI LESBO, both released in 1960. For ERCOLE SFIDA SANSONE he wrote some lush and sumptuous music which would be worthy of a much better epic than what this unpretentious picture really is. The ear-catching main theme which is first heard in the "Main Title" is simply splendid and exudes a fabulous spirit of adventure. It is very flexible so that it crops up in manifold ways throughout the score. Probably its finest and most sensuous variant occurs when the shipwrecked troupe discovers the strand of Judea and its magical forest with all its wild palms.
The second important theme of the score is the one which characterizes the beguiling Delilah: Lavagnino has written one of his typical flavourful exotic dances for her which can be heard for the first time in "Delilah´s Dance". One of the musical highlights is the long "Seduction" sequence which is based on the Delilah theme and in which the sultry music tries to ensnare Hercules with the help of an added mystical female choir which sounds like luring sirens. Some lovely pastoral and bucolic passages mainly for solo flute backed by a few soft strings or French horn underscore the scenes set in Ithaca whereas oriental music with woodwind solos and percussion is supplied for those taking place in the Danite village. On the other hand, robust dramatic music with massive brass chords comes to the fore in the various action sequences of the film as in the attack of the sea monster or the fight between Hercules and Samson against a backdrop of stone ruins.
This exciting CD project – the 16th CD in our Lavagnino series – has only been possible thanks to the generous support of the three daughters of the composer – Bianca, Iudica and Alessandra Lavagnino -, who still had open reel tape copies of the original stereo master tapes of ERCOLE SFIDA SANSONE in their personal archive which we were allowed to use. Our CD edition which contains a 16-page booklet with extensive liner notes and colour stills from the movie will be limited to 400 copies.
- Alhambra Records
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