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AMERICAN GRAFFITI
41 Original Hits From The Soundtrack

Original 1973 double album liner notes
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Record One
Side One

(We’re Gonna) ROCK AROUND THE CLOCK  2:08
Bill Haley And The Comets
(Jimmy DeKnight-Max C. Freedman)
Meyers Music, Inc. ASCAP
Courtesy of MCA Records, Inc.

SIXTEEN CANDLES  2:48
The Crests
(Luther Dixon-Allyson R. Khent)
January Music Corp. BMI
Courtesy of Post Records

RUNAWAY  2:18
Del Shannon
(Shannon-Crook)
Vicki Music Inc./Noma Music Inc. BMI
Courtesy of Embee Productions

WHY DO FOOLS FALL IN LOVE  2:14
Frankie Lymon & The Teenagers
(F. Lymon-M. Levy)
Patricia Music Publ. Corp. BMI
Courtesy of Roulette Records

THAT’LL BE THE DAY  2:14
Buddy Holly
(J. Allison-N. Petty-B. Holly)
Nor-Va-Jak Music, Inc. BMI
Courtesy of MCA Records, Inc.

FANNY MAE*  2:52
Buster Brown
(Clarence L. Lewis-Morris Levy-Waymon Glasco)
Frost Music Corp. BMI
Courtesy of Roulette Records

AT THE HOP  2:25
Flash Cadillac & The Continental Kids
(Singer-Medora-White)
Sea-Lark Enterprises, Inc./Singular Music BMI
Courtesy of Epic Records

SHE’S SO FINE  2:18
Flash Cadillac & The Continental Kids
(K. Moe-L. Phillips)
Lotsa Music BMI
Courtesy of Epic Records

THE STROLL  2:26
The Diamonds
(Otis-Lee)
Vogue Music, Inc. BMI
Courtesy of Mercury

SEE YOU IN SEPTEMBER  2:03
The Tempos
(Edwards-Wayne)
Vibar Music ASCAP
Courtesy of Roulette Records
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Record Two
Side Two

SURFIN’ SAFARI  2:05
The Beach Boys
(Brian Wilson-Mike Love)
Guild Music Company BMI
Courtesy of Capitol Records, Inc.

HE’S THE GREAT IMPOSTER  1:33
The Fleetwoods
(DeShannon-Sheeley)
Metric Music Co. BMI
Courtesy of United Artists Records, Inc.

ALMOST GROWN  2:09
Chuck Berry
(Chuck Berry)
Arc Music Corp. BMI
Courtesy of Chess/Janus Records

SMOKE GETS IN YOUR EYES  2:37
The Platters
(Kern-Harbach)
T.B. Harms ASCAP
Courtesy of Mercury

LITTLE DARLIN’  2:04
The Diamonds
(M. Williams)
Excellorec Music Co. BMI
Courtesy of Mercury

PEPPERMINT TWIST  1:58
Joey Dee & The Starlighters
(Joey Henry-Dee Glover)
Frost Music Corp. BMI
Courtesy of Roulette Records

BARBARA ANNE*  2:14
The Regents
(Fred Fassert)
Shoe-String Music Corp./Cousins Music Inc. BMI
Courtesy of Roulette Records

BOOK OF LOVE  2:17
The Monotones
(Davis-Patrick-Malone)
Arc Music Corp./Nom Music, Inc. BMI
Courtesy of Chess/Janus Records

MAYBE BABY  2:01
Buddy Holly
(Norman Petty-Buddy Holly)
Melody Lane Pub. BMI
Courtesy of MCA Records, Inc.

YA YA  2:22
Lee Dorsey
(C. Lewis-M. Levy)
Frost Music Corp. BMI
Courtesy of Roulette Records

THE GREAT PRETENDER  2:35
The Platters
(Buck Ram)
Panther Music Corp. ASCAP
Courtesy of Mercury
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Record Two
Side Three

AIN’T THAT A SHAME   2:31
Fats Domino
(Domino-Batholomew)
Travis Music Co. BMI
Courtesy of United Artists Records, Inc.

JOHNNY B. GOODE  2:38
Chuck Berry
(Chuck Berry)
Arc Music Corp. BMI
Courtesy of Chess/Janus Records

I ONLY HAVE EYES FOR YOU  3:09
The Flamingos
(Warren-Dubin)
Warner Bros. Music ASCAP
Courtesy of Roulette Records

GET A JOB  2:37
The Silhouettes
(The Silhouettes)
Ken Williams Music/Wildcat Music BMI
Courtesy of Bell Records

TO THE AISLE*  2:44
The Five Satins
(Stuart Wiener-Billy Smith)
Wemar Music Corp. BMI
Courtesy of Bell Records

DO YOU WANNA DANCE  2:35
Bobby Freeman
(B. Freeman)
Clockus Music, Inc. BMI
Courtesy of Suellen Productions

PARTY DOLL  1:54
Buddy Knox
(Bowen-Knox)
Patricia Music Publ. Corp. BMI
Courtesy of Roulette Records

COME GO WITH ME  2:37
The Del-Vikings
(C.E. Quick)
Fee Bee Music Co. BMI
Courtesy of Paramount Records

YOU’RE SIXTEEN – YOU’RE BEAUTIFUL (And You’re Mine)  1:56
Johnny Burnette
(Bob Sherman-Dick Sherman)
Viva Music, Inc. BMI
Courtesy of United Artists Records, Inc.

LOVE POTION NO. 9  1:53
The Clovers
(J. Leiber-M. Stoller)
Quintet Music, Inc./Freddy Bienstock Music Co. BMI
Courtesy of United Artists Records, Inc.
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Record One
Side Four

SINCE I DON’T HAVE YOU   2:35
The Skyliners
(Rock-Skyliners)
Bonnyview Music Corp. ASCAP
Courtesy of Original Sound Record Co., Inc.

CHANTILLY LACE  2:21
The Big Bopper
(J.P. Richardson)
Glad Music Co. BMI
Courtesy of Mercury

TEEN ANGEL  2:35
Mark Dinning
(Jean Surry)
Acuff-Rose Publ., Inc. BMI
Courtesy of MGM Records

CRYING IN THE CHAPEL  3:04
Sonny Till & The Orioles
(Artie Glenn)
Hill And Range Songs, Inc. BMI
Courtesy of Suellen Productions

A THOUSAND MILES AWAY  2:25
The Heartbeats
(Sheppard-Miller)
Nom Music, Inc. BMI
Courtesy of Roulette Records

HEART AND SOUL  1:49
The Cleftones
(Carmichael-Loesser)
Famous Music Corp. ASCAP
Courtesy of Roulette Records

GREEN ONIONS  2:25
Booker T. & The M.G.’s
(Jones-Cropper-Jackson-Steinberg)
East/Memphis Music Corp. BMI
Courtesy of Atlantic Recording Corp.

ONLY YOU (And You Alone)*  2:35
The Platters
(Buck Ram-A. Rand)
Tro-Hollis Music Inc. BMI
Courtesy of Mercury

GOODNIGHT, WELL IT’S TIME TO GO  2:43
The Spaniels
(Hudson-Carter)
Conrad Music BMI
Courtesy of Chess/Janus Records

ALL SUMMER LONG  2:05
The Beach Boys
(Brian Wilson)
Irving Music, Inc. BMI
Courtesy of Capitol Records, Inc.

* Dialogue by Wolfman Jack courtesy of Wooden Nickel Records, Inc. and RCA Records.
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AT ONLY A few times in my life as either filmgoer or actor have I experienced films which have aroused both my emotions as a viewer and my instincts as an actor.  It’s one thing to be moved by a single performance or impressed by the direction, but quite another to be so drawn into a film that one’s concept of drama is lost in the strain of intense identification; whether it be with a character or a situation.  Classics are born when all ingredients blend to a near perfect state.  Most often this occurs in the context of a particular genre i.e. The Godfather, The Maltese Falcon, or Bringing Up Baby, but occasionally it occurs on a pure humanist level.  East Of Eden was such a film.  So is American Graffiti.

Set in 1962, in an America still making a transition from Eisenhower to Kennedy, from stagnation to progress, and from rock ‘n’ roll to Rock, American Graffiti evokes that era (or rather the end of it) so effectively that one is filled unrelentingly with both instant nostalgia and a sometimes dire recognition of the lives we lived then.  George Lucas has molded a film incredibly precise in its recreation of that time, yet he has left it flexible enough to reach those who are five years on either side of the characters involved, as well as those who, like myself, experienced that time some 3000 miles from the Suburban California town Graffiti is set in.  It’s all here – the jargon, the endless cruising, the fads, the hoods, sock hops, petting, burgers, rock ‘n’ roll and, of course, its main proponent, Wolfman Jack.

Both the music and Wolfman are central in this episodic story of the last night of summer 1962.  They punctuate and eventually bind all the divergent elements that develop in the course of the film.  Wolfman has an almost mystical hold on the kids in this town.  He is listened to by everyone and each one has a different image of him.  Like Cleavon Little’s Super Soul, the omniscient disc jockey in 1970’s fantastic Vanishing Point, Wolfman seems in touch with them all while remaining himself intangible and unchanging.  He has a comment or a song for everything and each is heard, unaccountably, at exactly the right moment.  However, rather than documenting any particular year as one might expect, the actual songs were chosen for atmosphere and not accuracy.  The constantly blaring radio plays rock ‘n’ roll dating back to the beginning, not just those records released in ‘62.  The newest songs on the soundtrack are Del Shannon’s “Runaway” and the Beach Boys’ “Surfin’ Safari.”

The film opens at Mel’s Drive-in – Burger City – where the four main characters gather to share this last night together.  Steve, the clean cut Class President (played by Ronny Howard, who after one’s initial recognition of Andy Griffith’s son Opie, immediately transcends it), is preparing to leave the following morning for a college in the east.  His friend Curt (Richard Dreyfuss), the group’s intellectual, whose sole ambition is to shake JFK’s hand, is supposed to go with him.  But, he’s uncertain if he wants to or should give up one perfectly good life for another unpredictable one half a world away.  Terry (Charlie Martin Smith), their slightly younger, pimpled, Vespa riding cohort inherits responsibility for Steve’s magnificent ‘58 Chevrolet; and John Milner, the high school dropout, drag-racing champ and local legend, stands to be left behind by yet another generation of friends.

The various girlfriends and/or fantasy figures are introduced next.  Curt’s phantom lady in the white T-Bird; the woman of his dreams after appearing out of nowhere, has fleeting contacts with him throughout the night.  Steve’s steady girl, and Curt’s sister, Laurie (Cindy Williams) who sets out to dampen Steve’s eagerness to leave town.  Debbie (Candace Clark), the gum chewing, cigarette smoking, somewhat sluttish girl that Terry picks up and impresses with Steve’s Chevy and Carol (Mackenzie Phillips, daughter of Papa John Phillips), a 13 year old, ponytailed kid sister of a girl in a passing car who gets pawned off on Big John Milner.

Each one is then swept into the adventures of the night.  Encounters with holdup men, cops, carhops, a local street gang called the Pharohs (pronounced FAY-rows) and racing challenges await them together and separately.  We are taken to a high school prom at which Herbie & the Heartbeats (Flash Cadillac and the Continental Kids) play the hits of the day, to the local necking spot, up and down city streets and finally to the site of the near-tragic race.

The characters and episodes are each fully realized.  Unlike most films attempting to touch on so many details of a particular period, one grows to accept and love each character.  None is played too broadly for the sake of convenience.  The audience can believe everyone; a beautiful accomplishment in itself in these days when technical gimmickry so often supercedes the essential human element.

The relationships between each character develop slowly and naturally.  Steve and Laurie’s aching, almost desperate, love for each other; Terry and Debbie’s clumsy meeting and reckless attempts to mutually impress one another and, most beautiful from an acting standpoint, the delicate affection that hesitantly grows between little Carol and big, tough John as they reluctantly cruise town together.

The most distant, yet still meaningful, relationship in the film is between Curt and Wolfman Jack.  In an attempt to both contact the woman in the white T-Bird and to decide whether or not he should leave the next day, Curt seeks out Wolfman for advice and encounters him somewhat magically, in a deserted radio broadcasting station outside of town.  This haunting, cryptic scene adds a puzzling dimension to the film, but it is beautifully played and quite moving.

American Graffiti is consistently brilliant throughout.  Lucas’ directorial touch is incredibly light, yet loving, unlike the rather heavy handed posturing he brought to his first feature, THX 1138, two years ago.  His handling of such young actors is remarkable and garners one of the finest debut performances I’ve ever seen from Paul LeMat.  LeMat’s portrayal of John Milner and the presence he brings to the screen as an actor are among the most outstanding elements of the film.  To an actor, it is often tempting to declare one’s own ability to play a part more effectively than the actor actually doing it.  Very rarely, though, one sees a characterization so exceptional that one realizes the actor in question is the only one in the world for the part.  LeMat’s performance is such a case.  Watching him work is a spellbinding experience; a lesson in subtlety and an example of complete immersion in character.

American Graffiti culminates in the aftermath of the big race.  John is challenged and wins by an almost fatal default but he realizes his time as champ is finally ending.  Steve decides to remain in town with Laurie, Terry grows up a bit and Curt realizes he must go.  All meet once again at the airport.  Curt’s goodbyes are unknowingly final as he leaves his friends to their various lives and deaths and flies off to the east.  The sixties remain before him – Dylan, Viet Nam, assassination, the Beatles, hippies and hopefully some sort of cosmic awareness.  Their fates are painfully obvious.  The ending, a variation on the old Dragnet format, is among the most chilling final seconds I’ve ever seen.  The film itself, among the finest.

– Jeff Walker
Editor and Film Reviewer
Music World Magazine


MCA RECORDS 100 Universal City Plaza, Universal City, California – U.S.A.
© 1973 MCA Records, Inc. (P) 1973 MCA Records, Inc. Printed in U.S.A.


MCA2-8001
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