Listen to the City
Listen To The City is a 1984 Canadian drama film directed by Ron Mann. Normally a documentary filmmaker, this is Mann's only fictional feature. The film stars P.J. Soles, Jim Carroll, Sandy Horne and Michael Glassbourg. Featured in small or cameo roles are such notable Canadian counter-culture figures as poets bp nichol and Barry Callaghan, politician Jack Layton, playwright Sky Gilbert and radio broadcasters Pete Griffin and Geets Romo.
| Listen To The City | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | Ron Mann |
| Produced by | Ron Mann |
| Screenplay by | Bill Schroder |
| Starring |
|
| Music by | Gordon Deppe |
| Cinematography | Rene Ohashi |
| Edited by | Elaine Foreman |
Release date | 1984 |
Running time | 78 minutes |
| Country | Canada |
| Language | English |
The movie's score was by Gordon Deppe, who also has a small role in the film. Both Deppe and the film's co-star Sandy Horne were members of the Canadian band Spoons, who had placed several songs on the Canadian pop charts prior to this film's release. Two Spoons songs included on the film's soundtrack -- "Tell No Lies" and "Romantic Traffic" — would become substantial hits in Canada.
Plot
Hupar (Jim Carroll) wakes up from a 20-year coma. Disoriented, he soon meets Arete (Sandy Horne), a young poet, and Sophia (P.J. Soles), a TV newswoman. Together, the three team up to expose corporate crime in a crumbling cityscape of the very near future.
Cast
- P.J. Soles as Sophia
- Jim Carroll as Hupar
- Sandy Horne as Arete
- Michael Glassbourg as Goodman
- Sky Gilbert as Shadow
- Jack Layton as patient
- bp nichol as labour department head
Soundtrack
| Listen To The City | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Soundtrack album by Gordon Deppe; Spoons | ||||
| Released | 1984 | |||
| Genre | Score, New wave, synthpop | |||
| Label | Ready Records / LR-053 | |||
| Producer | Gordon Deppe, Nile Rodgers | |||
| Spoons chronology | ||||
| ||||
The Listen To The City soundtrack album consists of the primarily instrumental score for the film, and was written, produced and performed by Gordon Deppe of the band Spoons. On two tracks, Deppe is joined by Sandy Horne as co-performer and co-composer; Horne co-starred in the film and was also a member of Spoons. Rob Preuss, also of Spoons, assists on these two tracks.
The album's final two tracks are actually performed by (and credited to) the Spoons as a whole. These songs, "Tell No Lies" and "Romantic Traffic", were both issued as singles in Canada. Both charted and are among the band's most well-known hits in that country.
The Listen To The City soundtrack was issued only on LP and cassette and has never been reissued in any format. However, the two Spoons tracks from this album were made available on various "best of" albums, as well as being included as bonus tracks on a CD reissue of the band's 1983 album Talkback. Later, a 2014 digital "30th anniversary" release of "Romantic Traffic"/"Tell No Lies" also included the two Deppe/Horne collaborative tracks as bonus material.
Track listing
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Performer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Theme For A City (Opening Credits)" | Deppe | Gordon Deppe | 2:46 |
| 2. | "Something Not Quite Right" | Deppe | Gordon Deppe | 4:00 |
| 3. | "Sundown" | Deppe, Horne | Gordon Deppe, Sandy Horne | 4:29 |
| 4. | "Then As Now" | Deppe | Gordon Deppe | 1:16 |
| 5. | "A New World" | Deppe | Gordon Deppe | 1:30 |
| 6. | "Take Me Walking" | Deppe, Horne | Gordon Deppe, Sandy Horne | 3:44 |
| 7. | "Walk Into The Wind" | Deppe | Gordon Deppe | 2:08 |
| 8. | "Until Tomorrow (Closing Credits)" | Deppe | Gordon Deppe | 2:07 |
| 9. | "Romantic Traffic" | Deppe, Preuss | Spoons | 3:34 |
| 10. | "Tell No Lies" | Deppe | Spoons | 4:11 Total 29:45 |
Personnel
Tracks 1-8
- Gordon Deppe - all instruments, except
- Sandy Horne - vocals, bass guitar on 3 and 6
- Rob Preuss - keyboards and rhythm machine on 3 and 6
Production personnel, tracks 1-8
- Produced by Gordon Deppe
- Engineered by Rick Lightheart and Brian Hewson
- Recorded and mixed at Sound Path Studios, Oakville, Ontario
Tracks 9-10
- Gordon Deppe - vocals, guitar
- Sandy Horne - bass, vocals
- Rob Preuss - electronic keyboards and piano
- Derrick Ross - drums
Production personnel, tracks 9-10
- Nile Rodgers - producer
- Jason Corsaro - engineer
- Recorded at The Power Station, New York City