Zabriskie: What’s the Point?
Erwin Frankel Productions
Show Number: Sound on Film, Radio Program 5, May 1970

Matrix Numbers: (side 1 / side 2)
1) SOF #5-A SON K-4160 / SOF #5-B SON K-4161 (both written)

Broadcast Date: May 1970

Release Information: A radio show LP distributed to colleges featuring a discussion about the movie, Zabriskie Point, by Al Lees, WBAI film critic, John Simon, The New Leader film critic, Joseph Gelmis, Newsday film critic, Martin Last, Pacifica Stations art critic, and Harrison Starr, the movie’s executive producer. Features music by Pink Floyd at the beginning and end. Includes a 23-page transcript of the discussion.

Lineage: LP > ? > Maxell XLII-S 100 Cassette > DAT > 48khz WAV > FLAC 8

DAT transfer using Sony SDT-9000 (12.2 Firmware http://kickme.to/sdt9000) and DAT2WAV. No soundcard or EAC extraction within lineage.

The recording is not perfect, but highly listenable. There is some evidence of at least 1 or 2 cassette generations, but no NR and the sound is balanced and enjoyable.

The content is for Floydian completists, but as obscure artefacts of Floydian projects go, this is one of my favourites. On the music front, the show opens and closes with “Come In Number 51” but otherwise there’s little of a Floydian nature to get excited about.

What is interesting though is the subject of the discussion, and the context to which it puts the Floyd’s soundtrack, and the historical / cultural context within which they were composing the music. Zabriskie is a dense, and pretty impenetrable movie, and a lot of people write it of as a ‘too much talk not enough action’ show… I think the discussion in this show helps reveal some of Antonioni’s intentions and make the movie a more enjoyable watch. Both the movie and this radio show, are probably more for the die-hards, evenso.

I have kept the show in it’s native DAT resolution 48Khz, feel free to downsample to burn to CD but if you only listen on your computer don’t worry about it.

I tracked the show into the two-sides of the LP, and corrected an 8 minute section (from 20:27 at the end of Side A) where the Right channel dipped dramatically in volume (for this 8 minute section I copied the Left channel into the Right). Unless you know it’s coming, you probably won’t notice the transition.

If anyone has a better copy of this show I would love to hear it. If anyone else has any obscure stuff pre-71 I’d love to hear that too.

Prepared and posted to the Yeeshkul Tracker by Beechwoods, December 2006.