The original soundtrack to the 1948 film Words and Music was released by MGM Records earlier in the same year in three formats: as a set of four 10-inch 78-rpm records, as a set of four 7-inch 45-rpm EPs and as a 10-inch long-play. The album contained material taken right out of the soundtrack of the film and has the original vocal done in the picture performed by Mickey Rooney, June Allyson, Lena Horne, Judy Garland, Betty Garrett, and Ann Sothern.
Contents
Critical reception
DownBeat noted that although the album features "the Rodgers and Hart score" from MGM's Technicolor musical and a "galaxy" of stars, the soundtrack transcriptions "usually fall short of recording studio perfection"; while praising the songs as "top grade", especially "When Hotel" and "Swell", the critic found that the MGM stars were "usually better actors than singers" and that "the whole effect is too much like that which makes you fall asleep in a movie", singling out Lena Horne's performances as "the best sides".
In its review of MGM's series of reissues, Cash Box included Words and Music among the soundtracks paired on the new 12-inch LPs. The publication highlighted the affordable nature of the releases and their inclusion of classic musical films, and noted that the MGM catalog's new packaging could help boost sales.
Track listing
10-inch long-play record (MGM Records E-505)