For the first time, Vince Guaraldi's complete score for the 1974 Peanuts® television special It's a Mystery, Charlie Brown receives an official soundtrack release. Issued as part of the Guaraldi 75th Anniversary series, this extended edition presents the complete score alongside bonus material from the original sessions and additional jazz recordings made around the same period. The special, which originally aired February 1, 1974, was the 11th Peanuts television production for which Guaraldi composed and performed the music.
Guaraldi brings his unmistakable melodic sensibility to a playful, funky score built around pieces including "Mystery Theme," "It's a Mystery, Charlie Brown," "Sassy Sally," "Cops and Robbers," "Sally's Blues," "Joe Cool" and "Little Birdie." Performing piano, electric piano and electric guitar, Guaraldi is joined across the Mystery sessions by bassist Seward McCain, drummers Mike Clark and Eliot Zigmund, and trumpeter Tom Harrell. The extended program reaches beyond the music heard in the finished special with alternate performances and revealing session material, including the previously unused "Snoopy Holmes," an alternate take of "It's a Mystery, Charlie Brown," a "Vibraslap Mix" of "Mystery Theme," studio banter, an alternate Vince Guaraldi whistle performance of "Little Birdie," a rhythm-section mix of "Cops and Robbers," and a stripped-down "Just Vince Mix" of "Joe Cool." Two jazz standards recorded around the same period, "Autumn Leaves" and Charlie Parker's "Billie's Bounce," feature Ron McClure on upright bass.
The recordings were restored and mastered by Vinson Hudson, with the Mystery material mixed by Terry Carleton at Bones and Knives Studio. Sean Mendelson and Jason Mendelson produced the album, which was curated by Lee Mendelson Film Productions. Designed for both serious jazz listeners and generations of Peanuts fans, the restoration offers a rare opportunity to hear Guaraldi's television scoring in expanded form, exposing alternate performances, arrangements and isolated elements that illuminate his working process.
The CD is housed in environmentally conscious packaging and includes a 12-page booklet featuring artwork from the television special, images of the rediscovered session tapes, rare personal photographs of the musicians and liner notes by Guaraldi historian Derrick Bang, author of Vince Guaraldi at the Piano, along with Sean and Jason Mendelson. An exclusive magnifying glass is also included, inviting listeners to uncover a secret code, miniature Peanuts artwork and other hidden details incorporated into the package. The release marks the 75th anniversary of the beginning of Vince Guaraldi's professional performing and recording career while bringing one of his previously unreleased Peanuts scores to CD for the first time.
