Packed into an extraordinary, multi-decade career that includes everything from world tours with Meat Loaf to arranging strings for The Stylistics and New Kids on the Block, Mark Doyle has carved out an impressively diverse solo career that includes blues releases by his band Mark Doyle and the Maniacs.
The versatile guitarist/composer has found the perfect way to celebrate 20 years since the release of another critically acclaimed gem in his discography, Guitar Noir, by extending his series of paeans to the moody, mysterious and ultra-adventurous music of classic TV detective series. On Guitar Noir III, Doyle adds fresh, thrilling twists to themes composed by legendary forces like Jerry Goldsmith (“Man from U.N.C.L.E.”), Dave Grusin (“It Takes a Thief”), Andre Previn (“Lost Letter”) and Nelson Riddle (“The Untouchables”).
It’s testament to his own intuitive, imaginative composing skills that the original tracks “Noir Alley” and the fiery, percussive “Thirteen Crimes” stack up so well against the greats. Yet the most remarkable aspect is probably the fact that he found a way to create a set list that includes “Get Smart” and “Kojak” fitting comfortably alongside a Frank Zappa penned outlier “America Drinks and Goes Home,” arranged here as a thoughtfully strummed ballad.