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Best JW Song written for a film

indy4

By indy4
in JOHN WILLIAMS

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Best JW song written for a film  

29 members have voted

  1. 1. Which is your favorite?

    • Somewhere in My Memory (Home Alone)
      5
    • When You're All Alone (Hook)
      4
    • If We Were In Love (Yes Gorgio)
      1
    • The Long Goodbye
      3
    • Dream Away (The Man Who Loved Cat Dancing)
      0
    • Make Me Rainbows (Fitzwilly)
      0
    • A Guide for the Married Man
      1
    • A Place of My Own (Heidi)
      0
    • Star of Bethlehem (Home Alone)
      5
    • Christmas Star (Home Alone 2)
      0
    • Merry Christmas, Merry Christmas (Home Alone 2)
      0
    • We Don't Wanna Grow Up (Hook)
      0
    • Two Lovers (How To Steal A Million)
      0
    • John Goldfarb, Please Come Home
      0
    • None But the Brave
      0
    • Penelope
      1
    • How Can I Remember? (Sabrina)
      0
    • In the Moonlight (Sabrina)
      0
    • Can You Read My Mind? (Superman: The Movie)
      4
    • Big Beautiful Ball (Not With My Wife You Don't)
      1
    • No With My Wife You Don't
      0
    • My Inamorata (Not With My Wife You Don't)
      0
    • Wednesday Special (Cinderella Liberty)
      0
    • Nice To Be Around (Cinderella Liberty)
      3
    • For Always (AI Artificial Intelligence)
      1

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indy4

indy4 155

Posted
Posted

I probably forgot a few, but with a limit of 25 options I think I covered most of the most popular ones. Please vote based on the actual songs, not their variations throughout the score (i.e. don't vote for "Can You Read My Mind" because you like the instrumental "Love Theme from Superman").

I didn't inclue less traditionally-structured songs like "Dry Your Tears Afrika" or the songs from Rosewood, because stylistically they don't fit very well with the other songs, and there wasn't room.

Here's my top 15:

1. If We Were In Love

2. Big Beautiful Ball

3. Somewhere In My Memory

4. Christmas Star

5. For Always (duet)

6. How Can I Remember?

7. Two Lovers

8. Star of Bethlehem

9. In the Moonlight

10. Dream Away

11. The Long Goodbye

12. When You’re All Alone

13. Nice To Be Around

14. My Inamorata

15. Penelope

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Sandor

Sandor 797

Posted
Posted

The Long Goodbye. Is this even a contest?

As performed by Harry Connick Jr. with that gorgeous orchestral arrangment... Possibly.

How Can I Remember is in my opinion the best song John ever wrote, followed closely by - yes, yes - For Always.

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Smeltington

Smeltington 1,440

Posted
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Well, I've heard less than half of these, mainly the stuff from Home Alone 1 & 2, Hook, and Superman, but went with When You're Alone. Although, the one I like singing along to most is We Don't Wanna Grow Up.

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Sandor

Sandor 797

Posted
Posted

I feel two great Williams-songs are missing from the list:

The Same Hello, The Same Goodbye

and

Uno Di Qua L'atro Di La from Story Of A Woman

The latter being - by far - the closest thing to a 'Bond song' from Williams' hand.

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indy4

indy4 155

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D'oh--can't believe I forgot "For Always." The duet is one of my favorites also.

But "Same Hello Same Goodbye" was not written for a film.



EDIT: added For Always. But we're now at the 25 choice limit, so I can't add Uno Di Qua L'atro Di La

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Koray Savas

Koray Savas 2,251

Posted
Posted

Elton John is a singer and a pianist, among other things. He works directly with Bernie Taupin on the songs, whereas something like "Nice To Be Around" is a piece of score with lyrics on top of it. Huge difference, though I'm sure that's not the case for all of them. Leslie Bricusse was probably more involved than that and vice versa.

It'd be like calling "Bird's Eye" from Body Of Lies a Marc Streitenfeld song.

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indy4

indy4 155

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JW still approaches vocal music differently than non-vocal music, as he has said several times that he feels he's not as competent at writing the former than the latter. He also sometimes works a bit on lyrics--ie in the liner notes for Not With My Wife You Don't, they mention Williams originally intended "My Inamorata" to be called "Two of Everything," hence the 5-syllable opening phrase.

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Quintus

Quintus 5,399

Posted
Posted

Elton John is a singer and a pianist, among other things. He works directly with Bernie Taupin on the songs, whereas something like "Nice To Be Around" is a piece of score with lyrics on top of it. Huge difference, though I'm sure that's not the case for all of them

Sorry, I thought you were talking technicalities.

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Ricard

Ricard 2,245

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"Can You Read My Mind" is not the Love Theme from Superman. And it's an awful song indeed.

My second choice would have been "Nice to be Around", followed by "Christmas Star".

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#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal

#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265

Posted
Posted

"Can You Read My Mind" is not the Love Theme from Superman. And it's an awful song indeed.

Ricard, the lyrics are set to the love theme!

If you need a friend,

I'm the one to fly to

If you need to be loved,

Here I am, read my mind!

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#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal

#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265

Posted
Posted

Oh yeah I forgot about that version. Still not half as good as the original/orchestral Love Theme.

And inferior to many of the songs listed on the poll.

Sorry dear, you are wrong.

I think the lyrics are silly regardless of who sings it.

Have the dummy sing them!

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Kendal_Ozzel

Kendal_Ozzel 36

Posted
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There's not a one of these I don't like quite a bit.

"Nice to Be Around" is certainly one that sticks in my head a lot, thanks in no small part to the words Paul Williams threw on top of it, as it were.

But I might have to go with "Big Beautiful Ball," actually. It's the one with the most plays in my iTunes.

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Thor

Thor 7,504

Posted
Posted

Where's Lapki Nek?

I thought that was Joseph Williams' composition?

My favourite is -- without question -- "Star of Bethlehem". It's really in a league of its own, tapping into the religious harmonies I love so much in Williams' music.

Some other great ones too. "For Always", for example, or "Uno di Qua".

And what...no love for DADDY'S GONE A-HUNTING??? Not even nominated?

Just kidding, it's an entertaining song, but quite awful. Like most of his songs for THOMAS AND THE KING (although that's not a film).

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indy4

indy4 155

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But I might have to go with "Big Beautiful Ball," actually. It's the one with the most plays in my iTunes.

I'm surprised this one doesn't have any votes--it's a great song!

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Kendal_Ozzel

Kendal_Ozzel 36

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But I might have to go with "Big Beautiful Ball," actually. It's the one with the most plays in my iTunes.

I'm surprised this one doesn't have any votes--it's a great song!

Oops, I forgot to actually vote! Fixed now.

As for "Star of Bethlehem," it's really the orchestral version that I love the most. So it's sort of a "Love Theme from Superman" situation where I feel like I would be voting for the song because of that.

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  • 4 weeks later...
filmmusic

filmmusic 1,828

Posted
Posted

My favourite one from the moment I heard it was When you're alone!!

By the way, i don't think the Superman and the A.I. songs should be here.

I think those were music initially and the lyrics were added afterwards, right?

So, they weren't composed as songs initially. It's a different thing.

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