The Spielberg/Williams Collaboration Part III CD & DVD (And Ultimate Collection CD / VINYL box set)

[Miguel Andrade 1,262]

3 hours ago, Bespin said:

 

A website that I never saw.  And that doesn't seems to exist anymore. I wonder why?

 

Can you tell me, what "closer" means? I invite you to share your vision about an ideal John Williams discography on the discography thread I mentioned above.

 

Because I have a personal and professional life that made impossible to me to maintain the website. You never saw it because you weren't around at the time.

And if memory serves we have discussed some of those issues privately, while sending you info on and old recordings. And closer, means just that. The way I had my discography organized was somewhat in the same vein as Jeff's. I have no problem whatsoever with your discography, as I've told you before. Not my favourite way to organize stuff, but still a very efficient one. Even more for someone who seems to enjoy statistics on the number of recordings as you do (something that surely has no interest to myself).

And as I told you before, for what wants to be a complete discography, where are the catalogue numbers and additional information on various releases of the same recording?

Anyway, at least for myself, no insult taken.

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265]

1 hour ago, Marian Schedenig said:

 

They do?

 

Indeniably the vast majority of his work was written for the medium.

 

Though personally I consider him a composer who writes for film rather than a film composer.

[Dixon Hill 4,233]

Snob!

[Bespin 8,480]

48 minutes ago, Miguel Andrade said:

And as I told you before, for what wants to be a complete discography, where are the catalogue numbers and additional information on various releases of the same recording?

Anyway, at least for myself, no insult taken.

 

The catalog numbers are not in the wiki disco, but they are on my website, I don't know why you say that?  And I always list all the US releases for each album. You will have to give me examples, because I don't understand your question.

 

I was a little bit arrogant in my comment, but I didn't want to insult you either! So no offense, you where a precious collaborator helping me making my website.

[Miguel Andrade 1,262]

Ok, I was probably making some confusion with the Wiki page. For some reason I thought you didn't had the Catalogue numbers on the site. Or maybe they weren't in the start and I never noticed the update.

[Bespin 8,480]

12 minutes ago, Miguel Andrade said:

Ok, I was probably making some confusion with the Wiki page. For some reason I thought you didn't had the Catalogue numbers on the site. Or maybe they weren't in the start and I never noticed the update.

 

 

1 hour ago, Bryant Burnette said:

I think Bespin's discography is useful -- extremely useful -- if one is looking for the type of information he's presenting.  But it's not the only way to do such a thing, nor is it inherently superior to some other methods.

 

Thanks. A level of detail where I will never go in my website, is giving detailed information about the content of each albums. So a website like http://www.jw-collection.de/start.htm is usefull and complementary to mine.  But unfortunately, I don't understand his categories, so most of the time, I need google to find an album on his website! 

 

One thing is left to do in my "project", but I lack time for doing it... We have to create a wiki article for each albums listed in the wiki discography. So if someone wants to help...

 

 

[Thor 7,478]

I'm still waiting for some examples of where Jeff would run into trouble with his current setup. I would be most useful to know.

[Ricard 2,244]

10 hours ago, Bespin said:

All these 393 items (and many others) can be found on my website.  Can you tell me any other site that list them all in one single place?

 

I don't think anyone has ever questioned the comprehensiveness of your website or the Wikipedia page. Just the way things are organized.

[Miguel Andrade 1,262]

Markus website is a collection site, not a discography, so it is organized as it pleases for its own purposes. I'm sure that if he was trying to present a discography instead, it would look somewhat different. Also, he hasn't made many updates latelly, though I know his collection is always growing...

[TownerFan 4,983]

9 hours ago, Ricard said:

I don't think anyone has ever questioned the comprehensiveness of your website or the Wikipedia page. Just the way things are organized.

 

Exactly. I appreciate Bespin's efforts in organizing a discography, Wiki or whatever he likes, but when he asks for suggestions or feedback then he cannot just slam down every remark he might receive, imho, especially with that attitude of passive-aggressiveness that is so common with people who doesn't like to be criticized or questioned. I was harsh in my reply only because he was uselessly childish in his remarks to Miguel, who actually spent a lot of time researching and cataloguing Williams' oeuvre for all of us much before Bespin.

[Bespin 8,480]

11 hours ago, Ricard said:

 

I don't think anyone has ever questioned the comprehensiveness of your website or the Wikipedia page. Just the way things are organized.

 

Note that, if you never visited my website, you would discover it is not organized like the wiki article. The wiki discography has it's own categories (for the purpose of counting the items, mainly).

 

There are only two main categories on my website : discography (as a performer), and a complementary discography as a composer. Like I wrote earlier, as a result, the first 1957 album of John Williams is at the top of the list, and the latest Spielberg collaboration album is at the bottom of the same list.

 

On the website of this Jeff (does he post here btw?), these two albums will appears in two separate lists. Why?

 

Why segregate the albums by type of "performance"? JW don't awake at morning wondering, "will I record a new album for my disco as a pianist, or my disco as a conductor?" When JW records a new album, he records a new album.  So I wonder why you are bottered by my categories, I have less than Jeff !

 

And what do you do with an album where he conducts AND he plays the piano (and that's just an example, the disco of JW is even more complex than that...)? Jeff will have to put the album in two lists. 

 

If you don't find usefull on my website to find ALL JW albums where he performs in one single page, and ALL his singles and EPs too in one single page too... Well, I have no more arguments!

[Naïve Old Fart 9,507]

18 hours ago, Stefancos said:

I guess what they say about French speaking Canadians is true.

 

18 hours ago, Bespin said:

 

Allow me to use one of your favorite line: Racist!

 

Right. Any more of that, and I'll tie you both to chairs, and force you to listen to kd Lang, for three weeks, solid! ALL YOU CAN EAT is not a good record. You have been warned 

[Thor 7,478]

2 hours ago, Bespin said:

There are only two main categories on my website : discography (as a performer), and a complementary discography as a composer. Like I wrote earlier, as a result, the first 1957 album of John Williams is at the top of the list, and the latest Spielberg collaboration album is at the bottom of the same list.

 

On the website of this Jeff (does he post here btw?), these two albums will appears in two separate lists. Why?

 

No, Jeff Eldridge does not post here. "This Jeff", btw, is one of the greatest experts on John Williams around, and has written many liner notes for Williams albums throughout the years. But thanks for providing an example of what you had in mind! I don't see the problem here, though. The 1957 album will go in Jeff's 'pianist' category. The Spielberg/Williams will go in the 'conductor' category. I'm confident Jeff will have further sub-categories within these, if needed, just as he has with the 'compositions' listings. For example, between albums/compilations where he conducts other people's work and where he conducts his own (like the Spielberg/Williams albums).

 

Quote

And what do you do with an album where he conducts AND he plays the piano (and that's just an example, the disco of JW is even more complex than that...)? Jeff will have to put the album in two lists. 

 

In cases where double or even triple duties are performed, he will no doubt make an informed assessment of what the predominant function is.

 

[rough cut 1,714]

Does anyone have a high-res version of the individual coverart for vol 3 (or at least bigger than 500x500)?

 

[BloodBoal 7,538]

There you go: 1500x1500px

 

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265]

A lot better than the black and white pic

[Jay 37,322]

You can grab 1500x1500 art of anything by just googling the album name followed by "itunes". Go to the iTunes pages, open just the album cover in a new tab, and then change the numbers at the end of the URL to both be 1500.

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265]

Really digging the new recording of Dry Your Tears, Africa.

 

Williams fixed the one thing that always bothered me about Hymn To The Fallen by toning down the choir in the climax.

 

And a really detailed recording too! Was this played in the same room as The Force Awakens? Do you know TGP?

[Tom 4,640]

42 minutes ago, Stefancos said:

Really digging the new recording of Dry Your Tears, Africa.

 

Williams fixed the one thing that always bothered me about Hymn To The Fallen by toning down the choir in the climax.

 

And a really detailed recording too! Was this played in the same room as The Force Awakens? Do you know TGP?

I like the faster tempo as well.  It manages to be militaristic and commemorative at the same time. 

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265]

It's more joyous! Festive even. 

[thx99 1,740]

56 minutes ago, Stefancos said:

And a really detailed recording too! Was this played in the same room as The Force Awakens? Do you know TGP?

 

No, these recordings were made at Royce Hall on the campus of UCLA.  TFA was recorded at Sony Scoring Stage/The Barbra Streisand Scoring Stage

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265]

Both by Shawn Murphy, right?

[thx99 1,740]

Yes.

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265]

He came from Minority Report awful to this?

[Marian Schedenig 8,177]

From Seven Years in Tibet and A.I. awful even. He was great before that, and he's often great again now (the turning point seems to have been HPPOA).

 

Curiously, his Horner and JNH recordings in between are also fine. His dark period seems to apply only to Williams.

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265]

Revenge Of The Sith sounds weird though. Large yet distant. 

 

I can think if no reason why a score should be recorded like that.

[rough cut 1,714]

8 hours ago, BloodBoal said:

There you go: 1500x1500px

 

 

Thanx! : )

 

6 hours ago, Jay said:

Go to the iTunes pages, open just the album cover in a new tab, and then change the numbers at the end of the URL to both be 1500.

 

Good tip! Thanx!

[Jay 37,322]

No problem 

[crumbs 14,304]

Murphy has definitely improved over the years, IMO. His earlier Williams recordings were hit and miss but he's been consistently great since Azkaban.

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265]

Yeah. I never understood why TPM sounds so good while AOTC doesnt. And why couldnt Murphy record a bass drum correctly in the 90's?

[crumbs 14,304]

A.I. and AOTC both sound terrible on album, but I'm not sure if that's a mastering issue or a recording issue. AOTC's OST was filled with hiss and A.I. is 'muddy' (possibly a creative decision by JW, but it seems to be inherent in the recordings themselves).

 

Could the switch from analogue to digital recording have created a few hiccups along the way?

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265]

Perhaps Murphy just needed a hand with it?

 

(Oh yes, I went there!)

[Marian Schedenig 8,177]

7 hours ago, Stefancos said:

Yeah. I never understood why TPM sounds so good while AOTC doesnt. And why couldnt Murphy record a bass drum correctly in the 90's?

 

The TPM UE sounds great (other shortcomings aside), but the regular album doesn't.

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265]

You are wrong! The EU sounds better. But the OST sounds damn great too.

[Amer 2,080]

Guys is the DVD full screen or wide screen in this set?

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265]

Oh God! Tell me it's 16:9 right?

[artguy360 1,843]

I'm having some serious JW revelations lately. Not only do I enjoy the faster version of the Jurassic Park theme on new JP & TLW release, but I also enjoy the abridged Hymn to the Fallen on the new JW/Spielberg CD and don't miss the cut portion. To me it has the same reverence and honor, in a slightly shorter track. I think my appreciation of JW's music is evolving to another level. 

[Bryant Burnette 654]

Finally worked my way through this set.  I'd heard the first two albums many times, but they're always worth a revisit; I always kind of forget how very good the Hook music on the second one is, and how dreadful "The Dialogue" from CE3K is. 

 

The new album is good, but the absence of A.I. and The Lost World is a black eye on the project, in my opinion.  Coulda surely squeezed Amazing Stories in there, too, if only the main theme; but both "Ghost Train" and "The Mission" deserve to be remembered.

 

And yes, this would have been a perfect occasion to get "A Timeless Call" into the world properly.

 

But the music that IS there is very, very good.  I've never liked "The Adventures of Mutt" very much, but I got closer here than ever before.  Very cool to have a true recording of "Escapades" in its concert format.  The concert version of "Marion's Theme" is a nice addition, too.  As for the rest, I prefer pretty much all of the OST versions, but that's not to imply there's anything inferior about these; they're all fine.

 

The DVD is too short, but is delightful, and is something I'll happily rewatch as the years go by.  Eventually, this collaboration is going to end, and when it does, material like this documentary is going to seem even more priceless than it already does.

15 hours ago, azahid said:

Guys is the DVD full screen or wide screen in this set?

 

Widescreen.

[Thor 7,478]

42 minutes ago, Bryant Burnette said:

The new album is good, but the absence of A.I. and The Lost World is a black eye on the project, in my opinion.  Coulda surely squeezed Amazing Stories in there, too, if only the main theme; but both "Ghost Train" and "The Mission" deserve to be remembered.

 

And WAR OF THE WORLDS. I'd love to see Williams do a concert version of this, more abstract music.

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265]

I prefer to concentrate on what is there rather than what isnt. Perhaps because I grew up on 45 minute Varese Sarabande releases. And what there is is very good.

Well chosen selections, beautifully performed and recorded. And that's what actually makes the release worthwhile to the seasoned Williams fan who already has all of these tracks anyway. Some beautifully nuanced performances wonderfully captured by Shawn Murphy. And you can hear that this is a Williams producer recording.

 

I'm not mad on the trimmed bars of Hymn To The Fallen and that's about the most negative thing I can say about it. Very worthwhile release.

[Incanus 5,713]

1 hour ago, Stefancos said:

I prefer to concentrate on what is there rather than what isnt. Perhaps because I grew up on 45 minute Varese Sarabande releases. And what there is is very good.

Well chosen selections, beautifully performed and recorded. And that's what actually makes the release worthwhile to the seasoned Williams fan who already has all of these tracks anyway. Some beautifully nuanced performances wonderfully captured by Shawn Murphy. And you can hear that this is a Williams producer recording.

 

I'm not mad on the trimmed bars of Hymn To The Fallen and that's about the most negative thing I can say about it. Very worthwhile release.

Ditto!

[The Psycho Pianist 216]

The album is album of the week on Classic FM this week, listed on the site alongside Elgar and Tchaikovsky  

Not especially big news, but nice to hear every morning anyway!

[TownerFan 4,983]

2 hours ago, Thor said:

And WAR OF THE WORLDS. I'd love to see Williams do a concert version of this, more abstract music.

 

Williams prepared a 2-movement concert suite from War of the Worlds in 2005 right after the film was released and performed it both in La and in Chicago (I was there). The first movement was called "Escape from the City" and it was made with several bits and pieces of several cues (mainly "The Ferry Scene", "Driving Away" and "Ogilvy's End"), while the second was called "Epilogue" and it was basically the same piece as heard in the end credits with an extended coda for the trumpet trio.

[crumbs 14,304]

I think the lack of more "textured" JW music like TLW and WOTW hurts the diversity of music in this release. My favourite track is Dry Your Tears, Afrika specifically because it's so unique in Williams' oeuvre (doubly so on this album).

 

I couldn't put my finger on exactly what was underwhelming but I think it's simply the inclusions. Everything is very optimistic and "safe." There's no representation of Williams being daring or dark or dissonant. Minority Report was a very dark score, but its only representation is the hopeful and melancholy New Beginning. Similar with Munich and Prayer for Peace (albeit a more aching piece than others).

 

Everything else is whimsical or hopeful. Nothing wrong with that, they've clearly built an album 'accessible' for the masses; it's just a very narrow selection of the diverse musical collaboration the pair have had over the last 2 decades (especially when Spielberg went through his 'dark' period after Schindler's List, which he seemed to abandon after Munich).

 

Omitting 3 of their darkest collaborations is no coincidence, but unfortunately the album is poorer for it.

[TownerFan 4,983]

I think the lack of selections from those three scores might be mostly because of two things: 1) lack of already prepared concert suites and 2) the fact they probably aren't as fondly remembered as others (esp. The Lost World and WOTW). Also, the fact AI and TLW were recently released in fully complete form might have impacted.

 

IMHO, the album flows very well, it's performed and recorded spectacularly and it's a great compendium to the other two volumes. It feels like a very good concert program.

[Disco Stu 15,495]

22 minutes ago, TownerFan said:

 

Williams prepared a 2-movement concert suite from War of the Worlds in 2005 right after the film was released and performed it both in La and in Chicago (I was there). The first movement was called "Escape from the City" and it was made with several bits and pieces of several cues (mainly "The Ferry Scene", "Driving Away" and "Ogilvy's End"), while the second was called "Epilogue" and it was basically the same piece as heard in the end credits with an extended coda for the trumpet trio.

 

Wow I didn't even know this.  Is there any way to hear these, even unofficially?

[TownerFan 4,983]

 

This is the only bit I found.

[Disco Stu 15,495]

Oh man, even as a crappy audience recording that sounds fantastic.  What a great addition that would've made to this new release!  But like Stefan, I prefer to concentrate on what was included, not what wasn't.

[TownerFan 4,983]

Let's hope Keith Lockhart will record it in his upcoming album

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265]

The Boston Pops arent as good an orchestra though.