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I've seen the sketches and did some work on some of those as proof reader. The short score has all the details. I once transcribed a few cues from The Empire Strikes Back using only the sketch and you can see they're about 99% of what's in the final score that was already there in the sketch. The voicings, hairpins, instrumentation, doublings, percussion, harp gliss, ornaments, all were there. What might not have been there are all the dynamics but they're generally there. An orchestrator would probably flush those out a bit further to prevent a player from having to ask an unnecessary question. That's why Conrad Pope said he's basically a glorified editor when working with Williams. Sometimes you'll see "sul cello" on the bass line so the orchestrator would flush out the bass part as a copy of the cello part but that is an example of a short hand convention where an orchestrator would consider all the details were already clearly there. Orchestrators have to be good at reading short hand and being careful when to use their own judgement versus what the intention of the composer was. I believe the first score Conrad Pope orchestrated of JW's was Jurassic Park especially the more aggressive T-Rex, Raptor sequences. I believe the last thing he did with Williams was an Oscar arrangement around 2008. Basically, the sketches then would go to JoAnne Kane Music for typesetting as it was so close to orchestrated already plus JW's schedule slowed to around a film or major work a year plus more conducting around then. On multiple occasions, Conrad indicated tremendous admiration not only for JW's skill and talent but also professionalism. A story I liked was how he felt JW had an almost encyclopedic knowledge of musical styles and instrumentation of past eras. The example given was the A.I. radio sequence when Gigolo Joe plays a vintage 30's tune. This was arranged by JW and orchestrated by Conrad but Conrad might have used more modern scoring techniques and JW corrected it to reduce the instrumentation to be 2 violins per line. This is not considered ideal because its hard to tune two string instruments. One is easy and three or more are easy but not two. That was part of the style and particular sound though, that slightly off tune playing that made it sound authentic. Conrad also mentioned he'd never seen anyone attack a musical problem with as much focus than JW. Angela Morley did a few cues here and there from Star Wars through Schindler's List but the bulk of those orchestrations were Herb Spencer. Herb Spencer's last film I believe was Home Alone before he died but many consider him an important part of the sound of JW's Golden Age and Conrad himself said JW learned much from Spencer as they either had offices next to each other or would work on a daily schedule where the feedback worked its way into JW's output. I would say around 75% of Empire was Herb Spencer's orchestration, maybe 15% was Morley, and 10% were others. But when you're talking about a two hour score, that's still a lot of minutes by each of them.

I don’t believe so, but here it is: 1M1 v2D “Opening” 1M1 v2D Insert “Opening” 1M1 v2D Insert “Opening” [album] 1M1 v2F Insert “Opening” 1M2-3 v2L “Bunk-Proxima” 1M2-3 v2L Insert 030918 “Bunk-Proxima” 1M4-5 v3O “Corellia Chase” 1M4-5 v3V Fix “Corellia Chase” 1M4-5 v3Y Insert “Corellia Chase” 1M6-7 v1P “Spaceport” 1M6-7 v1P Insert 030718 “Spaceport” 1M6-7 v1Q Overlay “Spaceport” 1M8 v1e “Gonna Be a Pilot” 1M9 “Imperial March” 1M10A v3D “Mimbam Battle” 1M10B v3D “Mimbam Battle” 1M11 v2B “Blackmail” 2M12 v2D “The Beast” 2M12 v2D Overlay “The Beast” 2M13 v1I “Chewie Untamed” 2M13 v1J Insert “Chewie Untamed” 2M14 v1C “Surveying Conveyex” 2M14 v1C Insert 030718 “Surveying Conveyex” 2M15 v2A (Intro) 2M15 v2A “Campfire” 2M16A v1Q “Conveyex” 2M16A v1Q Insert 030918 “Conveyex” 2M16B v2K “Enfys Nest Arrives” 2M16B v2M Insert “Enfys Nest Arrives” 2M16C v1G “Failed Heist” 2M16C v1G Insert 030718 “Failed Heist” 2M16C v1G Insert 2 “Failed Heist” 3M17 v2C “Walk To Dryden’s” 3M18S v2B “Yacht Duet” 3M19 v1D “Han & Qi’Ra Reunite” 3M19 v1D Insert 030918 “Han & Qi’Ra Reunite” 3M21-22-23 v1N “Dryden - Patience - Pilot” 3M21-22-23 v1N Insert 030818 “Dryden - Patience - Pilot” 3M24 v3D “Card Room” 3M25 v1L “Sabacc Game” 3M26 v1N “L3 & Falcon” 3M26 v1N Overlay “L3 & Falcon” 4M27 v1G “Family Stories” 4M28 v1J “Lando’s Closet” 4M29 v1E “Trust No One” 4M30A v1M “Mines Pt. 1 - Heist” 4M30A v1Q Insert “Mines Pt. 1 - Heist” 4M30B v4C “Mines Pt. 2 - Finding Coaxium” 4M30B v4F Insert “Mines Pt. 2 - Finding Coaxium” 4M30B v4F Overlay “Mines Pt. 2 - Finding Coaxium” 5M30C v8I “Mines Pt. 3 - Break-out” 5M31 v6G “L3’s Sacrifice” 5M31 v6H Insert “L3’s Sacrifice” 5M32 v2B “Kessel Run Pt. 1 - TIE Chase” 5M32 v2B Overlay 1 “Kessel Run Pt. 1 - TIE Chase” 5M32 v2B Overlay 2 “Kessel Run Pt. 1 - TIE Chase” 5M33A v2M “Kessel Run Pt. 2 - Monster” 5M33B v3C “Kessel Run Pt. 2 - Maw” 5M33C v2F “Kessel Run Pt. 2 - Landing” 6M34 v1O “Savareen Tent” 6M35 v1L “Emfy’s Standoff” 6M37-38 v3A “Joining the Cause” 6M39-40 v3E “Real Thing Double Cross” 6M41-42A v2F “Dryden Fight” 6M41-42A v2G Insert “Dryden Fight” 6M41-42A v2G Overlay “Dryden Fight” 7M42B-43 v1Q “Skype Showdown” 7M42B-43 v1R Overlay “Skype Showdown” 7M44A-B v1G “Beckett Departs” 7M44B v1E Alt “Qi’Ra Departs” 7M45 v1E “Parting Ways” 7M47-48 v1K “To Tatooine” End Credits Imperial Theme - Edwardian Style The Han Solo Theme 1M9 “Imperial March” is neither the version heard in the recruiting video (that’s “Imperial Theme - Edwardian Style”), nor the standard concert arrangement. It’s the later part of 2M4 “The Probe Scanner” from the Empire Strikes Back, but starting with the tracked Imperial March as heard in the film. Very odd!

Criminy, how do you not have your own show yet? I mean, right?!

It's confusing; the only two times Gordy seemed to be recording new material was at least before November, and then January of this year (for what, I have no clue), over a month after the TROS DLC was released. Huh.

No. A lot of videogame music is better than current film scores!

The only confusing thing is why you'd precede the names of his scores with the year some expansion came out instead of the year the film did

He’s a well know instigator in classical music circles. I think its position in classical music charts around the world should speak for itself I’m sorry I wasted 30 seconds of my time reading it ! Also hello everyone-I’ve decided to jump in after reading this forum for years ! Many of you know me already so please be kind

The second release this Friday I acquainted myself with, Dario Marianelli's Secret Garden, sadly also doesn't cut it. There's a distinctly unassuming air about it, like one of those countless Tom Newman soundalikes from the mid- and late 90's. It's all perfectly pleasant, but neither in idiom nor content standing out in any way. I will use the opportunity to plug another Marianelli from last Christmas, the infinitely better Pinocchio: Here Marianelli chose a more song-like fairy tale approach with recorder, guitars, accordions, mandolins and such plus a mellow, memorable main theme (there's a slightly melancholic, searching touch, though European would be a better term to describe it). The tone is light and airy, with occasional impressionist touches for the more misterioso moments, but remains very transparently orchestrated, almost chamber-sized. It's a very charming wrk that was overlooked last winter, mainly because it wasn't released outside Italy. Now it's been and it demands a listen.

Do you not think the exposure this album and concert would've afforded to both parties and the sales of the album (plus streaming and what-not) would make them inclined to care what this dipshit has to say? Countless times have I heard it said that film music was a gateway for people to discover/rediscover classical music. It's one review in a largely positive critical consensus, I'm not losing sleep over this snob's opinions.

I agree. Cantankerous, disillusioned Luke made perfect sense to me, and although I'm a little iffy on the execution of his death, I think the entire sequence with his apparition on Crait is fantastic. Probably the best embodiment of the Jedi's highest ideals in the films. "A Jedi uses the Force for knowledge and defense, never for attack."

Seems to be missing a few cues which are listed online: Yacht Party Source Meet Dryden Testing Dryden's Patience Lando Kessel Run Pt 3 - Liftoff Beckett Leaves Back to Dryden's You Don't Know Everything Beckett Showdown Jungle Cantina Source Sabacc Rematch

I've not really mentioned anything I've been up to in here lately, but it's because a few weeks back I finally found something which grabbed me and I've been putting a lot of effort into it, I'm pretty much addicted. State of Decay 2 came out in 2018 and was panned at the time for not only being a buggy broken mess, but probably mainly because the original indie title had garnered itself a lot of love and plaudits in 2013 for being the zombie apocalypse sim which finally nailed the fantasy (albeit quite crudely and clunkily, in a charming kind of way) of what it would be like to control and manage a ragtag band of survivors and look after their daily hardships on a Dawn of the Dead/Walking Dead inspired backdrop. The first game had a strong cult following, and I dabbled a little at the time but decided to wait for a more fleshed out and bigger budget follow-up. Yet the potential then was obvious. Microsoft was now putting money into the sequel and excited fans had been expecting the zombie sim to end them all, but alas it didn't deliver on the mouth-watering promise and the newer game was at that time deemed a failure. Fast-forward two years later, and as is the case with seemingly 3 in every 5 big new releases these days, the game was to continue to be worked on and supported long after the initial release window. The developer (handily named Undead Labs) stuck with it and would release numerous patches and major updates, addressing nigh on every bug and tightening and adjusting the many complex systems which govern the irresistible end of the world sandbox they have created. Positive word of mouth began to show up on the sites and communities I frequent/lurk in, YouTubers I follow began to reappraise the game, "it's good now", they said (a common phrase in gaming social media these days). So since I'd upgraded my PC and was looking for something to flex it, I decided to take a punt. This game is f***ing badass. It's a time sink I've not experienced since my old Destiny playtimes, and I can't stop wanting role play within its world. [CLICK TO ENLARGE] I really need to get to that van. It just needs to have gas... Discovered a new town and abandoned the noisy vehicle before it ran dry, hope there's some people I can get with here. I should reach that two-story building before nightfall. These guys turned out to be okay. Assuming control of one of the others next morning, I run into trouble while out scavenging for resources. But he had my back, thank god. DEATH IS PERMANENT IN STATE OF DECAY. You lose a survivor in the wild, and they're gone for good. Taking time to recover in the sanctuary of home base. There are various elements that need keeping an eye on. RPG tropes govern the effectiveness of your survivors and finding the perfect grouping is endgame absorbing in of itself. But lose a survivor, and you lose all the work you put into them! Which devastating. Cameron is feeling upbeat, probably because of that sweet fast-loading crossbow he just found. *Daryl Dixon fantasy activated* The loot is random and some rarer than others. So another night and another increasingly desperate search for dwindling ammunition reserves in a really inviting abandoned police station. That's State of Decay. I know most of you guys here are Nintendo/PS4 players, but I highly recommend this game. It's full of player-made stories, which are sometimes the best ones, right? Not to mention the fabulously satisfying melee combat (the sheer number of bespoke killing animations in this game is unreal) and the meaty firearms feedback is goddamn cool (popping heads is panicky and delicious). Unfortunately it is too risky taking screenshots when you're close to being overwhelmed by the zombie hordes. Look it up online, this game has turned it around and now has the following it should have done two years ago. It's basically the preeminent Walking Dead tie-in without the license as made by the only developer to ever really nail the zombie apocalypse survival sim.

I’m not aware of anything written for TFA or TLJ that used this material. The big question is when exactly the Gordy Haab music was recorded. Though the game is ostensibly a 2017 release, there’s been multiple updates with new content, and it would appear these have also included additional, newly recorded music. For instance, he mentions doing more recording for the game in this 2018 interview: https://www.mandy.com/news/star-wars-battlefront-2-composer-video-games-gordy-haab-interview# There were updates to the game in late 2019 and early 2020. I think it’s most likely he may have heard the new TROS music early and used it as the basis of this cue.

You don't need any outside service or any company to play a CD. Why give that up? Why embrace dependency?

No thanks.

I can't speak for anyone else, but I fully intend to adapt...once it's actually necessary. The landscape right now favors digital sales and streaming, and I fully expect that CDs will continue to dwindle in popularity in the years to come. But for now, I can still buy most of the music I want on CD, which is my preferred format because it allows me to go digital without sacrificing quality or liner notes. Paying a monthly fee for a streaming service would provide pretty marginal benefits when I look at how I spend my time. That's purely a comment on my own habits; I'm sure it's well worth it for many, many people, just as CDs are currently worth it for me. When they're no longer a reasonable option I'll fully switch to digital purchases - lossless where possible. If those also go the way of the dodo and streaming compressed audio is the only way to get new music...well, yeah, we will have taken a collective step backward in terms of listening options, so I won't be thrilled about that. But I'm not aware of any indication that'll be happening.

Nice to see you pop in, Dave!

https://variety.com/2020/film/news/david-fincher-mank-first-look-images-netflix-1234760739/ First look at David Fincher's Mank. @AC1

This interview doesn't say exactly why, but it does give some insight into the shift: https://www.finalemusic.com/blog/may-the-fourth-spotlight-on-joann-kane-music/ If I had to hazard a guess...Williams was doing sketches that had even more detail than before, perhaps because he was taking on fewer films, plus Mark Graham and the folks at JoAnn Kane had built such a comfortable relationship that they realized orchestrators simply weren't necessary for him anymore. Which makes sense, because Williams' sketches have always been very detailed and complete; they don't look like a finished professional score, but they contain all the information that makes the music what it is.

You don't need a degree. You can stream the music to speakers and still capture it using a tape recorder. Hopefully you won't pass gas, the neighbor won't knock on the door, the phone won't ring, and the firetruck won't scream down your street.

Soaring dreams

*Remembers that time a few years back when 16 of the tracks in the top 20 were by Ed Sheeran* I'll go with 'curse'.

Only you'd miss the Rupert segment then, which is the most hilarious thing about it (there was an original version with David Niven and Marlon Brando in 1963, and it sucked).

Dirty Rotten Scoundrels - amusing, sometimes hilarious conmen caper with Michael Caine and Steve Martin on the French Riviera teaming up for a 'sting' on Glenn Headley's 'soap queen'. Light, breezy fun ... you can imagine it starring the likes of Cary Grant if it had been made in the 50s. American Graffiti - fascinating to see the movies George Lucas directed before making a certain sci-fi movie changed his career (and indeed life) for good. A funny, warm-hearted combo of 'coming of age' experiences and 60s nostalgia full of cool cars, classic rock 'n' roll tunes and winning early-career performances from 'Ronny' Howard, Richard Dreyfuss, Charles Martin Smith and Harrison Ford.

For me as a customer it's a blessing, also I really don't get why film music fans often happen to be so obtuse in regards to changing winds in the media landscape. The time of the cd is over, give or take a few years, and it's time to adapt. Which doesn't mean streaming is a substitute for buying stuff you really like (to own) - be it as cd or mp3 or Flac or whatever - but if you think about it, all the time spent on obtaining music that you now can sample for free. Why shouldn't that be a great thing? If you don't even can spend 10€ a month, that's another matter but then <you theoretically shouldn't be able to buy expensive boutique editions for 30€ plus shipping.

Just finished listening to it and I agree with your assessment. A pity (the score, not our reaction to it)!

Resident Evil 2 Both Leon’s and Claire’s A campaigns. I started to do Leon B before deciding that playing the game two more times for the real ending just wasn’t worth it. So I moved on to... Resident Evil 7: Biohazard I don’t scare easily. I’m not afraid of movies, shows, or games generally speaking, but the hour I played of this game terrified me. I honestly don’t know if I can keep with it. Might just have to play it in 30 minute intervals or something.

Tried to listen to some tracks. Scores like these are the aggravating cause why people, when you say you listen to film music, reply with "What do you mean, you listen to the background music?"

Sure this has been mentioned elsewhere, but I'm listening to Ready Player One , enjoying all the musical easter eggs, and I was struck by "Arty on the 'Inside'" -- Silvestri really places a great new spin on "Everybody Runs" from Minority Report Only fitting, since Williams clearly borrowed a page from Silvestri's Death Becomes Her in "Eye-Dentiscan" from Minority Report.

One Twitter user aptly compared Lebrecht to Joanne Rowling's Rita Skeeter character.

I dunno. what if VPO and Deutche Grammaphone execs read it can they be influenced into thinking they were wrong doing this concert or feel guilty about it ? He's basically accusing them of commiting somekind of great sacrilege against the classical elite

Nope. There are still several important cues missing, including unreleased music by the Rhythm Devils, plus most of the tracks on the Redux album are early versions or alternate takes of the music heard in the film.

I wish LLLR's site had an option to list only albums that are currently in stock. Now, nearly all the popular titles are out of stock!

It was OK. Not on the wild, experimental level of "Spectral Shimmers" or anything, but better than a lot of the scores he wrote in the last 5-6 years of his career. I think if he had gotten a few more pieces under his sleeve, we would have seen an immense improvement.

This is the John Williams equivalent Christian Clemmensen Hans Zimmer score review

I don't easily connect to Altman except for ... This movie was a hypnotizing trip for me.

He's made a career of being a contrarian wankspangle. Pay it no mind.

Boy, those late trumpets in Star Wars must have really set him off.

Haters gonna hate. Annoyingly, Lebrecht is unclear about the reason for his unnecessarily mean-spirited criticism. He says that the album getting one star would be an insult, yet appears to have no problem with JW’s conducting or ASM’s playing. He seems to think the VPO has no business ever playing JW’s film music, which supposedly can’t ever stand on its own without the visuals it was written for, although he mentions exceptional pieces (so how about discussing those?). And at the end, he makes it all about himself, just as you would expect a prick with a pretension complex to do.

Music streaming is amazing, and I can't imagine why anyone has a problem with it. Every Friday I check out all the new film scores and pop/rock albums I'm interested in, and buy the ones I like on CD if they are available that way. If they are not, I can legally listen on Spotify and that's fine with me! Randomly, I discover all sorts of stuff I never would have otherwise, especially in the video gaming world. All kinda of interesting covers and remixes along with original releases, too.

Maybe not something Goldsmith-level, but I'd love an action fantasy score similar to The Chronicles of Narnia, Sinbad and Kingdom of Heaven. HGW is talented, and this movie was his best chance to bring back his 2000s style.

Updated 2/26/2021 with more cue titles With the discussion of the scores that have the most unreleased cues, I was curious to take a closer look at The Patriot. Here’s a breakdown of the OST: 1 The Patriot 6:40 End Credits [without coda] 2 The Family Farm 3:04 1M3 The Patriot 3 To Charleston 2:15 1M5 The Letter Scene 4 The Colonial Cause 3:16 0:00-0:51 8M6 Alt - Martin Rejoins The Troops 0:51-end 9M2A The British Counter-attack 5 Redcoats At The Farm And The Death Of Thomas 5:00 0:00-0:47 9M1 Tavington’s Premature Charge 0:47-3:31 3M1 The Death of Thomas 3:31-end 3M1 Insert - Into the Burning House 6 Ann Recruits The Parishioners 3:09 4M5A Ann’s Speech in the Church 7 Preparing For Battle 5:50 0:00-2:07 9M2 Martin Sets the Trap 2:07-end 8M7 Preparing for Battle 8 Ann And Gabriel 4:35 0:00-2:17 5M4 Ann and Gabriel 2:17-end 5M5 Ann and Gabriel Part 9 The First Ambush And Remembering The Wilderness 4:00 0:00-1:13 5M7 Remembering the Wilderness 1:13-2:14 3M2 The First Ambush 2:14-end 3M3 After the Ambush 10 Tavington’s Trap 4:10 0:00-2:01 5M6 Tavington’s Ambush 2:01-end 8M1? Gabriel's Last Fight 11 The Burning Of The Plantation 4:56 0:00-3:08 6M4 Tavington to the Plantation 3:08-end 6M5 Burning the Plantation 12 Facing The British Lines 3:05 0:00-1:28 4M9 Villenueve’s Training 1:28-1:48 9M1 Tavington’s Premature Charge 1:35-1:45 4M1 British Grenadiers 1:44-1:48 1M7 Yankee Doodle 1:48-1:59 [unknown] 1:59-end 8M6 The Patriot Returns 13 The Parish Church Aflame 3:04 7M8 The Burning of the Church 14 Susan Speaks 3:17 7M5 or 7M6? Susan Speaks 15 Martin Vs. Tavington 3:07 0:00-2:22 9M3 New - Martin vs. Tavington 2:22-end 9M3 Tavington’s End 16 Yorktown And The Return Home 5:20 9M4 Rev 2 - On To Yorktown 17 The Patriot Reprise 7:50 End Credits [with coda] There seems to be a few cues missing from the sheet music: the two cues comprising “Susan Speaks” and the second half of “Tavington’s Trap”, so I’ve used the titles from the rear channel rip with sound effects. Let me know if you can identify any of those bits. Not even counting the source music, there’s over 20 completely unreleased cues, some quite substantial! Worth noting that 8M3+4 “The Death of Gabriel” as written is much longer than what’s heard in the film. Also, as far as I can tell, 9MAX “Over the Top”, a nice bit of action music, isn’t used at all. *Unreleased **Partially unreleased 1M3 The Patriot *1M4 The North Star 1M5 The Letter Scene *1M6 Martin and Charlotte 1M7 Yankee Doodle [source] *2M1 Addressing the Assembly *2M2 Prince Eugene March [source] *2M2A British Grenadiers [source] *2M3 The Defeat at Charlestown *2M3 Rev. - The Defeat at Charleston Revised *2M4 Remembering Fort Wilderness *2M5 Walking Among the Fallen *2M6-7 Redcoats in the Cornfield **3M1 The Death of Thomas 3M1 (Insert) - Into the Burning House 3M2 The First Ambush 3M3 After the Ambush *3M4 Rev. Martin and Sons *3M5 Martin Leaves the Family 4M1 British Grenadiers [source] *4M3 Reading the War Map *4M4 The Colonel and the Corporal 4M5A Ann’s Speech in the Church *4M6 The Tavern [source] *4M7 More Tavern [source] *4M8 Rough Fighter Recruited 4M9 Villenueve’s Training *5M1 At Camp [source] 5M4 Ann and Gabriel 5M5 Ann and Gabriel Part 5M6 Tavington’s Ambush 5M7 Remembering the Wilderness *5M8 Martin to the Stockade *6M1 Fort Drums [source] *6M2 Tavington vs. Martin *6M3 British Grenadiers [source] 6M4 Tavington to the Plantation 6M5 Burning the Plantation *6M6 To Gullah Maroon *7M1 Burnt-out Homes *7M2 Susan and Father *7M3 The Wedding *7M4 Ann’s Wedding [source] 7M5 or 7M6? Susan Speaks *7M7 The Parisians Return 7M8 The Burning of the Church *7M9 Burnt Out Church 8M1? Gabriel's Last Fight *8M2? Gabriel Mortally Wounded *8M3+4 The Death of Gabriel 8M6 The Patriot Returns 8M6 Alt - Martin Rejoins the Troops *8M6 New - New Intro 8M7 Preparing for Battle *8M9 Battle Drums [source] 9M1 Tavington's Premature Charge *9M1B [British drums source] 9M2 Martin Sets the Trap **9M2A The British Counter-attack *9M2AX Over the Top **9M2B Martin vs. Tavington 9M3 New - Martin vs. Tavington 9M3 Tavington’s End 9M4 Rev - On To Yorktown 9M4 Rev 2 - On To Yorktown End Credits

Right. I’m not expecting a thing, especially while we’re in a pandemic. I honestly still can’t believe our luck that he finished Star Wars in time, not to mention he was already an old fuckin man anyway when he committed to a 5 year project. It’s great to know that he’s writing his own music as we speak and so we have certainly not heard the last from John Williams. But if he does another film score, it’s clearly not gonna be before he’s 90. Every one going forward will be a miracle to me and he’s already been beating the odds as it is. I’m grateful for an unexpectedly amazing 2010s. I absolutely did not see him being this prolific and I was frankly biting my nails the whole way through every time a new project was announced. Now, that epic marathon is over and the film and music industry have gone into slow motion, if not at a total standstill, while time marches on as ever. It would be awesome to be looking back again at more great work when we’re approaching his 100th bday. I’m not celebrating until I at least know a score has been composed. When War Horse and Tintin came out just before his 80th, my entire perspective shifted on this. I was so happy to have those two and I felt like that was a really full meal, like wow, how lucky. 9 years later I feel like The BFG at Buckingham Palace.

Of the two, I prefer the original. It's true that the alternate opening is more "badass, wilder more aggressive," but it's almost too much, too soon. I like the way the first version is a slow build from beginning to end.

Ideally, I'd put the performers in the "artist" tag and the composer in "composer". But unfortunately, the ID3 system, and even more most software using it, seems to have been created mostly by people unfamiliar with the concept of music being first written by a composer and then performed by different artists, so usually "artist" means composer and writer and performer at the same time. My player software even has a feature where I could define that for certain genres, the albums are filed under the composer instead of the artist for regular sorting, but unfortunately, I've never been very careful with genre tagging, and I'm not going to re-tag 800GBs worth of music. It would probably cause problems with most other software anyway. So I usually put the "musician(s) of primary import" in the artist tag, and sometimes fill in composer and performer tags as well when relevant. For works of which I have (or expect to have) multiple recordings (mainly classical), I often put the important performers (usually conductor or primary soloist) in parantheses in the title; sometimes also the year (especially when I have multiple recordings by the same performer). For soundtrack re-releases and expansions, I also put the label or "complete" or "expanded" in the title, unless it's the only version I have. None of this is relevant for the Williams concert, because Williams as the artist and the correct title ("John Williams in Vienna" and "John Williams Live in Vienna", respectively) is perfectly sufficient. For classical recordings, I used to put the full roster of performres in the "comments" tag, but stopped doing that years ago when (I think) my ripping software started having problems with it. I never resumed doing that, which is unfortunate, because it means I can't search for individual performers in my collection.

Escape from Monkey Island really suffers from the interface (it was cumbersome in Grim Fandango, but you got used to it) combined with the graphic style (GF was designed to work well with the then limited 3D capabilities, with the calaca characters and everything, while the Monkey series' designs were really rather brutally squeezed into the GrimE engine and style) - and from simply not being very funny much of the time, as far as I remember (though I do have fond memories of a few moments). It's the only one from the original series I've only played once (yet the only one of which I own an original copy, actually) - I've played 1-3 numerous times and know large stretches of them by heart. The Telltale episodic game finally made the 3D thing work - the designs still were serviceable at best, but after a somewhat uneven start the story and humour kicked in and the whole affair felt like a proper Monkey game.

I used to really dislike HGW back in the day. Anonymous, directionless textures that sounded "kinda" like Zimmer, but without the soul and themes. Stuff like THE REPLACEMENT KILLERS and SMILLA'S SENSE OF SNOW etc. But in recent years, I've come to appreciate him more. KINGDOM OF HEAVEN is marvelous, and I dig THE MARTIAN and CHRONICLES OF NARNIA too, among others. I've even come to reappraise SMILLA, which I disliked so much in my youth. So I'm kinda excited for his take on MULAN, although I'm generally opposed to Disney's live action remake project, and the impossible task of filling Goldsmith's shoes.

That's why subtitles are so much better!

I'm looking forward to Saludos Amigos in live action. Yavar