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My track-by-track reactions as I finally listen to the OST for the first time, after seeing the film once and otherwise having no exposure to the music: Prologue to Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny: Really strong opening to the album. Truly feels like a overture, in a good way. Love how it hits so many themes. Starts us off on the right foot with no quotes of old material. Helena's Theme: Not as catchy as some of JW's more tuneful writing in past decades, but beautiful and interesting. And something you won't get to hear from any other working film composers. Germany, 1944: Aaaaaand there go the verbatim quotes of previous scores. Boo. What a relief to mostly return to new material for the second half. That being said, in the film and on album, I do really like the choice to end this sequence with the unused tag from the end of Raiders' credits. To Morocco: Nice choice in terms of album flow. Voller Returns: I dig the unsettling underscore and bits of villain and MacGuffin themes. Again, great choice in terms of album sequencing. Auction at Hotel L'Atlantique: Our first bit of outright comedic material on the album. I thought the KOTCS OST brought this in too early with "The Snake Pit." This works much better. Then I get annoyed with the Tintin lifts in the last half, as I did in the film. But it's brilliant writing, and with time, I'm sure I'll grow to like it on its own terms. Tuk Tuk in Tangers: It is a miracle that this nonagenarian can still mickey mouse his way through an action sequence in a way that sounds so fresh, exciting, and musically satisfying. It's obviously Williams music, but it doesn't feel redundant with his previous scores. Bravo. To Athens: I remembered the traveling music feels more authentically Indiana Jones than the visuals onscreen. So nice to hear it on album - great unique statements of Helena's and Indy's themes. Another strong track. Perils of the Deep: Pretty subdued "breather" track. The reharmonization of Marion's theme at the end is interesting. Water Ballet: Love the creepy stuff. And again, NOT at all redundant with the series' previous creepy music. The creative use of piano, percussion, and even organ is Polybius Cipher: Similar to material we've already heard on the album. Kind of a curious inclusion. The Graphikos: My attention wandered a bit. But not bad. I continue to enjoy the dissonant misterioso keyboard figures. The buildup toward the end is cool. Archimedes' Tomb: Nice to hear the return of some of the thematic material for the titular dial. Or for Archimedes himself? I can't recall. The Airport: I like the urgent, serious interpolations of the themes for Helana and the villains. Gearing up for the climax of the film and album! Battle of Syracuse: More unique action writing, befitting the Grecian setting. Love it. Great climax to the action of the film. Centuries Join Hands: Not much to say, other than I like it! New York, 1969: A less than satisfying conclusion to the main part of the album. I could have done without the masterful but overly familiar KOTC setting of Marion's theme. The end of the film proper is a disappointment, and it's no better on album, sadly. I'm glad the credits version of the Raiders March at least closes things out. Helena's Theme (For Violin and Orchestra): The theme is so well-suited to solo violin, and to Mutter's playing specifically. A great contribution to these two artists' fruitful collaboration, and a joy in terms of pure music, regardless of whether it fits the character. Overall notes: There's something that feels a little different about the quality of the recording itself, compared to other recent Williams recordings in LA. I think I like it. It's surprising that we get so much "close" sound from spot mics on the piano, celeste, and harp ... and still more surprising that I enjoy it. Normally I prefer a wetter, more distant sound. The celeste is also very much not the Potter sound, which is a nice change from, say, KOTCS or Tintin. Still hate that I couldn't buy this on CD, especially because ... ... I enjoyed the album way more than I expected! It really de-emphasizes the verbatim or near-verbatim quotes of old material, favoring stuff that not only is new, but feels new. Again, it's incredible that a man in his 90s can still bring music into being without it all feeling like a rehash. Frankly, it did feel like a rehash in the film to me, due to all the quotes. Not here. What a sublime surprise. I'm really looking forward to giving this another listen. (And many more afterward!) Is it on the level of Raiders or TOD? Of course not. But when it focuses on doing something new, rather than retreading the brilliance of the past, it becomes a truly worthy addition to the Williams canon.

The cross section!

Being given away free outside the Concert Hall!!

A boutique German label has issued a new remastered edition of Oliver Stone’s BOTFJ with an isolated score and SFX track. There is also a new documentary with Music Supervisor Budd Carr which will no doubt mention JW. The original Oliver Stone commentary which mentions JW numerous times has been copied across. The opening titles cue to this movie remain one of the most powerful and effective. Stunning! https://turbine-shop.de/33965/geboren-am-4.-juli-mediabook-2x-blu-ray-special-edition-mit-auro-3d-1.500-stueck

I don't understand everyone's problem with the Willie character.

Here are some cd scans I picked off ebay.

One thing that I really like about the DCC release is that it exists in a rarely-seen perfect middle ground where both C&C fans and OST fans like this album just as much as the other releases for this score. The music is presented chronologically, without any mid-cue microedits, but even from an OST fan's perspective, it's still a tight, fully engaging listening experience. There are cues omitted from the program, but even from a C&C fan's perspective, the program doesn't suffer too much from these few missing cues; it feels complete, even though it isn't. Honestly, if a perfect Mike Matessino release of this score had more-or-less the structure Jay posted awhile back, but also included a third disc that featured a rebuild of the DCC program without the between-track cue endings, I wouldn't complain about its inclusion at all, especially since it'd be a nice way to include the short edit of the Raiders March with the coda without needing to cram it into one of the first two discs. Throw in a new assembly of the full Desert Chase that uses the uncut album take of Indy's Feats in the Alternates section on Disc 2 (for a total of 76-ish minutes) and it'd be the perfect Raiders expansion as far as I'm concerned.

I feel like DOD's original material at least feels more distinct and separate than TLJ (where the reused material formed the foundation of the score). If anything the DOD OST doesn't have enough Indy's theme, focusing largely on Helena's theme

It’s like the Holy Lance in the film? A replica?

Just happened at today’s concert in between the two encores (1941 and Imperial March). Was a really touching moment that I don’t think the Maestro was expecting. I’m sure a recording will be released! EDIT: Official footage/recap:

Wait, cue 2M3A was used on this sequence for exactly one second?

Man that DCC… for those who weren’t around back then… after going so long with the OST, when the dam burst with the 4CD Star Wars Anthology and then this DCC of Raiders… it was indescribably awesome. Getting all.those. iconic. unreleased.cues made the hairs on the neck stand up. And hearing the complete unedited Desert Chase was just amazing. The mix leans heavy on the tubas in that track… I hope Matessino preserves that one day, because it was so much more wonderfully pronounced than on the OST mastering. These days we all want complete, with alternates, and Matessino mastering. But it cannot be understated what a gift that was to the devoted back then.

I wouldn’t hold my breath. The ever-increasing proliferation of DAW / keyboard-centric composers, the continuing use of mid-late noughties Zimmer in temp music, and the ubiquitous presence of RC alumni in the upper echelons of film scoring (many of whom probably had a large involvement in the “Zimmer” sound in the first place) mean that this approach to action will be around for a while yet.

Like a cross between An Inconvenient Truth and Bad Taste?

yeah I got excited for a split second

Only Bespin does that! He has a thumb fetish.

While we’re on TPM, (and forgive if this is posted somewhere obvious) - is there a simple breakdown somewhere of how the music in the last reel was recut/tracked? I know so much time has been devoted to recovering the original cues from the edits but I’m curious about the reverse…

I don't quite understand the appeal of isolated score with fx. If you're going down this route at all, why not just the score on its own?

It’s still 3 weeks ‘til August 9th. The CD should’ve been released on the movie’s release day.

Oh dear, the ambiguity carnage I caused here by my mumbling! Apologies, I’ll learn to annunciate better next time!

A Streetcar Named Desire - I changed the colour levels, looks better now + some new revisions.

thanks for your insight. it's why you're such a great member on this forum. i'll continue to joke about this while you unironically write stuff like this: i remember when i scribbled angrily in my diary

Diamond Head: Nice orchestrations, interesting harmonies. Mostly source-like cues. I don't suppose this is the complete score, right? I have seen the film but don't remember. I guess it needs an expansion? Gone with the wave: Another nice loungy score. All cues are like source cues.

That's what your mother said.

@mahler3 was just waxing nostalgic for this long-lost cookie from the 80s…

I think helena saying she has a degree in archaeology and doing a phD was fake, to make indy show her the dial. probably all she knows was learnt seeing her father or taught by him when she was young

Of particular interest is that UCLA's Royce Hall presents one LTP concert every November, courtesy of the Amercian Youth Symphony Orchestra. Since 2015, their LTP concerts have all been from the production company 'Film Concerts Live', probably because one of the orchestra's board members, Steven Linder, is the co-founder of FCL. In November 2019, the American Youth Symphony Orchestra presented the 'Apollo 13' LTP concert. The article says that the Horner collection will be available to researchers in the fall. I am wondering whether UCLA, the American Youth Symphony, and FCL will get together to present an LTP concert of a film featuring a Horner score this November as a way to inaugurate the collection--for awareness and/or fundraising opportunities. Definitely a good way to spend a week-long vacation for a film-music fan--studying composer's scores for days and caping the final evening with an LTP concert.

imagine Poledouris

I like her actually

Yeah, I agree. Maybe they couldn't get the rights for using the music alone though. And sometimes the score alone doesn't exist, but in this case we know it does since there is that bootleg with the complete music.

I bought the individual releases of the first three.

I think this is my least favorite film (and score) of the original trilogy, but a great film again nonetheless. I have the 4 film blu-ray collection, but I will pass on Crystal skull. I wish the trilogy had stopped here.

So what was it?

Ah, so I finally agree with you about something , though 8 minutes sounds generous.

No pain no gain.

60 to 70% of which we've already been hearing for at least a few decades. Sorry. Just not fond of the COS/Home Alone 2/DOD approach that relies so heavily on existing material. TLJ has some of that too. At JW's age, he's earned the chance to take this approach now, but I can't enjoy it the way I enjoy a score that makes minimal use of stuff he's already written.

It's been 2 weeks, is the score still in anyone's rotation? It still is for me.

Looks like James Mangold has officially confirmed for us that the opening of the film takes place in Germany, 1944.

Yes, it does. It's not an original CD. I can't imagine not having Anne-Sophie Mutter's name of the last track (it's on the album shown on social media). There are more differences. Someone paid over a hundred dollars on Ebay for this fake CD (and there were more bidders!) https://www.ebay.com/itm/185976370117?_trksid=p2047675.l2557&nma=true&si=esGIQaJoPeVykMXRUTNFMS7zufg%3D&orig_cvip=true&nordt=true&rt=nc

Went to the Cinema today watching DoD and most of all enjoyed the great music.

1. Rey's Theme 2. Rise of Skywalker (The Rise of Skywalker) 3. The Fabelmans (The Fabelmans) 4. Adventures of Han (Solo) 5. Dear Basketball (Dear Basketball) 6. Kylo Ren's Theme 7. Mother and Daughter (The Post) 8. The Presses Roll (The Post) 9. The BFG friendship theme (The BFG) (0:56 of Blowing Dreams) 10. The Nazi Suite (prologue from The Dial of Destiny)

I'm 99% joking about my level of care for this. But that 1% of me is: you're telling me he just didn't look at cue titles? I'm not buying that one bit. Which leads me to believe he himself was confused with the timeline/history of the prologue. Which isn't the best of looks. But honestly it doesn't matter.

Digital purchases

But do you have the kazoo version?

Interview, and yes, John's voice sounds a little course. Perhaps he talked a lot at rehearsals as this was recorded just before the concerts. Stay young Johnny!

Last night I dreamed I was JW but retiring as a high school music teacher. My last class was making a recording of the Star Wars main title performed by a high school music class with recorders, kazoos, and other poorly performed instruments. James Mangold stopped by to give me a cassette tape recording of the DoD scoring sessions...

Wow! I had no idea! this is a test i think its working but i have no idea what i'd use it for

Wake me when they do University