Romão

Are some of you actually complaining that JW composed 3 hours of music for this thing? Would you be happier if he had only composed 120 minutes?
I simply cannot get some of you

Hey it's Goldenthal doing Gothic which means those blaring horns and in every way over the top big music, which I think is entirely in line with the silly movie, where Jim Carrey traipses around with red hair and in green tights and shouts things like "Spank me!".
The Ghost and the Darkness by Jerry Goldsmith: Now this is how an old fashioned adventure movie set in Africa should sound! The Intrada presentation is heaven sent as the film version of the score is inarguably a better experience in my opinion with much added depth to the musical arc and the much need percussion, choir and synths added to the music to give it a fuller and more nuanced feel. The English/Irish main theme based on a traditional melody provides wonderful expansive travel and adventure music that is blended expertly by Goldsmith with the African choral elements and keeps the other side of the score grounded on the Western orchestral idiom that also sings of the heroism of the main characters in an old fashioned manner. But the score is all about the fusion of all the diverse elements, especially in the final form used for the film and here the extra music feels very much a welcome addition that broadens and expands some of the musical ideas and layers.
My favourite additions are the cues featuring the music for the lions, the eerie pulsing chanting, the echoing synth effects and aggressive and pulse pounding percussion and brass that all contribute a slightly otherworldly feel that is both primal and ghostly in a suitable way. It is amazing how some of the vocal work, which sounds a bit extreme with those sharp shouts and yelps, blends into the musical world of the score to form another fascinating facet that doesn't feel out of place in the texture of the piece but contributes a sense of place and culture and even time in allusive manner of the best film scores. The choral work as depiction of the otherness or supernatural for the lions in the film works brilliantly and as Jeff Bond notes in the liner notes the chilling alienness even brings out the pulsing 2-chord progressions out the composer's mind that underscored the foreign terrifying danger in the film Alien.
The original soundtrack album provided as a bonus on disc 2 feels like a stripped down version of the score with much of the fascinating layers of sound removed and plays as a sort of alternate look at the music, not only narratively but also in terms of feel, colour and even dramatic drive. But this is truly the definitive presentation of the music providing a comprehensively full look of the music and even a little window into the creative processes through the numerous alternates present on these discs.

Il Bandito Dagli Occhi Azzurri - Ennio Morricone
Off-kilter italian crime thriller - Franco Nero chases or indeed is a bandito in possession of outrageously blue eyes - and Morricone also quite unusually riff-jazzes along Dave Brubeck NY lines with some Thelonius Monk and Vivaldi thrown in for go(o)d measure. It's a side of EM i've never heard before but who would've doubted him? Great jazz score, though i doubt there are many takers here.

Well, I'm glad to see that no one is over reacting...

His name was Gideon

The bridge at 01:48 and and at 04:17 gets me everytime. Absolutely lovely

SODOM AND GOMORRAH - Miklos Rózsa
In view of the mammoth length of this score's wonderful reconstruction on Tadlow i go in the opposite direction and keep this one short and sweet: you might not need every 1-minute lute piece or court dance, but dammit if Rózsa's epic sweep - you are up against the forces of history - doesn't make you feel elated. The often overbearing orchestral tumult of Rózsa's more action-oriented scores is kept at minimum here and and a stately, yearning and lush streak runs through the bulk of he score, which together with EL CID remains my favourite by this composer (at the expense of the better-known BEN-HUR).
It may be partly due to the season and the threatening volatility of our time that things like this take on more meaning today than in the 90's so let's be thankful for Tadlow for producing this splendid set. It comforts with themes of nobility, heroism and longing that are just for the ages.

These compilations are important for new listeners or casual listeners. Nothing wrong with them

Perhaps JJ simply does not want the music to be heard before the movie comes out. It's understandable

Very insightful interview with JJ Abrams
He does mention John Williams:
So: John Williams!
Oh my God! First of all, forget his talent and his achievement. As a person, hes the guy you want to know more than anyone. He is the sweetest soul Ive ever met. Hes like this jazzman who became one of the greatest composers of all time. He literally calls you baby! Like, Hey, baby. He calls me J.J. Baby. I waited all my life to meet someone who would call me that!
He works in pencil. You go to his home and listen to him play notes on the piano, and while youre listening, you extrapolate what it will be like when you hear the melody with an orchestra. It is unforgettable, a truly miraculous thing to behold. He has every one of his scores leather-bound. I was like, Do you mind if I ? He goes, No, go ahead! So I pulled out the Jaws score, and sure enough, there it is, in pencil on paper: baaaa-bum, baaaa-bum. Youre like, Well, thats what he wrote! Its as if youre hanging out with Mozart, who happened to score your favorite movies.
I know everybody knows this, but when you actually think about what hes composed, it is as important as any work ever done on any of those movies. When you think about Superman and Raiders and Jawsand Close Encounterswhich came out the same year as Star Warsand then the Harry Potter movies? He is just superhuman. Its unbelievable that he is as brilliant and yet as modest as he is. Its just an amazing thing to get to know that guy.

My favorite statement of the Force Theme in ESB is when Luke calls for Leia while hanging below Cloud City. I adore that scene

Very insightful interview with JJ Abrams
He does mention John Williams:
So: John Williams!
Oh my God! First of all, forget his talent and his achievement. As a person, hes the guy you want to know more than anyone. He is the sweetest soul Ive ever met. Hes like this jazzman who became one of the greatest composers of all time. He literally calls you baby! Like, Hey, baby. He calls me J.J. Baby. I waited all my life to meet someone who would call me that!
He works in pencil. You go to his home and listen to him play notes on the piano, and while youre listening, you extrapolate what it will be like when you hear the melody with an orchestra. It is unforgettable, a truly miraculous thing to behold. He has every one of his scores leather-bound. I was like, Do you mind if I ? He goes, No, go ahead! So I pulled out the Jaws score, and sure enough, there it is, in pencil on paper: baaaa-bum, baaaa-bum. Youre like, Well, thats what he wrote! Its as if youre hanging out with Mozart, who happened to score your favorite movies.
I know everybody knows this, but when you actually think about what hes composed, it is as important as any work ever done on any of those movies. When you think about Superman and Raiders and Jawsand Close Encounterswhich came out the same year as Star Warsand then the Harry Potter movies? He is just superhuman. Its unbelievable that he is as brilliant and yet as modest as he is. Its just an amazing thing to get to know that guy.

Very insightful interview with JJ Abrams
He does mention John Williams:
So: John Williams!
Oh my God! First of all, forget his talent and his achievement. As a person, hes the guy you want to know more than anyone. He is the sweetest soul Ive ever met. Hes like this jazzman who became one of the greatest composers of all time. He literally calls you baby! Like, Hey, baby. He calls me J.J. Baby. I waited all my life to meet someone who would call me that!
He works in pencil. You go to his home and listen to him play notes on the piano, and while youre listening, you extrapolate what it will be like when you hear the melody with an orchestra. It is unforgettable, a truly miraculous thing to behold. He has every one of his scores leather-bound. I was like, Do you mind if I ? He goes, No, go ahead! So I pulled out the Jaws score, and sure enough, there it is, in pencil on paper: baaaa-bum, baaaa-bum. Youre like, Well, thats what he wrote! Its as if youre hanging out with Mozart, who happened to score your favorite movies.
I know everybody knows this, but when you actually think about what hes composed, it is as important as any work ever done on any of those movies. When you think about Superman and Raiders and Jawsand Close Encounterswhich came out the same year as Star Warsand then the Harry Potter movies? He is just superhuman. Its unbelievable that he is as brilliant and yet as modest as he is. Its just an amazing thing to get to know that guy.

Very insightful interview with JJ Abrams
He does mention John Williams:
So: John Williams!
Oh my God! First of all, forget his talent and his achievement. As a person, hes the guy you want to know more than anyone. He is the sweetest soul Ive ever met. Hes like this jazzman who became one of the greatest composers of all time. He literally calls you baby! Like, Hey, baby. He calls me J.J. Baby. I waited all my life to meet someone who would call me that!
He works in pencil. You go to his home and listen to him play notes on the piano, and while youre listening, you extrapolate what it will be like when you hear the melody with an orchestra. It is unforgettable, a truly miraculous thing to behold. He has every one of his scores leather-bound. I was like, Do you mind if I ? He goes, No, go ahead! So I pulled out the Jaws score, and sure enough, there it is, in pencil on paper: baaaa-bum, baaaa-bum. Youre like, Well, thats what he wrote! Its as if youre hanging out with Mozart, who happened to score your favorite movies.
I know everybody knows this, but when you actually think about what hes composed, it is as important as any work ever done on any of those movies. When you think about Superman and Raiders and Jawsand Close Encounterswhich came out the same year as Star Warsand then the Harry Potter movies? He is just superhuman. Its unbelievable that he is as brilliant and yet as modest as he is. Its just an amazing thing to get to know that guy.

Very insightful interview with JJ Abrams
He does mention John Williams:
So: John Williams!
Oh my God! First of all, forget his talent and his achievement. As a person, hes the guy you want to know more than anyone. He is the sweetest soul Ive ever met. Hes like this jazzman who became one of the greatest composers of all time. He literally calls you baby! Like, Hey, baby. He calls me J.J. Baby. I waited all my life to meet someone who would call me that!
He works in pencil. You go to his home and listen to him play notes on the piano, and while youre listening, you extrapolate what it will be like when you hear the melody with an orchestra. It is unforgettable, a truly miraculous thing to behold. He has every one of his scores leather-bound. I was like, Do you mind if I ? He goes, No, go ahead! So I pulled out the Jaws score, and sure enough, there it is, in pencil on paper: baaaa-bum, baaaa-bum. Youre like, Well, thats what he wrote! Its as if youre hanging out with Mozart, who happened to score your favorite movies.
I know everybody knows this, but when you actually think about what hes composed, it is as important as any work ever done on any of those movies. When you think about Superman and Raiders and Jawsand Close Encounterswhich came out the same year as Star Warsand then the Harry Potter movies? He is just superhuman. Its unbelievable that he is as brilliant and yet as modest as he is. Its just an amazing thing to get to know that guy.

Very insightful interview with JJ Abrams
He does mention John Williams:
So: John Williams!
Oh my God! First of all, forget his talent and his achievement. As a person, hes the guy you want to know more than anyone. He is the sweetest soul Ive ever met. Hes like this jazzman who became one of the greatest composers of all time. He literally calls you baby! Like, Hey, baby. He calls me J.J. Baby. I waited all my life to meet someone who would call me that!
He works in pencil. You go to his home and listen to him play notes on the piano, and while youre listening, you extrapolate what it will be like when you hear the melody with an orchestra. It is unforgettable, a truly miraculous thing to behold. He has every one of his scores leather-bound. I was like, Do you mind if I ? He goes, No, go ahead! So I pulled out the Jaws score, and sure enough, there it is, in pencil on paper: baaaa-bum, baaaa-bum. Youre like, Well, thats what he wrote! Its as if youre hanging out with Mozart, who happened to score your favorite movies.
I know everybody knows this, but when you actually think about what hes composed, it is as important as any work ever done on any of those movies. When you think about Superman and Raiders and Jawsand Close Encounterswhich came out the same year as Star Warsand then the Harry Potter movies? He is just superhuman. Its unbelievable that he is as brilliant and yet as modest as he is. Its just an amazing thing to get to know that guy.

Very insightful interview with JJ Abrams
He does mention John Williams:
So: John Williams!
Oh my God! First of all, forget his talent and his achievement. As a person, hes the guy you want to know more than anyone. He is the sweetest soul Ive ever met. Hes like this jazzman who became one of the greatest composers of all time. He literally calls you baby! Like, Hey, baby. He calls me J.J. Baby. I waited all my life to meet someone who would call me that!
He works in pencil. You go to his home and listen to him play notes on the piano, and while youre listening, you extrapolate what it will be like when you hear the melody with an orchestra. It is unforgettable, a truly miraculous thing to behold. He has every one of his scores leather-bound. I was like, Do you mind if I ? He goes, No, go ahead! So I pulled out the Jaws score, and sure enough, there it is, in pencil on paper: baaaa-bum, baaaa-bum. Youre like, Well, thats what he wrote! Its as if youre hanging out with Mozart, who happened to score your favorite movies.
I know everybody knows this, but when you actually think about what hes composed, it is as important as any work ever done on any of those movies. When you think about Superman and Raiders and Jawsand Close Encounterswhich came out the same year as Star Warsand then the Harry Potter movies? He is just superhuman. Its unbelievable that he is as brilliant and yet as modest as he is. Its just an amazing thing to get to know that guy.

Very insightful interview with JJ Abrams
He does mention John Williams:
So: John Williams!
Oh my God! First of all, forget his talent and his achievement. As a person, hes the guy you want to know more than anyone. He is the sweetest soul Ive ever met. Hes like this jazzman who became one of the greatest composers of all time. He literally calls you baby! Like, Hey, baby. He calls me J.J. Baby. I waited all my life to meet someone who would call me that!
He works in pencil. You go to his home and listen to him play notes on the piano, and while youre listening, you extrapolate what it will be like when you hear the melody with an orchestra. It is unforgettable, a truly miraculous thing to behold. He has every one of his scores leather-bound. I was like, Do you mind if I ? He goes, No, go ahead! So I pulled out the Jaws score, and sure enough, there it is, in pencil on paper: baaaa-bum, baaaa-bum. Youre like, Well, thats what he wrote! Its as if youre hanging out with Mozart, who happened to score your favorite movies.
I know everybody knows this, but when you actually think about what hes composed, it is as important as any work ever done on any of those movies. When you think about Superman and Raiders and Jawsand Close Encounterswhich came out the same year as Star Warsand then the Harry Potter movies? He is just superhuman. Its unbelievable that he is as brilliant and yet as modest as he is. Its just an amazing thing to get to know that guy.

Seven Years in Tibet sits confortably in my JW top 10

I'm really tired of people mistaking the memorability of a theme with its quality.
The POTC theme is very much widely recognized today. As for its quality...

I'm really tired of people mistaking the memorability of a theme with its quality.
The POTC theme is very much widely recognized today. As for its quality...

I'm really tired of people mistaking the memorability of a theme with its quality.
The POTC theme is very much widely recognized today. As for its quality...