Varese Sarabande releases Family Plot!

[Gruesome Son of a Bitch 6,488]

The Eleventh Hour on TV Omnibus.

[Ollie 1,059]

Apparently this isn't stereo, according to Roger Feigelson at Intrada.

http://www.intrada.net/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=3782

[Gruesome Son of a Bitch 6,488]

The samples sound phenomenal. This thing has been sitting in a warehouse God knows where for 30-something years. It's not surprising the elements were lost/destroyed, maybe in the backlot King Kong fire.

[King Mark 3,624]

Well it figures .

The samples do sound good though, better than the low bitrate bootleg MP3's. I hear the triangles or whatever in only one side so I thought it was stereo

[Demondm810 398]

I think even the samples sound amazing. I'm not worried though. When Matessino is involved, it always turns out well.

[pixie_twinkle 48]

Holy crap. Ordered!

Happy Christmas everybody!!!!

[GoodMusician 56]

I don't like a lot of the reverb they did to it. It overtakes the actual room sound... but eh... I'm gonna buy it just to have it but I like the sound of the slightly altered complete boot (with some added touches of mine :-p)

Any word on what that final track is? An alternate maybe... i don't recognize the track... maybe it's the source cue?

[King Mark 3,624]

I wonder why they don't list the source of the c.d. in the description ,they always do usually .

Maybe they don't want us to know the truth , "made from the original 88 kbps MP3Pro internet bootleg , the only surviving source of the score .All known master tapes burned in the fire "

[indy4 155]

I wonder why they don't list the source of the c.d. in the description ,they always do usually .

Maybe they don't want us to know the truth , "made from the original 88 kbps MP3Pro internet bootleg , the only surviving source of the score .All known master tapes burned in the fire "

None of the releases from Vareses' latest batch reveal the source of the music, so I guess they just aren't including that information on the website anymore.

[Incanus 5,713]

Does this mean indy4 is finally going to leave us?

Sorry, you're stuck with me! If anything, this release will just reinforce my love for soundtracks and John Williams, and cause me to post here more often.

But seriously, if anybody is on the fence I cannot recommend this enough. The entire reason I joined JWFan was to get a quasi-petition going for Family Plot that I could send to Varese, Intrada, FSM, etc (at that time I was new to soundtracks and didn't understand that these labels were well aware of the demand for unreleased Williams scores). This has been my highest Holy Grail since I saw the film, even when we were living off a 30 minute Temple of Doom OST. It's unique, accessible, beautiful, fun, and creepy. It features instruments that Williams doesn't regularly use - ie harpsichords and synths, as well as his usual fare (which includes a gorgeous female choir). I guarantee that a lot of the music from this score is not something you can find in other Williams scores. And if the music doesn't interest you, it's historically pretty important - Williams only collaboriation with Hitchock and Hitchock's last film, yes, but it also features Williams' father in a timpani-heavy action cue.

Cool! I did not know John Sr. played on this soundtrack!

I ordered this in a heartbeat. I would recommend this to anyone who likes 1970's Williams.

Family Plot is indeed a fun score from the only collaboration with the master of suspence himself. I would say it is a mix of Black Sunday and the Witches of Eastwick as it combines at times dark suspence with an air of mystery and playfulness. Great main theme and strong accompanying motifs. Williams is clearly following Hitch's advice of "murder can be fun" in this score.

The Seance theme for Madame Blanche is both beautiful and just a slightly humorous with the cooing women's choir, suggesting spiritual world as much as that it is a hoax.

Harpsichord is used in the score to suggest the high society and money but also to add an interesting sharp sound to the orchestral palette that punctuates many of the cues.

The main theme is playful and optimistic material, tongue-in-the-cheek at times following the exploits of the two protagonists.

The jewel thieves and their plotting and the mystery of the story receives an ominous theme of its own, somewhat classically tinged in its progression projecting just the right amount of threat and determination but never building too savage or grim, suggesting in turn mystery and foreboding.

The film somehow balances between outright suspence and good natured caper and Williams has composed a score to reflect this in the best possible way. The sound is very classic 1970's Williams with shades of previous scores like Jaws or the upcoming ones like Superman (some pizzicato string comedic moments) and Black Sunday (suspence feel) and Star Wars (some more frenetic action material) in the mix. Maestro utilizes themes throughout manipulating them in a great fashion.

[King Mark 3,624]

By: mxmx (Member)

In response to some emails I received and some comments here I thought I'd post some clarification. The only surviving elements for "Family Plot" are the 3-track mono mixdowns which we encounter often in scores from this period. Rather than just present mono, some very careful and attentive engineering was implemented to bring out the best of what the element offers but stopping short of things sounding weird and unbalanced... as was the case with the End Credits on the Hip-O label a while back. That release accessed the same element for that track (truncated and somehow presented at a noticeably slow speed) and you could hear there how odd it is to have all the strings on the left channel and the harpsichord on the far right.

Our booklet has a technical note explaining this a bit further, but actually Bruce Kimmel recently went into detail about this phenomenon at the Kritzerland site in discussing his "Carrie" release, explaining how you can basically get a stereo "field" but not a traditional stereo instrumental "spread." On that title he had the luxury of going beyond the 3-track mono element and back to the multi-track for a proper remix, just as FSM was able to do for "Black Sunday," but sadly no other elements from "Family Plot" were located in the Universal archives. This being the case, we worked hard to give a consistent and full-bodied sound to this long sought-after score.

Mike

[crocodile 7,983]

Fair enough to me.

Karol

[TownerFan 4,983]

It's sad that stereo masters are no longer in existence, but I guess there's nothing to do in this case. Also, you have to consider that a lot of movies before 1977 were mixed and released in mono.

And I must say Varèse has a good track of doing excellent mono mixes: Spartacus, Lonely are the Brave and The Spiral Road all sound really good.

[Miguel Andrade 1,260]

Any word on what that final track is? An alternate maybe... i don't recognize the track... maybe it's the source cue?

It might be in fact a source cue, a Williams composed rockish song heard on a radio at the grave stones store.

[fommes 153]

Judging from the track times and comparing them to the bootleg, there is extra music in one cue on the VS CD: Maloney's Visit / Maloney's Knife / The Stake-Out (probably the 'Maloney's Knife' cue, which was 'Old Friends (Short Version)' on the boot).

Unless 'The Stonecutter' encompasses a series of alternates (which is possible given its length, but I'm going to follow Miguel's opinion that it's a source cue), we're missing alternates for: "The Shoebridge Headstone", "The Second Séance", "Maloney's Exit", and "Blanche Gets the Needle".

[TownerFan 4,983]

Eiger Sanction is a cool score, but having both old releases, I'd prefer a new Dracula first.

Both are part of Universal catalogue, so probably Intrada or Varèse will release them at some point.

I was realizing that a lot of Williams' scores that should be released (or re-released in expanded form) are Universal titles:

The Secret Ways

The Plainsman

The Rare Breed

Story of a Woman

The Screaming Woman

Pete 'n' Tillie

Earthquake

The Eiger Sanction

Midway

Dracula

Jaws 2

plus a lot of television scores Williams did for Revue Studios (now controlled by Universal) during the mid-60s.

I guess Varèse and Intrada will probably release some of these titles.

[fommes 153]

I still want Earthquake, Dracula, and Jaws 2, which were out of print before I could pick them up. Oh, and The Towering Inferno and The Paper Chase of course.

[Naïve Old Fart 9,493]

I sincerely hope the specialty labels will also continue to search into Williams' older repertoire and release such little unknown gems like The Rare Breed, Pete 'n' Tillie, The Screaming Woman and Story of a Woman.

Lukas said they tried to release Pete 'n' Tillie awhile back and there were no surviving masters. Maybe one day it'll get a rerecording, but definitely not anytime soon.

FUCK YES!!!! :D WOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!

Probably the only thing that remains from "Pete 'n' Tillie" is a recording of "Love's The Only game In Town", by carol Burnett.

Walter Matthau did a recording as well. But apparently the score is very short. You might be able to fit all three of JW's scores for Martin Ritt on one CD.

"All 3 scores on 1 c.d.".

That's a lesson that certain modern film-makers could use

[Luke Skywalker 1,792]

No real stereo? damn...

Well at least we are not double-dipping

[Ollie 1,059]

There are so many scores that need to see a release or re-issue, in either an expanded or complete form. Some old releases could use remastering, and some may have to be recorded again. Granted some are damaged beyond repair or missing elements and may never be found.

But there is still quite a bit out there that still needs to come out in a proper presentation.

I wholeheartedly agree with this. There are NO scores that currently already have soundtrack releases that I feel need another release (well, I COULD do with ABBREVIATED album versions of stuff like GUIDE FOR THE MARRIED MAN etc., but that's a pipe dream).

I much rather want premiere releases of completely unreleased scores, if it is at all possible. There's a whole bunch of them.

You have misread my post. See the comment about re-issues. There a bunch of scores that need to be presented in a complete form that are or were released with missing music.

[Wojo 2,453]

Careful, Mark. You're trying to argue the merits of expanded soundtracks with You Know Who.

[Ollie 1,059]

See that little green title under my name?

[Wojo 2,453]

Nope.

[Jay 37,281]

By: mxmx (Member)

In response to some emails I received and some comments here I thought I'd post some clarification. The only surviving elements for "Family Plot" are the 3-track mono mixdowns which we encounter often in scores from this period. Rather than just present mono, some very careful and attentive engineering was implemented to bring out the best of what the element offers but stopping short of things sounding weird and unbalanced... as was the case with the End Credits on the Hip-O label a while back. That release accessed the same element for that track (truncated and somehow presented at a noticeably slow speed) and you could hear there how odd it is to have all the strings on the left channel and the harpsichord on the far right.

Our booklet has a technical note explaining this a bit further, but actually Bruce Kimmel recently went into detail about this phenomenon at the Kritzerland site in discussing his "Carrie" release, explaining how you can basically get a stereo "field" but not a traditional stereo instrumental "spread." On that title he had the luxury of going beyond the 3-track mono element and back to the multi-track for a proper remix, just as FSM was able to do for "Black Sunday," but sadly no other elements from "Family Plot" were located in the Universal archives. This being the case, we worked hard to give a consistent and full-bodied sound to this long sought-after score.

Mike

mxmx = Mike Matessino, FYI

[Ollie 1,059]

And the sound clips sound superb. So they did an excellent job mastering this CD.

[Wojo 2,453]

Each time I listen to Family Plot, I keep waiting for the theme to Black Sunday to pop up and get disappointed that it doesn't.

[Naïve Old Fart 9,493]

What with "Family Plot", and "First Blood" being released today, Christmas 2010 officially falls on Tueaday 23rd. November.

All this, and "Jesus Of Nazareth" on the way. Er...that's the score, not the person, you understand. Then again, it's that time of year...

[pixie_twinkle 48]

Jesus of Nazareth? Who's releasing that? I have the old vinyl release somewhere. Definitely time to upgrade to CD!

[Trent Hoyt 13]

Ordered.

[Thor 7,463]

There are so many scores that need to see a release or re-issue, in either an expanded or complete form. Some old releases could use remastering, and some may have to be recorded again. Granted some are damaged beyond repair or missing elements and may never be found.

But there is still quite a bit out there that still needs to come out in a proper presentation.

I wholeheartedly agree with this. There are NO scores that currently already have soundtrack releases that I feel need another release (well, I COULD do with ABBREVIATED album versions of stuff like GUIDE FOR THE MARRIED MAN etc., but that's a pipe dream).

I much rather want premiere releases of completely unreleased scores, if it is at all possible. There's a whole bunch of them.

You have misread my post. See the comment about re-issues. There a bunch of scores that need to be presented in a complete form that are or were released with missing music.

Yes, I did apparently misread your post. So let me just agree with what I thought you said in my imagination!

[fommes 153]

Isn't everything just in your imagination, Thor?

[Thor 7,463]

Isn't everything just in your imagination, Thor?

Well, I know that YOU are not....at least not anymore.

[Charlie Brigden 7]

So do Varese no longer suck?

[Jay 37,281]

What do you mean?

[Charlie Brigden 7]

It seems like after Star Trek there was a sudden vendetta against VS and people started to act as if they were never really very good, so I'm wondering if this is their get out of jail free card.

[Ollie 1,059]

Varese has and always will be great. If it were not for them I wonder what the soundtrack world would be like now.

[fommes 153]

Well, I beg to differ, Varèse has occasionally handled their releases quite wrongly (increasingly so lately), at least compared to the high standards the other labels are setting.

BUT, this release appears to be really good. Even if they leave off the alternates, which are nothing noteworthy (as far as I recall anyway), they got the complete score, and I'm pretty sure Matessino will have done a bang-up job.

Also, I want to add here that it seems they've been improving their customer service (including for international customers, if you know what I mean). You'll get a friendly reply now, and you can pay with PayPal.

Really happy with Varèse at the moment. Kudos to them!

[Jay 37,281]

Varèse has occasionally handled their releases quite wrongly (increasingly so lately), at least compared to the high standards the other labels are setting.

This

[Datameister 2,037]

Agreed. Look at the Star Trek DE, for instance. On the one hand, it's fantastic that they released it so soon, but they also made some unnecessary omissions that prevented it from being truly complete, and the packaging is odd, of course.

Family Plot looks like it'll be an excellent release, though.

[Jay 37,281]

Varese has done more good than bad, easily. But nowawayds, they must be compared to the high standards set by La La Land, Intrada, and especially FSM as of late, and they don't always live up to those standards.

[Richard Penna 3,669]

They've done great, but they've also dropped the ball rather badly on some occasions.

I hate how they treated The Matrix and Stargate, presenting still incomplete scores as so-called 'deluxe' editions.

Plus the GI Joe debacle (apparently mastered from a lossy source by accident). I don't know how much truth there was to that, but I'm pretty sure Varese did nothing to rectify it.

[Naïve Old Fart 9,493]

Jesus of Nazareth? Who's releasing that? I have the old vinyl release somewhere. Definitely time to upgrade to CD!

Pixie, click on Intrada, and go to "coming soon". It's released next month, which fits...if you think about it.

[King Mark 3,624]

Plus the GI Joe debacle (apparently mastered from a lossy source by accident). I don't know how much truth there was to that, but I'm pretty sure Varese did nothing to rectify it.

ewww,How is that remotely possible? But it made my post about the FP source being the internet boot not totally impossible .Glad we got Mike's post to explain things

[Richard Penna 3,669]

What do you mean 'how is that remotely possible'?

That the CD *might* have a huge mastering gaffe, or that Varese would do nothing to fix it?

[King Mark 3,624]

How can anyone master a c.d. from MP3's and not notice it?

[crocodile 7,983]

Each time I listen to Family Plot, I keep waiting for the theme to Black Sunday to pop up and get disappointed that it doesn't.

If it sounds anything like Black Sunday (in terms of JW's style), as you say, than I'm going to love it! :cool: I know maybe one cue or something.

Varese has and always will be great. If it were not for them I wonder what the soundtrack world would be like now.

They released some of my favourite CD's of all time. The cover that I use as my avatar should give you a clue which one is my favourite. A stunning recording, stunning performance, stunning score. Besides, I love all the Goldsmith' re-recordings of Alex North material. I don't care what anybody else says. And many, many others. They seem to be more concerned about the overall presentation of the music and its listenability, rather than the archival merit. Hence the incompletness of some of their releases. Which is fine by me.

Karol

[Ollie 1,059]

The GI JOE controversy is certainly debatable. I have the CD and it sounds normal to me.

[Wojo 2,453]

And you're one of the few, the proud, who believe the Conan CD is perfect.

Maybe it's just Mark!

[King Mark 3,624]

Another post by mxmx

Also been getting some messages similar to the top comment above and for the record, the appearance a few years ago of that-which-shall-not-be-named has ZERO connection to the official licensing of the score by Varese. ZERO. No connection whatsoever. That was someone's private source intentionally spread around as a deliberate act of spite.

Mike

[Gruesome Son of a Bitch 6,488]

I deleted that version.