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John Powell's SOLO: A STAR WARS STORY (2018) - Deluxe Edition 2020 / Intrada 2-CD edition October 31, 2023


crocodile

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So, what position would "Solo" now take in you personal ranking of the Star Wars movie Soundtracks? Has the expanded edition changed your assessment? I must say that it is for me now above at least Attack of the Clones and Revenge of the Sith, possibly even above Force awakens, although Rey's Theme is hard to beat.

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Powell mentioned there's 'currently no plans for a CD release'. I take that rather optimistically that there's the potential for it to happen and why not?

 

You know, in the age of digital downloads and vinyl, and how much I lament the death of CDs - I've seen a LOT of comments across social media on Powell's pages asking about a CD release. Funnily enough, it was the opposite reaction for HTTYD!

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4 minutes ago, Arpy said:

You know, in the age of digital downloads and vinyl, and how much I lament the death of CDs - I've seen a LOT of comments across social media on Powell's pages asking about a CD release. Funnily enough, it was the opposite reaction for HTTYD!

 

Yeah it's interesting hey? Just reiterates that labels should make these releases as accessible as possible, no matter what the consumer's personal preference.

 

I genuinely hope sales are strong and it catches someone's eye at Disney. I'm not exactly buoyed by the YouTube views so far though (especially compared to the numbers the new Mandalorian soundtrack is pulling).

 

Doesn't help when Disney Records didn't even bother posting a "now available" update for the score on their social media pages, unlike their slavish promotion of all things Mandalorian.

 

Incredibly disappointing on their part.

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Yeah, though Mandalorian has a more positive reception overall, whereas this is a digital deluxe score to a film that bombed two years ago. In the years since, however, I've seen a more positive reflection on Solo, not sure if the score ever really had the exposure it deserved.

 

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11 minutes ago, Jurassic Shark said:

It's good, but at the bottom above Rogue One, if we're acknowledging the existence of the latter.

Yeah, it’s still not quite the real McCoy, even if it’s damn close. I wouldn’t put it above any of Williams’ entries but it’s excellent nevertheless.

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I'd put Solo on par with or slightly above TLJ, but below all other JW SW scores. Rogue One has fun orchestration, but not as good writing as any of its competitors.

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32 minutes ago, Disco Stu said:

 

Listening to great scores for bad films is only a thing with hardcore film score fans like ourselves.  General audiences listen to soundtracks to relive stories they love, hence the new Mando soundtrack getting more listens

Some bad films are enjoyed by some though, Cult following and all that.

 

Krull etc.

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12 minutes ago, Spider-Fal said:

Some bad films are enjoyed by some though, Cult following and all that.

 

Krull etc.

 

Well sure, I didn't mean bad by some objective critical measure.  Just not widely enjoyed.  So-bad-they're-good movies are enjoyed.

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Anyways, my point was more, I have seen films like those have their score praised in video essays etc. by people who I assume are not film score fans, but a bit more casual viewers or film buffs at most.

 

Though, those probably wouldn't be the types to get a Deluxe edition (though not entirely unheard of!)

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Truth is, I believe no one cares about this film, except us film score and John Powell fans, and a tiny percentage of Star Wars nerds. Hence why it isn't being more listened for the general populace.

 

Mandalorian, on the other hand, is a beloved TV show.

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6 hours ago, crumbs said:

 

Not sure what you mean. 1M8 Gonna Be a Pilot has a natural reverb ending, which perfectly leads into the drumroll before 1M10 Mimban Battle. There's no microediting or false endings here.

 

 

 

Disregard, I thought you meant that you chopped off the ending and added reverb yourself.

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2 hours ago, Arpy said:

Yeah, though Mandalorian has a more positive reception overall, whereas this is a digital deluxe score to a film that bombed two years ago. In the years since, however, I've seen a more positive reflection on Solo, not sure if the score ever really had the exposure it deserved.

 

 

Plus...you know...we're in the middle of a new season of The Mandalorian, whereas everybody who didn't care about Solo two years ago still doesn't care about it now.

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15 hours ago, Manakin Skywalker said:

 

@Jay I attempted to split Maul's Call / Parting Ways into sections the best that I could; unfortunately 7M44 and 45 cannot be separated, but the other sections including the alternate can be quite easily. I'm assuming these are the correct splitting points. :P

 

Skype Showdown

Beckett Departs / Parting Ways

Beckett Departs (Alt)

 

Woah.  Great job!

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15 minutes ago, Anthony said:

Plus...you know...we're in the middle of a new season of The Mandalorian, whereas everybody who didn't care about Solo two years ago still doesn't care about it now.

 

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3 minutes ago, crocodile said:

I feel triggered by this.

 

Karol

 

Let it out, or else it's going to consume you.

 

5 minutes ago, Kasey Kockroach said:

This remains the only Star Wars score I own. 

 

Can you really own zeros and ones, though?

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My attempt at trying to piece together the original Mimban Battle sequence. Obviously there's no way to know exactly how the original scenes were edited, but I tried. Not too much editing was necessary; for part 1 I needed to edit out about 1-2 seconds of footage (I randomly selected a very short shot), for part 2 I needed to simply extend the transition between the opening portion and the latter portion since the second half doesn't sync correctly if left unedited.

 

Mimban Battle

 

Not as significant, but I also restored the Oksana Floren cue. Not nearly as edited in the film, but there are a few small cuts and loops here and there, most notably when the Pike character is revealed.

 

Oksana Floren, etc.

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Still loving this... having re-listened to some of the sequel trilogy scores, I have to admit that the performances on those often feel a bit lacklustre, more in terms of energy rather than on a technical level. OK, Powell does have a slightly hyperactive style at times (too many notes!) which perhaps demands a higher level of energy, but even comparing the 20 seconds or whatever of the opening to the end credits, the Solo performance is pretty damn thrilling.

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4 minutes ago, Tom Guernsey said:

Still loving this... having re-listened to some of the sequel trilogy scores, I have to admit that the performances on those often feel a bit lacklustre, more in terms of energy rather than on a technical level. OK, Powell does have a slightly hyperactive style at times (too many notes!) which perhaps demands a higher level of energy, but even comparing the 20 seconds or whatever of the opening to the end credits, the Solo performance is pretty damn thrilling.

Rebel Fanfare at 3:21 of Kessel Run/Reminiscence Therapy!

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1 hour ago, crocodile said:

I feel triggered by this.

 

Karol

If it’s any reassurance, I became a Williams fan because of Jurassic Park and Jaws, not Star Wars. Indiana Jones also has wonderful bits, but I never liked the main theme.

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1 hour ago, Kasey Kockroach said:

This remains the only Star Wars score I own. 

 

For all the listening I do, this may as well be. All I have otherwise is an 'alternative' RotS (mostly made from one of the videogame-created boots), and the sequels, which just about pass my interest threshold.

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The continued interest in this score amazes me. Not, that it isn't good, but the film itself was not universally liked and the ORIGINAL score isn't composed by JW.

 

Question: if JW had nothing to do with it, would it still be loved? Or, is the unique Powell score enough on its own?

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42 minutes ago, bruce marshall said:

Iirc ROGUE ONE was not so well liked.

?

 

Around here people seem to not like it quite as much. In general, I'd say it's probably the most well-liked of the recent 5 films for the "average" fan. For example, before my old YT channel was removed, I had my "complete" edits of all four of the recent films (this was before TROS existed), and Rogue One was by far the most popular. Those videos were raking in tens of thousands of views a day.

 

Most casual film score fans love MG, around here he's more hit or miss.

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I'm not a Giacchino hater, I like plenty of scores he did in the past, but not Rogue One.

 

R1 has some decent moments, like Your Father Would be Proud and the choir for Vader's massacre at the ending, but in general this is a very boring score.

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JW's involvement did allow this score to become a gateway drug to Powell for me. From the first listen I was impressed with everything he did with JW's theme. So I kept listening, and began to like his original material as well. Now that this edition dropped, I gave it a listen and LOVED IT!!!! Amazing release, and flows well, the only thing I might change is removing the happy Imperial March, the credits, and the mashup stuff from Reminiscence Therapy, and of course add Adventures of Han. Agree with others that some of the harsher elements, like the Horner choir, sound much better here! The unreleased material is great too, and easily justifies the running time. It's fun to listen to Powell develop his and Williams' themes extensively. When you look at all the themes represented in this score, it's quite a tapestry. Speaking of, I love the DotF material, including how it appears in a subtle way before becoming more obvious.

 

Black Friday what, Black Friday who? This fantastic release is enough to keep me busy.

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1 hour ago, Manakin Skywalker said:

 

Around here people seem to not like it quite as much. In general, I'd say it's probably the most well-liked of the recent 5 films for the "average" fan. For example, before my old YT channel was removed, I had my "complete" edits of all four of the recent films (this was before TROS existed), and Rogue One was by far the most popular. Those videos were raking in tens of thousands of views a day.

 

Most casual film score fans love MG, around here he's more hit or miss.

You reedited the films?!

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