SCORE: Thomas and the King (John Williams, 1975)

[indy4 160]

WARNING: I HAVE NOT SEEN THE PLAY, BUT BASED ON MY LISTENS OF THE SCORE THERE WILL BE SPOILERS.

As Williams’ only venture into musical theatre, I’m surprised this score gets so little attention around here. I got it mostly because I was curious, but I ended up really enjoying it. It is a must-have for anyone who wants to understand the full capability of John Williams, but also a probably-have for anyone who just wants to hear good music (and enjoys musicals). And it’s fairly cheap on the Amazon marketplace.

I’m going to give my overall thoughts on the score, and then a track-by-track analysis. The latter was written as I was listening to each track, so a lot of it is sloppy, redundant, or grammatically awkward.

First, my overall opinion. There are a lot of really enjoyable, catchy tunes. None of it is incredibly revolutionary or unique, but you can definitely hear Williams trying to do something different and not write a patchwork of older musicals. You can also hear a little of the origins of Williams’ future works (mostly love themes). There’s a lot of cool rhythmic ideas that Williams adopts; he uses ostinatos during songs, rhythmically complex melodic lines (that I imagine are hard to sing), and unexpected interjections to some songs. One of the most effective parts of the score is Williams’ use of ideas from songs in many different tracks, especially “Will No One Ride Me?” I know that this is common practice in the musical world, but Williams usually alters these references to keep it interesting. Sometimes singers leave out a key word/note in the phrase, sometimes the rhythmn remains but the melody changes, sometimes the opposite. The lyrics are strong too, although sometimes they seem a little awkward or simpleminded. Some of the songs recall the songs Williams would write for films later and earlier, but a majority sound pretty different. Like I said, it’s an important score in the development of Williams, but also an enjoyable listen. I give it 4/5 stars in listenability.

“Processional” is a jumpy and bright track, which is mostly instrumental. What lyrics there are are sung by a choir. It’s very crisp and ceremonial. I’d imagine this piece aunnonces the arrival of royalty. Fans of some of Williams’ brassier works (ie, everybody on this MB) would enjoy this track I think.

“Look Around You” is one of my favorites. It’s very rhythmic for a song from a musical, but that’s what makes it more interesting. It’s energetic and exciting. The addition to multiple voices makes it especially exciting.

“Am I Beautiful?” is one of the lesser songs on the album, in my opinion. This one sounds like it could be one of the songs that Williams’ wrote for films of the 60s and 70s. It’s not bad, but it certainly isn’t as breathtaking as I think it attempts to be. Still, it’s enjoyable enough.

“Man of Love” is a charming infectious melody. It’s a soaring, careless, and optimistic tune. This song showcases Williams’ brilliant ability to create catchy melodies. This singer is really great, probably the best in the show. The ending is great again, taking the song into new melodic realms.

“The Question” is another nice one. It starts out a little awkwardly, but once it gains momentum it’s a nice listen. The melody itself is really quite beautiful, but for some reason it plays stronger without lyrics. The melody is drawn on a lot throughout the rest of the score.

“What Choice Have I?” is a stressful, confused song. It emphasizes strange and unpredictable rhythms similar to “Look Around You,” which once again makes it an exciting and interesting listen. It conveys indecisiveness and confusion really nicely. It also draws one a melody from “Am I Beautiful.” All the time it gathers tension, but drops out unexpectedly and reverts back to the hopelessness of the beginning. As the character “knows what she must do,” it ends on a major chord (I think).

“We Shall Do It” is the most charming of the songs, and the one that most reaches back to other Broadway hits. It is the most uplifting and exhilerarting of the melodies. Williams utilizes a choir to join the king singing during the chorus. There’s some more playing with rhythm (during the lines “civility, tranquility, etc.”). It recalls the melody from “Processional.” It’s a little goofy, but I love it for that. Overall, it is really rousing, crisp, and optimistic.

“Improbable as Spring” is a gorgeous melody that again recalls giants from Broadway. I think this one will appeal to one who likes some of Williams’ famous romantic themes (Luke and Leia, etc.). The melody ascends as the lyrics grow more powerful. It ends on a beautiful instrumental quote of “Man of Love.”

“Power” is one of my favorite songs. It starts with a twisted ostinato, followed by an unstoppable and evil melody sung by another great singer. There’s some neat muted brass licks underneath the singer. This is an intense, overwhelming, angry song that declares women’s dominance over males, and the evil lady’s plan to overthrow the king. What is that plan? We don’t know until the last word of the song: “war!” This is my second favorite song, behind “We Shall Do It.”

“The Question (Reprise)” is a more humble, more reverant variation of the original. It also reaches more of a climax, a more intense finish, with brass accompanying the singer rather than the woodwinds of the original.

“Consecration” is a close cousin of “Processional,” at least in the beginning. It begins with crisp trumpet fanfares, and is later joined by choir once again in loud, declatory notes. The choir later returns crying “Hallejulah” which serves as a sort of ostinato over the deeper male voices who sing something else. Layered on top of this are variations from “The Question.” I would guess this is the En’tracte.

“’Tis Love” comes next. This song is nice, but a little weak compared to the rest. It features harpsicord. Overall it sounds a little to pop-ish for my tastes, but it’s still a nice listen.

“Sincerity” is a fun, fast-paced song. It opens VERY similarly to Bernstein’s “Tonight Quintet” (which opens the “Overture” in the film version of West Side Story), but after that it goes in its own direction. The song is very quick and “notey”, climaxing of a dissonant chord and the word “blasphemy” stretched over a few measures…very effective.

Next is “The Test,” which starts with some awkward lyric/music combinations. After the first minute, it starts to flow better. It gets a little too cheesy during the line “why did you make such a mess?!” followed by descending xylophones and woodwinds, but the rest of the song is nice. The song ends with more trumpet fanfares.

“Replay the Game” starts with a quote from “Am I Beautiful?” but quickly turns into its own melody. This is another tune that recalls Williams’ love themes from the world of film. It finishes magnificently with big dramatic final statements.

“A New Way to Turn” is based on the rhythm from “We Shall Do It,” but the melody changes. It is another optimistic, exciting piece. A men’s choir joins the singers. And at the very end, the phrase “we shall do it” is even quoted, although the melody is considerably different.

“Will No One Ride Me?” is an intense cue that recalls several songs, such as the ostinato from “Power.” This is more an instrumental cue with sung interjections from characters. It is nightmarish as the king tries to fight whatever evil has taken over by recalling phrases from “A Man of Love,” but he is unable to finish each phrase. “Sincerity” is recalled, but it’s chorus is changed to “insincerity.” “We Shall do It” is reprised in a nightmarish and twisted fashion. This is one of the most exciting tracks in a horrible, demented way. The chorus repeatedly shouts “Becket” (which I believe is Thomas’ last name) in a menacing way. The evil lady reprises some of the vocal parts of “Power,” which sails easily above the rest. For a moment, she causes the entire song to halt, which instrumental interjections waiting to follow her command. The track ends with full orchestral jabs, and the king’s shouts of discomfort.

“So Many Other Worlds” opens with a melancholy flute variation of “The Question.” The king mourns Thomas’ death. As the king realized man’s potential for good, the music turns optimistic, and a slow ballad “So Many Other Worlds” begins. This song is very beautiful. It is more mature, less frenetic than the other “happy” songs, but just as optimistic. The king promises to Thomas to “build the better world” as the music soars dramatically. The song finishes with a strong brass statement, which joins the king as he shouts the final words in a dramatic and inspiring way: “we shall do it!”

[Incanus 5,890]

A great review indy4.

I will definitely take another listen of this today.

[Omen II 1,300]

Thanks for the nice review, indy4! I have never heard a note of Thomas and the King, but might now try to pick this up. Coincidentally I was working in Canterbury last week and I often think of that turbulent priest Thomas a Becket when I pass the magnificent cathedral where he met his untimely end.

“Will No One Ride Me?”

That has to be one of the funniest typos I've ever read on this messageboard. It's a question many of us have asked at some point in our lives!

[indy4 160]

Thanks for the kind words, guys!

“Will No One Ride Me?”

That has to be one of the funniest typos I've ever read on this messageboard. It's a question many of us have asked at some point in our lives!

You know, every time this title came along when while I was listening to this score on my iPod, I would chuckle and promise myself that I would get the CD out and confirm whether that was the actual title, and every time I've forgotten to do so. Whoever entered the track titles made the mistake, as it clearly says "ride" on my iTunes. Thanks for pointing this out!