Indeed, I forgot SNEAKERS, BALTO, THE PAGEMASTER, ONCE UPON A FOREST, APOLLO 13 and SPIDERWICK CHRONICLES which are are all great.
But I guess there is no comparison with WOLFEN, STAR TREK II, KRULL, BRAINSTORM, GORKY PARK, STAR TREK III, 48 HOURS, SOMETHING WICKED THIS WAY COMES, COCOON, ALIENS, AN AMERICAN TAIL, ALAMO JOBE, THE JOURNEY OF NATTY GANN, PROJECT X....and UNCOMMON VALOR.
Some of the scores I listed earlier, Braveheart and Legend of the Fall just as an example, are indeed just as good or even better than the scores you've listed. Horner had no dip in quality during his career, except for the last few years when he became incredibly disillusioned with Hollywood film scoring and took on smaller more independent projects and classical works. Even then those scores were delightful and scores like WOLF TOTEM were every bit as good as his "classics"
I may have more thoughts later but I got my copy today.
1) I ordered this TUESDAY, it shipped WEDNESDAY, and is here FRIDAY. I live in the middle of the US. Quartet is in Europe. How in the world are the beating Intrada/LLL shipping speeds (which I think are pretty good already)?!
2) The sound quality startled me. Actually startled me. I never thought the Intrada sounded bad but geez. This mastering on this release is just living and breathing.
Still not my favorite Horner but a lot to love from the In Country tenderness (down to the shared theme), the Krull/Star Trek/Rocketeer licks toward the end, and instrumental experimentation throughout (I forgot how there's some Gorky Parkish licks in there). The dumb, doofy march in the first half is better left forgotten (a rare and serious blunder by Horner).
I may have more opinions later. But focus on that #2 point I made above. That's where the magic of this release is.
2) The sound quality startled me. Actually startled me. I never thought the Intrada sounded bad but geez. This mastering on this release is just living and breathing.
Chris Malone knows Eric Tomlinson better than anyone out there. Hopefully, when the Star Wars and Indiana Jones scores are expanded, Malone will handle all the Tomlinson recordings!
2) The sound quality startled me. Actually startled me. I never thought the Intrada sounded bad but geez. This mastering on this release is just living and breathing.
Chris Malone knows Eric Tomlinson better than anyone out there. Hopefully, when the Star Wars and Indiana Jones scores are expanded, Malone will handle all the Tomlinson recordings!
-Erik-
Forget those...let him go loose on Aliens. I'd like to hear that score with this degree of clarity.
Let's not forget that the Intrada release already sounded spectacular. The level of detail in the exotic percussion and instrumentation and the way it was miked was a joy to behold when the CD was first released. I might buy this edition further down the line, but it's way down the queue, since the Intrada release is already most excellent and there's plenty of other stuff to discover in the meantime. I do love this score though. I remember watching the film on video early 80s, to dub the music onto cassette. That opening sequence, which segues half way through to Gene Hackman/the father remembering his young son running to him in the night during a storm and Horner breaks in with that War/Tragedy ALAMO JOBE melody is just heart-breaking. Absolutely spot-on film scoring. I quite like the Prokofiev flavoured Training March, even if it is a bit awkward in the melody department. And those ST/ROCKETEER cheers never get old. It's just another example of terrific early years James Horner film writing.
2) The sound quality startled me. Actually startled me. I never thought the Intrada sounded bad but geez. This mastering on this release is just living and breathing.
Chris Malone knows Eric Tomlinson better than anyone out there. Hopefully, when the Star Wars and Indiana Jones scores are expanded, Malone will handle all the Tomlinson recordings!
-Erik-
Chris Malone is one of a kind. For me, best and most valuable talent working on film music right now.
Been giving this a good few spins since it came in last week. I'm enjoying it a lot. I'm not really a diehard Horner fruit and nutcase, in fact there are dozens and dozens of his scores which I don't have and have never heard. THE ROCKETEER for example. Which could be seen as being positive, because I don't hear themes being reused as much as yooz guys do. Or maybe pinpointing reused themes is fun. Yes, I do that with Jerry Fielding.
It's all good stuff, although I did somehow "know" how the militaristic drum riff was going to sound like before I heard it. I love that Vietnamese Shakuhachi (tee hee) too. Never heard it sound so much like Goldsmith's THE CHALLENGE before. And it all plays well and sustains itself over the 40-or-so minutes playing time, building up to some thrilling, classic '80s Horner scoring.
That training march is catchy, and just a trifle annoying at first, but I'm growing to really like it. It's in the "War is Fun" mold of THE GREAT ESCAPE or HOGAN'S HEROES. I don't know how it works in the film, but I see in my mind's eye Corporal Clot out of The Dandy parading the wrong way round. I can't imagine that's what it actually backs. I always switch the CD off after the march as intended for the End Credits, and before the awful song which really did play over the End Credits. 40 minutes of my life well spent, and 40 minutes I will relive many more times (I hope) in the future.
Just to finish on a few random things that are coming into my head. Although I don't know Horner's work that well, from what I have heard there are I think THREE main Goldsmith scores which find their way into nearly all the Horners I've heard, certainly his output in the '80s. And they are ALIEN (principally), CAPRICORN ONE and (perhaps curiously) THE (FIRST) GREAT TRAIN ROBBERY. It's not ALL blatant either. Pay attention please.
And, really randomly now, I do enjoy listening to this Horner guy. But no way do I hear a "genius" at work. I'm sort of half-bemused by the adulation that has built up around him. I don't really get it, but I never really "got" opera, heavy metal, blank verse or football either. Oh, has England scored?
"But no way do I hear a "genius" at work" ------------------------- Graham, you great Spanish peacock, have a listen to this track LOUD!!! (arguably one of THE most exhilarating pieces of action scoring EVER!!) and tell me that there's no "genius at work" here
I was going to say that Horner was just too derivative to be considered anything more than a skilled craftsman, but that's hardly even a criticism, seeing as the most enjoyable music in my collection is the work of skilled craftsmen.
Horner's genius was first and foremost in reading a film and evoking, nuancing and balancing the emotions within the score, not musical genius per se. Though his ability to managing chord progression and especially using counterpoint is exceptional.
Yes...what is 'genius'? And is it far from 'Legend'? Maybe those labels are over used these days? LEGEND, most certainly. John Terry* is, apparently, a LEGEND. There are even a few of them** that drink in my local pub, also apparently
* and that's not even the actor from HAWK THE SLAYER, but the daft as a brush Chelsea footballer FFS!!!
"But no way do I hear a "genius" at work" ------------------------- Graham, you great Spanish peacock, have a listen to this track LOUD!!! (arguably one of THE most exhilarating pieces of action scoring EVER!!) and tell me that there's no "genius at work" here
The appearance of The Rocketeer theme at 2:24 in that track gives me goosebumps every damn time.
