Score Sample - 80s Forgotten Gems - Lionheart

Jerry Goldsmith worked with director Franklin Schaffner several times over the years, providing him with some of the most memorable scores of his career. Planet of the Apes, Patton and Papillion are are well regarded films and scores. But the two men worked on a couple films that aren't quite as well remembered these days. One of those is the film Lionheart, a medieval adventure that takes place during the Children's Crusade of 1212. It starred Eric Stolz and Gabriel Byrne. The movie ended up getting a very limited theatrical release and was shuffled off to VHS and cable viewing.

These days the only folks that seem to mention the film are the Jerry Goldsmith fans, because DAMN is this an awesome score. Goldsmith goes full medieval adventure mode with this, and while I think he would perfect the sound in First Knight, what you get in Lionheart is top notch material. It has a rousing theme, heroic action, and because it was written in 1987, just a few synthesizer touches that Goldsmith was so fond of during this era. For all that, the score is certainly one of his best during the 1980s, and a double CD edition presents all the music from the film (sadly out of film order). Here is the massive finale piece, King Richard from the score to Lionheart by Jerry Goldsmith.

Score Sample - 80s Forgotten Gems - The Last Starfighter

I continue my look back at wonderful scores from the 1980s attached to movies that have been lost in the mists of time. Now The Last Starfighter did a lot of things right, and it is a very entertaining film all the way around. It also was one of the very first movies to use computer generated visual effects for the starships on screen. For that alone will be logged in history books.

But these days folks don't seem to talk too much about it. That is a shame because the wonderful score by Craig Safan has a very memorable main title. In fact, I've heard this main title played in amusement parks when they are trying to get a heroic vibe going. Safan's score could be at home in space or in a film with knights and dragons. He does some great stuff with it, and also gives us a couple of other themes to play with over the course of the film (along with some minimal electronics as a nod to the role of video games in the plot).

But in all honesty the end credits piece Into the Starscape is what you need to hear. So here you go, from the film The Last Starfighter composed by Craig Safan.

Score Sample - 80s Forgotten Gems - Return to Oz

Here is a little mini series of posts about movie music. Because I love it, and I love sharing it. The 1980s were a great time for fantasy and adventure film scores. The decade was dominated by some of the biggest names in film scores with John Williams giving us the amazing Indiana Jones trilogy as well was two Star Wars films. You had James Horner cranking out both Krull and Willow not to mention two Star Trek scores. And speaking of Star Trek Jerry Goldsmith knocked it out of the park with Star Trek V as well as his immense and amazing score to Legend. At the end of the decade you had Danny Elfman really coming into his own with fantastic scores to Scrooged and Batman.

But I'm not going to talk about any of those, I'm going to focus on the forgotten ones. Scores to movies that most people don't talk about any more, but had amazing scores. First up is David Shire's wonderful work with Return to Oz. Shire did some amazing work with various themes for nearly all the characters and weaving them into one powerful score. Listening to the full album is a treat with a new memorable theme popping up in each track. It is nearly impossible to pick one to sample here. But I think his most charming music is the rag time triumphal march that plays near the end of the film. Using the rag time style fits perfectly with the setting of the film, and gives the score a unique identity among the very much orchestral bombast scores (nothing wrong with that) we got in the decade.

So here is Rag March from Return to Oz by David Shire.

Score Sample: The Dark Crystal (1982)

2019 brought us a new television series based around the 1982 fantasy adventure The Dark Crystal. The television series outlines the events that lead up to the situation Jen and Kira find themselves during the earlier film. So yeah it is a prequel of sorts, but I'm just happy to see the amazing puppetry and sets brought to life. As a kid, I adored The Dark Crystal, as well as it's younger sister Labyrinth. So I've been enjoying the series quite a bit (still working my way through it at this point).

One thing that I don't think has been improved on is the amazing score from the 1982 film by Trevor Jones. In a lot of ways this is one of those forgotten fantasy scores that really deserves more attention, kind of like the work on Young Sherlock Holmes. Jones created a myriad of themes for The Dark Crystal and nearly every one of them is memorable in some way. He interweaves the themes all through the film and gives the world its own unique flavor.

He wrote a wonderful Overture piece that I'll share today, but really the whole score is worth seeking out for fans of big colorful fantasy adventure scores. It might even be my favorite work by Jones. So here is Overture from The Dark Crystal by Trevor Jones.

Anime Juke Box - Princess Nine - Princess Nine

Been a while since we popped in a quarter into the anime jukebox, so I figured it was time. We are in the middle of summer and that means - baseball! And what does baseball mean to me? ANIME of course. One specific anime, Princess Nine. Oddly this little show actually helped me appreciate baseball as a sport. I didn't know until watching this how much strategy and tactics are used in the game and how much talent you actually need to have. Being the bookish nerd, I just figured sports are sports are sports.

Princess Nine tells the story of a girl's prep school creating an actual baseball (not softball) team and all the trials the players, coaches and school administrators go through to make the dream a reality. Of course it has the usual high school drama mixed in, and the team is composed of an unusual group of misfits. It is very entertaining and something we will pull out every few summers to enjoy. The ADV dub is solid (if a little squeaky) and while you can predict how some of the sports story tropes are going to play out, we always have a good time with it.

The music was composed by Masamichi Amano who managed to secure the Warsaw Philharmonic for the score! Princess Nine has a lush score with some wonderfully bombastic moments and drama. Very entertaining stuff. He also was able to work the opening theme song as a theme in the score to the series. That means you've got the full power of the philharmonic playing during the opening credits. I couldn't find the full version of the song, but here is the opening credits version of Princess Nine from Princess Nine.

Score Sample: Spiderman: Far From Home (2019)

Back in 2013, I wrote about how Michael Giacchino is one of my favorite composers working today. He still hasn't lost that place on my list. I try to pick up each of his scores almost as soon as they come out, and his work tends to entertain and engage me each time. The exceptions may be his scores for the two Jurassic World films. Still haven't warmed up to those.

Giacchino was pulled into the world of superheroes early on with his amazing score to The Incredibles. That is still one of my favorite scores by the man, and the sequel score is a blast. It is little wonder that he was asked to score some of the Marvel films, including Doctor Strange and Spiderman: Homecoming.

For the later, Giacchino was stepping into some big shoes. Previous Spiderman films were scored by the likes of Danny Elfman, Christopher Young, James Horner and Hans Zimmer. Each creating memorable takes on the character. Giacchino didn't shrink back, but went for it, crafting a new theme for Spidey and really giving it a workout in the score. His music for the villainous Vulture was also pretty darn cool.

I think Giacchino pushed himself a little harder when it comes to Far From Home. The Spidey theme is back, and gets plenty of time to shine in this score. He also brings back the love theme from the previous score (which I'll admit isn't one of his strongest). But the new material for Mysterio is top notch. He works in some excellent electronics, gives Mysterio an almost heroic but intense theme. We get some great tracks on the score where the Spidey and Mysterio theme work together and then later in counterpoint - something you rarely hear these days, but was something classic composers like Goldsmith and Williams would do all the time. Best of all, the score is a lot of fun, full of action, thrills and excitement. I am actually hoping we get another Spiderman movie, just so I can hear Giacchino round out a trilogy of scores. Yeah that is a total film nerd thing to write.

So here is Giacchino's end credit suite from Spiderman: Far From Home given the humorous title Far From Home Suite Home. It kicks off with Spidey's heroic theme, moves into the love theme, and shifts into a new theme for Nick Fury (and possibly the SWORD organization).Then those synths kick in and you know Mysterio's theme comes out to play. It builds and builds until Spidey's theme puts a stop to it and that hurtles into the conclusion of the track. Enjoy!

Score Sample: The Incredibles 2 (2018)

I've got to say that I really love The Incredibles. The animation, the story, the characters are all some of my favorite from the Pixar animation studios. That said, it also is the first time I heard the music of Michael Giacchino. This composer would go on to be one of my favorites of the current crop of movie composers, and The Incredibles is where he really captured my ear. That first score is an homage to the big brassy spy scores of the 1960s, with a healthy dose of John Barry and Henry Mancini all wrapped around some top notch theme work.

So when they announced that there was sequel in the works, there was no doubt in my mind that they had to bring Giacchino back. He has a great working relationship with the studio and it just made sense. The Incredibles 2 sports Giacchino bringing that sassy brassy feel back, and then cranking it up a notch (or two). It's got more saxophone, more blaring trumpets and is having fun. The old themes return, a new theme for the villain is introduced, and even a theme for Elastigirl as she takes one some solo adventures. Great stuff all the way around. Giacchino wraps it all up with a wonderful end credits suite (always a highlight in his scores) giving you a taste of everything. So here are The Incredits 2 from The Incredibles 2 composed by Michael Giacchino.

Score Sample: Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984)

So John Williams has composed music for films since the 1960s. His familiar sound really entered the public mind in the late 70s with Jaws, Close Encounters of a Third Kind, Superman and of course Star Wars. But if you listen to his material from before those milestones you can hear his distinctive voice in those scores too. Over the years Williams has evolved as a composer, adding more and more complexity to his music, but still managing to capture that Williams sound and the knack for crafting memorable themes.

All this to say that when someone asks me what my favorite John Williams score is, I get overwhelmed for a moment. So much music to pick from, and from so many decades and styles. With Jerry Goldsmith, I don't hesitate. But with Williams... And then I smile and say, Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom.

Now with it comes to the films, I'm in the "Raiders is the best one, don't even question me on this" camp. But Williams did the remarkable with his followup score. He took his main theme, because you had to have that, and then made sure to use it quite a bit. Compared to Last Crusade, which goes easy on using the main theme, Temple of Doom doesn't shy away.  It gives the whole score (and film) a more pulpy feel. I also love all the new themes introduced in the film. Sure Willie and Short Round are obnoxious characters, but they have some really great themes. Willie's theme is full of that old school Hollywood glamor. Williams uses both themes in counterpoint to Indy's theme on a number of occasions and to wonderful effect.

Then there are is the bold adventure theme used in the final third of the film, as Indy and his pals save the slave children. I love this theme, and it gets some great moments to shine in the score. Not to mention a myriad of minor motifs that pop up and play around in the score to add even more color. They are all distinct, they are all well stated (and restated so you recognize them) and they are all fun.

Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom is the John Williams score with everything I love about John Williams. It is in the middle of his late 70s to mid 80s style before he really started to add the layers and layers of complexity to his action music. I love it each time I listen to it, and you can't really go wrong with the End Credits which I'll present here. Enjoy!

Score Sample: Scrooged (1988)

Time to listen to some more holiday movie music. But what to pick, what to pick? Could go with some classic stuff, or even with some John Williams. But I decided to go a little stranger. And even though I highlighted his work in October, I'm once again throwing Danny Elfman some love on this blog.

Elfman's film scoring career really took off in 1989 with Batman. But before that we got a bit of a warmup with his score to the Bill Murray Christmas comedy Scrooged. Elfman's distinctive style is present from the opening cue, and fans of his work from Edward Scissorhands will certainly recognize this era of Elfman's writing. Elfman has fun adapting some familiar Christmas carols to his unique orchestral voice, but it is the children chanting "la la la" in an eerie voice that just gives the score its darkly festive touch.

The fun start with the Main Titles/Terrorist Attack as Elfman gives us his main theme combining dark overtones and festive la las. Then it transitions to sparkling joy as we enter Santa's workshop. Things take a turn for the action packed as Elfman unleashes a strident propulsive action theme as terrorists attack Santa's workshop. The only man who can save them... Lee Majors. I'm not kidding.

So enjoy the opening track from Scrooged composed by Danny Elfman.

Score Sample: Sleepy Hollow (1999)

I've done a few Halloween themed score samples over the years on this blog. So how did I manage to avoid putting some Danny Elfman up? Not sure, but it is time to remedy that. I picked one of Elfman's most gothic scores. It is one that has all the hallmarks of Elfman's style, but blown up huge and dark, with those haunting vocals and imposing proportions. That means we get some Sleepy Hollow music today.

While I'm not the biggest fan of the film, I can't deny that the powerhouse score is one of Elfman's best from the 1990s. It matches the over the top visuals that Tim Burton concocted for the film. It builds on the suspense and horror the situations in a deliciously in your face way, and it is a lot of fun to listen to. Lots of great tracks to explore on the soundtrack, but I'm going with the end titles which are some of Elfman's best.

So here is End Credits from Sleepy Hollow composed by Danny Elfman.

Score Sample: Star Trek III: The Search for Spock (1984)

When it comes to the music to the Star Trek films you actually have a great pool of music to enjoy. Of course my favorite work comes from Jerry Goldsmith and his scores for five of the films of the series (up to 13 films as of this writing). But you have a lot of other excellent composers chiming with some top notch work. Lately we've had Michael Giacchino giving us a thrilling new theme of for the Enterprise, as well as some propulsive action tracks.

One composer who really put his stamp on the series was James Horner, who unleashed an amazing score for The Wrath of Khan. This was early in his career and the young composer knocked it out of the park, creating some of the most accessible and engaging music of the film series. It was no wonder that the producers brought him back for the third film, The Search for Spock.

Horner revisited his heroic main theme, created some new material for the Klingons and evolved the sound he created for Spock into a vulcan motif for this film. The Vulcan material goes in the opposite direction from Goldsmith's "logical" approach. There is tremendous feeling and mystery in the Vulcan music in this score, and it creates one of my favorite tracks from the series called Returning to Vulcan. The film version covers our heroes return journey to the planet with the body of Spock to reunite his spirit with the flesh. The film version is excellent, but I love the additional emotion that Horner crafts in the concert suite version on the album.

So here is Returning to Vulcan from Star Trek III: The Search for Spock composed by James Horner. Enjoy!

Score Sample: First Knight (1995)

In the 1990s Jerry Goldsmith was trying to move away from scoring action movies. He had done a ton of them in the 1980s and was looking to do some thing different. He ended up scoring romantic comedies and dumb comedies and romantic dramas... anything to avoid action music. Every once in a while he'd do a Star Trek film. But mostly it was no action. It couldn't last. And as a fan of Goldsmith's action music, I'm glad.

One of the movies that he broke the mold on was First Knight, a movie I don't care for all that much. But for Jerry it offered romance, intrigue and betrayal... as well as some kick ass action music moments. The result was a score that may be one of Goldsmith's best from the decade. He creates three themes for the film and weaves them together, or against each other to create a rich tapestry of music. It is difficult to pick just one track to sample, but my favorite might be the end credits piece. It starts with the majestic theme for King Arthur/Camelot before diving in the love theme for Guinevere and then shifts back to a more triumphant version of Arthur's theme.

So here you are the album version of Promise Me from First Knight composed by Jerry Goldsmith.

Score Sample: Solo (2018)

So it is time to roll out another Star Wars track for the score sample. I have to say I was pretty excited to hear that John Powell was going to be providing the score for Solo, even though I wasn't too excited about the movie itself. Powell is one of those composers who knows how to create some orchestral bombast, and keep his themes colorful and engaging. His style is a bit different from John Williams, but his use of percussion in action music is impressive. His score for How to Train Your Dragon remains one of my favorite scores from the previous decade.

Then we got the news that John Williams was going to provide a theme for Han Solo, and Powell was going to utilize it in his score. That was music to this film score fan's ears. The result is one of the most entertaining and exciting Star Wars related scores we've ever got. Lots of great stuff on this album, but my favorite track has to be Reminiscence Therapy. Not only does Powell give us a great statement of the new Han Solo theme, but he works in classic musical moments from A New Hope and The Empire Strikes Back into the cue. He keeps it all flowing into one amazingly dynamic track, a real highlight of the album.

So enjoy Reminiscence Therapy from Solo composed by John Powell including themes by John Williams.

Anime Juke Box - Konya Wa Hurricane -Bubblegum Crisis

Going a bit classic with the anime juke box today. Heading back to 1987 and the original animated video series Bubblegum Crisis. While there is a crisis in the series, it has nothing to do with bubblegum. It has everything to do with rogue androids and hot women in power suits blowing them up. I've already featured one song from this fun series a few years ago, but there are so many awesome 1980s rock songs in this series that I have to share another.

This is the song that starts off the series. The band Priss and the Replicants (fun nod to Bladerunner - one of many!) are rocking out on stage. The performance is intercut with the destruction one of the androids is unleashing on Tokyo. The style of the song (and the performance sequence) is borrowed from Streets of Fire, and I think it actually makes this even better. It's a great way to start off the series, and the song is pretty darn catchy (with lots and lots of english thrown in there for good measure: "Give me touch... burning touch!")

So here is Priss and the Replicants performing Konya Wa Hurricane from the series Bubblegum Crisis.

Score Sample: Quigley Down Under (1990)

It has been a while since I featured some music from the Western genre on this blog. I'm not a big fan of Western films in general. There are some good ones out there for sure, but as a whole they just don't do too much for me.

But the music is another story all together. There have been plenty of great scores for Western films. Of course Ennio Morricone leaps to mind with his scores to The Good, The Bad and the Ugly and many other spaghetti westerns. But you also have classic Hollywood Westerns featuring scores by Alfred Newman, Elmer Bernstein and of course Jerry Goldsmith.

But I'm gong for something a bit more recent. Basil Poledouris is best known for his wonderful score to Conan the Barbarian, but the composer became one of the few who kept getting pulled into scoring the few Westerns that came out in the 80s and 90s. One of my favorites from Poledouris is the score to Quigley Down Under. It has the classic Hollywood Western sound in the main theme, but Poledouris adds some banjo and ragtime rhythms to the piece that just makes it super memorable. The whole score is a lot of fun, but seriously the main theme is one of the best of the 1990s.

So enjoy the Main Title from Quigley Down Under composed by Basil Poledouris.

Anime Juke Box - Tabi no Tochuu - Spice and Wolf

Got a new bit of Japanese pop for you today. It is a bit more easy going than the usual opening credits material, but it fits the series Spice and Wolf pretty well in that regard. The series has a casual easy going feel for a good portion of it. It revolves around a medieval peddler who happens upon a pagan wolf goddess who wishes to join him in his travels. While he is savvy in business, she is skilled at reading people. The two make a good team as they travel the land negotiating deals and learning a bit more about each other... and yes, maybe falling in love. It is a very unique show that I really enjoyed. Looking forward to the second season.

The song the opens Spice and Wolf is sung by Natsumi Kiyoura. Her voice has a gentleness and almost a sadness to it that carries the tune along. Hope you enjoy Tabi no Touchuu from the anime series Spice and Wolf.

Top Ten - Film Score Experiences of 2017

So each year the community over at Filmtracks.com votes on their favorite scores for the year. It is great to read all the top ten nominations from everyone (and the spirited defense of certain scores). At the end of January one brave member of the community tabulates all the nominations and declares the top ten scores of the year. I have to say that every year those folks pick some excellent music. I wouldn't have discovered some of the scores I enjoy today without those competitions.

I don't usually participate in the voting, since I focus on older scores and collecting work from Jerry Goldsmith or golden age film music. But this year a few of the scoreboarders from the forum asked me to post a top ten list of my favorite film score related experiences of the year. Another scoreboarder had done something similar and it was a great read, so I figured I'd try my hand at it this year.

So better late then never, here are my top ten Film Score Experiences of 2017.

10. Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets – Alexandre Desplat (2017)

So Desplat finally did it. He gave me a score that I really enjoyed. I’ve always appreciated his stuff but I had a hard time connecting to it. But with Valarian he just hit all the sweet spots of action, adventure and themes. The score feels fun, and there is a lot of energy to it. Once you put it in film order it gets even better, and is one I’ve come back to quite a few times over the year.

9. The Neon Demon – Cliff Martinez (2016)

This one uses 80s style synths, but has this darker and moodier overtone to it. It gets dreamy sometimes, but in an uncanny nightmare kind of way. It is less active than Nerve but I still listened to this one almost as many times. I love the way it twists and turns into the dark edges. And yeah it provided further 80s cyberpunk feeling and was perfect listening while I was reading some William Gibson earlier this year. I’m not the biggest Martinez fan, but this one just clicked with me.

8. Once Upon a Time in the West – Ennio Moricone (1968)

This one always came up when people talked about Morricone’s work in the Western genre. So I finally decided to give it a try and wow it really is top notch. I might even like it a little more than The Good, The Bad and the Ugly which held my top spot for his Western scores. Love all the themes in this score and they get some really great renditions. I try to pick up at least one Morricone score a year and I’m glad this was the one I grabbed.

7. Star Trek TNG – The Ron Jones Project Vol 1 – Ron Jones (1987/2010)

I got into a full-blown Star Trek mode midway through the year. I picked up the first disc of Ron Jones music from The Next Generation. And it was really entertaining stuff. The Naked Now feels like an interpretation of the TOS style of music and is a lot of fun. But the highlight of the disc is the music for Where No One Has Gone Before. Jones uses a lot of Goldsmith’s style in this one and it really works. Listened to this one a lot over the year and enjoyed it a little more each time.

6. Priest – Christopher Young (2011)

Man Christopher Young… the guy is just plain amazing. Each time I pick up one of his scores I’m impressed all over again. I had listened to it quite a few times on YouTube when I was writing some horror/adventure fiction and loved it. But hearing it on my headphones and then on the full surround system was such a treat. Young balances the horror with the adventure vibe and does it in a modern style – but still manages to keep it from getting droning or boring. This score just clicks everything I love about Young’s work. After listening to this score in full I easily put him as one of my favorite composers.

5. War for the Planet of the Apes – Michael Giacchino (2017)

Yeah I love me some Giacchino. Of the six scores of his I purchased in 2017 I have to say that this one was my favorite (still need to pick up Coco). The way it works in the film is just about perfect. As a solo listening experience I love the way it starts off as an atonal atmospheric mood of building tension. Then it evolves into a true journey that matches Caesar’s. The Morricone nods, the finale cues, just about everything is a truly fitting conclusion to the trilogy. You can tell Giacchino was inspired by this story, and I really can’t wait for further collaborations with Reeves. I wrote a whole blog on the scores to the films here.

4. Superman – John Williams (1978/2000)

This was a huge hole in my John Williams collection. I broke down and picked up the Rhino version of the score. Holy CRAP was this something else. It hits all the nostalgia buttons for me, but there is also this sweeping grandeur that Williams just nails. Of course the main march is excellent. But I also love his Krypton theme and the music used for the Smallville sequences. The love theme is a classic. The only weak part is the music for the comical villains. As a whole Superman is a powerhouse and I’m so happy to have it in my collection. It confirms my love for the late 70s and early 80s of Williams work.

3. Nerve – Rob Simonsen (2016)

I’m a child of the 1980s so it goes without saying that I love 80s style synth scores. When I heard samples from Simonsen’s score on Erik’s radio show Cinematic Sound Radio I put this on my “to buy” list. Picking Nerve up was well worth it. I listened to this score many times over the year. It put me deep into cyberpunk 80s mode and inspired some short fiction writing too. I even like the song that uses the main theme as its tune. It is easy to recommend this score to fans of this eclectic style of music.

2. Thriller (rerecording) – Jerry Goldsmith (1960/2017)

I discovered this television series about six or seven years ago. It is a fun bit of classic television with some creepy stories, some entertaining performances (I’m looking at you Shatner) and of course great music by Morton Stevens and Jerry Goldsmith. These guys did so much with such a limited budget for this show. And Goldsmith really cut his teeth developing his thriller and horror styling. You can hear so many little hints that would lead to The Omen, Poltergeist and Gremlins in here. Tadlow’s impressive rerecording really brings out the best out of these excellent selections from the series. The final composite end titles suite is almost worth the price of purchase alone. For a Goldsmith fan is an easy purchase.

1. Ben Hur (rerecording) – Miklos Rozsa (1959/2017)

This is one of my favorite scores of all time. When I returned to film score collecting in 2005 (and found Filmtracks at the same time) this was one of the first scores I added to my collection. I picked up the Rhino edition that extended over two CDs and still didn’t include all the music from Miklos Rozsa’s score. I listened to Ben Hur a lot back in those days and got very familiar with it. I fell in love with Rozsa’s epic style because of it. When Tadlow announced a full rerecording of Ben Hur I was ecstatic. Each time I've picked up one of their rerecording it has been a wonder to explore. To hear this full score in wonderful sound quality is really an amazing treat. Listening to this on my full surround set up was just sublime (and I’m sure the neighbors appreciated it too).

Honorable Mentions:

This year I picked up more then a few jazz based scores. I enjoyed all of them and they all got multiple listens. For the 1960s style of spy flavored jazz I enjoyed the duo of Our Man Fint and In Like Flint by Goldsmith. Followed by the wonferfully fun The Man Who Knew too Little by Young which has more than a share of Mancini in it. I also picked up The Russia House which is a much darker take on the jazz sound, a bit noire and bit more thriller. Excellent score by Goldsmith. Then you have Sneakers which is a Horner score I’ve had on my list for years. It is an excellent example of his 90s thriller style and includes some jazzy elements to it, as well as some excellent darker material.

A couple of recent scores really impressed me. Doctor Strange by Giacchino was a blast and would have probably made my top ten if War for the Planet of the Apes hadn’t been so darn good. It is an excellent superhero score and those last two tracks are gold. I also enjoyed The Last Jedi quite a bit. I think I need to give it some more time, maybe hear it in context of the film again. But it just wasn’t quite good enough to crack the top ten of my list. Superman and E.T. eclipsed it easily.

Another rerecording that I picked up was Distant Worlds: The Music of Final Fantasy Vol 1. Wow was this a lot of fun. I’m familiar with the music from some of the games, but to hear it presented with a full orchestra and with such enthusiasm was a treat. I’ve got the next volumes on my list to pick up at some point.

Picked up a few older scores that I’ve had my eye on for some time. The Last Valley by Barry was one I was waiting for a reissue on. I finally was able to pick it up and really loved it. Feels like an extension of The Lion in Winter but with a bit more melodic sorrow in it. Picked up Capricorn One by Goldsmith as well. This has to be his prototypical thriller score. So many great elements in it and it makes for an exciting and tense listening experience. When E.T. got its expanded treatment I had to grab it. Not only did it have the wonderful 1980s album presentation, but the sound quality was amazing. Finally I did a little tour through my collection at the start of the year picking a single score from each letter of alphabet. When I got to Q I realized I didn’t have anything! I remedied that with Quigley Down Under, and wow was that a treat and a half. Poledouris gives us a wonderful rollicking main theme for this Western and as a whole the score it just a lot of fun.

And just to prove that I’m not all scores and no songs, I did pick up the album to Streets of Fire a wonderfully cheesy 1980s noire/action/musical movie type thing that has some really fun songs in it. I mean if you love rockin’ early 80s style with lyrics by Jim Steinman. I also got Songs in the Key of MST which is a collection of many of the host segment songs from my favorite television show Mystery Science Theater 3000. I was worth it for Let’s Have a Patrick Swayze Christmas and Toobular Boobular Joy alone.

Well that was my best of the year. Hope you enjoyed the read and looking forward the new experiences in film scores for 2018.

Score Sample: The Monkey King (2014)

Time for another score sample from Christopher Young. I know this wasn't posted in October, when I usually post Mr. Young's excellent horror scores. But I wanted to demonstrate just how versatile Christopher Young is when it comes to film music.

For a long time film score fans have lamented that Young has never really had a chance to score a big budget science fiction or fantasy epic. The guy has all the skills required, but lately he's been sticking to horror, dramas and thrillers. His music remains excellent, but those of us who love colorful bombast just wanted a bit more.

In 2014 Young got the chance when he was approached by Chinese studios to score their three part epic mythic films around The Monkey King. Young jumped at the chance and crafted what may be his best film score yet. When the album was release Young personally crafted suites for all the main characters in the film, creating an excellent listening experience. It is really hard to just pick one, but here is the suite for the main character Sun Wukong also known as The Monkey King.

Anime Juke Box - Truth - Revolutionary Girl Utena

Ready for some more J-pop? This time I dig back into the 1990s with one of the most creative and unique anime series I'd seen: Revolutionary Girl Utena. I really need to write up a review or three for this series and its bizarre film.

One of the most striking things about the series is the music, which combines wonderful orchestral moments with full blown 70s style rock opera. I sampled one of the rock opera bits before, but today I'm taking a look at the end title piece from the first season. It's still got the wailing guitars, the full throated female singer and a disco backbeat - all things that Utena has in spades. One of my favorite end credits pieces from 1990s anime here is Truth performed by Luca Yumi. And yes she is saying "Kissing love and true your heart." Because why the hell not.

Score Sample: Fantastic Beast and Where to Find Them (2016)

The Harry Potter films actually have a pretty impressive film music history. The series started with the maestro himself, John Williams, crafting memorable themes for the first three films. Hedwig's Theme has become the identity for the franchise and is used in nearly every instance of Harry Potter mentioned in television or movie form. After that you had composers like Patrick Doyle and Alexandre Desplat providing some equally impressive scores for the series.

So when Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them was announced many film score fans wondered who would take up the mantle and if Williams themes would be used. The job fell to James Newton Howard, who has provided some excellent fantasy adventure scores in his day. He seemed like a good fit for the project. What is more, the film is set in the 1920s, so Howard was able to have some fun with the score. He took John Williams signature sound for the earlier films, added a bit of jazzy 1920s style and created a wonderfully fun score that hits all the sweet spots. 

This concert suite shows off both sides of the score using the memorable main them and taking it through variations. The last couple minutes go full 1920s jazz, and it is a lot of fun. So here is the track A Man and His Beasts from James Newton Howard's score to Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them.