OK so now its time for the second part of my list on my top 10 favourite original film soundtracks and it will cover No's 5 to 1. So let's get a move on with the list....
5. Psycho (1960) - Composer Bernard Herrmann
Right so to kick off the top 5 list we first up have Psycho which is a score that needs no real introduction and it is an instantly memorable one with its orchestral shrieks for the famous shower murder scene. But the score has so much more going on in it rather just its unforgettable shrieky music cue, its a score that is both jarring and subtle aswell as Herrmann gives the audience the perfect mix of bumps and jolts.
Anyway to say a bit more about some of the great tracks on the score for starters there is its main theme, which is terrific and it sets the tone of the film perfectly as it is quite frantic and has doom-laiden quality to it. Then it is followed up by the terrific track "The city" which is an impossibly good mix of intrigue and mystery and foreboding. "Temptation" is another one of my favourite tracks of the score where Marion Crane (Janet Leigh) makes the decision to leave town having stolen money from her boss as it shows Marion's dilemma as she makes her decision.
Then there is the classic track "The Murder" where the womanly figure appears at the shower curtain and pulls it back to kill Marion, its shrieks are piercing and you won't forget them in a hurry. And later there is the track "The Stairs" which expertly racks up the suspense again as Mrs Bates makes her second kill (Arbogast the detective, played by Martin Balsam). And lastly there are the tracks "The Cellar" and "Discovery" where Lila Crane (Marion's sister) makes a startling discovery at the Bates motel.
Its an unsettling score and a real classic and at that's why it earns a place on the top 5 without any doubt.
4. Alien (1979) - Composer Jerry Goldsmith
So at No.4 we have Alien composed by one of Hollywood's greats, Jerry Goldsmith. Goldsmith however had some concerns with his score when the film was in production as he felt that quite a bit of his score wasn't used and that he had written a plush, romantic sounding main theme for the film, which Scott discarded in favour of its chilling title theme that we are all familiar with. And while Goldsmith never cared for it himself, I think it remains one of the best title theme's you will ever likely to hear.
As for the other tracks that feature on the soundtrack album (although like alot of scores there are different versions of the score but I have the mp3 one from amazon myself) there are plenty here to admire. For starters there is "Face Hugger" which is huge in the scene of course near the end (SPOILER!!) where the alien shows up to finish off Parker and Lambert and its a great exercise in musical horror and escalating the tension as the scene carries on. In fact this piece of music was partly reused in James Cameron's sequel, Aliens in later part of the film where Ripley tries to escape the alien queen. "Breakaway" is another good heart pounding track which starts off instantly with a panicking frenzy before it tails off and becomes a gentler piece.
And next up is probably my favourite track on the album "The Landing" which is of course used when the Nostromo lands on the alien planet. Its a rather slow moving scene in itself but is helped along immesureably by Goldsmith's wonderfully atmospheric, foreboding and at times even romantic sounding cues. Then we have "The Recovery" which is again another exercise in nailbiting terror (so to speak) and is used when Ripley runs for her life down the corridors of the Nostromo to get away from the alien.
And lastly is "The Alien Planet" which is instantly recognisible in its opening moments and is used of course in the scene when Kane (John Hurt) discovers the "space jockey" and its a track that excels in being very creepy and intense.
Perhaps though the mix of music used in the actual film itself is an even better mixture of what is actually on the album you can get on Amazon and it really backs up what a great score this is but whatever version you listen to its more than worth it.
3. Star Wars (1977) Composer John Williams
What??? Star Wars not at No.1??? Yep, that's right there is a score better out there in my opinion than this one which nevertheless deserves it place on here in the top 3 and it is of course Star Wars Episode IV and what is to say about it that hasn't already been really said??? Its just superb.
Everything from its main theme, which is instantly recognisible and hummable as soon you hear you are hooked. Then there are of course other classic tracks that include the scene where the Jawas capture R2-D2 and carry him onto their sandwinder. Princess Leia's theme that is played when Luke accidentally activates the message that is inside R2-D2. The Cantina band is also a great track since it is a real departure from the sound of the rest of the score given its jazzy quality its also a memorable classic.
The list of course could go on and there are plenty of other tracks that are worth noting such as the one where Grand Moff Tarkin interrogates Leia and then destroys her home planet Alderin. And how about the track when Luke, Han, Leia and Chewie escape the Death Star and Han and Luke fight four TIE fighters. And to finish there is the tremendous near 10 minute epic track "The Battle of Yavin" which is epic in just about every sense and it ends on a big bang (literally as the Death Star is blown to bits).
It was the score that earned John Williams deservedly his second Academy award and every minute was worth it and that's why it sits on my list right near the top (if not actually at the top but we might not have seen the last of John Williams yet on this list!).
2. Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan (1982) Composer James Horner
So this is something of a bold claim to make, I actually think that this score IS better than Star Wars and for me it is the best damn thing James Horner had ever written in his career and it makes you appreciate what a great loss his untimely death was to cinema.
After the mediocre and mega-bore that was Star Trek: The Motion Picture along came Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan, which thankfully was everything the first film wasn't but its main saving grace was its score by Jerry Goldsmith. However Goldsmith was unavailable for the second film due to a cut in budget for the sequel so the producers went with a newcomer, James Horner and it was certainly the best decision made regards to the film as his score here is wonderful and has just about everything, drama, emotion, adventure, suspense and atmosphere. In short its bloody marvellous.
But anyway getting onto some of my favourite tracks from it, well for starters the film's main theme is great and yes OK it might not have the same catchy feel as Jerry Goldsmith's but its still a fine piece of music in its own right. Then there is one of my favourite tracks of the score "Khan's pets" which is a great exercise in creating musical suspense and it builds itself up slowly and its like listening to a heartbeat as Khan's makes himself known to Chekov in the scene and uses his "pets" to take control of Chekov and Captain Tyrell (played by Paul Winfield).
And another great track on the soundtrack album is "Surprise attack" when Khan first attacks the USS Enterprise as he and his crew have taken over the USS Reliant. And the track has some great moments that feature the use of a trumpet for the scene where Spock uses the damage report machine and the trumpet acts as a sound effect for it, which is quite unique in a music score. Then there is the moment near the end where the Reliant's commander (unknown to Kirk that it is Khan) signals them to surrender and Kirk has Khan put on screen and he looks on in shock and surprise, its a great moment.
This is followed by "Kirk's explosive reply" which is another great track which builds up the suspense in the scene where Kirk fights back against Khan as he manages to lower the Reliant's shields to return fire. Then there is another one of my favourite tracks from the score "Battle in the Mutara Nebula" which is again a wonderful and suspenseful track that features some unique moments aswell such as the use of a horn section again making a sound effect when the Enterprise enters the nebula. And in the track it also makes use of a strange guitar-like sounding synthesizer when both ships are trying to find each other in the Nebula, it adds to the atmosphere of the scene itself and its a great track.
And the last track I will mention is "Genesis countdown" where Khan starts the countdown of the Genesis weapon where Enterprise must clear its blast zone but the ship itself is damaged and unable to go to warp drive, which leads Spock to make a drastic choice to save the ship and the crew. Again its a wonderful piece that builds up as it goes on and conveys the danger of Spock's actions and also later toward the end the emotional punch that comes as Kirk realises what Spock has done. Terrific stuff.
So there you have it, Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan is one of my absolute favourite soundtracks and there are actually longer versions of the score available elsewhere other than the Amazon mp3 download (which I have) which are also worth checking out. So that's pretty much it for that one, its one of the very best scores for any movie out there and it was James Horner at his very best and that's what it makes a worthy runner-up on this list.
And my No.1 favourite original film soundtrack is.......
1. Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) - composer John Williams
OK so at the top spot is Raiders of the Lost Ark and while some people might claim that Star Wars might pip this score I have to disagree as this is flat out the best ever score John Williams wrote. This score has absolutely everything you could possibly want from a soundtrack, adventure, excitment, wonder, awe, fun, suspense and the fact that it is simply brilliant.
There are so many good tracks to pick from here but why not start with the first one off the soundtrack album "In the jungle" where we are first introduced to Indiana Jones as he moves through the South American jungle as it is wonderfully foreboding piece of music that sets the tone nicely. Next is the "The Idol Temple" which is terrific as it is another suspense builder as Indy works his way past a series of deadly traps to get to the idol he is after and again its a track that builds and builds till its end.
After this we have "The medallion" which is another excellent track where after Indy has cleared off from Marion's bar, looking for the medallion, Marion reveals that she has it worn around her neck underneath her shirt. And again its a great piece that starts off quite mysterious and becomes very menacing when the Nazi officer, Toht (Ronald Lacey) turns up looking for the medallion aswell. "The Basket Chase" is a great atmospheric piece where Indy chases after the Nazi agents who capture Marion and also features the great moment where Indy is confronted by an Arab swordsman but Indy just shoots him! Its also a track that his a bit of tongue in cheek to it too aswell as having a dramatic finish when Indy thinks that Marion has been killed.
"Bad dates" is a very subtle and moody track which is terrific as it is very intense and atmospheric and ends on a great sinister note when we see the monkey (belonging to an associate of the Nazi who owns the monkey) die after eating a poisoned date (the dates were poisoned by the associate). Then there is the "The Map Room" which is another intense track which the reinforces the Ark's theme where Indy finds the location to the Well of the Souls. "The Fist Fight/The Flying Wing" is a cracking piece of music aswell used when Indy fights off a Nazi pilot aswell as get invovled in a fist fight with a burly Nazi officer.
Then we have "Desert Chase" which I think is probably the best track of the entire score used when Indy persues the Nazis truck that carries the Ark and its a terrific piece of music from start to finish which has plenty of adventure, danger and intrigue in it. The best moment in it for me though is when the last remaining Nazi officer in the track sneaks into the front and throws Indy out the window of the truck and he passes underneath the track and uses his whip to drag along the ground before getting back into the truck and throwing out the soldier. Its just great.
And second to last is "The Miracle of the Ark" which is another fine moment in the score where Indy's rival, Belloq (Paul Freeman) who works with the Nazis open the ark and unwittingly unleashes it forces which end up (SPOILER!!!!) wiping out the Nazi army and Belloq with it! Again its a terrific example of Williams slowly building momentum and suspense before the track explodes into its terrifying moments when the Ark's forces destroy the Nazi army and it rises into a crescendo before it finishes on a subtle moment.
And last of all is "The Raiders March" which is of course the main Indian Jones theme which is unforgettable in itself and its such a good theme tune that couldn't be more suited to its character and his heroics and it rounds a superb film score, which totally deserves it place at the top of this list.
Sooo that's it for my top 10 favourite original film soundtracks, it wasn't easy to compile but still fun to do and maybe I will do another one sometime soon for my list of underrated movie soundtracks but I will leave that for another time.
Until the next one its bye for now!
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