Chew the Fat: Spectacular Film Soundracks!

Redartz:  We all love a good movie. We all love good music. So it only seems logical that we'd all love a good movie soundtrack. 

I certainly do; and the past week has put a couple of them onto my radar. I recently acquired the soundtrack cd of John Williams' "Jurassic Park", and was gifted the lp of Prince' "Purple Rain" (which certainly qualifies, as it was all film music). Both are favorites of mine. 
John Williams, of course, has many film scores on his lengthy resume. Quite likely some of them will be named as favorites among you all. But of all his works, my personal picks are "Jaws" and "Jurassic Park"; largely for the same reason. In both cases the musical score melds so effectively with the action onscreen that they are practically inseparable. Everyone recognizes the classic intro to "Jaws", just a few of those low notes will bring to mind the impending doom of that young swimmer. Well, William's work on JP is equally evocative. 

As for Prince: his talent needs no explanation from this unworthy one. But "Purple Rain" worked so beautifully as a whole; it seemed like a music video in full movie form. And each song was ...perfect. One of the best , if not the best, musical films of the 80's. And it still sounds excellent today. 












 

I could go on, and probably will as the conversation gets going. I will just mention one more, one less familiar to many than the two discussed above. Mike Oldfield did the soundtrack for the film "The Killing Fields". Most folks will recognize him from "The Exorcist", which utilized his composition "Tubular Bells". The music he created for "Fields" is remarkable. Wide ranging in approach, from powerful symphonic elements to delicate pan flute to bizarre electronica, it stunned me upon my first viewing of the film. So much so that I went immediately out to the record store and picked up the soundtrack lp. Which is saying something; a movie ticket and a record album cost a good bit of money to a humble art student at the time.

Okay, you know where this is all leading to. What film scores gave you the shivers? Which stand out and which are essentially forgettable? Which composers did/do you favor? What soundtracks really 'made' the movie, and which ones nearly sank it? The curtains are rising and the orchestra is warming up; have at it!

TV Guided: Incidental Music- Setting the Tone...

Redartz:  Hello everyone! This week we shall look at (listen to) some television music. And not Theme music, which is a subject all its own (and which we have addressed previously). Our topic is incidental, or background, music. You might consider it the soundtrack of a tv show. 

While theme songs often come quickly to mind (some qualify as genuine ear worms- think "Gilligan's Island"). background music may be virtually unnoticed. However, that background is crucial to the success of any show. And in some cases, the incidental music can truly stand out, and even become a major element of a show's appeal. 

Today I give you two examples of shows with phenomenal background music. Hopefully you all will offer up some additional musical recommendations (I'm always looking for more music to load on the ol' tablet, and incidental music is perfect for so many activities). But for the moment, let's listen to "Spider-Man" and "Lost in Space".

Any of you who have been following BitBA for awhile will know how highly I regard the 1967 Spider-Man cartoon. Indeed, I did a post about it. Well, one of the big draws to the show is the music. Many of you will be familiar with it, especially the music from the first season. Ray Ellis, who composed the classic theme song, also provided the incidental music used throughout the show (and which was also used in the second and third seasons). Loaded with great 60's surf guitar licks, his music really enhanced the web-slinger's adventuring. But the music from the later episodes was excellent, as well. Provided by a group of UK artists known as KPM, the later seasons music was stunningly cool and loads of jazzy fun. Syd Dale, Johnny Hawksworth, David Lindup, Johnny Pearson and others; such were the names behind the following musical examples. Enjoy...

 Incidental Music from "Spider-Man" 1967

 Don't know about you, but I'm feeling stoked already. And we're not done, next up is a sampling of music from the Irwin Allen classic "Lost in Space". Some of you may know that the familiar theme music (both versions, actually) from the show were composed by John Williams. Well, the show's incidental music was largely William's work as well. If you've seen the show, you know that the music ranges from positively creepy to breathlessly exciting to hilariously humorous. It sure provides evidence of John Williams' versatility. I still remember as a youngster watching the show; the suspenseful music accompanying the inevitable appearance of some monster would always send me hiding behind the sofa. This show's music is popular enough that it's been released repeatedly on cd as a full soundtrack. I haven't picked one up yet, but it's on my list. See what you think...

 Incidental Music from "Lost in Space"

 

And there it is, two shows with magnificently memorable musical accompaniment. Do you concur with my praise for these shows? Or am I off base? What other shows featured some great listening behind the dialogue? It's all up for discussion, and you are on the speaker list!