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Telarc's Turns to Goldsmith
Review by Christopher Coleman

The Film Music
of Jerry Goldsmith
9/10

 

Telarc Records is probably most noted in the film music community for their compilation CDs performed by Erich Kunzel and the Cincinnati Pops Orchestra. High quality, inventive releases such as The Big Picture and Movie Music not only featured stunning film music releases.  For 2001, the label takes its turn at presenting some of composer Goldsmith's most popular television and feature film compositions in their release:  The Film Music of Jerry Goldsmith.

The Film Music of Jerry Goldsmith presents all new recordings by the London Symphony Orchestra conducted by Goldmsith himself. The majority of the selections have long been available in through various releases, but there are a handful of some of Jerry Goldsmith's lesser celebrated works as well. The release features three suites of music along with seven tracks presenting some of Goldsmith's most recognizable movie themes. The performance lives up to the London Symphony Orchestra's reputation and Telarc's DSD (Direct Stream Digital) recording makes a huge difference in fidelity of the presentation. The combination of good music selection, dynamic performance, and high fidelity recording make this one of the best Goldsmith compilations around.

The CD begins with Goldsmith's classic Star Trek theme from the first motion picture and while this particular piece of music has been released a number of times, there really is no better way to start off any Goldmsith collection. Along with the Star Trek theme, one will find other familiar Goldmsith themes tucked away such as Rudy, Twilight Zone: The Movie, and Forever Young. 

The true highlights of the album are the two suites: Motion Picture Medley (2) and Medley of Television Music (6). The Motion Picture Medley features 18 minutes of well ordered excerpts from a wide selection of Goldsmith's dramatic (The Sand Pebbles, Papillion) and action movie-themes (Air Force One, The Wind and the Lion). Similarly, the television medley weaves between Goldsmith's adventurous The Man from U.N.C.L.E., theme from Star Trek: Voyager and Barnaby Jones, to his thoughtful themes for Dr. Kildare, Room 222 and The Waltons.  The final medley, The Generals (10) is only composed of two themes: from MacArthur and Patton. While not as engaging as the other two suites, it wraps up the CD on an inspirational note.   The arrangements of the suites aren't terribly complex but are concise and effective.

By no means is The Film Music of Jerry Goldsmith the first Goldsmith compilation.  Both Silva Records and Varese Sarabande have released exceptional compilations of their own in recent years: The Omen: The Film Music of Jerry Goldmsith and The Final Frontier. Telarc's release is, at least, their equal. The nearly 70 minutes flies by with a near flawless track ordering and intriguing mix of well-known, feature-film compositions with some of Goldsmith's under-appreciated television themes. In the end, Goldsmith devotees will do well to add this to their collection, as the variations included in these performances provide a bit of freshness to even the oft-heard cues.  At the same time, for those who have not bothered to delve into Jerry Goldsmith's rich history of film and television music, Telarc has provided the perfect opportunity to do just that.

Track Listing and Ratings

	Track	Title	Time	Rating
	1	Star Trek:  The Motion Picture	4:13	****
	2	Motion Picture Medley	18:19	*****
		The Sand Pebbles Chinatown Air Force One A Patch of Blue Poltergeist Papillion Basic Instinct The Wind and the Lion
	3	Theme from The Russia House	4:57	****
	4	The Boys from Brazil	7:00	****
	5	Them from Sleeping with the Enemy	3:13	***
	6	Medley of Television Themes	11:30	*****
		The Man from U.N.C.L.E. Dr. Kildare Room 222 Star Trek: Voyager The Waltons Barnaby Jones
	7	Theme from Rudy	4:56	****
	8	Twilight Zone:  The Movie	6:16	****
	9	Love Theme from Forever Young	3:57	****
	10	The Generals	5:11	****
		Total Running Time	69:13

*The Experience-O-Meter displays the track to track listening experience of this soundtrack based on the 5-Star rating given to each track.  It provides a visual depiction of the ebbs and flows of the CD's presentation of the soundtrack.

Referenced Reviews
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