|
|
|
| OFFERS: Free Playstation PS3 | |||||||||
|
Reviews of: Indiana Jones: The Soundtracks Collectionby John Williams
Reviews At long last, Indy gets the Star Wars / Lord of the Rings treatment! I've been a soundtrack enthusiast since I was a boy, and as with many who share my passion the Indiana Jones soundtracks have long been amongst the most beloved and yet still frustrating albums I have owned. Of course, John Williams' classic mix of brassy heroism, muscular action and broad romantic motifs need no introduction - a perfect mix of 1930s musical idioms and contemporary pace and styling. But for so long we had to endure cut down selections on album, with so many great cues missing. Admittedly the DDC/Silva reissue of Raiders did much to correct this for the first score, and the original Last Crusade album pushed the limits of the original CD release and felt moderately complete, but Temple of Doom was always the weak link. Not any more. Now all three original films get the expansions they have so long deserved and fans have so long desired - and all with punchy, pristine remasters. Raiders, having been issued in a vastly expanded form already, only gets three new cues, admittedly short but all key (the first introduction of the Ark theme for example, which chills to the bone). Last Crusade has a number of minor cues added, plus at last the complete train chase sequence and the wonderful main theme segue from River Phoenix to Harrison Ford - but it is Temple of Doom that truly impresses! Always my favourite of the Jones scores, the original album missed so many wonderful pieces - the pilotless plane sequence with its huge musical flourishes, the Indian village with its ominous ethnic sounds, the whooping horns and clattering percussion of Pankot Palace, massive tracts of action music from the Thugee mines, the little Raiders swordfight gag, the final battle of the rope bridge and arrival of the troops... At last all are here! Disc four is the least exciting, featuring the standard album of Crystal Skull, which I review elsewhere (Indiana Jones & The Kingdom of the Crystal Skull). This is a shame, as while it is fairly complete, little cues like the military convoy at the beginning would have been nice additions. This is actually a five disc set, and disc five is a bonus that rounds up minor cues that couldn't be fitted on the main discs - mostly from Last Crusade, including the Zeppelin sections - plus some audio interviews. The packaging is superb - a faux-leather box with gold embossing, and matt-varnished digi-pak style sleeves for each main album that use the original album covers. Disc five is relegated to a simple card slipcase, as if it was an afterthought, and the booklet and CD inserts are disappointingly brief and shallow compared to efforts like the Lord of the Rings complete editions or the superb Superman FSM box set. But, with Amazon now doing this for sub-£25 what excuse does any soundtrack fan have!? Time to retire your older, shorter albums, as beloved as they might be, because remember - it's not the years, it's the mileage, and this new set has plenty of that! 2008-11-27 excellent! This box is beautiful, it has perfect audio quality for it's age. The only downside maybe, is that for some of the movies they should have just opted for a double disc per movie. Now you get some extra tracks on a extra cd. Ofcourse when you rip them in iTunes it's no problem to fit them in the original soundtracks. But for this price (pre-order was cheaper) it's a bargain! Any true Indy fan will be satisfied with this product! The audio quality of Temple of Doom is amazing, if you are used to listen to the bootleg (wich was just audio ripped from the laserdisc/dvd). 2008-11-24 Missing disc Not so much a review - just wondering if anyone else's set is missing the fifth disc containing additional music and interviews? Bizarrely, there doesn't appear to be room in the outer cardboard box to contain a fifth disc! Unless it's supposed to be tucked inside the fourth disc's individual packaging - in which case, where's the track listing? VERY frustrating! I shall, of course, be returning it and hope to receive a COMPLETE replacement...! 2008-11-20 This is gonna be great! Cheaper elsewhere though! Everyone knows the theme. But music lovers know that John Williams belts out the most memorable scores around. Between Star Wars, Superman, E.T. and Indiana Jones he has done some of his best work. I already own the released soundtracks and they are all great but as per usual when you watch the films you think why was that piece not included. When they finally, after years of waiting, got round to releasing the complete Star Wars CD's they were fantastic, and it was all there. Even though I already own all the Indiana Jones OST's I shall still be buying this. Those little snippets previously unreleased are just the lost treasure Indy himself would be after. Agree with everyone else though. AMAZON WHAT'S WITH THE PRE RELEASE PRICE?!?!?! Having looked it is available on pre order for up to £15 less in the UK not to mention the US price on Amazon's own .com site. Still for any soundtrack music lover this is one not to miss. Sure to be a collector's item in years to come. 2008-10-10 UK Release Looks like I will be getting one of my American pals to order this and send it over here, as stated £47 is almost $100 dollars, which is crazy. That said, this is something we've all waited an age for so it will be worth the extra hassle to get hold of, cannot wait! 2008-10-09 |
You may also be interested in ....
|
|||||||
![The Dark Knight (2 Discs) [Blu-ray]](http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51JzRd8vBwL._SL75_.jpg)
![The Dark Knight [Special Collectors Edition]](http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/31ewUvYHzDL._SL75_.jpg)
