My Top Movie Soundtracks

I've talked before about early movie soundtrack purchases that made a big impression on the younger version of me. Stuff like Rocky, Star Wars, and A Clockwork Orange. Read here. 

There may be a little bit of overlap as I discuss my current favourites, but ever since my youth, I've discovered so many more tremendous film scores, some oldies and others from modern films. It's a real mixed bag, with music from movies of the horror, sci-fi, fantasy, comedy, drama, adventure, thriller, and western genres. 

The first Star Wars (since re-titled as A New Hope) movie's soundtrack is still on my faves list. This first visit to the worlds of Tattooine, Yavin IV (the Rebel base), and the Death Star (a man-made world, right?) took us light-years away, and into the past, with its story... and the accompanying music by maestro John Williams was equally enthralling. No wonder director Lucas kept Williams on the payroll for the rest of his film series. 

A Clockwork Orange remains high on my list, too, as it played such an important role in introducing me to classical music... more specifically that of Ludwig van Beethoven. Yeah, that Fifth Symphony guy. Only I fell in love with his Ninth Symphony, which is far more powerful, full of greater contrasts, and of course demonstrates both delicate and lusty operatic vocals. I'm still a fan.

Composer Bernard Herrmann wrote scores for dozens of films, most of them now classics. Like Citizen Kane, Psycho, Vertigo, Cape Fear, and Taxi Driver. But it was his genre work, of which there was a lot, that captured my imagination the most. The soundtracks I enjoy best are from Alfred Hitchcock's thriller North By Northwest; the fantasy epics The Seventh Voyage of Sinbad and Jason and the Argonauts; the 50's sci-fi masterpiece The Day the Earth Stood Still; and the quiet tale of the supernatural The Ghost and Mrs. Muir. I like all of these almost equally, with Mrs. Muir most likely my top pick.

The French comedy Amélie entertained me endlessly for several years since I first saw it - I bought it on home video and watched it repeatedly. Everything about the film is impeccable, from the actors' performances to the settings and from the cinematography to the script. The music was a key component for me because it conveyed the whimsical nature of the story and its offbeat characters. I used to play the Amélie soundtrack endlessly, never tiring of it. It's been a long time now, but I feel like I'm due to give it a spin again. 

The modern thriller Drive was a dark and disturbing flight into a world of nastiness. The visuals were evocative of gloomy 80's genre films, and the retro-sounding electronic synth-based soundtrack heightened that mood... sometimes filling the listener with dread, other times with an almost wistful feeling for that decade's stylishness. 

Dracula, the version by Francis Ford Coppola, contains some of the creepiest film music I've ever heard. I have often played my CD of this score while reading a horror novel during the Halloween season. The combo truly gave me chills. Composer Wojciech Kilar successfully crafted an unholy soundscape for Coppola's stylized take on the classic vampire tale. 

Sticking with the work of Kilar, I'll mention his musical contribution to Roman Polanski's supernatural thriller The Ninth Gate. Again, the audio backdrop is moody and prickles at the skin like so many spiders... though there are more melodic passages here than in Dracula. 

The Thing, the 80's horror gem from director John Carpenter, is among my very favourite movies of the genre. And it should go without saying that its skin-crawling music by Ennio Morricone is among my top scores. Like composer Kilar's compositions, Morricone's work for The Thing is so otherworldly and insidious that it's disturbing. It really works on your psyche while making your skin crawl... both mental and physical reactions to the music. Not every composer can accomplish that!

One of the movies that prompted me to begin a serious soundtrack collection back in the 90's was Lawrence of Arabia. The grand sweeping score transported me to exotic desert locales and then to gripping battle scenes. Oscar, Globes, and Grammy-winning composer Maurice Jarre was responsible for the timeless music that evoked grandeur for big sequences and more intimate music for quieter scenes. Definitely a must-have for a collector.

In the early stages of building my CD soundtrack collection - pretty much from scratch - in the 90's and 2000's, I made it a priority to assemble the complete set all of the James Bond movie scores. Today, I'm only missing a few, but those were conscious decisions. Dr. No and the last couple of Bond movies never impressed me much. Dr. No, the first Bond film, from 1962, contained almost no real spy music that resembled any of the signature themes that would come later. Yes, the famous guitar riff-y James Bond Theme we all know and love is there at the start of the film (and soundtrack album), but that's it. The rest of that soundtrack is dance-y Caribbean calypso music... not really what I want to listen to. That said, I did pick up the vinyl record of this to frame and display on the wall among my other Bond collectibles.

As for the other Bond scores (and there are more than two dozen of them), I have narrowed down my absolute favourites to (in no particular order):

From Russia With Love
You Only Live Twice
On Her Majesty's Secret Service
Diamonds are Forever
Moonraker
For Your Eyes Only

John Barry composed the music for all but the last film in my little list. Bill Conti did For Your Eyes Only, and only succeeded because he captured the essence of Barry's notable Bond-isms in style and melody. Barry's 60's and 70's work for the Bond series is highly regarded, the 60's in particular, though even heading into the 80's, he popped out some amazing scores. On Her Majesty's Secret Service provided a feast of musical motifs, and those plus the rest of the Bond music canon became the template for spy films to come. Pretty impressive. 

A more modern movie soundtrack - not so much a score as a collection of songs - that I immediately latched onto in the early 2000's and still love is that from the comedy-drama Lost in Translation. The pop and rock songs, both existing and re-mixed versions, play an important role in establishing the impressionistic and romantic vibe... just as vital as the actors Murray and Johansson. Lost in Translation is my favourite movie - ever - so of course, its music means something to me. I must admit, though, that I'm not always in the mood for the soundtrack on its own. Even the movie... well, it's like a bottle of fine wine... I wouldn't want to drink it all the time. It's a special thing that I save for a special time. 

One of the highlights of the Turbo Kid musical score

Turbo Kid, a fun sci-fi throwback to the 80's from Quebec, Canada, boasts an insanely amazing electronic musical score. Only a few years old, the movie's apocalyptic story shows us a bleak future world where a young man struggles to survive and to master the use of his new-found super-powered "hero suit" (as I like to call it). It's full of over-the-top imagery, action and gore galore, though there are tender moments, too. And it is the electronic sounds created by Quebec musicians Le Matos that punctuates every scene with emotion, nostalgia, and excitement. The one vocal track, No Tomorrow, featuring singer Pawws, is so pretty in an 80's-sounding pop way that I can't get enough of it. And it underlines the relationship that develops alongside the killing madness in the movie. 

I believe that the Turbo Kid soundtrack may be my favourite soundtrack at this point in time. If you like electro music, I highly recommend this... and even check out the far-out fantasy movie for the full effect. 

Subtitles For The International Film Fan

It wasn't intentional, but I found myself watching a handful of foreign films lately. Most were old classics and one is a modern motion picture that came under my radar. 

First up was M, the 1931 German thriller directed by Fritz Lang (best known for his sci-fi masterpiece Metropolis). I saw part of M many years ago, and for whatever reason, never got around to finishing the movie. This time around, I did it all in one shot. I must confess that I was a bit underwhelmed with M. While I can give credit for creative camera-work, lighting, scene set-up, and choice of actors, I found the whole thing too slow; too many long dull scenes that didn't seem to advance the story nearly forced me to quit early. M is creepy and tense here and there along the way, aided by the unsettling silence and especially Peter Lorre's performance. But what could have been a decent police procedural fell apart as things proceeded too haphazardly. Not quite the classic I expected. 

I learned of the 1967 Taiwan wuxia film Dragon Inn as I pored over the Criterion Collection website months ago. It sounded so intriguing that I tracked down a decent-looking version - without subtitles, mind you - on Youtube. I loved the movie, even without any translation for the Mandarin dialogue. The story and action-packed visuals were that strong! More recently, the Criterion company released Dragon Inn on home video, so I snapped that up and re-watched it, again enthralled with the visuals but this time understanding far more through the English subtitles. Director King Hu blended elements from American westerns and traditional Chinese martial arts and opera. Hu's technical skills and creative abilities were key to the success of Dragon Inn, which was a turning point for Chinese cinema. Lots of fun with clever and humorous bits alongside the breathtaking action scenes. I really enjoyed all of the actors' performances... and I think this is one of my favourite martial arts movies now. 

Smiles of a Summer Night, on the other hand, is a 1955 comedy out of Sweden. Directed by the master Ingmar Bergman, Smiles is a light and clever story of love and complicated relationships. Despite its age and country of origin, the film holds up amazingly well for this modern Canadian viewer. I laughed often at the characters, the dialogue, and the scenarios. Bergman obviously had the gift, for regardless of genre, he deftly and confidently created films that "captured and illuminated the mystery, ecstasy and fullness of life" (Mick LaSalle, American film critic). And Smiles of a Summer Night is a cheerful celebration of life, even - no, especially - in its focus on dysfunctional relationships. 

Another wonderful discovery by director Bergman was Fanny and Alexander. The first chunk of this 1982 historical period drama was captivating, whimsical and fascinating, almost fantasy-like; then the story veered into a bleak world that while almost painful to watch, was engrossing. Set during the early 1900's in Uppsala, Sweden, the movie is semi-autobiographical, depicting something of Bergman's life. I watched the 320-minute cut of the film (one of the longest in the history of cinema); a trimmed-down version was released theatrically. My Criterion Collection blu-ray contains both variants, and I chose to see the longer of the two. Again, Bergman is the master of all things cinematic... the camera as an eyepiece to this semi-fictional world of fascinating characters, locations, and relationships. The script, the music, acting, the artistry behind the camera. No wonder Fanny and Alexander is so highly regarded. I'm a fan.

Thelma is a 2017 supernatural thriller from Norway. The synopsis I read led me to believe this would be a good choice. Thelma started off decently, and I thought it might be promising, but the last act or so left me struggling with its underdeveloped horror. I guess the intent was to focus on the love story and the mystery. All was handled well enough, with a disquieting and even sad tone and an atmosphere that held promise, but I feel it erred on the side of restraint rather than excess. Probably the better choice, though it left me wanting something more. The idea of the young woman discovering her telekinetic abilities reminded me of some of Stephen King's stories, like Carrie, The Dead Zone, and Firestarter, and I thought something more dramatic could have come about here. Still, not a bad flick. 

The Listening Booth and New Records

It's been a while since I last talked about additions to my record shelf, so today I'll do some catching up. I found some deals through careful searching, usually on Discogs.com and Musicstack.com. I highly recommend both of these sources, as they each operate as a storefront for third-party sellers the world over. I've never had a problem with either site, and have only had good experiences with honest and friendly fellow record collectors. 

A while back I located Zenyatta Mondatta, the third album from The Police. This 1980 release represents what I like most about The Police: fun pop brilliance, intelligent and biting lyrics, and instrumental genius. That little trio banged out so many hits during their short career that it boggles the mind. And for me, Zenyatta packs the most punch into its running time. Massive hits like Don't Stand So Close to Me, De Do Do Do De Da Da Da, and Bombs Away... lesser known yet creatively on par tracks Driven To Tears, and Canary In a Coalmine... and even the "filler" is quality stuff: Man in a Suitcase, and Voices Inside My Head. You'll find slower, murkier, offbeat tunes among the boppy ones, but everything gels so nicely on this disc.

Over the past several weeks. I've also been able to assemble most of the Max Webster catalogue on vinyl. I've acquired the first, self-titled Max album, High Class in Borrowed Shoes, and A Million Vacations. Add in Mutiny Up My Sleeve, which I got back in May, and there are all but one of the Max 70's studio releases. The remaining Universal Juveniles (Webster's last album) has never impressed me much; yes, the musicianship is there, but the feel of the album is so alienating and unlike all that came before... so I never cared much for it. But everything prior... pure gold. Pure Canadian gold. Max Webster had a charm, even an elegance, that accompanied their warm sounds and bizarre lyricism. 

Just the other day, I got my hands on a near mint vinyl copy of the first Van Halen album from 1978. Pristine sound. I made sure this was the optimal listening experience: headphones on, volume up... and in soars the intro to Running With the Devil. Oh yeah. And the rest was even more magnificent. My mind still boggles when I think about how this album... how Eddie's guitar playing... must have blown listeners away back in '78. I wasn't aware of Van Halen quite yet when this disc hit the streets back in the day. The impact and influence it had was obvious though; just look at all the guitarists that mimicked Ed's style throughout the 80's. A milestone in rock history.

On a lighter note, I grabbed a very nice copy of Elton John's Greatest Hits, the original compilation from 1974. I didn't want any of his 80's and Lion King-era stuff. But Elton's 70's output was masterful, so I definitely wanted that in my collection. And it sounds terrific. I think I had this on CD many years ago but couldn't appreciate and enjoy it at the time. Now I can. Though I have Elton's Greatest Hits Volume II on CD, I have an itch to find it on vinyl, too. I owned that back in the 70's, when I was a teen just getting into records. Anyway, this '74 set is excellent... my only quibble is Crocodile Rock, which I always associate with that goofy Elton appearance on The Muppet Show. A bit too silly for me.

It was tough to find a vinyl version of Rush's Fly By Night for a reasonable price, but I finally tracked one down in the UK. Yep, this was the album I decided would be my first Rush for the record shelf. I have everything by Rush on CD already, and I rarely revisit that stuff anymore, so I had to choose wisely for the vinyl format. There are precious few Rush I really want to re-buy just to spin on the turntable. Maybe just a couple more, but I'm in no hurry for those. Probably 2112 and A Farewell to Kings. Those were the beginning of the band's Golden Age, and likely all I'll ever want to play very much. For now, I'm very happy with these early classics: By-Tor and the Snowdog, Anthem, Best I Can, and Beneath Between and Behind (just to name a few).

At the other end of the spectrum, there's Twenty Greatest Hits, by Kenny Rogers. There will be very few country albums in my music collection, but I have always liked a handful of Roger's songs, so.... a solid compilation was in order here. I had heard bits of a bunch of these over the years, probably on TV or movies or wherever, but I never got to know the songs very well. Tracks like Lucille, Lady, She Believes In Me, and The Gambler are among those I was slightly familiar with, while others are new to me. A very welcome addition. 


In the listening booth, I've been checking out a variety of things:

The brand new song Play by Dave Grohl clocks in at about 23 minutes. Grohl plays every instrument heard in the trippy, proggy instrumental track, and I daresay, it sounds like something Rush might have created in the mid-90's. From the sonic quality to the execution on each instrument and the song structure... it's pretty much all Rush. Could this be Grohl's tribute to the now-retired prog-metal masters?

Youtube recommended this one to me: The Gathering playing their song Leaves. A cool, heavy, angular song embellished by angelic female vocals. Atmospheric and doomy, I hear a lot of elements I like here. I must investigate further...

I heard a couple of tunes off Dee Snider's new album, the most impressive being I Am The Hurricane. Ol' Dee can still tear it up... it's a heavy, sort of thrashy anthem, very unlike any Twisted Sister concoction. The video is weird and cool, too. 

As I watched a little Youtube biography of Alice In Chains, I was reminded of just how great this band was during the 90's. I was a fan at the time, but sort of forgot about them over the past twenty years. The power and brilliance of their album Dirt will forever stay with me, and for some reason, I needed reminding that their debut, Facelift, was pretty damned amazing, too.

Rock on, brothers and sisters...

No More Rock Stars?

In past writings, I've lamented the demise of the "rock star" from modern day music (like here). Yeah, yeah, there are pop stars, but within the rock genre, which still sort of exists in a weak, in-the-shadows way, there are simply no rock stars today. I mean, I just now glanced at the all-encompassing Billboard Top Artists chart, and within the top 10, the most prominent names were Drake, Taylor Swift, Maroon 5, and Ed Sheeran. Okay, so these guys (and gal) aren't to my taste in music... I think I've established that before. But where's the rock?

Rock artists do exist - that's a fact. But it feels like there are far fewer of them, or maybe it's just that whoever they are just aren't getting attention and hitting the mainstream. Unfortunately, if the rock artists out there are going the indie route, then they will never become "stars" in the true sense. They may earn respect and loyalty of their fans, but their DIY, pay-yer-dues approach put them in a different sphere. 

I noticed that among the leaders on Billboard's separate Top Rock Artists chart are veterans Metallica and U2. But do they count? I mean let's face it, Metallica and U2 are no longer rock gods, and are barely even rock stars anymore... just oldsters spinning out their final days. We've seen the former metal gods spill their guts and cry on film. Bono of U2, through all of his commendable humanitarian work, has gone from an untouchable status in the 80's to a face and voice you see and hear in the news on a near-weekly basis. It gets ho-hum after a while. These guys are too down-to-earth and average now to be rock stars.

To quote a thoughtful Forbes article (here), "There are certainly no rock stars that command the cover of magazines the way Robert Plant did. There are no bands that demand attention from the media the way the super bands of the late 70s did". Yeah, so can you name a single current rocker who captivates the cameras and writers as much as Plant, Bowie, Elton, and Jagger once did? The Forbes writer poses some interesting ideas, such as that we may be nearing a "big shift" similar to that of the early 70's (emergence of giants such as Zeppelin, Floyd and so on) and the early 90's (when Pearl Jam and Nirvana ruled). I'm hopeful, but I won't place any bets.

Ex-Skid Row singer Sebastian Bach expressed his thoughts on what a rock star is... and isn't... in a hilarious interview I listened to recently. In a nutshell, he said that in the "old days" like the 60's or 70's (even the 80's), music fans didn't have access to their idols. Kids looked up to and worshiped - from afar - rock stars of that time, and considered them to be gods. Famous musicians, given this god-like status, were beyond the reach of their adoring fans. Maybe some TV or magazine interviews, but not always. There was no internet, Instagram, Facebook, Twitter and all that to relay the minutia of the musicians' lives to the world. And that lack of information and access was what often created an air of mystery surrounding the rock stars. But today everyone - including your favourite music artist, is online tweeting about what they have for lunch. Not so cool. Nor rock star-ish.

The best example would be Led Zeppelin. Their album artwork rarely showed pictures of the band and gave only the bare minimum of facts about them. In fact, look at Zep's fourth record: it was untitled (and bore nothing but an unusual image on the cover - no band name or album title), leaving it to the listeners to dub the album things like IV, Zoso, Old Man With Sticks, and so on. The cryptic imagery on all their album covers contributed to the mystique that served the band so well. Today, there is no equivalent, in that sense, to Led Zeppelin. 

Pink Floyd operated in much the same way, preferring anonymity and letting their music (and unusual album cover art) do the talking. Perhaps less mystical but still god-like in the eyes of fans of the day were The Who, Queen, the Rolling Stones (and the Beatles... why not?). The 1970's boasted the greatest output of durable, still legendary bands. They weren't all at the Zeppelin level, but nobody could debate the rock star status of Fleetwood Mac, Eagles, Aerosmith, Elton John, and Bowie (just to name a few).

I guess the closest thing to a modern day rock star would be Dave Grohl, whose band Foo Fighters has been championing the cause since the 90's. Grohl and the boys carry the torch, with few others keeping pace. 

Jack White of the White Stripes appears to share that same work and rock ethic, though I must confess I don't know much of his stuff. I do like the few tunes I've heard (Hardest Button, Sixteen Saltines, to name a couple). Based on what little I've heard, I can say I respect what White is doing for the current state of affairs in music. Rock star material? Not to me... but what do the kids think?

A much younger band called Torche rivals Foo Fighters with their distorted punch and driving drums. They're too green - and indie - to be stars yet, but it's nice to know there's some young blood out there keeping the faith. Check out their song Kicking and tell me that doesn't sound a bit like the Foos. There's potential for an act like this to achieve something special.

Another youthful group, Japandroids, displays an energy and sound that's refreshing. Again, these guys are relatively new to the game, so no star or god status yet. Try out Fire's Highway for a bright, rockin' kick in the pants reminiscent of Canada's Northern Pikes. Not a bad thing at all.

I just a couple of days ago discovered the music of Tame Impala. Wow! Their song Mind Mischief sounds like something the Beatles might do if they were all together (now) today. The tune The Less I Know The Better has an 80's pop vibe (the good kind), yet it sounds fresh and modern. Expectation feels like early Yes, high praise, I'd say. The band seems to channel the sounds of the 60's, with influences like Cream, Beatles, Hendrix, and Beach Boys... a lot of psychedelic rock. I'm impressed with every song I've heard by Tame Impala. Evidence that rock is not dead... it's just not everywhere you look. So keep looking!

As the Forbes article went on to say, (young) people today seem to worship the technology that delivers the music, rather than worshiping the musicians. People are more focused on the tech than the music itself. The tunes are wallpaper. So why would anyone care to delve into the details of the artist? It's an attitude shift on the part of the listening population. 

To quote Youtube user Jazz Guitar Scrapbook, "Rock ain't dead, it just smells funny". I couldn't have said it better myself.