Superman (1978) by John Williams

In 1978, Warner Brothers Pictures screened the movie Superman. John Williams took the job of composing the music for this film. This is definitely one of the greatest themes in movie history. Play the video below to listen to track 1 of this soundtrack: Prelude and Main Title March

I hear this while in Disney's Hollywood Studios two days ago and have been humming it ever since. It is a happy, memorable theme, and that is what makes good music. John Williams made this tune very memorable. I also like the beginning. It starts out slow, then it gradually grew. I like that John Williams took his time, he didn't rush or go immediately into the theme. This score also sounds a little old, which is fine because the theme sounds a little dated itself. I like the way it ends, too. John Williams Stretches the finale out to keep you hanging, expecting the big ending, which eventually comes. This music is very creative, and done by one of the greatest film composers of all time. Download the full score below and listen to it. Tell me what you think of the rest of this music.

Here is the download link to the soundtrack:

http://www.4shared.com/archive/-fCttaPdce/Superman-_The_Movie.html

Enjoy! 

Walt Disney World Park Soundtracks

Since I am currently in Walt Disney World, I am going to talk about the park soundtracks.

In 2008, Walt Disney Records released a two CD soundtrack for the Walt Disney World parks called "Four Parks - One World" to accompany their branded merchandise of the same name. This is a great soundtrack for Disney lovers. I think that the music makes the park more magical. Last year, Disney released an updated version of the soundtrack, plainly called "Walt Disney World Official Album (there is also a Disneyland version that was released the same time). Which one is better? Is there a difference? Honestly, there is a difference, enough that you should acquire both (which, to your relief, I will be posting download links at the bottom of this post). I will be discussing these soundtracks and explaining the differences, starting at the beginning and going to the end.

The original 2008 album "Four Parks - One World" is still my favorite because it has the more original music before the new changes to Walt Disney World. The new 2013 album is great because it has new tracks for the new Fantasyland, but it still lacks the impressiveness of the 2008 release. These two soundtracks aren't fully complete, though. They don't have the great loops that you hear around the park (a bunch of music in EPCOT remains still unreleased, and can be only found on YouTube, which are somewhat low quality recordings).

Both albums star off with the exact same track: "All Aboard!". In the 2008 release, you can find the track "Welcome Medley" which is that nice introduction when you enter the Magic Kingdom, but this seems to be missing in the 2013 release. Instead of this, the new album replaced it with the new track "Flitterin'". The Tiki, tiki, tiki room is in both albums, but they're completely different, which I do give the new album a plus on this one. The 2008 release starts out nice, then it gets annoying with that stupid bird that sings terribly. The 2013 release cuts that out and changes it to the current version that you hear in the show, without the stupid annoying bird singing.

The track "Swisskapolka" remains the same. The next track: "Yo Ho", actually is one minute longer in the 2013 release. "All Aboard the Mine Train" is removed from the new album. The tracks: "Bear Band Serenade", "Splash Mountain Medley", "Grim Grinning Ghosts", "It's A Small World", and "The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh" all remain the same. "Solo Pilot Blues" is a neat song, one that is removed from the new album. "There's a Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow" from the Carousel Of Progress remain the same.

A bunch of new songs appear only in the new 2013 album: "Be Our Guest", "The Little Mermaid Medley", "Circus Parade", and "Casey Jr.". The ride Test Track is completely redesigned, so they threw the old music out and replaced it with the new music. All of the music for EPCOT is the same (like "Spaceship Earth", "Energy Adventure Medley", etc.) except for two tracks: "Legacy" and "Honey I Shrunk The Audience Theme". This really disappointed me. I understand why they left out the theme for Honey I Shrunk The Audience because they have discontinued this attraction, but there is no reason why they should of removed "Legacy" from this album. "Legacy", incase you do not know, is the happy, memorable tune when you enter the park.

Moving on to Hollywood Studios, the Hollywood Boulevard music "Hooray For Hollywood" seems to be missing from the new CDs. The "Star Tours" music is gone and replaced with the new track "The Throne Room". "Playhouse Disney", a bizarre track from the Playhouse Disney live on stage show (also discontinued), is found only on the 2008 release. There are two new tracks for the new PIXAR place: "You've Got A Friend In Me" and "Hot Potato". All of the other tracks for this park (like the stunt shows and Tower of Terror) remain the same.

Animal Kingdom is the major disappointment in both of these soundtracks. There's barely anything for it. There probably isn't very much music played overall in this park, so I won't think about this too much. The tracks "It's Tough To Be A Bug" and "CTX Theme" are the same in both soundtracks, but what the 2013 release lacks in the "Beauty And The Bees", also a strange track that you probably will not listen to anyway.

In conclusion, both soundtracks are exceptional, but the older 2008 release has the music from the better Test Track ride, many original songs, and "Legacy". The new 2013 release has some new tracks that might make up for this, but both are better when accompanied together. I have included the download links for both albums below. Enjoy!

Four Parks - One World (2008):
http://www.4shared.com/archive/P0lV-rqEce/Four_Parks__One_World__Walt_Di.html
Walt Disney World Official Album (2013):
http://www.4shared.com/archive/w4oR0r_Bba/Walt_Disney_World_Official_Alb.html

Email: soundtracks.gizmo@tech-center.com

Vacation!

I will be going to Disney tomorrow! So, because of this, I will not be posting as much until the second week of February. I do have some things planned, like the I, Frankenstein album, and some other non-complete albums (like individual tracks from a series). Until then, enjoy this complementary album: Illuminations - Millennium Celebration! This is the soundtrack for my favorite show in Walt Disney World: the Illuminations light show spectacular in EPCOT.

 

If you want the download link to this complete soundtrack, comment below an

I will post it within a day. Until then, enjoy!

 

Update: Hey, I have just arrived safely in Orlando, and I decided to put the link here: http://www.4shared.com/archive/Kk3rQfqzce/Millennium_Celebration_-_Walt_.html

The Lone Ranger by Hans Zimmer

This title only has about a 3 1/2 star rating as a movie, but as a soundtrack, I think it did well, almost a perfect score. Gioacchino Antonio Rossini (an Italian Composer from 1792–1868) originally composed the well-known theme that makes us all think of the Lone Ranger in his William Tell Overture. The Lone Ranger, composed by Hans Zimmer, is a well done score. I think that it easily goes on the list of greatest film scores of 2013. I really like the way each track blends into each other. When I say these songs blend into each other, I mean there is a little bit of music that keeps playing. This music carries on into the next track, making it seem like it is all one track. I also love the different themes presented in this masterpiece.

One of my favorite tracks is “Finale”, which is put together very well. Hans basically summarizes all of the themes into one long track, but the way he blends them into it, the transitions to each theme, is amazing. Listening to a part of this score isn’t enough, it hooks you in. I find it hard to listen to parts of it, I have always listened to it entirely (It’s very short anyway). The overall mood of this is a little down (sad), but it is brought up often with a unique combination of instruments, lightening it a little. This temporary sadness is introduced in the first track, “Never Take off the Mask”. I like the gradual intensity in “Absurdity”, which dissipates slightly to lighten the mood a little, but it then throws you back into it. The violin work in this score (which is phenomenal) makes it sound old, great for the time period. In “Silver”, much of it is a violin, which is the best track for violin music.

“Ride” is another impressive track. The cellos in the background sound amazing, just like you are, well, going on a ride. This doesn’t last very long though, because it then becomes relatively quiet. Close to the end it goes back up again into the main theme of The Lone Ranger. “Red’s Theater of the Absurd” is light and crazy music. One part of this track sounds quite similar to the beginning of Sherlock Holmes where Sherlock is going to the ritual.

“The Railroad Waits for No One” Is a good track if you are looking for action intense music. The track “You’re Just a Man in a Mask” is interesting. It is relatively quiet and sounds a little tragic (like something very sad happened). The transition from this track into the next, which is “For God and for Country”, is fantastic! This is where the album hits another high in intensity. There’s nothing else I can really say except when you finish this, you will be craving for more. I have yet to find a legitimate extended soundtrack. When I do find one, I will share it here. For now, enjoy the original soundtrack!

                                             1. Never Take Off the Mask            1:08
                                             2. Absurdity                                     4:58
                                             3. Silver                                            4:00
                                             4. Ride                                              4:17
                                             5. You've Looked Better                  3:09
                                             6. Red's Theater of the Absurd         3:02
                                             7. The Railroad Waits for No One   3:09
                                             8. You're Just a Man in a Mask        4:14
                                             9. For God and for Country              4:53
                                             10. Finale                                          9:51
                                             11. Home                                          6:55
                                      
                                             Total length:                                    49:36

To download this soundtrack, head over to this link: http://www.4shared.com/archive/7s0aL4Tice/The_Lone_Ranger_-_Hans_Zimmer.html

I, Frankenstein

The movie I, Frankenstein looks and sounds strange. The plot can be found on imdb.com: "Frankenstein's creature finds himself caught in an all-out, centuries old war between two immortal clans." I might not see the movie, but that won't stop me from getting the music! The soundtrack will be released on January 21st, so I have just listened to samples of it. You can listen to them too: I, Frankenstein soundtrack on Amazon.com. Overall, it sounds cool, but I can't really say much more unless I get my hands (or ears, ha-ha!) on the full soundtrack. The main composers for this score appear to be Johnny Klimek and Reinhold Heil, but I saw that Lisa Gerrard is listed for certain track titles. Lisa Gerrard, in case you didn't know, helped Hans Zimmer with the Gladiator soundtrack, which I think turned out pretty good. Who knows, sometimes the audio samples sound really cool, and then when you get the whole soundtrack, it isn't as good as you thought it was. What are your thoughts on this?

Upcoming Soundtrack Releases - January 17

On January 17, five soundtracks will be released: Big Bad Wolves (Frank Ilfman), G.B.F. (Brian H. Kim), Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit (Patrick Doyle), Ride Along (Christopher Lennertz), and summer in February (Benjamin Wallfisch). I am only familiar with Patrick Doyle and Christopher Lennertz (two soundtracks that I will definitely be looking into upon their release), but I might look into them and share them if you would like.

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (Special Edition)

It's been exactly a year and a month since the first Hobbit movie was released in theaters, so I thought it might be good to talk about it.
The Lord of the Rings films are an outstanding series. The quality of the films is amazing, and the music is just incredible. Howard Shore is a great composer, and I like him more after realizing he was going to continue the series by composing music for the new Hobbit movies. Just like the Lord of the Rings, there is a special soundtrack release for each movie containing more music than the original soundtrack. I am not quite sure if it is all of the music, like the complete recordings for the Lord of the Rings, but it includes a good amount for me to be satisfied. You will find Exclusive tracks and extended versions, and a nice booklet with nice pictures and some insight on the music. The London Philharmonic Orchestra played the music for all of the films. The songs are also very well done, especially for the special edition soundtrack: "Blunt The Knives" which is exclusive and the "Song of The Lonely Mountain", which is extended.

The album begins with “My Dear Frodo”, which starts off with the theme from the shire, a peaceful tune. It then goes into dark themes like ones in the Lord of the Rings before the battle begins in the Two Towers film, and the Uruk Hai theme. The tune of the shire carries on in the track “Old Friends”, which is extended in this CD. “An Unexpected Party” is light and not very serious, and that is also extended. Thorin’s old enemy, Azog, has his own theme: “The Defiler”. This song is a little chaotic, and it has a little hint of the theme from the Uruk Hai from the Lord of the Rings. Now I will skip through to the track “Riddles in the Dark”. This track starts off with some familiar themes, quiet. The intensity rises and time goes by because of the intense conversation Bilbo has with Gollum.

Below are the scans of the album, and to complete this post, I will include a link to download the soundtrack.

So here's the download link: http://tinyurl.com/kgrqdxe

It is a compressed .7z file, but I can upload a standard .zip file if you want. Download the simple program 7zip to extract it.
What do you think about this soundtrack? What are your thoughts on it? Do you like it? Leave a comment below on your thoughts about Howard Shore's work.