Movie/TV/Game Scores Through The Ages - Alan's Personal Favourites

1974 - The Towering Inferno - John Williams

I've gone for a pretty "safe" choice for 1974 - probably because it's the film I am most familiar with. The score is bookended by two great tracks: the initial Main Title track and the final action track. And the music's association with the action is I think what swayed it for me this time. It's not much of a score that stuck in the mind when viewed but listening to it away from the film and then going back to hearing it in the movie showed how well Williams did with this score (and to some extent with Earthquake also). And there's quite a good "pop song" as well!

1974 is packed full of great themes from both film and TV and each could have been picked for a theme only-based list (and may be featured in the future in any such list). TV themes such as those for Moses The Lawgiver (Morricone), javascript:void(0); (Post) and The Six Million Dollar Man (Nelson) all deserve a mention as quality themes and are themes that begin to shape my childhood as I was growing up, looking forward to hearing the theme again this week just as much as looking forward to the actual show.

There were plenty of film themes that would be excellent tracks in any 1974 compilation list: the lyrical theme for Michael J. Lewis' 11 Harrowhouse, Henry Mancini's rhythmic theme for 99 and 44/100% Dead! is a recent discovery that's really catchy (though I've not really lasted with the score itself), Herbie Hancock's theme to Death Wish (which featured on the Geoff Love compilation is mention occasionally and which introduced me to this theme), Williams' theme for Earthquake (on the same Love compilation LP), David Shire's simply-played theme to The Conversation (a film I've not seen all the way through) and David Shire's glorious theme for The Taking of Pelham 1-2-3 (my choice for score of 1974 last time, but really just a very favourite theme). All great themes but with only okay scores (to me anyway).

Scores such as Rozsa's The Golden Voyage of Sinbad and Gershon Kingsley's Silent Night, Bloody Night (with it's off-kilter references to Silent Night, Holy Night) as well as Charles Bernstein's score to Mr Majestky (I was a big fan of Charles Bronson when I was growing up) are worth mentioning in dispatches as notable works. As are these scores for the more "foreign-inclined" followers: I like the ostinato-drived (harpsicord) scoring of Stelvio Cipriani's Cani Arrabbiati as well as Armando Trovaiola's Profumo di Donna (several strong keyboard-led tracks).

As I may have mentioned before, as the years progress it's getting more and more difficult to choose a score - unless it's an obvious choice. The several scores I felt I needed to mention here is a good sign of how difficult the choice was.

And sorry Martijn for not mentioning Captain Kronos: Vampire Hunter!

I AM IN SHOCK BEYOND BELIEF!!!!. Jerry turn over in your grave. You should. I realize that this is Alan's thread so I can really say nothing to him but Martijn is another story. Not one mention of Chinatown!!!! The only reason I keep Towering Inferno is that it has some value to it. And while we're on the subject how about Murder on the Orient Express by Bennett.
Thomas

As I said Alan it is your thread. I feel the same way about Towering Inferno. We agree to disagree.
Tom

You pushed the button.

Now if we want to put Goldsmiths QB VII in the mix my vote goes there, but its a tv mini series.

So Ill pick Jerry Goldsmiths QB VII , I love messing things up

I've not heard QB VII or The Four Musketeers so I could not possibly comment on these.

The only version of Chinatown I listen to is the theme in his suite from his 'Goldsmith conducts Goldsmith' concert. I too can't get into the rest of the score... it's very boring.

Papillon is the same, but I do enjoy the theme more than Chinatown's. Legend? I love every note of it. Except the singing.

, didn't you write:


So, zero?





Oh my!
An oversight you should remedy forthwith!
Srsly!

I know everything about I Can't Get Started Either.

I know SO much about I Can't Get Started Either that I actually got it started again!

(Incidentally, I think Chinatown is a great and very dark and disheartening film. But then that's Polanski for ya.
Goldsmith's score is very good in context, but I wouldn't enjoy it on a standalone basis).

If you finally caught up on your training program you could. Maybe.

I feel the same way about The Towering Inferno

There really aren't many 1974 scores (that I can think of) that I really like to play as ALBUM experiences. But there are a few that work splendidly in their respective movies. THE TOWERING INFERNO certainly did, as well as CHINATOWN and Shire's sparse THE CONVERSATION.

I'm not alone in my humble opinion of Chinatown

On the first of January.

Peter

I don't think there's any rush eh Tom?