Intrada leads the way

I'm dying to hear Thor's opinion on this.

I, for one, applaud Intrada for taking the lead and trying to think about pleasing as many people as possible.

" "The Extras" features a program of all the extra stuff that didn't really add to the listening experience or took away from it."

Why include them then?

You can just press stop. There is no easy solution to the problem of a score being presented in complete and chronological format when the music doesn't justify it.

I know where you're coming from, but I can't agree. The composer must first and foremost serve the film, and if that means that there are five consecutive pieces which are all 30-second versions of the love theme then that's what he must do. But I don't want to listen to that on an album and that's why so many of these limited edition "give 'em everything" CDs just don't work.

Surely everyone would rather hear a wonderful 30-minute album with the option of all the rest of the music in the film and instructions on how to create that experience should they want it, than a 75-minute album featuring 30 minutes of decent music buried within it (like Innerspace, to use Justin's example - a very hard album to listen to in the form it was released).

But if a composer is able to create, say, thirty minutes of genuinely worthy music in a three hour long score, how is hearing those 30 minutes in succession a bad thing while allowing completists to hear the rest?

Personally I think this is a good thing. Alternatively, releasing it in complete and chronological order but with their album version in the liner notes would be just as good - I listen to all my music through my computer anyway, so it doesn't concern me either way. (Indeed, I make my own albums from regular albums and complete scores, so I much prefer listening to music through my computer as I don't have to burn CDs of playlists I've made. It's so much more convenient, been doing it for years. Plus all my CDs are back home with my parents.)

And maybe this new initiative by Intrada is perhaps the best solution after all. As fans of these artists we deserve to know what the extent of their talent is, and if they're consistently incapable of producing a C&C score then we need to know that. You don't have to listen to them in C&C form, but it's good to know that this guy or that guy is only good at producing highlights, if that's the case (like Bruce Broughton's themes and action versus his less successful suspense music, in my opinion).

And if someone actually is willing to put the effort of listening to the whole thing in C&C and eventually gleans a greater appreciation for the whole thing than even fans of the shortened version (as I'm sure is the case for me and Innerspace), then they can do that, too.

Yeah... so I'll need to put extra effort to re-order tracks when I play these new Intradas but perhaps this really is the best compromise.

Or both. Often I like scores as "souvenirs" and for the music itself.

I think the Lost music is an example leaning more on the "souvenir" side. I'm not sure I'd listen to those albums as much as I do were I not a Lost fan. Many Goldsmith scores on the other hand are all about the music.

Read every word: I didn't say ALL Goldsmith and Horner scores, I said "most" of their scores. Yes, Goldsmith still has Criminal Law and Horner still has Bopha but those are minorities.

And I didn't mean to imply they were the only ones. Giacchino isn't among my faves but I can see how many people believe he's an expert as sustaining the attention for a whole score. I'd rather point to John Barry and Powell, JNH, Trevor Jones, Zimmer... Those guys are usually pretty good at consistency.

lol.

Well I just had a thought: I know I just dissed the 2-Disc presentation of Star Trek III on another thread, calling the 2nd disc unnecessary, but perhaps these "Disc 1: Full Score, Disc 2: Original Album Presentation" things is the way to go after all. It makes us pay a few bucks more each time, but then everyone of us (whether it's Thor and me or the rest of the world) has the perfect pick to choose from, and they can just ignore the other disc.

Excellent idea, one I've long advocated. However, I'm worried that this will lead to more expensive albums down the road. Because one thing is a relatively short score that can stand up to an album presentation and the extra tracks within an 80-minute album. If it runs longer, however, it will be spread across more CD's and hence more expensive to produce and purchase.

But at least it's better than having the album production first and then the whole score - including a repeat of the album tracks - on other discs. We save the "duplicate tracks", so to speak.

So yeah, definitely a step in the right direction (should it become a norm). It's not as good as having only the album presentation, but it's better than having both the album presentation AND the C&C. And of course a million times better than JUST the C&C.

Oh, and I'm also kinda proud - in a twisted kind of way - that the 'C&C' abbreviation I coined a few years ago now seems to be part of film music lingo, much scorned as it may be.

And it's something I vow never to use. Not because you coined it or anything, but because I hate abbreviations. (The only one I generally use is JNH.)

Also, giving it an abbreviation makes it more of a big deal that it is. I've never had an issue with complete scores as I enjoy making my own albums from them.

The solidaritstic, compromising side of me condones both aspects too. However, the pragmatic side dictates that I can only prefer what is, you know, my preference. And in that respect I have to be egoistic and say that the BEST alternative would be ONLY the album presentation. But as long as that is only a farfetched dream, I think the suggestion by Intrada is as close as I can come.

It's just that the completist in me cringes at the thought of unreleased music sitting on a shelf forever. And since fans have different levels of tolerance or standpoints on "seeing the big picture of a score" versus to "sticking to highlights", it's terrible to think that those unreleased tracks might have enhanced the listening experience of fans, even if it's a minority.

That's crazy talk.