I've always felt some of Jones' best work was heard in two 80s TV scores, which rarely get mentioned (probably because as 80s miniseries they've fallen into obscurity and few have seen them):
The Last Place on Earth -- a terrific adventure score for a series chronicling Robert F. Scott and Roald Amundsen's race to be first at the South Pole. Jones' score has a wonderful epic sound (which is impressive, considering he was working with a modest, TV-scale orchestra) with some of those nice Synclavier timbres he used in The Dark Crystal. Jones also broke with his usual practice and conducted the score himself. Sadly never (legitimately) released on CD. The LP was handsomely produced though, with a good portion of the score's best moments and lovely cover artwork.
The Last Days of Pompeii -- Jones' foray into "religious epic" territory, his score boasts a myriad of tuneful themes, exotic period touches and lush orchestrations. Criminally never released on either LP or CD. Vocalist Catherine Bott (whose siren-like vocals added so much to The Dark Crystal) is also featured in both these scores.
Okay, thanks to those clips, I now really want a release of the score from The Last Place On Earth.
I remember watching The Last Days of Pompeii when it was originally broadcast, but had forgotten most of it. Some of the source music sounds a bit like the period source cues that he composed for Time Bandits.
The Last Days of Pompeii -- Jones' foray into "religious epic" territory, his score boasts a myriad of tuneful themes, exotic period touches and lush orchestrations. Criminally never released on either LP or CD. Vocalist Catherine Bott (whose siren-like vocals added so much to The Dark Crystal) is also featured in both these scores.
Interesting! Thank you for sharing this, I'd never heard a note of it before. 100% Jones-ian, but with a Peplum-like orchestration not common to his sound at this time. In addition to Catherine Bott's presence (she's also done work for John Scott and Christopher Gunning, off the top of my head, among I'm sure plenty others) the end credits reveal other Jones regulars: The London Symphony Orchestra, conductor Marcus Dodds and ace engineer John Richards, all recorded in good ol' CTS studios. I perused the main/end title of this first episode and will have to investigate further. Thanks for sharing!
