I'm trying to compile a list of his western feature films. not tv series. this is what i know of.
1957 - BLACK PATCH 1959 - FACE OF A FUGITIVE 1962 - LONELY ARE THE BRAVE 1964 - RIO CONCHOS 1966 - STAGECOACH 1967 - HOUR OF THE GUN 1968 - BANDOLERO! 1969 - 100 RIFLES 1970 - THE BALLAD OF CABLE HOGUE 1970 - RIO LOBO 1971 - WILD ROVERS 1973 - THE RED PONY 1973 - ONE LITTLE INDIAN 1975 - TAKE A HARD RIDE 1975 - BREAKHEART PASS 1976 - THE LAST HARD MEN 1994 - BAD GIRLS
1960 - FLAMING STAR (he only wrote one cue, but it was a western feature he worked on)
1970 - THE BALLAD OF CABLE HOGUE (an unusual western but *definitely* a western and a wonderful one at that)
1973 - THE RED PONY (though it aired on TV in the US it is definitely a feature film, and was in theaters in other countries)
1976 - THE LAST HARD MEN (he wrote no original score to this, but it was a western feature film scored with his music)
In addition to these, there are a number of scores he wrote which I consider "honorary Westerns" in sound, like Breakout, because of their Hispanic flavor and close kinship to stuff like 100 Rifles. I can list those for you if you like. And finally, there are great western moments in some feature film scores he wrote for Joe Dante (Innerspace had The Cowboy, The 'burbs has an awesome western theme complete with gunshots, and his final score, Looney Tunes, had a western sequence as the highlight of the music).
Wouldnt it be great if all of the above were a part of an exclusive dedicated Goldsmith western compilation cd. Id love to see this happen some day. This would make for a great selling album.
I agree and would love to see his TV western work included on such a compilation as well, especially his themes for The Loner and Hollister.
Yavar
"The Loner" theme can be heard in part in LONELY ARE THE BRAVE.
What's the general opinion of BAD GIRLS? Since I consider the film a dog, I've never bothered getting the score, the impression of which I have is that Goldsmith was just collecting a paycheck.
I wonder if THE RIVER WILD can be considered a modern western?
You can get a four Blu-ray western set with three of the films scored by Goldsmith, very cheap, just under $4 a movie. I bought it just for Rio Conchos, which looks very nice.
I agree and would love to see his TV western work included on such a compilation as well, especially his themes for The Loner and Hollister.
Yavar
"The Loner" theme can be heard in part in LONELY ARE THE BRAVE.
What's the general opinion of BAD GIRLS? Since I consider the film a dog, I've never bothered getting the score, the impression of which I have is that Goldsmith was just collecting a paycheck.
I wonder if THE RIVER WILD can be considered a modern western?
I saw the movie in the theater back in '94 and yet never picked up the album until 5-6 years ago! I think it's a good Goldsmith score that features elements of his rambunctious Western scores of the 60's and 70's, grafted onto his more broadly tonal approach in the 90's. It really is a highlight of the first half of the 90's for him, which didn't showcase as much of his action/adventure style. The main theme is bright and memorable and the action cues are kinetic.
"The Loner" theme can be heard in part in LONELY ARE THE BRAVE.
Only as brief counterpoint in the final action cue. I like the front and center arrangement it gets as The Loner's main theme.
What's the general opinion of BAD GIRLS? Since I consider the film a dog, I've never bothered getting the score, the impression of which I have is that Goldsmith was just collecting a paycheck.
Some of the more synth-heavy straightforward statements of the main theme I dislike, but Bad Girls is a score with so many awesome moments that I absolutely recommend you get it. Try out these two tracks. Ambush in particular has an edge and intensity that belie Goldsmith's 90s reputation:
I also think Bank Job is a pretty neat cue, alternating between lighter moments and tenser moments:
In my opinion, Jerry rarely just "cashed a paycheck" (guess it happened more in the 90s, but still infrequent). But Bad Girls overall is a fantastic score.
I've always thought that the score for BAD GIRLS was very rousing and well-done. And unlike some, I've watched the movie several times and was always entertained. As much as I love the score TAKE A HARD RIDE, I find that movie incredibly dull and not entertaining.
We did consider doing a Goldsmith at Fox Western Collection at one point but were not quick enough to lock up the rights to Rio Conchos.
All of those releases turned out great so no complaints from me.
MV
Wow ! That would have been awesome too. Anyways, we are glad to have most these releases out today across the labels.
But I would love to see a newly recorded suites of all these westerns scores on cd someday. I know such a release would create a stir amongst fans and Jeff Bond would be uber thrilled too.
