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This is one of my favorite Williams scores. I actually like all of his americana scores. But although I love The River I have a hard time listening to the horrible Varese CD. The music is so compressed that sometimes you can`t hear the orchestral details. Just a terrible sound. I don`t know if there is much more music in the film. If yes, a complete and most of all remastered edition would be fantastic.
Mike Mattessino where are you?
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Well, my cd makes some weird noises. I don't know if it's generally like this or it is only my cd..
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Posted: |
Jan 16, 2017 - 6:37 PM
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By: |
SchiffyM
(Member)
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Reviving this terribly spelled thread because I just listened to this one for the first time in several years. I hadn't recalled sound problems, but it did strike me as much more pinched than I'd remembered. Certainly not unlistenable, and an improvement over the noisy MCA LP, but still not so hot.
I barely remember the film, though I saw it after I'd bought the album and remember thinking several pieces – most notably "The Pony Ride" – were reworked for album. I do remember that the album was roundly criticized by the soundtrack press (such as it was) at the time. In retrospect, I think this was thanks to some extent to a misstep (for me) in how Williams assembled the album. The first cue is, in fact, the end title, and so the album for this allegedly gritty "save the farm" movie begins with what sounds like forced cheerfulness, an ebullient melody embellished (perhaps too emphatically) with typical Williams orchestral ornamentation. It feels sunny and dishonest. Placed at the end (where it actually goes in the film), it feels cathartic.
I don't recall the film order (and again, some pieces are not really in the film), and I'm not an absolutist about film order presentations, but in this case, Williams plants some melodies that he expands upon later in the score, and yet sometimes on album, the grandiose statements precede the teases.
The drum machine in a few cues places this squarely in the mid-eighties, and that hasn't dated as well as other aspects. Still, a lot to like in this score, and Williams' jazz training is evident throughout. I'm a bit surprised no label has reissued this one, but I'm sure there's a good reason for that.
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I only know the original LP, as I've never seen the movie or owned the CD, but this is a score I'd pick up if it gets re-released. Recently (see thread "last vinyl played") listened to it for the first time in thirty years or so. 
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Posted: |
Jan 17, 2017 - 7:39 AM
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By: |
nerfTractor
(Member)
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I remember this one being the first time I ever felt disappointed in a John Williams soundtrack album (never saw the film). As a kid I fell in love with his music in the era of Jaws and Close Encounters and for quite some time it seemed everything he produced was a new, unparalleled masterpiece. I even loved Monsignor. But this one just didn't catch fire with me.
That said, there is plenty to enjoy. My favorite cue by far is "The Ancestral Home" with its moody, long-phrased theme. I somewhat assume this music was also redone for the album, sounding as it does like a concert arrangement. But it's marvelous music. The rest of the score just seemed a bit forced in its earthy, down-home references. Then again, at this point I hadn't heard much of JW's previous Americana or Western style scores such as Missouri Breaks, Cowboys, Reivers, etc. so that perspective might change how this score comes across.
Glad this thread popped back up, I'm going to give this one a listen, for the first time in many long years.
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