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Star Wars Trilogy: The Original Soundtrack Anthology
from 20th Century Fox Film Scores
Music has always been an intregal part of films. My favorite silent films, Nosferatu and The Phantom of the Opera, wouldn't have been as memorable if it was not for the haunting pipe organ music accompanying them. As films progressed from the silent era to talkies, the importance of the right music carried along. Films of the 1930's and 1940's, such as Robin Hood and Gone with the Wind, relied immensely on the musical score to lend an appropriate atmosphere to the story. It is this tradition that John Williams followed when he gave us the music for the Star Wars Trilogy. It would be hard to imagine the same impact one felt when watching the Death Star trench run or the escape from the asteroid field if Williams' music were not there to lend an emotional hand.
My first copy of the Star Wars soundtrack was the 1977 vinyl 2-record set, complete with album-sized picture book that gave a synopsis of the plot and main characters. For years, that's all I had; I was even desperate enough to make a tape of it years later before leaving home for college. That scratchy tape somehow carried me over until the release of the Star Wars Soundtrack Anthology, a four-CD set of the music from the entire trilogy, produced by 20th Century Fox Music.
This boxed set, comprised of one CD per film plus 
a fourth of alternative scene tracks, includes tracks that were not included in the original vinyl releases, or in the later CD versions. For example, the TESB vinyl album, like that of SW, consisted of two records. However, the later CD release only included one album worth of music, which meant that such Williams' classics as "Hyperspace" have been unheard in CD format until now.
In addition, the discs for the first three movies are decorated with a Ralph McQuarrie concept painting; the fourth depicts John Williams as he conducts. Accompanying all this great music is a booklet containing a treatise by Nicholas Meyer on the importance of music in film, and Star Wars in particular. Plus, Lukas Kendall, editor of Film Score Monthly, offers us detailed descriptions of each track, its placement in the films and what John Williams was thinking when he wrote the music. Photographs, storyboards and concept art round out the booklet and make it an interesting read.
Each of the film CDs opens with the 20th Century Fox theme before melding into the Main Title music. The music on the three main CDs are arranged in order as heard in the films, making it great for sitting back and replaying the movies in your head.
The bonus CD includes music that wouldn't fit on the first 3, plus shorter tracks and all the "band" music from the trilogy, including "Lapti Nek" (ROTJ) and both songs played by the Cantina Band (ANH) - so you, too, can boogie like Sy Snootles and Figran D'an! Remember the somber music from the Emperor's arrival on Death Star 2? That would be Track 10, CD #3. Want to relive Boba Fett escaping with the carbonite-encased Solo? Hit Track 17 on CD number 4!
Other musical tidbits published for the first time include "Destruction of Alderaan" (Track 5, Disc 4), extended music from the Hoth battle ("Luke's First Crash," Track 7, Disc 2), the music that accompanied Wedge's "Look at the SIZE of that thing!" ("Attack Position," Track 8, Disc 4), "A Hive of Villainy," (Track 4, Disc 4), "Losing a Hand" (Track 18, Disc 4), "The Death of Yoda" (Track 7, Disc 3), "Darth Vader's Death" (Track 16, Disc 3) and other great long-desired cuts.
Unfortunately, there are a couple of musical pieces missing, most noticeably the music for the Millennium Falcon's escape from the space slug in TESB. [Ed.'s Note: A new soundtrack for the Star Wars:A New Hope and The Empire Strikes Back Special Editions have been released that include all the original cuts, in their original movie form, in chronological order; at press time, the ROTJ edition is not yet released.] But that doesn't take away from the overall enjoyment I get from these discs. However, I would have been happier if the producers had left out all the ewok "yub-yubbing" on the End Credits track for ROTJ! (They do include, for the first time, the actual Ewok celebration cut from the final film, which only used a human chorus.)
Needless to say, I was overjoyed when I came across this set in the 
bin at the record store. The quality is fantastic -- a far, far cry from that scratchy tape that now sits unused on a shelf. I keep my CDs at work and they've become a real means of helping me through my day. They've also provided a bit of fun, as once I clicked on the Imperial March while on the TV near my desk, the Senate was opening its session! It's so easy to get wrapped up in this music; as it plays, you can hear the dialogue and picture the scene without the need for a VCR.
I strongly recommend this set to every Star Wars or film soundtrack fan. The sound quality is superb, the insert booklet is informative and the whole thing comes packaged in a great looking box. Now if they'd only do the same for the Indiana Jones trilogy...
(Jody Reeves can be disturbed while fawning over her autographed Harrison Ford pic at 102362.2420@compuserve.com)
