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 MODERN SOUNDTRACK REVIEWS |
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Arista Records
(1986) RCA Victor (Gerhardt) (1989) Varèse Sarabande (1990) Lacombe (Bootleg) (1997) Arista Records (April 28th, 1998) La-La Land Records (November 28th, 2017) La-La Land Records (August 9th, 2022)
The original 1986 Arista and 1990 Varèse Sarabande albums are both
out of print and difficult to obtain, however they are virtually identical in content.
The only difference is that the Varèse album includes the horrible disco version
of the theme. (It appears at the end and makes up the entire total-time difference between
the two).
The 1989 RCA Gerhardt album was long available used for about $5 to $7. The 1997 Lacombe release with very poor sound quality was a bootleg despite the fact that it claimed to be promotional. The 1998 Arista release with 20-bit digital mastering was called a "Collector's Edition." The first 50,000 copies feature chromium-printed packaging with the insert notes glued to the back of the front cover. That album is now also out of print and fetched as much as $50. The 2017 La-La Land set is limited to 5,000 copies and was available initially for $30 through soundtrack specialty outlets. The label re-issued the same contents in another pressing of 5,000 copies in 2022. Winner of a Grammy Award. Nominated for an Academy Award, a BAFTA Award, and a
Golden Globe.
John Williams with Steven Spielberg, 1977. The following is an early statement from Steven Spielberg:
"One day John Williams told me something I never would have imagined...
that creating a musical score for a nearly compeleted motion picture is
far and away more frustrating than creating an original symphonic
composition that never has to conform to the beats, measures, and
boundary layers of a screen story, but instead flows freely from the
composer's imagination as he tells his own story from start to finish.
This is perhaps why much of John's music for Close Encounters of the
Third Kind is so airborne and awe inspiring. He actually started work
on musical ideas two years before Close Encounters was finalized, basing
his impressions on the unfinished script and dinner conversations we
would have twice a week.
In many instances, John wrote his music first, while I put the scenes to it much later. Because of the complicated special effects that adorn the final 35 minutes of Close Encounters of the Third Kind, John found himself composing to blank leader months before the effects were finished and cut in. This was a challenge to both of us, but it liberated John to score freely -sans coitus interruptus- and inspired me in reconstructing certain visuals to the final music. John became more than just a composer for hire. He was a creative collaborator in all phases of post production, spending every day for fifteen weeks in the mixing studio and editing rooms. He taught me about underrated Russian composers and good German wines, and I taught him how to pace the hallways and how to eat junkfoods. John's freedom of choice is evident in every selection on this album. Once again John Williams has taken a motion picture and interwoven his own musical story - telling skills to create higher levels of beauty and suspense His music for Close Encounters goes beyond simply allowing the listener to recall his favorite scenes but stands on its own as a serious symphonic achievement - timeless and without restraints." The following is a note from Kevin Mulhall in the 1990 album:
"In 1977, John Williams singlehandedly revived popular interest in
symphonic film music. His scores for George Lucas' Star Wars and
Steven Spielberg's Close Encounters of the Third Kind were both
commercial and critical successes, and introduced the sounds of a
symphony orchestra to a new generation of filmgoers. For Close
Encounters, Williams discarded the lietmotif approach that worked so well
in Star Wars, opting instead for a developmental score that progresses
from the pure atonality of the "Main Title" to the breathtaking
romanticism of the "Resolution and End Title." In between the composer
offers a myriad of textures, motifs, and themes that illuminate
Spielberg's visionary magic and childlike spirit while proceedingwith
fluid logic. Whether it be the driving B-note motif in "Mountain
Visions," the haunting theme in "I Can't Believe It's Real," or the
orchestral turbulence of "Night Seige" and "The Abduction of Barry," the
portrait painted by Williams' complex score is mysterious and
inspiring.
For "The Conversation," Williams developed a musical language that enabled the mother ship and ground crew to communicate. Williams and Spielberg listened to 150 permutations of the central 5-note motif before deciding upon the one finally used. As the pace of the conversation quickens so does the music - perhaps the most memorable case of "overlapping dialogue" in film history, and a telling instance of Williams' art. By now it is well known that Spielberg edited the final act of the film to williams' music, a rare case where the editing of the visual image was dictated by the musical structure. As a result, the music achieves a form of considerable substance. Indeed, Williams has said that the best directors are musical: "I think part of what they do is musical. The art of editing film is a musical art. At the base of both these entities is rhythm." The end of the film is a perfect marriage of sound and visuals - at no time is there an image unsuitable for sale in a signed, limited edition. Williams' dramatic submersion is so complete the finished score stands on its own as a complete symphonic work, one of the finest composed in the 1970s. John Williams has worked with Steven Spielberg on no less than 11 occasions, in films that wouldn't have been the same without his unseen presence. Their association includes The Sugarland Express (1974), Jaws (1975), 1941 (1979), The Indiana Jones Trilogy ('81/'84/'89), E.T. (1982), Empire of the Sun (1987), and, most recently, Always (1989). By allowing Williams to become an integral and equal partner in his creative planning, Steven Spielberg has proven that he is one of the few directors who instinctively comprehends the function and emotive impact of music in films. Although Williams admits we don't know much about how music affects ourreactions in a clinical or scientific sense, his music has influenced the psychological responses of audiences throughout the world, in these and dozens of other films since he began scoring features in 1960. Williams' music has helped elevate Close Encounters to a classic example of the affective power of the cinema. In doing so, the composerhas also affirmed the value of film as an important vehicle for serious musical expression." |
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