Supes

I am a hopeless film-score-o-phile. It would be nice to consider my obsession with books or movies as more dangerously addictive, but that would be a lie. Nothing can tempt me to wrest legal tender from my wallet like a fixed medium film score recording.

For anyone who doesn't know exactly what these are, here's a simple definition: it is music composed for a film. The word score comes from the name of instructions for the musical direction, also known as sheet music. However, the wording is tricky. They are often called "original motion picture soundtracks," "original scores," "soundtracks," "film music," "music from the film," etc. This confuses a lot of people, because many times a soundtrack is sold referring to the collection of licensed songs (often pop songs) that accompany a movie. In that case, the score comes out months later, if at all. Most of the populace who buy movie-related CDs buy the collection soundtracks. These are the types of music they are used to and like a lot. These buyers sometimes attach a deeper meaning to them in relation to the movie, or they aren't available anywhere else (like the Chili Peppers' cover of Love Rollercoaster in Beavis and Butthead Do America*). It irks film score fans to the nth degree when we read a review on Amazon.com for a score album in which the reviewer bashes it for being just the boring orchestra when what they really wanted was the bitchin' new Shins song. They are different things, my sad friend.

I agree that most people don't and shouldn't share my kind of sick obsession for this kind of music. However, despite the lack of massive awareness and understanding, much rich and varied pleasure can be had from listening to and reading about film scores. I don't recommend it, though, because it is an expensive proposition.

Case in point, I repeatedly go through periods in my life when cash flow is trickling to a drip and I must control my spending habits. This usually leads me to cut off film scores completely. New ones are $15, used ones are $8, and limited editions of old ones are $20. On average, I probably obtain 4 per month. However, this isn't a good mean, because I go on benders like an alcoholic. 10 used CDs from Amazon is a restraint, not a splurge. And the limited editions are limited, so I really have to resist the temptation, because I know that they might not last. Usually the editions run in pressings of 3,000, and most times there aren't enough film score fans to buy them, but sometimes I'm surprised. George Fenton's score to 84 Charing Cross Road, a delightful film, sold out in less that a week, before it even was available for shipping. What? But great scores like Elmer Bernstein's rejected score for Saturn III are still available. Unbelievable!

So it was, when 2008 began as an exercise in self-discipline. I was trying to hold out, planning only those selections which would be sure things. [Most of the time you can hear samples of the music online, but you really never know what the album will sound like until you see the movie or hear the disc. Sometimes it varies a lot from movie to disc, like James Horner's The New World. Sometimes you don't really want to watch a terrible film to hear a good score, like EB's non-score for Saturn III.] Well, until last week, I was strolling along rather proud of myself having been successfully abstinent thus far. It was then that I noticed the announcement for a certifiable event: the man of steel in a big blue box. Normal CDs come and go, they are cheap enough to get on impulse and not feel too bad about it. Boxed sets are different, because they cost between $50 and $200. I had been waiting to save up for the final LOTR: ROTK complete set and/or Autumn Thunder: 10 discs of NFL Films music, which is hard because so many new and old scores keep surfacing. What do these publishers think I'm made of, pure Colombian cocaine? Well, this news was different, and it got me out of my self-imposed purchasing exile.

It was Superman, a score that I already own twice over (one a re-recording and another the most recent restoration in 2000). So, why on earth would I pay an inordinate amount of money for another one? Because the audio is better than the others. Because it's more complete. Because it comes in a boxed set with the previously unreleased scores for 2, 3, IV, the '88 animated series and the most comprehensive set of liner notes (160 pages) for a film score release! Also, it's limited to 3,000 copies. That was the deciding factor. I couldn't miss out on that stuff. It would be like collecting 60s British rock and roll records and not having any Beatles. So I placed my order and it came in today. Right now I'm listening to all the glorious variations of trumpeted fanfare that only Johnny T. can provide. For those who doubt the thematic richness of the Superman films' music, it is at least as good as Star Wars. I'm not just saying that, either. The fact that Giorgio Moroder's score for Midnight Express beat JW for the Oscar in 1978 is another example of how the Academy Awards can't be always be trusted.

So, now that I'm back off the wagon, I feel like a lecherous drunk who will buy some Night Train from a troll under the bridge if he'll take a broken Casio watch as payment. It is in these perilous times that I might get the score to Invasion U.S.A. in the mail just because it has a picture of Chuck Norris firing two uzis on the front cover when I should really be getting the new score to Rambo by Brian Tyler. However, since I'm writing this, I realize that I will need to go back to my meetings and stop the madness. Hi, my name is Bravo de la Tromeo, and I'm an...

If you have made it this far, dear reader, you have some great stamina. I do want to mention a few remaining things. Film scores are one of the most diverse and exciting forms of music being made today. Like any other kind of music, the quality and output vary by composer and musician. Film scores don't have to be a symphonic delight, nor do they have to be boring underscore that exists just for tone. They can be played by a rock band, done entirely by one instrument, be entirely vocalized, be performed on tin cans and cacti, or utilize sound effects like jaguars roaring. Sometimes they will surprise you and delight you. They certainly have their place and time. You don't want to listen to them at a party. And it takes a special kind of person to play Star Wars' "Throne Room [End Titles]" at their wedding. But the next time you watch a movie that you are familiar with, see if you notice anything about the music and if it does anything for you. Most of the time people are not supposed to notice because they are too wrapped up in the storytelling, which is the mark of a good composer. However, if you do notice it, what do you think?

I'm usually thinking, I can probably skip this one again, Christophe Beck.

*It was also available as a single, which few people buy anymore on CDs.