The Film Music of Jerry Goldsmith

This is a good collection of some of Goldsmith's lesser known or less-available scores spanning most of his career. While some of the themes selected for inclusion seem to have been chosen fairly randomly, it is nice to find them here conducted by Goldsmith himself with the London Symphony Orchestra. Two pieces of particular interest are the two medleys, one of film scores and the other of his better known TV themes. The themes used in the medleys are mostly well bridged and the choices are again unusual, including the classic Dr Kildare theme and the rare Room 222. More emphasis is allowed for some of Goldsmith's less-prominent work - Forever Young, Sleeping With the Enemy etc. - although anyone looking for The Twilight Zone (movie) should be aware that that particular brilliant score is available on CD (released last year) and should be appreciated in full. Not the best collection of Goldsmith's work, but it is always nice when the composer himself conducts his own music (when...Read more

Some time ago I reviewed Jerry Goldsmith's outstanding score for "Star Trek Nemesis." At that time I remarked that the tones and secondary themes seemed to be almost a farewell to the Enterpise. It is only fitting that Maestro Goldsmith's musicians gave him standing ovations as they finished recording several cuts for that score. Now, of course, that "farewell" is so poignant. A number of years ago, my wife and I attended a concert with the Maestro conducting the Utah Symphony Orchestra in Salt Lake City. The program was essentially the same as we find on this grand album. We stood and gave Maestro Goldsmith a standing ovation, and a loud "Bravo!" then, and wish we could do it again. This is representative collection of the Maestro's work that is well worth having. A fitting tribute to a genius in his field. Nicely produced and packaged. For those of us who grew up with Goldsmith it is hard to say farewell. Bravo and yeia sou!

When I first purchased this cd, my original intent was for the soundtrack of Star Trek, which has always been a favorite of mine. I was also motivated by the fact that the orchestra performing is the London Philharmonic, which I consider one of the finest in the world. To this day, this cd stays in my player at bedside. When hearing the news that Mr. Goldsmith had passed away last year, I decided to purchase the 6 cd collection in his memory from Fox. This mans talent was truly a rare and extraordinary gift which he shared with us. I have given this cd as a gift several times because I felt I was giving a wonderful, moving, inspiring rendition of the exquisite talent of this man. If you are not familiar with Mr. Goldsmith, give this cd a chance and I believe you will continue pursuing the mood and music of Jerry Goldsmith, who will be missed for decades to come.