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Great Composers: Georges Delerue
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Composed, Conducted and Co-Produced by:
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Georges Delerue
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Co-Produced by:
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Robert Townson
Frank Fitzpatrick
Richard Kraft
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Release Date:
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March 13th, 2001
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Availability:
Regular U.S. release.
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Awards:
Several selections were nominated for (or won) Academy Awards.
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Filmtracks Editorial Review:
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Great Composers: Georges Delerue: (Georges Delerue) The film music
community suffered an enormous loss in 1992, when Georges Delerue succumbed and
left the world without its greatest contemporary French composer. In what was
truly an international career, Delerue embodied the pure romantic side of film
music, composing over thirty years for some of the world's most dramatic and
sensuous films. Fans of Delerue's music remain intensely loyal to his expansive
body of work, even nearly ten years after his death. He represented a niche in
film music that still appeals to the hopeless romantics at heart. The mass of
his music is optimistic, with a spirited heart and genuine caring, and always,
always, including a memorable melody. He died just as a storybook would have it;
before leaving the sound studio on the final day of recording Rich in
Love in 1992, Delerue would be struck by a fatal stroke. He would spend his
last few moments surrounded by his incredible music, and with the assistance of
such compilations as this crystal clear "Great Composer" album from
Varèse Sarabande, he will not be soon forgotten. To discuss the grand
merits of each and every score would cause me to ramble on for pages about the
greatness of each, so let me instead clarify some questions people have
expressed about the recordings themselves.
The majority of the recordings on this double-CD album were conducted by Delerue
himself in London in 1989. In what came to be known as "The London Sessions,"
Delerue recorded lengthy suites from many of his most sweeping scores.
Varèse Sarabande then released them as
part of their Masters Film Music series on three CDs in 1990 and 1991. Arguably
the highlight of the three was the final installment, which included a lengthy
suite from the much coveted Something Wicked This Way Comes. No matter
which of the three was your favorite, however, all of them were fantastic
tributes to the man at the height of his career. He would only go on to score a
few more films after that series before he died, and the newer 2-CD set covers
these last chapters. The three London Session albums from ten years ago have now
been combined into one 2-CD set which contains all of the re-recordings that
Delerue conducted for those prior albums. The new set also enhances several
score suites which had previously been available in analog sound. The final few
tracks on the second CD are now up to par with the rest of the recordings, and
while a few of the excess tracks from the original CDs have been cut down to
size (such as an extra cue from Her Alibi), nothing of extreme importance
was left behind. One complaint I would make against the new compilation is that
the cues have been arranged (presumably by Robert Townson) into a "listening
experience" order whereas I would have loved to hear a tribute to Delerue's
career in chronological order. In any case, this isn't too important of a
factor. Also of curious note is the bizarre selection from House on Carroll
Street, which doesn't have much to do with the film and ignores the score's
overwhelming finale theme; this was both a problem on the original and new
compilations (it's the same recording, of course). Representation of True
Confessions, one of Delerue's most remarkable and choral scores, is missing
from the set, too.
I would argue that Deleure was at the height of his dramatic scoring career in
1985 and 1986, when he composed two of his most memorable scores, Crimes
of the Heart and Agnes of God, the latter of which gained him an
Academy Award nomination. Earlier in his career, his scores were light and
fluffy (and it was one of these efforts, A Little Romance, which brought
Delerue an Academy Award in 1980). His efforts of the 1960's and 1970's were
high spirited and jumpy, often with flighty, jazzy performances by woodwind
instruments. But in the mid-80's, Delerue's music became noticed in the age of
John Williams' big, dramatic scores. The culmination of Delerue's dramatic
talents came in 1986's Platoon, for which he composed agonizing adagio
that is equal, if not better to Barber's, which director Oliver Stone opted to
use in much of the film instead. This cruel and unneeded move by Stone likely
robbed Delerue of another Academy Award and more deserved public spotlight.
Nevertheless, Delerue's ability to apply a strong theme and simple harmonies
into his music causes a fan of his later, dramatic scores to easily enjoy his
earlier jazz score as well. If you need cheering up on rainy afternoon, there is
no better a composer than Georges Delerue to improve your mood. And even if you
already own the original releases of the London Sessions, this compilation is a
final completion of Varèse Sarabande's tribute to the great composer and
would be a worthwhile investment. ****
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Viewer Ratings and Comments:
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CD 1 (77:12)
• 1. Platoon - Theme (6:54)
• 2. Rich and Famous - Suite (4:54)
• 3. Her Alibi - End Title (5:28)
• 4. Beaches - Friendship (3:27)
• 5. Exposed - Suite (9:16)
• 6. Biloxi Blues - Main Title (2:32)
• 7. Steel Magnolias - Suite (8:06)
• 8. Interlude - Theme (3:21)
• 9. The Escape Artist - Suite (7:22)
• 10. The Pick Up Artist - Theme (3:08)
• 11. Man Woman and Child - Theme (3:19)
• 12. Memories of Me - Suite (6:48)
• 13. Something Wicked This Way Comes - Suite (11:48)
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CD 2 (76:35)
• 1. Homage a Francois Truffaut - Suite (12:09)
i. Shoot The Piano Player / ii. Love at 20
iii. Jules and Jim / iv. The Soft Skin
v. Two English Girls / vi. Such A Gorgeous Girl Like Me
vii. Vivement Dimanche / viii. Day for Night
ix. The Woman Next Door / x. The Last Metro
• 2. Maxie - End Title (4:04)
• 3. House On Carroll Street - Theme (3:10)
• 4. A Little Sex - Suite (9:25)
• 5. Maid to Order - Theme (2:12)
• 6. Crimes of the Heart - Suite (10:51)
• 7. Man Trouble - End Title (2:45)
• 8. A Little Romance - Main Title (3:12)
• 9. Rich in Love - Suite (8:44)
• 10. Agnes of God - Suite (9:38)
• 11. Black Robe - Suite (9:52)
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Insert includes lengthy commentary by
Robert Townson, with entries regarding each score.
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