The Geffen album was a regular U.S. release in 1987, but has since fallen badly out of print. The 1998 Soundtrack Library 020 bootleg is only available on the secondary market outside the U.S.
Buy it... if you're a completist of Jerry Goldsmith action music of the
1980's and don't mind the derivative nature of the score.
Avoid it... if the price of finding it on album isn't worth hearing
Goldsmith styles that you've likely heard before on other his albums.
Filmtracks Editorial Review:
Goldsmith
Innerspace: (Jerry Goldsmith) A film that has fallen
off the radar screen since its release in 1986, Innerspace was
comical remake of Fantastic Voyage by director Joe Dante, with Dennis
Quaid meeting an equally young Meg Ryan, getting shrunk to the size of a few
microns, and inserted into Martin Short. The idea was inventive and the film
works to a basic level as a romantic, silly comedy film, with decent special
effects paving the way for an active orchestral score provided by veteran
composer Jerry Goldsmith. The composer and director had collaborated two
times previously, with the most recent pairing leading to an adventurous and
creative score for Explorers. In many regards, the Innerspace
project would offer Goldsmith a canvas very similar to that of
Explorers, and the composer would approach the new film with nearly
an identical treatment of orchestral and electronic elements. The resulting
effort would be a serviceable action score, sustained by Goldsmith's usual,
strong adventure rhythms and bold instrumentation. At the same time, some of
the raw energy and kid-like enthusiasm that was present in Explorers
is lost to an extent in Innerspace. The consistency of the action
presented in Innerspace is to be commended first, however. While the
film suffers from its moments of dumb comedy, Goldsmith approaches the
science-fiction elements with a serious eye for action and suspense. Several
lengthy cues of brass-ripping heroism alternate with the same kinds of
electronic sound effects that you heard Goldsmith use for similar efforts in
the 1980's... the twisting of metal, the tingling of light keyboarding, and
the occasional rumble of an instrument that can only be the cousin the
infamous blaster beam from the original Star Trek film score.
On the other hand, Innerspace takes no chances. It
is highly derivative of Goldsmith's other works, and mirrors the composer's
1980's action scores in the same way that Star Trek: Nemesis mirrors
his 1990's music in the similar venue. Listening to Innerspace, while
it is enjoyable from start to end, you easily get the impression that you
have heard all of this music before, and, in many cases, performed with more
enthusiasm by equally dynamic instruments. A clear example of this
phenomenon is the heart-thumping suspense cue "Environmental Adjust," which
pulls its construction from Poltergeist in several places. The
metallic clangs heard throughout Innerspace are also a lift from
Explorers, but you can hardly blame Goldsmith for continuing that
sound for the director. On album, the score is a decent listen, but if your
Goldsmith collection is already of decent size, you won't be pulling
Innerspace out for a listen too often. Geffen released the score
internationally in 1987 on a split song and score album, with four 80's pop
songs (including Rod Stewart's interpretation of "Twistin' the Night Away"),
one 50's song (wonderful, though out of place), and five cues of Goldsmith
material amounting to 25 minutes of score. Despite its widespread
production, the Geffen CD disappeared and became out of print in the 1990's
and, although it took longer than many had expected it would, a bootleg
appeared in 1998. The "Soundtrack Library 020" bootleg of over an hour in
length (all score) features good sound quality, but is also a perfect
example of overkill. Presented in almost thirty short cues, the score
ironically doesn't sustain itself as well on the bootleg as it does on the
flawed commercial album. Overall, you won't find Innerspace in any
store, but instead of paying out the teeth for the bootleg in an online
action, check for the old, still reasonably priced Geffen album in the used
arena first. ***
Songs:
• 1. Twistin' the Night Away - performed by Rod Stewart (4:13)
• 2. Hypnotize Me - performed by Wang Chung (4:47)
• 3. Is It Really Love? - performed by Michael Narada Walden (4:43)
• 4. Will I Ever Understand You - performed by Berlin (4:46)
• 5. Cupid - performed by Sam Cooke (2:35)
Original Score by Jerry Goldsmith:
• 6. Let's Get Small (6:00)
• 7. Envonmental Adjust (3:58)
• 8. Space is a Flop (3:03)
• 9. Gut Reaction (9:58)
• 10. Air Supply (2:40)
Track Listings (1998 Soundtrack Library Bootleg):
Total Time: 63:45
(29 untitled tracks)
Notes and Quotes:
Neither insert includes extra information about the score or film.
