> Next: Thriller. Both volumes are intriguing, and undoubtedly
> well-performed. I love that these albums EXIST, but I feel like I ended up
> liking the music on these albums a lot less than other people who
> reviewed/raved about them at the time they came out. Like Goldsmith’s
> episodic Twilight Zone scores, they’re “embryonic” compositions
> that are intriguing warm-up acts to his later, better takes on similar
> concepts. Maybe there’s just a limit to how much I can enjoy haunting
> chamber ensembles performing anthologies.

> ***½ for both volumes/seasons.

Yeah I really enjoyed both volumes of these rerecording, and I do hope we get a third one, as there were a few episodes left uncovered. I actually agree with your rating too. When I'm in the mood (around fall) I play both of these quite a bit. But I find I'm not in the mood for the most other times. I do think "The Goldsmith Odyssey" podcast allowed me to appreciate some of these scores a bit more. The insane complexity of "Late Date" never really stood out to me until they did their deep dive of that score.

> Next: Shamus. Short but sweet. If you like any of Goldsmith’s crime
> jazz / funk scores (stuff like Warning Shot or The
> Detective) you’ll have a good, if not terribly distinctive time. I’d
> write more but I don’t want to spend more time on this post than I would
> if I gave the album another spin.

> Also, Intrada threw this one on Spotify, which might help with those who
> don’t care about physical media or don’t want to spend over $20 for an
> album under 30 minutes.

> ***

Yep. Finally got on the Spotify bandwagon, and found this one on my initial search of Goldsmith. Agree with your rating and description. Solid little score, but nothing super memorable.

> Next: Face of a Fugitive. My jaw still hasn’t left the floor from
> finding out that this, Goldsmith’s third film feature score, was finally
> getting a release, what with many of us having assumed the materials were
> lost to time.

> AND...it’s good! Very good at times, even if it’s more Goldsmith slightly
> tweaking the Copland/Bernstein approach than doing the more unique-to-him
> Western sound that would emerge in Rio Conchos. It competes
> favorably with other high-end ***½ Jerry Westerns Hour of the Gun
> and 100 Rifles, even if it sounds nothing like either of them.

> Like Shamus, this one is also on Spotify.

> ***½

Yeah, I really liked this one too. Goldsmith and Westerns almost always works for me. And it is so cool to hear his very clear style in this score. Agree with your rating on this one too. Good stuff, but not as good as where he would go later with the genre.

> Last: Take Her, She’s Mine, purchased only because I didn’t want to
> have just a single disc in my order.

> And I think I speak for everyone on the planet when I say...HUH?

> The Intrada album, an absurd collection of parody elements, zany comedy,
> ahd arrangements of popular songs, seems to only exist as a preservation
> tactic in case future generations want to know the origin point of the
> sense of humor Goldsmith exhibited in his scores for Joe Dante. If you
> like calliope and accordion in abundance, this one’s for you.

> It’s probably fine for its play-based film (Blockers for parents in
> the early 60s, and written by Nora Ephron’s dad), so my rating isn’t as
> punitive as it could be. Still, if you’re in the wrong mood it’ll be a
> chore to get through standalone, even more so than Escape from the
> Planet of the Apes (which at least has that bizarre, catchy title
> track). Plus, the score exists in mono and stereo, so you get the chance
> to be irritated by it twice.

> **½- the worst score by JG I own, though probably not his worst.

I don't usually mind Goldsmith in comedy mode. You can tell he's having fun, and it just comes through (kinda like Giacchino on "Speed Racer"). But I've held off on picking this one up because all the sample tracks I've heard just sound like the kind of thing I wouldn't revisit all that often. The story of the restoration job on this score is amazing (thanks again Goldsmith Odyssey for that story), and all the work that went into is stunning. But I struggle picking something up that I really doubt I'll listen to more than twice. Even this Goldsmith fan has his limits.