Filmtracks Traffic Rank: #1,559
Written 10/31/96, Revised 7/24/06
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Buy it... only if you are a fanatic for some of the specific scores
included.
Avoid it... if you're tired of hearing the same scores appearing
over and over again on themed compilations, and the two or three
exceptions here aren't worth it.
How the West Was Won: Classic Western Film Scores
I: (Compilation) The Silva Screen Records label released two
Western-themed compilations in 1996 as part of their continued push to
become a force in the film music re-recording business. Silva had just
begun to contract the City of Prague Philharmonic a few years earlier
for these performances of well-known score themes, and during these
years of trial & error discovery, the quality of the performances varied
significantly. After 2000, the City of Prague Philharmonic rarely
produced substandard recordings with abundant blatant mistakes, but the
compilations of their renderings in the mid-1990's often require a bit
more scrutiny. While many of these recordings would be recycled on other
Silva compilations, there were occasional circumstances in which the
group would take a second attempt at a piece. Some of the original
attempts can still be heard on these compilations of the mid-1990's, and
in light of the lengthy history that Silva has had of improving their
compilations over the years, keep in mind that these older albums have
an inherent disadvantage. This first Western album does feature the
usual odd assortment of classic and modern scores. Conducted mostly by
Nic Raine, the collection starts with Elmer Bernstein's necessary suite
of themes from The Magnificent Seven, featuring the expected
enthusiasm that the piece demands. The arrangement and orchestration of
Dee Barton's High Plains Drifter is one of the best surprises on
the album. Clint Eastwood's preferred music usually falls along the more
sparse, stylistic sounds of Ennio Morricone, and Barton's original
recording is much the same. But the arrangement here is both expanded
and fleshed out for the symphony, and is fascinating and entertaining as
such. The same can be said about the suite from Gettysburg, which
will be the highlight of the product for many listeners.
Because of Randy Edelman's overly simplistic chord
progressions and standard incorporation of electronics in his work,
Gettysburg has always been a "love it or hate it" kind of score.
For people who couldn't fathom the Edelman sound representing "The
Killer Angels," the concert suite performed here has been orchestrated
for only a symphonic ensemble. So while the themes may still be
ridiculously simplistic and underdeveloped, it may be more tolerable for
its detractors. Silva has also included a narration of the "Gettysburg
Address" in the middle portions of the lengthy suite; it is well
performed and mixed. Maurice Jarre's first career Western score,
The
Professionals, is well rendered by the ensemble, with the three cues
including contributions by a generous percussion section. The suite of
five cues from Lee Holdridge's
Buffalo Girls may come as a
surprise to many listeners. The fine score for the massive 1995 CBS
television film is well-treated here, though the vibrant sound quality
and accentuation of the acoustic guitar in the original recording
remains superior. Silva would continue to support Holdridge's work with
a recording of
Old Gringo on their second Western album. You have
to be a fan of Jerry Fielding's impressionistic score for
The Wild
Bunch to appreciate this well-arranged, very lengthy re-recording.
If you don't prefer Fielding's less traditional approach to Western
adventure, then be aware that the arrangement here doesn't attempt to
bring it any closer in sound to the other scores on the album. The cue
from Jerry Goldsmith's
Wild Rovers is truly a highlight from the
composer's career, but some of the crisp elements of the original
recording are blurred here; the recording would appear on
Goldsmith-specific compilations from Silva in the future. The same can
be said of the six cues recorded from Alfred Newman's
How the West
Was Won at the end of the album. The ensemble doesn't quite capture
the essence of the original recording, though their attempt is valiant,
and the same cues would be included on Silva's Newman-specific
compilation a few years later (though a few would be combined into
lengthier tracks). Overall, this is a decent compilation, though the
wider-ranging diversity of the second Western compilation in the series
gives it the edge.
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