Customer Reviews

Alex North's 2001

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Consider: Stanley Kubrick's major films all had soundtracks made up of a pastiche of sources with one exception, his least good film, Spartacus. Alex North did the honors, writing one of the most beautiful melodies for the film in "Spartacus Love Theme." For a great version of this see Yusef Latif "Eastern Sounds." But part of Kubrick's battle with Hollywood was to distance himself from cliche and compromise, and by the time he moved to England, he had an artistic vision that he saw through with nearly psychotic resolve.

Kubrick knew that music was important to films, not only to provide soundtracks, but to offer counterpoints, or to unify an image with an emotion. 2001: A Space Odessey is a classic in the use of this bricolage of sound. North could not have matched either the Imperialistic bombast of Strauss (too Leftist) nor the astringency of Ligeti (too tonal), neither could he have provided a waltz with built-in associations of vieled sexuality like "The Blue Danube." Kubrick was among other things, a master pornographer, especially of machines. (see the opening of Dr. Strangelove).

So what about this music? It's good, modernist stuff, and worth buying and listening to in its own right. North was fully conversant with all modes of modernist symphonic composition, and he uses them fluidly, but the edge of invention that 2001 needed was missing; North did not have it in him. We should consider, too, that North was imitating the scratch music Kubrick was cutting the film to, so this is a limitation North had to work with.

Those who think 2001 would be better with this music are wrong. Stanley Kubrick, at his peak, knew what would work, and this music did not, does not, and will not. Lost soundtracks, like unpublished novels are often better in the talking about than in the reading or listening to.

"2001: A Space Oddyssey" is one of my favorite movies of all time. Stanley Kubrick did really create a wonderful and stunning sci-fi masterpiece: the visual effects are truly ahead of its time, the atmosphere is overwhelming, and the choice of classical music is definitely compelling, especially Richard Strauss' 'Also Sprach Zarathustra', which became the key piece of music that anybody can relate to this movie.
However, I found surprising the fact that there was an original score written for the movie, and it was composed by the composer of "Dragonslayer", Alex North. I found that curious. And the fact that Jerry Goldsmith conducted the National Philharmonic Orchestra made me feel even more curious, so I bought this album.
The main title almost sound the same as Strauss' composition, very epic and appealing. The action tracks 'Eat Meat And The Kill' and 'The Bluff' are very compelling. The 'Main Theme', which is supposed to be some sort of entr'acte is truly powerful. 'Space Station Docking' is enchanting. Finally 'Moon Rocket Bus' transmits a flair of mystery with the one-woman chorus (That's what I believe the female voice is) in the backround supporting the dark mood of this cue. The rest of the music is kinda atmospheric, but it doesn't make this album any boring. In fact, this is an interesting listen.
It's hard for me to marry Alex North's music to Stanley Kubrick's classic. This album is worth listening without thinking of the powerful images of the sci-fi masterpiece.

North's score for 2001 is a wonderful piece of music. In the liner notes North is quoted as saying that his score had a much more contemporary feel than the music that ended up in the movie. This is absolutely true, and the North score's downfall. The music would have placed the film squarely Mid-Century, and had it been used, 2001 might well be regarded dated instead of the timeless classic it is in its current form. I can imagine the anguish North must have felt to go tho the premiere expecting his music and hearing what he heard! Nonetheless, 2001 would be weighed down and held back by Alex North's music, great as it is. The disc is great fun for fans of the movie, and a must for Soundtrack fans!

I have to admit that I enjoyed hearing this marvelous score... the recording is beautifully crafted, lyrical, and very sweet... but it was clearly inspired by the STAR TREK scores of Alexander Courage. Kubrick was absolutely right by not using this score... the music would have been too "cute" for the magnificent images we see in 2001. We all know Kubrick should have told North he would not use the score.... instead of inviting North to the New York premiere and letting the composer hear the "place" music of Strauss, Ligeti and other classical composers instead. That was wrong... but it would have been wrong to use this music for a film with the scope and timelessness of 2001... the only possible exception would be the overture itself, which would have been more interesting in some ways than "Also Sprach Zarathustra"...

Just listen to this CD and imagine images of Star Trek instead... and with that in mind, you will enjoy this recording. By the way, this recording and the performance is first rate. Jerry Goldsmith did a great job here and he should be commended for taking sides with this score. I do believe the BEST score of Alex North is "Cleopatra", however, from 1963.

What seems to be the general consensus on Alex North's lost score, and one I will not stray from in my review: Great, powerful compositions, just not right for the film. Part of what made "2001" so effective was the silence or sparse background noise in the bulk of the scenes. Perhaps I'm too acclimated to the way I know the film to be, but imagining it with North's score almost makes it seem too "Hollywood"-y, if that makes sense.

Still, it's a cool score to listen to and deserves five stars on its own merit. After all, it's a review of the music, not the movie.

As much as I admire the work of composer North, I find this to be a disappointment. Kubrick used his best judgment in "jettisoning" North's contribution to the sci-fi opus. While North was gifted in jazz-inspired scoring (a magnificent one for "A Streetcar Named Desire"), epics (both "Spartacus" and "Cleopatra," two of the best of the genre) and fantasy ("Dragonslayer," an underrated score from an underrated film), his attempt at providing the music for a film as monumental as "2001" just didn't make it. It was just too lackluster to accompany the highly dramatic and enigmatic cinematic visions of Kubrick.

Alex North had good ideas with this music and i'm glad Varese Sarabande released it to the public instead of locking it away somewhere. But listening to this soundtrack, I found it hardly suitable for the movie 2001. Kubrick was right to use classical music because it fit the film better. If you're a soundtrack collector like me, add this one to your collection, it's worth it. If you're not, you won't like this CD.

One more thing, Track 12 on this CD was used in "Good Morning Vietnam" or at least it sounded like it. Just thought that was interesting.

With all the drums and endless orchestra material this soundtrack sounds like it could be used in a Planet of the Apes movie. If you hear the POA score by Jerry Goldsmith there are similar sounds and notes in it. Perhaps he heard this and it inspired him for the 1968 film. All in all it is a good score and something great to listen to if you like Sci Fi film scores. It stands the repeated listening test. You can hear the CD about 10 times and still like it.

I find Alex North's unused music for 2001 to be a highly original work. I don't believe in classical music being used as dramatic underscoring for films as I find it draws too much attention to itself (and that includes North's
own adaptation score for Prizzi's Honor). I don't think North's score is quite as groundbreaking as Jerry Goldsmith's music for "Planet of the Apes" but I do feel it would have better suited Kubrick's film as much as his music for "Spartacus" did. I still think North is not as appreciated as he should be and I hope this recording will help to change this.
This album was released before the original recording was made available by Intrada Records a short while ago and I believe Goldsmith's recording was superb. I rank this along with his re-recordings of "Viva Zapata" and "A Streetcar Named Desire" among the best new performances of North's music. If only someone would make a complete re-recording of "Cleopatra" that would compare favorably to these recordings. North was a genius and should be embraced as such.

I bought this mainly out of curiosity after reading about it. It has some nice music, however I'm glad the movie used the classic music they did. This music is just a tad too commercial for my tastes.