Customer Reviews

Moonraker [Original Motion Picture Soundtrack]

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

The release of re-mastered editions of the James Bond scores offered up some great albums that expanded the original soundtracks with extra cues ("Thunderball" and "On Her Majesty's Secret Service" are particularly superb). However, "Moonraker," one of the best scores of the series and one of the most lyrical and unusual (especially when you consider what a silly slapstick film it accompanies) arrived on CD in a bare-bones 30-minute edition that replicates the original LP version with no extra tracks.

This is an unfortunate occurrence, but the people loudly complaining and blaming EMI need to understand that the album producers had no choice. They wanted an expanded album (who wouldn't? more people would buy it), but there was a major stumbling block because of the way the "Moonraker" recording sessions were originally produced. "Moonraker" was a French-British co-production for tax reasons, and most of the film was shot in France. The recording sessions were also done in France, and the original masters reside in vaults in Paris. The American producers of this album were unable to obtain access to these master tapes to make a longer version, and the work to get them would have been prohibitively expensive -- which would mean no album at all.

I too am disappointed we don't have a longer "Moonraker" album; however, the re-mastered sound and the general brilliance of the music makes it impossible for me to give this album anything less than five stars. I've loved this album for years, and still do. I think it shows John Barry at his best, and it's the most experimental score for a Bond film. Barry avoids the period music clichés (except for a slight disco beat under the end titles) that plagued Hamlisch's "The Spy Who Loved Me" score, and he also ignores the silliness of the film and turns in a serious, ethereal, and sensual score. Regardless of length, the "Moonraker" score wields a potent spell.

The theme song, sung by Shirley Bassey of "Goldfinger" fame, never became a big hit, but it's one of the best songs from a Bond film: exotic, timeless, and filled with soaring romanticism. Barry uses the heavy romantic melody in the cue "Bond Meets Dr. Goodhead," one is one of the album's most beautiful tracks. The theme also appears in the first half of "Bond Arrives in Rio and Boat Chase," this time with an understated calypso beat and chorus.

Barry ditches one of his signatures styles of the Bond series, the brassy and sassy use of trumpets and horns, for a more elegant and smooth approach. (In fact, you won't hear "The James Bond Theme" anywhere on this album, although it does appear in the film.) You can hear Barry's changed approach most clearly in "Centrifuge and Corinne Put Down," where Barry follows the death of Corrine at the fangs of Drax's hunting dogs with a hypnotic, slow building piece using strings and harp and only culminating in the brass at the end. More typical suspense music appears in "Bond Smells a Rat" (which covers Bond sneaking into Drax's Venetian laboratory and seeing the effect of the nerve gas on Drax's employees).

The action cue most reminiscent of the earlier scores is in the first half of "Cable Car and Snake Fight," with exciting brass punctuation marks, but then it segues directly into the snake deathtrap music, where Barry again takes an unusual approach with the orchestration, focusing on lyrical action and tension music. The second half of "Bond Arrives in Rio and Boat Chase" sees the return of `007,' a piece of thrilling action music Barry first used in "From Russia, With Love," only here it is orchestrated to match the tone of the rest of the score; it's both beautiful and exiting, and a perfect example of how Barry could turn the expectations of action upside down.

But the real highlights of the album are "Bond Lured to Pyramid," "Space Laser Battle," and "Flight into Space," where Barry creates hypnotic and gorgeous musical suites. "Bond Lured to Pyramid" plays as Bond weaves through the jungle following a beautiful woman to Drax's lair; Barry uses a chorus and chirping woodwinds over a thick layer of strings to create a feeling of exoticism and mystery. (In the film, this cue leads directly into "Snake Fight.") "Space Laser Battle" takes the ridiculous laser duel between Drax's forces and the U.S. Space Marines (???) and makes a slow, lyrical dirge out of it -- a brilliant move on Barry's part that emphasizes the `space' aspect of the scene. "Flight into Space" is six and half-minutes of sustained beauty, and one of the greatest pieces Barry composed for any film: it's almost a complete ballet based on the theme of space travel, using a chorus, organ, and elegant trumpet and horn passages to create the portrait. The music for the emergence of the space station out of the darkness is especially stunning.

Yes, this isn't the longer album we hoped for. Perhaps one day the legal problems will be settled, but this is the best that EMI was able to do. And the remarkable score is still there and still as potent a piece of work as it ever wars. An essential album for all James Bond and John Barry fans.

This is rare music for a James Bond film. It is of great interest and curiosity just how John Barry scored this film. The score represented on the compact disc concentrates on the virtues of the main character, the spectacle and enigma of space and fleeting action sequences. It contains one of the most haunting and esoteric love themes that John Barry ever composed. Barry never reverts to or even hints to the "James Bond Theme" on this compact disc. He concentrates his score on the main character's endearing and enduring qualities. We can hear Bond as the romantic hero, spy and adventurer. We also hear the beautiful passages of earthly and unearthly encounters. Some of the score contains a yearning for the enigmatic meaning of life itself. It is a very unusual score for a film that has deep unfathomable undertones hidden beneath its gloss. This score matches the film perfectly because MOONRAKER is probably the most enigmatic film of the series covering the gamut of styles and tones. The digital remastering is good and it comes with a nice booklet.

Yes indeed. This soundtrack is much, much too short. After all, the CD only contains around 30 minutes of music, and that really is a shame, as many reviewers righly pointed out.

The music itself is excellent, Barry really shows his genius here (but then, speaking of his Bond music, doesn't he always?). And a simple fact that an entire pretitle sequence, which is truly excellent - speaking of music and also of film itself - is missing, vexes me even more. A legend has it that the music was being recorded in France and the original tapes eventually got lost. I wonder how much effort was put into finding that material, but sadly this is now a rather unimportant issue...

But all the criticism aside, we do get some gems here, meaning especially Space Lazer Battle, Cable Car And Snake Fight and Flight Into Space, which is a real masterpiece and gets very heavenly and ethereal, as Barry adds a wordless choir, perfectly evoking Drax's Noah Ark operation and empty loneliness of space. It always reminds me of Holst's Neptune, The Mystic from The Planets suite. A nice rendition of "007" tune can also be heard in Bond Arrives In Rio And Boat Chase.

One more thing. Apart from many (ar should I say all) other people, I actually really like the concluding track - the disco-pop version of Moonraker - Main Title. It sounds quite cool to me, but then, I'm also a big fan of Conti's soundtrack for For Your Eyes Only, and that also speaks for itself. :)

Sadly, this CD lacks a lot of great music from film, otherwise it is a perfect soundtrack and worth having.

While a major success at the box office, 1979's MOONRAKER was never a major success with Bond fans overall thanks to its excessive elements of camp, light-heartedness, and space faring science fiction. While these elements may have ultimately hurt the film itself, they also allowed composer John Barry to create a sweeping musical score that has quickly become one of my favorites among his many Bond related compositions.

Barry has always created some of my favorite pieces of music when done in conjunction with outer space, as evidenced in YOU ONLY LIVE TWICE with the track entitled 'Capsule in Space' and DIAMONDS ARE FOREVER with 'Blofeld's Laser', not to mention films outside of the Bond franchise such as Disney's THE BLACK HOLE (which was released the same year as this film, by the way). Here, Barry lets loose with two beautiful tracks entitled 'Flight Into Space' and 'Space Laser Battle', both of which evoke a complete sense of awe and wonder.

Two more tracks worth mentioning are the exciting 'Cable Car And Snake Fight', which actually has a running theme present that is very similar to one found in THE BLACK HOLE score, and the alluringly seductive 'Bond Lured To the Pyramid' which incorporates the use of an actual chorus for an "otherworldly effect" to say the least.

On an interesting note, this score marks the last time that the infamous '007 Theme', originally created by Barry for FROM RUSSIA WITH LOVE and subsequently appearing many times in future film entries, appears in a Bond film. Also, this is the last time that the talented Shirley Bassey will contribute her lovely vocal talents to the theme song of a Bond film. Previously, she had teamed with John Barry for the title song of GOLDFINGER, one of two versions of 'Mr. Kiss Kiss Bang Bang' originally recorded to be the main theme for THUNDERBALL, and the title song of DIAMONDS ARE FOREVER.

This remastered edition of the soundtrack is not to be missed. The sound quality has been improved considerably and a booklet filled with an interesting history on the creation of MOONRAKER and John Barry's contribution to it is included, complete with pictures! There are no extra bonus tracks included on this release, but that doesn't really hamper this effort. Extra tracks are provided for the older, earlier soundtracks because they were initially released in a very incomplete form, basically representing only half the film in some cases. While MOONRAKER is not exactly complete, it is well rounded, providing the listener with plenty of well written music heard throughout the film.

Showing his true talent for creating lasting film scores that can be enjoyed for years on end, John Barry is to be congratulated for resisting the temptation to taint his score with the passing fads such as disco. While composers such as Marvin Hamlisch completely ruined their shot at creating a lasting score with efforts such as the disco saturated THE SPY WHO LOVED ME, Barry was wise enough to recognize that this would work against the film in the future years. The only disco you will get here is a differing version of the theme song at the very end of the CD. This doesn't hurt the collection any seeing that you can simply skip it if it is not to your preference.

Don't miss out on you chance to add this beautiful score to you collection of other John Barry related Bond soundtracks. Don't turn down the opportunity to acquire it while it is available simply because it doesn't offer any bonus tracks. This soundtrack stands on its own and should not be judged by this one omission. If you own the previous release, buy this one for the wonderfully improved sound, if you have never owned it before, then don't hesitate in your decision to discover one of the more overlooked entries in John Barry's extensive past works!

It's a shame the masters for the complete score from MOONRAKER have been lost forever, as this elegant, celestial set remains one of composer John Barry's finest contributions to the Bond franchise. Dame Shirley Bassey returns to favour us with her third and seemingly final Bond song, and while lesser-known than many of the Bond themes, it's positively glorious when compared to some of the ones that followed.

MOONRAKER is one of John Barry's better scores. Words like exquisite, inscrutable and mysterious come to mind. This truly does not sound like a James Bond soundtrack. In fact, there is not even any interpolation of The James Bond theme on this CD. However, we do get to hear the 007 theme and for the last time on this CD in BOAT CHASE. It was never used again in any of the subsequent James Bond films. The instrumental version of the MOONRAKER theme when GOODHEAD MEETS BOND has such an ethereal and dreamlike quality about it that it is extremely moving. It is very whimsical and hypnotically beautiful. BOND LURED TO PYRAMID and FLIGHT INTO SPACE are equally moving and evocative of something just beyond our grasp. This is a wonderful soundtrack.

The score to MOONRAKER contains very beautiful music. I highly recommend it to all Bond fans and Non-Bond fans alike. Don't let the cover fool you. The music on this CD is just so beautiful and ethereal. This is one James Bond soundtrack that has absolutely no hint of THE JAMES BOND THEME but still sounds amazing thanks to composer John Barry.

Although the kitchness of the movie cannot be overlooked, I personally consider this one of the finer Bond soundtracks to come from John Barry. I think what impresses me the most is the subtle use of synthesiser and the creative use of harp and strings. The clash and thunder of Barry's characteristic horns is not absent either, coming into play in just the right moments with just the right amount of force to keep the dramatic elements of the music going. An awesome listening experience. I only wish that Disney would stop pouting over the Black Hole and release his soundtrack. I would love to compare the this and the Black Hole soundscapes to each other.

John Barry does it again with a brilliant score! Shirley Bassey's powerful voice can be heard in the beginning and ending tracks with the film's theme song. Although I can't say much about the movie, the music is AMAZING! Buy it if you can!

The new remastered score for Moonraker is in one word, stunning.
There basically are no words to describe this fantastic score. Starting with the title song, Moonraker is my favorite James Bond movie theme song. Shirley Bassey gives it so much conviction and life into it. The end-title, Disco Moonraker is equally effective with a smooth disco beat and I like it as much as the slower main title. Shirley Bassey performs the title song, which only charted at #139 in the US charts, (I think it should have been #1.) Hal David also wrote the very wonderous lyrics. John Barry then takes us on a rollercoaster of a ride, producing a fabulous Bond score filled with great music. The Space Lazer Battle is an example of his fine work of creating a haunting action-space theme. Cable Car And Snake Fight is a fast tempoed action theme that slows increases and works very well. There is also the mysterious, yet sweet melody of Bond Lured To Pyramid, in which the film Bond is lured to the Mayan temple by a beautiful girl. The real treat on here (besides the brilliant title song) is Flight Into Space. This is six minutes of a magnificent haunting space theme, which keeps a steady pace and has chorus interludes, this track is truly inspired and considered to be one of the best works of John Barry. Then there is a somewhat disco-flavored Bond Arives In Rio And Boat Chase, while the second half has the renowned "007" theme in a much slower, yet very effecient way. The suspensful Bond Smells A Rat has a genuinely tense feel to it, as in the film where the two scientists are killed by the nerve gas. Then the soundtrack concludes with Disco Moonraker. A magnificent soundtrack by John Barry with the arresting voice of Shirley Bassey can only mean that this soundtrack delivers an all time high. The only problem is that there are only 10 tracks and 30 minutes of music, no new bonus tracks were added sadly. John Barry is brilliant. Shirley Bassey is brilliant. Moonraker is brilliant!