Customer Reviews

By Request: The Best Of John Williams And The Boston Pops Orchestra

5 star:		(27)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

If you had to choose one album compilation of John Williams' finest work conducted by the man himself, this would be it. A fine blend of his most popular film music (star wars, superman, indiana jones, cowboys, e.t.) along with some hard to find pieces as well (NBC theme, olympic fanfare, among a few others). This is the perfect album for the new fan who doesn't want to spend all his money buying different soundtracks. This album is titled "By Request" for a reason!

John Williams is a god. Plain and simple. There is no other way to put it. The most famous pieces of music from a movie in the last 27 years or so has come from him. The music that totally [stinks] you in and brings you totally in the moment. If you need the kind of music that guarantees that kind of reaction, John Williams is your man. The music that he has done that has brought him to this status is all here. Who can forget the menacing terror of the "Jaws" theme?. It is, quite simply, the most famous piece of music to induce terror since the shower scene music from "Psycho". If not more. Everything else here is all just as good. The heroic theme to "Superman" is easily the best theme song for a superhero ever created. The theme for "Indiana Jones" is a close runner for that too. You can't listen to these two powerful scores and not get goosebumps. This is what film scoring is all about. Who could forget his theme to "Star Wars"?. Brilliant. The music the spaceship played in "Close Encounters Of The Third Kind"?. Unforgettable. The beautiful score for "E.T." is also here. His work just doesn't stop at movies. He did the music for the Olympics and for the NBC Nightly News. He has done some incredible work since the release of this CD. The adventurous score for "Jurassic Park" and it's sequels, the haunting score for "Schindler's List", and the whimsical fairy tale score for "Harry Potter And The Sorcerer's Stone". "Schindler" may be one of the all time greatest pieces of film scoring I've ever heard. It's not here, but we can hope that this CD gets updated!!. I hope John Williams continues to go strong well into the future. Movies won't be the same without him. Get this.

For fans looking for a sampler of John Williams' music circa 1987, this CD is a treasure trove of selected movie and special occasion themes. While not as comprehensive as Sony Classical's Greatest Hits 1969-1999 collection, there is enough variety to satisfy even the most casual Williams fan. Included here among his famous themes (Star Wars, ET, Superman, and Raiders of the Lost Ark) are his 1984 Olympic Fanfare, "The Mission" (NBC News theme), and the rousing Overture to the John Wayne film The Cowboys. As always, the Boston Pops Orchestra shines under the baton of Hollywood's -- and America's -- favorite composer!

Let me just tell you how much I love this collection of music from John Williams. My car has been broken into twice and my CD's stolen both times. Both times the very first CD I replaced was this one. Every single track is a masterpiece. This is my all time favorite John Williams collection.

John Williams has composed some of the best movie music of all time. Most of his themes--like Jaws, Star Wars, and Indiana Jones--are instantly recognizeable and part of the fabric of pop culture.

Being a fan, I picked up this CD because it claimed to be some of his very best. This statement is true. There's some of his best work here--like, as previously mentioned, the Jaws theme, the Star Wars theme, etc.--and some other greats like the NBC Nightly News Theme (I didn't know he had composed that) and Yoda's theme.

If you're a John Williams fan, I'd recommend this CD. The only song really missing is Duel of the Fates, but he composed that after this CD was created.

When I picked up this CD I was amazed. I am a big Williams fan and love the Boston Pops. All the pieces are well done and flawless (except for some small tempo issues in "1941") Though all the peices stand out the handsdown best is "The Cowboys" Overture. The ritch sound as well as the great musicmanship make this a joy to here. Another good highlight is the "Midway" March. Midway was a relitivley underated score being in the middle of "Jaws" and "Star Wars" (Both of witch are also on the CD but, Jaws could have had solid feeling but is otherwise performed rather great) The rousing March in my opinion is as rousing as "Raiders of the Lost Ark" or "Superman" (Both yet again are on the CD and Superman's opening is absolutly breathtaking even better than the actual soundtrack. The Trumpet and French Horn fanfare makes you yourself visualize the might of the man of steel himself. But the Midway march is given a stunning representaion with the ritch, lush sound of the Boston Pop's brass section. The CD also has some of John Williams music for the concert stage such as the well known Olympic Fanfare (1984 Los Angeles), The Liberty Fanfare as well as the Mission Theme (The NBC news anthem) all offer a nice break from the movie scores. The only down side to the CD is that because it was made in 1987 it doesn't have music from Hook, Far and Away, Schindler's List and of course Jurassic Park. But even though it lacks Williams' early 90's scores its always a Joy to listen to as well as a treat for the ears. So i give it two thumbs up and *****.
I advise any John Williams/Boston Pops fan not to let this gem slip through their fingers! ;)

John Williams is by far the best film composer ever with literally dozens of incredible film scores. For those of you who are fustrated with constantly changing cd's to hear your favorite Williams score, be fustrated no more! This cd compiles the best of JW's discography into one cd! My only peeve is that I wish more of his scores were in the collection such as some of his 'Presumed Innocent' scores which are among his best. Other than that I would definitely go and buy this cd if you don't already own it.

This is the one for the Fans. This is not a knock off, it's John Williams himself conducting his music with the BPO. A great collection of some of today's most recognizable film themes. One of my biggest regrets is that I moved here in 1994 one month after John left the BPO so I never got to see him conduct live. My hope is that Philips follows this 1987 CD up at some point with a Volume II. He definately has the songs to fill it! (Schindler's List, Saving Private Ryan, Phantom Menace to name a few!)

John Williams has the magic of translating music from movies. Even not watching the movies themselves, you can still understand what's happening because of the music that comes with it.

I'm happy the music industry compiled this marvellous CD together. It has all the greatest hits like Luke and Leia, Indiana Jones march and the star wars main theme. These songs are really some of the great examples of Williams' finest.

Even if the music isn't really that clear in movies, it's still gives a great impact on the stories. If you watch a movie made up of only dialogues and fights, what's the thrill, we can see fights anytime anywhere. So the element that makes the movies really attractive and interesting is the music itself.

Kirstie Mabitad

Shear technical perfection. These arrangements transport me to another dimension. By far, one of the best selections is the Cowboys theme. I can't imagine my disliking this piece, unless perhaps I were accustomed to living amongst cattle and harmonica music. Each selection is captivating. Get the CD!