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The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
Special Edition, Special ed.
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The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) [Special Edition]
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MP3 Music, December 11, 2012
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Editorial Reviews
The Special Edition of the Original Motion Picture Soundtrack to The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey contains the full score from the film with seven extended score cues, six exclusive bonus tracks, and deluxe liner notes packaged in a 2 CD hardcover digibook. The Soundtrack features original score by Academy Award winner Howard Shore recorded at famed Abbey Road Studios by the London Philharmonic Orchestra. Additionally it includes an original song, Song of the Lonely Mountain, written and performed by Neil Finn (Crowded House).
One of today's most respected, honored, and active composers and music conductors, Howard Shore previously worked with director Peter Jackson on The Lord Of The Rings Trilogy, which stands as his most towering achievement to date. He won three Academy Awards for his music for those films.
Product details
- Is Discontinued By Manufacturer : No
- Language : English
- Product Dimensions : 5 x 5.51 x 0.71 inches; 5.29 Ounces
- Manufacturer : Watertower Music
- Item model number : 25855139
- Date First Available : October 10, 2012
- Label : Watertower Music
- ASIN : B009O07NDY
- Number of discs : 2
- Best Sellers Rank: #12,655 in CDs & Vinyl (See Top 100 in CDs & Vinyl)
- #153 in Movie Scores (CDs & Vinyl)
- #274 in Movie Soundtracks (CDs & Vinyl)
- #8,094 in Pop (CDs & Vinyl)
- Customer Reviews:
Customer reviews
Customer Reviews, including Product Star Ratings help customers to learn more about the product and decide whether it is the right product for them.
To calculate the overall star rating and percentage breakdown by star, we don’t use a simple average. Instead, our system considers things like how recent a review is and if the reviewer bought the item on Amazon. It also analyzed reviews to verify trustworthiness.
Learn more how customers reviews work on AmazonReviewed in the United States on January 31, 2013
Top reviews from the United States
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It's amazing music, filled with fellowship and beauty and wonder and danger. Many of the familiar themes of the previous Lord of the Rings films are here, from the notes that hearken back to the Shire in "Old Friends" to a certain slinky theme for "Riddles in the Dark." There's a good amount of new material too, like the jaunty, unexpected "Radagast the Brown" and the rousing "A Good Omen."
I really enjoyed some of the extra tracks on this Special Edition CD, like "A Very Respectable Hobbit" and the majestic "Erebor" - some of the best individual songs here, to be honest. "Blunt the Knives" is a delightful, spot-on rendition of one of my favourite scenes in the book, and "Misty Mountains" is both hauntingly beautiful and irresistibly catchy. "Dreaming of Bag End" is a pretty, pastoral piece that gets to the heart of what makes 'The Hobbit' a story that has caught imaginations of both young and old.
Taken as a whole, it's almost enough to be the music for that journey I have dreamt of and read of many times. Almost.
There's a feeling that pervades, though, that the music doesn't feel like the 'Hobbit' I know and treasure. In places ("An Ancient Enemy" for example) slightly overdone, too bombastic...in others, too familiar, borrowing a little too much from the previous films and not staking new musical ground ("My Dear Frodo" jumps to mind, an almost unnecessary mashup of things we've heard before), as though afraid to deviate too much from the awesome scores of the original films. And please...let's not even discuss "The Song of the Lonely Mountain," the song intended to wrap the movie as the credits roll - the less said about that, the better.
And just a word on the packaging for the Special Edition CD. I loved all the extra pictures and the insightful notes from Doug Adams, but the cardboard case feels a little cheap when I compare it to the leathery, textured covers of the the special edition scores of the Lord of the Rings CDs. It's a little thing, but I couldn't help but be slightly disappointed in the packaging change.
It's still amazing music...but I can't help but feel it misses a beat occasionally. When I close my eyes and let my mind wander to that faraway adventure, I can't help but wonder where my Hobbit went, and wish there was a little more of him here.
My favorite song on the soundtrack is actually "The Song of the Lonely Mountains" (which, after reading another review on Amazon and finding out Howard Shore had nothing to do with this track, I feel kind of guilty for, but still enjoy this song the most). However, most of the soundtrack was written by Howard Shore, and there are many other great, orchestral pieces on the soundtrak. Some of my favorites include "Axe or Sword?", "The Adventure Begins", "Dreaming of Bag End", and "Erebor". Its nice to hear songs from the book on here, namely, the songs "Blunt the Knives" and "Misty Mountains". Both of these songs are great, and "Misty Mountains" comes in as a close second as my favorite song. You can also hear themes from the origianl Lord of the Rings trilogy on here, too. The song "Hidden Valley" uses the Rivendell theme (as it no doubt is the song used for when the group comes to Rivendell), and at the end of "The Adventure Begins" there is a more upbeat version of the tune used in "The Breaking of the Fellowship" from "The Fellowship of the Ring" soundtrack.
I have not yet seen the movie (though plan to go this very afternoon (December 22, 2012)), and this soundtrack definitely makes me excited to go see the movie, and I recommend it to everyone interested in The Hobbit and who enjoys movie scores.
Finally, like I mentioned in the title, the ONLY reason this soundtrack gets 4 instead of 5 stars is because of the packaging of the special edition. The special edition is set up like a booklet, with some photos and lyrics in the middle, and the CDs are put in envelope-like slots on the inner side of the front and back. This makes it difficult to get the CDs out of and into the case. I would have much preferred if they had put plastic over the inner side, and made it so the CDs snapped into plastic holders like on most cases. I did burn the CDs onto my computer and will probably mostly listen to them on my computer, but I still think the packaging should have made it easier to get the CDs out and into the case. However, considering we do live in a digital age and most people won't be using the actualy physical soundtracks, this is a small issue and I still recommend The Hobbit soundtrack. Just be warned if you order the physical edition of the special edition to be careful getting the CDs out.
Update 02/17/2014: I added a star back on because, even though the packaging of the CDs in the envelope-like slots on the inside is still a poor way of packaging the CDs, it is now irrelevant! The Desolation of Smaug soundtrack also came similarly packaged, but it was no problem because in the last year Amazon came out with AutoRip, which is probably one of their best ideas ever. You get the MP3s automatically delivered to your device upon purchasing the albums (and you have them right in the morning on the release date if you pre-order the album), and you do not need to worry about getting at the CDs to download your music and possibly damaging the CDs in the process.
Other reviews have done a fine job of itemizing opinions on the cuts. I think the overall impression, for one steeped in LOTR, is not enough new stuff. I was waiting for at least one new major theme to stand out, but I didn't find it. This is subject to revision as I see the movie at least once more, and see how sight and sound are joined.
Top reviews from other countries
The composer has done it again for the Hobbit - the soundtrack is amazing. Parts are familiar from LOTR, such as the Rivendell theme, and the Shire theme. Other parts, such as the main theme (the tune from the 'Misty Mountains' song) are new and equally exciting.
This CD is, at time of writing this, £4.99 more expensive than the Hobbit soundtrack without the 4 bonus tracks. Personally, I think that the bonus tracks are great but I'm not sure they're worth £5 more!
Packaging: I tend to immediately copy music onto my iPod, and then handle CDs very little, so the somewhat flimsy cardboard from which the case is constructed that some have criticised wasn't an issue. Looks quite nice, and the enclosed leaflet is reasonably informative.
Product: As others have observed, this album is much less thematic than the LOTR soundtracks, but that's not unexpected, because the film focuses on the dwarves and so there is less need for a diversity of musical signatures. That said, a few of the themes from the LOTR soundtracks do make appearances; some fleeting (e.g. the Ring theme), others more pronounced, and developed beyond their earlier use (e.g. the Shire theme). The main signature, "Misty Mountains", is the only prominent new theme, and although it only features on a few tracks, is an evocative and memorable a piece of music.
Verdict: If you like Howard Shore's work, this is worth the money.
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