Soundtrack Watch: Varese’s Latest CD Club Batch Includes Goldsmith, ‘Trek’ and ‘Cogburn’

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Last month, Varese Sarabande unveiled a killer trifecta of CD Club titles that featured their most requested expansion, a repress of one of their most beloved reissues of the decade, and the premiere of a classic Western score.

The CD Club began some 30 years ago, but since its original soundtrack release in 1997, fans have yearned for a more complete presentation of Jerry Goldsmith’s score to Air Force One. The hit action film stars Harrison Ford as an American president fighting a band of airborne hijackers to save his family and cabinet members. Goldsmith’s score was written in only 10 days (with some assistance from composer Joel McNeely) after director Wolfgang Petersen roundly rejected a full score by Randy Newman.

Despite the breakneck pace, which Goldsmith vowed to never repeat again, the final score is one of Jerry’s most-beloved and well-known action scores. (One unfortunately famous fan is Donald Trump, whose incessant use of cues at his presidential rallies actually led to a formal request to stop.) Now, though, you can hear the complete score (including McNeely’s additional material and several alternate takes) in full sans guilt, on Varese’s double disc limited edition of 4000 copies. The set was produced by Cary E. Mansfield and Bryon Davis, with a master assembled by Chas Ferry and Bruce Botnick. Daniel Schweiger penned liner notes in a package designed by Mark Shoolery (with assistance from Bill Pitzonka).

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Varese next moves from the sky to the stars with a repressing of the deluxe edition of Michael Giacchino’s score to the 2009 reboot of Star Trek. J.J. Abrams’ reinterpretation of the classic sci-fi TV series finds the radical Romulan Nero (played by Eric Bana) trapped in the past and altering the origin stories of Captain Kirk (Chris Pine), Mr. Spock (Zachary Quinto) and the rest of the crew of the U.S.S. Enterprise. In a beautiful nod to Treks past, they’re aided by the “prime,” unstuck-in-time version of Spock, played once again by Leonard Nimoy.

The franchise’s mix of old and new styles (which spun off two sequels in 2013 and 2016) was further symbolized by a richly thematic score by Oscar winner Michael Giacchino, whose urgent fanfares provided a fine complement to Alexander Courage’s original title theme. Originally released as an expanded edition in 2010, a year after the film’s release, this complete presentation of Star Trek is available again as a strictly limited edition of 1500 copies – this time in a jewel case instead of the original, oblong, perfect-bound edition.

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Finally, the CD Club presents a surprising entry in the premiere release of Laurence Rosenthal’s score to Rooster Cogburn. The second-to-last film by John Wayne found him reprising his turn as the one-eyed sheriff from True Grit (a performance which won him the Academy Award for Best Actor in 1970) – this time opposite Katharine Hepburn! Rosenthal’s Coplandesque score, a band apart from Elmer Bernstein’s work on True Grit, is a must-hear for Western enthusiasts. What makes this release surprising is its connection to the Universal Pictures Film Music Heritage Collection, a series associated with La-La Land Records. But regardless of the label, there’s a killer team behind this one, with Mike Matessino handling production, mixing and mastering; liner notes from Tim Grieving and design again by Mark Shookery. This one’s limited to 1500 copies as well.

Each title is available to order from Varese Sarabande and will also ship this week! Check out the track lists below.

Jerry Goldsmith, Air Force One: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack – The Deluxe Edition (Varese Sarabande VCL 0919 1155, 2019 – original film released 1997)

Disc 1

  1. The Parachutes
  2. Parachute Attack
  3. The Motorcade
  4. Guided Tour
  5. No Security
  6. Gibbs Fires **
  7. The Hijacking, Part One & Two
  8. Empty Capsule
  9. Empty Hall, Downstairs, Hanging About
  10. Terms
  11. Stalking The Plane
  12. Empty Rooms
  13. Get To Work
  14. K.V. & The Hostages
  15. NSA Is Shot **
  16. Mother Russia
  17. Marshall On Phone **
  18. Target Air Force One **
  19. Plane On The Ground
  20. Marshall’s Plan **
  21. The First Hostage
  22. K.V. Lectures **
  23. Dumping Fuel **
  24. Fuel’s On Its Way ***
  25. Fax To The White House **
  26. Escape In Process **
  27. Where Is The President? **

Disc 2

  1. Free Flight
  2. Hostage President
  3. I’ll Do It **
  4. Sign It! **
  5. Get Off My Plane!
  6. Radek’s Release (with Chorus)
  7. The Dogfight **
  8. Air Force One In Trouble **
  9. Escape From Air Force One
  10. Welcome Aboard
  11. End Credits
  12. Parachute Attack (Film Version)
  13. The Hijacking, Part One & Two (Film Version)
  14. K.V. & The Hostages (Film Version)
  15. Marshall’s Plan (Film Version)
  16. K.V. Lectures (Film Version)
  17. Sign It (Alternate Take)
  18. Get Off My Plane (Film Version)
  19. Air Force One In Trouble (Alternate Take)

Disc 1, Tracks 1-5, 7 and 12 and Disc 2, Tracks 1-2 and 10 released on Varese Sarabande VSD-5825, 1997
** co-composed by Joel McNeely *** composed by Joel McNeely

Michael Giacchino, Star Trek: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack – The Deluxe Edition (originally released as Varese Sarabande VCL 0410 1108, 2010 – reissued Varese Sarabande VCL 0919 1195, 2019 – original film released 2009)

Disc 1

  1. Star Trek
  2. Narada Boom
  3. Hack To The Future
  4. Nailin’ The Kelvin
  5. Labor Of Love
  6. Main Title
  7. Head To Heart Conversation
  8. One Proud Mother
  9. Hella Bar Talk
  10. The Flask At Hand
  11. Welcome Back, Spock
  12. Vulcan Gets a Good Drilling
  13. Hangar Management
  14. Enterprising Young Men
  15. Flying Into a Trphlthdl
  16. Nero Sighted
  17. Matter? I Barely Know Her!
  18. Jehosafats
  19. Chutes and Matter
  20. A Whole In My Heart
  21. I’ve Fallen and I Can’t Beam Up!
  22. Spock Goes Spelunking
  23. An Endangered Species
  24. Galaxy’s Worst Sushi Bar
  25. Mandatory Leave Of Absence
  26. Dad’s Route To School
  27. Frozen Dinner
  28. You Snowin’ Me?

Disc 2

  1. Nice To Meld You
  2. Hail To The Chief
  3. I Gotta Beam Me
  4. Scotty’s Tanked
  5. What’s With You?
  6. Either Way, Someone’s Going Down
  7. Trekking Down The Narada
  8. Run And Shoot Offense
  9. Does It Still McFly?
  10. Nero Death Experience *
  11. Nero Fiddles, Narada Burns
  12. Black Holes Have a Lot Of Pull
  13. Back From Black
  14. That New Car Smell
  15. To Boldly Go *
  16. End Credits *

Disc 1, Tracks 1, 4-5, 9, 14 and 16 and Disc 2, Tracks 1, 8-11 and 13-16 originally released as Varese Sarabande 302 066 966 2, 2009
* includes original theme from Star Trek composed by Alexander Courage and Gene Roddenberry

Laurence Rosenthal, Rooster Cogburn: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack – The Deluxe Edition (Varese Sarabande VCL 0919 1196, 2019 – original film released 1975)

  1. Rooster Cogburn – Main Title
  2. Dead Weight/Ambush At The Door
  3. Hawk/My Cup Runneth Over/Rooster Rides Off
  4. Fort Ruby Massacre
  5. Two Bagbys
  6. Three Bottles Of Nitrate
  7. Eula To Arms/Broken Axle/Bad Loser
  8. Invisible Posse
  9. Eula Sings
  10. The End Of Red/Rooster Smashed/Roast Turkey
  11. Laying On Of Hands/Goodnight, Reuben
  12. Spooking
  13. Down River
  14. River Trailing/Squaring Accounts
  15. Night On The River
  16. Hawk and Rooster
  17. Floating Nitro/The Smoke Clears
  18. Rooster Cogburn – End Credits
The Second Disc
The Second Disc

The Second Disc is devoted to the weird, wild and wonderful world of music catalogue projects. Every week, Mike Duquette, Joe Marchese, and Randy Fairman bring you news, reviews, commentary and features on remasters, reissues, compilations and box sets.

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