Space: 1999 / Soundtrack

Classic score by Enniomorrocone, classic and very interesting and different. RECCOMENDED

Excellent

Well its not what you expect from the maestro its full on weird its like he was just making a lot of noise just for the sake of it ,like he was on work experience at the BBC Radio phonic Workshop scoring an early Doctor Who ,perhaps he thought it would never get released and be forgotten but no here it is in all its glory ,beeps Scrathing ,jarring shrieks glore with no real purpose to where he was going ???This has to be for completists of his work and fans of the series maybe for the serious soundtrack collector aswell a wonderful obscurity

If you are a lover of either Space: 1999 or good music, then you are in for a double disappointment. The five minutes of good music are overshadowed by sixty-five minutes of jarring, ear splitting, strings, seemingly endless random drumbeats, and some electronic notes of some sort. The last thing it does is remind you of Space:1999.

Excellent speedy delivery and superb quality very happy with this purchase.

Let me start by saying that if you are a "Space: 1999" fan who is expecting any of the familiar music from the television series, this ain't it. You would be better served by either of the single disc soundtrack CDs released by Silva Records ( year one featuring music by Barry Gray, or year two's scores by Derek Wadsworth ) or any of the excellent multiple disc sets released exclusively through Fanderson ( of which you have to be a member to purchase ). Unless you are a hardcore collector of "Space:1999" related merchandise or a heavy Ennio Morricone fan, you may be disappointed with the music on this compilation. Those with more adventurous musical tastes may find this CD of interest.This CD contains music from the alternative score composed for the Italian compilation film Spazio:1999. The original scores composed by Barry Gray ( and Vic Elms ) for the episodes used to create the movie were jettisoned in favor of music composed by famed Italian composer Ennio Morricone. These cues are presented on this CD for the first time. Also included are several library tracks in the same vein composed by Morricone.This CD is not an easy or relaxing listening experience. This is not a melodic and cohesive score like one written by John Williams. There are some similarities with some of the more experimental pieces written by Jerry Goldsmith for "Planet Of The Apes" or "Logan's Run", but in a Goldsmith score there is usually some kind of recognizable melodic theme existing throughout the work. Not so in the case of this collection. This is a generally dissonant and challenging collection of works seemingly meant to keep the listener ( or viewer ) in a constant state of unease.Morricone's music for "Spazio:1999" is ( in my opinion) the antithesis of the score that Barry Gray originally wrote. Whereas Gray's music is written to convey a range of feelings and add emotional depth to the proceedings, Ennio Morricone's music ( with the exception of the final track on the disc ) seems more cold, sterile and unemotional... a kind of sonic wallpaper, designed not to underscore any particular moment, but more to provoke a general sense of unease and dread. In some instances this works, but except for the scenes of the movie which were left unscored, there is almost no respite from the overall sensation of apprehension.Many of the tracks are a sort of atonal jazz. Others are electronic tonalities. The first track "Follia nello spazio" ( which appears 3 times on the CD, in 3 barely distinguishable versions ), is the most exciting and energetic of the lot, with it's propulsive and insistent percussion. It seems rather out of place for use in "Space:1999" and would feel more at home as the underscore for a chase scene in some early 60's gangster movie. Track 4, titled "Convergenze" begins with some shrieking violins which are reminiscent of Bernard Herrmann's infamous score for "Psycho". It continues to build becoming more strident and frantic. A small portion of this track was used to underscore the opening title sequence. Track 15, " Interposizione", Starts out with sustained strings which remind me of the opening titles of "Close Encounters Of The Third Kind" or sections of pieces used in "2001: A Space Odyssey". Then continues with what sounds like gunfire and a martial drumroll that would seem to properly belong in a war film. Track 11. "Suoni di Una Nuova Civilta", is easily the most unpleasant track to listen to on the whole CD. it is consists of nothing but two minutes and thirteen seconds of nothing but high pitched, atonal, screeching violins. It is an experience akin to listening to several people repeatedly running their fingernails down a chalkboard.The last track on the CD, titled "Spazio:1999" is a fairly melancholy piece used to underscore certain scenes after the Moon leaves Earth orbit, also when the Alphans return to Earth in the latter third of the movie and serves again as the music over the ending coda. The only way in which this track is remarkable is in comparison to all the preceding tracks; it is the only piece on here which has what could be considered a conventional melody.There are no faults to be found with the mastering of the CD. The tracks are clean sounding and free of any noticeable distortion. The included booklet, peppered with photos from the three episodes of "Space:1999" ( "Breakaway", "Ring around the Moon" and "Another Time Another Place" ) which served as the basis for the theatrical feature "Spazio:1999", includes an informative essay by Nick Williams of Fanderson giving some background on the film and music.My problem lies not with the disc itself, but rather with the cues used in the movie, as they all seem like library tracks written without specific scenes in mind, rather than anything especially written to accompany this film. One wonders if Morricone even saw the movie he was writing this music for ( if he did indeed write ANY of this music SPECIFICALLY to accompany this movie ). A lot of it sounds improvised or dashed off without a great deal of thought.Still, I have found myself wanting to listen to it occasionally, and beginning to appreciate some of it's textures more than I did upon my first time hearing it. It's definitely not for anyone who is looking for comfortable, conventional orchestral music.

This is a really cool collectable piece with Ennio Morricone music. It's largely left of centre and presented for the first time in full stereo. One for completists for sure, and the booklets is full of great stills from the movie. As a collector I think it's great!