Indiana Jones And The Temple Of Doom (Expanded Version)

Original Motion Picture Soundtrack

Concord, 2009

REVIEW BY: David Bowling

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED: 03/19/2009

Given the commercial (if not critical) success of Indiana Jones And The Kingdom Of The Crystal Skull, the first three classic Indiana Jones soundtrack albums have been reissued in an expanded form.

John Williams’ music has been an important part of the Indiana Jones and Star Wars experience. The main themes are instantly recognizable and many people have viewed the films so often that scenes will flash through their minds when listening to the music.

Concord Records has remastered Raiders Of The Lost Ark, Indiana Jones And The Temple Of Doom, and Indiana Jones And The Last Crusade and issued the soundtracks from the movies in their entirety. All the music that was left out of the original releases has now been restored as well.my_heart_sings_the_harmony_web_ad_alt_250

The second film in the series, Indiana Jones And The Temple Of Doom, was the least popular and by far the darkest of the films. Its soundtrack has under gone the greatest changes, featuring eleven previously unreleased tracks. They are not just short connector pieces, however, but are tracks that originally helped to paint the film’s pictures.  

The unreleased tracks include: “Indy Negotiates,” “The Nightclub Brawl,” “Map/Out Of Fuel,” “The Scroll/To Pankot Palace,” “Approaching The Stones,” “Short Round Escapes,” “Saving Willie,” “Short Round Helps,” “Water!,” “The Sword Trick” and “The Broken Bridge/British Relief.” It all adds up to a lot of music, and if you have seen the film I’m sure that you can place the music within the framework of the scene titles.

John Williams is a genius at creating soundtracks; he not only supports a film through his music but enhances it without interfering with the visual experience. His interweaving of various sounds of brass and strings is unique, creative, and ultimately inspirational. He constantly returns to an established theme, which is the case here with the famous “Indiana Jones March,” which was first introduced in Raiders Of The Lost Ark and appears over and over again in different lengths and tones.

The sound is crystal clear and a distinct improvement over the previous releases. The packing retains the feel of the original issue. The booklet contains an introduction by Steven Spielberg and classic pictures from the film. I would have appreciated a little more information about the creation of the music, though.

Whether this release as well as the other two is necessary to a music collection is up to the buyer. Many people will be satisfied with the versions that have served them well over the years. However, if you want an upgrade in sound or if you are an Indiana Jones completest, then this series of discs is for you.

Rating: A-

User Rating: Not Yet Rated


Comments

 








© 2009 David Bowling and The Daily Vault. All rights reserved. Review or any portion may not be reproduced without written permission. Cover art is the intellectual property of Concord, and is used for informational purposes only.