Geez, the STAR WARS soundtrack! Has this EVER sounded good on LP or CD?

Discussion in 'Music Corner' started by Steve Hoffman, May 20, 2008.

  1. Steve Hoffman

    Steve Hoffman Your host Your Host Thread Starter

    Watched STAR WARS (laserdisc) with my oldest son tonight (his first time). I remember rushing out to Tower after opening week in 1977 to buy the soundtrack album on Fox records. It sounded lean and nasty. When the double CD version came out (was it 1985?) I didn't think it was possible but it sounded even leaner and nastier. Urch, it really bit.

    A little secret: Back in 1982, the original 16 track session masters of the STAR WARS scoring sessions with the London Phil and John Williams from Anvil, UK were somehow in LA, why, don't know. Kevin Gray got about 3 hours to mess with them and did a personal rough mix, long turned to glue, sorry to say. When I heard it, I flipped. Wide dynamic range, amazing tonality, punchy and awesome, just like I heard it on the big screen at the Chinese in 70mm mag back in 1977. Why can't the official soundtrack sound that way? WHY???

    Any version of this great music out there that sounds any good?
     
    Rupe33, WhatDoIKnow, COBill and 12 others like this.
  2. Jamie Tate

    Jamie Tate New Member

    Location:
    Nashville
    The LP and original CDs were pretty bad. They have a lot of midrange EQ added to them as well as lots of reverb. The best place to hear this soundtrack is the 4 CD box set (now out of print) that came out before the special edition nonsense started.

    The more recent "DSD" remastered CDs(!) are fine but the mastering is a bit bright.
     
    WhatDoIKnow likes this.
  3. Jamie Tate

    Jamie Tate New Member

    Location:
    Nashville
    A good source for way too much information on the Star Wars soundtracks was put together by our own Chris Malone. He does a great job decoding which versions are where and from what sources they were, well, sourced from. :)

    HERE'S the link.
     
    SinnerSaint likes this.
  4. I've always been disappointed by the sound quality of the various Star Wars releases. I believe there was rumor at some point that it would see a SACD release but that got shuttled when SACD died as a viable format in the U.S.
     
  5. fmuakkassa

    fmuakkassa Dr. M

    Location:
    Ohio
    I have a double LP (polygram records RSO 2T-541) of the original soundtrack that does not sound so great compared to an MFSL one (MFSL 1-008) by Zubin Mehta and the LA Philharmonic. The latter sounds great (clean, dynamic, excellent bass extension) which I play for my kids. It has the first five movements.
     
  6. Tim H.

    Tim H. Forum Resident

    Location:
    Cottonwood AZ
    I have that box set. If you'd like to borrow it Steve I'd be happy to send it to you.
     
  7. JoelDF

    JoelDF Senior Member

    Location:
    Prairieville, LA
    The whole original trilogy needs to be properly redone - somehow.

    I have that boxed set too, and do prefer it for "Star Wars" over the 2-disc original CD issue and the 2-disc Special Edition release (down-rezed from the DSD). I never had the original LP, only 3 copies in a row of the cassette tape - each of which I wore out, one after another, on an old portable cassette player that I used to play constantly over the course of a couple of years.
     
  8. wayward

    wayward Forum Resident

    Location:
    Mtl, QC, Can
    Check out the Japanese CDs Polydor P58W 20014/15 or Polydor POCP 2009/10 (they both have the same mastering as far as I can tell) - less harsh sounding more listenable than the Red Polydor and regular W. Germany pressings.

    My only niggle with the above Japan releases be an audible tick / click noise heard in the tail end of the Main Title music on Disc 1.
     
  9. apileocole

    apileocole Lush Life Gort

    Recently played the original version of the film on the DVD. Sourced from the Laserdisc master. Only... shriller. Someone making it "better and brighter"? Crappy electronics? Both? Who knows. Oh I was playing it on my not-top-line Grado 'phones. You can guess how that felt on the ears.

    Sound on the DVD of Around the World is superior to the LDs etc except... less life somehow. Even the formerly lush stereo of Mary Bloomin' Poppins was canned, dead and shrill on the DVD the little girl across the way played. That saddened my inner kid somehow. 'cause I saw it as a little guy with a lousy picture but lively stereo sound... in a way it helped spark that inner audio nut in me even then, y'know? The better they got the picture the more of the sound died.
     
  10. Maidenpriest

    Maidenpriest Setting the controls for the heart of the sun :)

    Location:
    Europe
    I have the original 4 Cd trilogy boxset, and IMO that is the best it gets!!
     
  11. ADAMIC

    ADAMIC Member

    No!
    Well I have John Williams Raiders Of The Lost Arc DCC and that sounds very pleasant. I'm surprised you haven't been approached. Must be a Lucus thing. I know they had to have sold a ton of the LP's because I had them (was still a kid). That was my introduction to classical music and it made my dad very happy to sit and listen to music, together. I bought the cd for one of the latest releases and wasn't very pleased with its sound either. I'm hoping you or someone else gets the master tapes so we can all hear what keven had. I listen to raiders quite a bit.
    Did Kevin say weather there was any unreleased material on the tapes that didn't make the LP's?
     
  12. darkmatter

    darkmatter Gort Astronomer Staff

    Steve,

    Can you remember where the CD set you heard was mastered / pressed, was it the West German PolyGram set?

    Thanks

    Simon :)
     
  13. EddieVanHalen

    EddieVanHalen Forum Resident

    I thought we would see a properly re-release last year for the 30th anniversary of the first film, but all we got was an 8 CDs box wit the same DSD mastered editions repacked, which is nasty. I don't like how the DSD remastered versions sound, too bright for my taste. I even personally doubt they were remastered at all, the mastering is credited to the same person who did the 97 Special Editions, the linear notes have the same info, no details about were they were remixed (if they were) and if were done digitally. In case they were mixed digitally back in 96/97, how can those PCM masters benefit of a DSD mastering?
    Too many questions and no answers regarding the 2004 DSD releases.
    These soundtracks were recorded at good recording studios back in the day by top-class recording engineers, there's no reason for them to sound that bad.
     
  14. PaulKTF

    PaulKTF Senior Member

    Location:
    USA
    The '97 remasters sound fine to me. Don't much care for the 1993 Anthology set, save for the tracks on it that wern't ported over to the '97 special editions. Havn't heard the 2004 versions yet.
     
  15. Maidenpriest

    Maidenpriest Setting the controls for the heart of the sun :)

    Location:
    Europe
    Listen to Star Wars theme on track 2 of 'A New Hope' cd on the 1997 remasters, then listen to the same track on Disc 1 track 2 of the original 1993 trilogy boxset and tell me you are not being serious, the sonics of the 1997 remasters seems to 'squash' all the instruments together and sounds lifeless IMO, lacking that magic 'sparkle':righton: :wave:
     
  16. Lownotes

    Lownotes Senior Member

    Location:
    Denver, CO
    No wonder so many of these sold:
     

    Attached Files:

    • sw.jpg
      sw.jpg
      File size:
      84.9 KB
      Views:
      135
    clgoss77 likes this.
  17. Maidenpriest

    Maidenpriest Setting the controls for the heart of the sun :)

    Location:
    Europe
    Correct me if I am wrong but that Cd is a re-recording so it is more like a whole performance in a concert situation ie musical cues are different, ' A best of Star Wars' and it is not the original orchestra??
     
  18. PaulKTF

    PaulKTF Senior Member

    Location:
    USA
  19. CaptainFantastic

    CaptainFantastic New Member

    Location:
    MilkyWay blvd
    [​IMG]



    I have the above CD offered from Telarc. I don't think my is system quite up to par for reproducing classical (I figure thats where more sums of money are spent for this) yet, but this one seems OK.

    The CD is easy to find and in print.

    In other news I have Star Wars disco on vinyl, can't wait to get a turntable! :D
     
  20. Dillydipper

    Dillydipper Space-Age luddite

    Location:
    Central PA
    That title is also on SACD.
     
  21. ymenard

    ymenard Forum Resident

    Location:
    Montreal, Quebec
    The RCA/Polydor special editions are the only way to go for "complete" (ok almost) versions of the original trilogy by John Williams. There's perhaps only 5% left missing of the entire trilogy after that. There's about 10 minutes of stuff on the 4CD Anthology set that isn't present on the special editions, but they are mostly alternative versions.

    As for the sound quality, A New Hope is really good on the RCA/Polydor. The mix of the Empire Strikes Back is weird, it's all over the place with different mixes all throughout the score. Return of the Jedi is of better quality on the 4CD Anthology, but there is so much good material missing!

    The prequel scores, on the other hand, are such a disgrace to John Williams...
     
  22. Maidenpriest

    Maidenpriest Setting the controls for the heart of the sun :)

    Location:
    Europe
    For track selection I go for the 1997 RCA/Victors

    For Best Sound quality I go for the 20th Century Fox 1993 4 Cd Trilogy Boxset!

    Incedently I find with the two Cd 1997 RCA/Victors that they are too comprehesive, so too much unimportant Star Wars music and their for the 1993 Trilogy Boxset is just right with all the important tunes!!
     
  23. ymenard

    ymenard Forum Resident

    Location:
    Montreal, Quebec
    There is no unimportant Star Wars "music" in the original trilogy. It's all there, unique and awesome. There is no dull moment, no filler, nothing.

    In fact the underscoring (especially A New Hope and The Empire Strikes Back) is of the finest in the entire movie music history!
     
  24. pool_of_tears

    pool_of_tears Searching For Simplicity

    Location:
    Midwest
    +1 :righton:

    Steve,

    This boxset is the way to go.

    4 cd's. And disc 4 has stuff left off of the three other soundtracks. Best of all, we get Lapti Nek from "Jedi" that was taken out of the special edition films and their corresponding soundtracks.
     
  25. PaulKTF

    PaulKTF Senior Member

    Location:
    USA
    I'm glad someone else got to say this (and say it much better than I could) before I got the chance.
     
    Gary_Stewart likes this.

Share This Page

molar-endocrine