Stagecoach

Jerry Goldsmith

 
" Pleasant relaxing ride through Goldsmith land "

Written by Thomas Glorieux - Review of the limited release

Stagecoach of 1966 is a remake of the 1939 John Ford westerner (starring John Wayne), proving that remakes are of all ages, for all ages. This time, the music was of the hand of Western connaisseur Jerry Goldsmith. After all, Goldsmith already proved his worth with Lonely are the Brave and Rio Conchos, while Hour of the Gun, Bandolero, 100 Rifles, The Ballad of Cable Hogue, Rio Lobo and Wild Rovers followed (to name but a few). Stagecoach is however a very tender little affair, fashioned in the great Goldsmith tradition that subtlety doesn't mean specifically easiness on Goldsmith's behalf. The class lies in the gentleness of the score, the details of Goldsmith's composition and not specifically the action or the beauty. The "Main Title" remains a bright opener though, housing the Bandolero use of the mouth harp. This returns in "The First Born", "The Aftermath" and the obligatory final cue "Get Out of Town. A couple moments of some danger and excitement are of course necessary in westerns and the brief moments of Goldsmith panache work miracles in "Escape Route". The various minutes of extra bonus material range from saloon melodies to raw takes, nothing that the non Goldsmith fan will miss. For The Loner, the same 3 tracks of Film Score Monthly's release are added to the release as well. For instance we have "An Echo of Bugles" that opens with the bouncy main theme, a variation on his insanely catchy Barnaby Jones theme, opening and closing the cue in stout fashion. Stagecoach has seen many releases, but this remastered edition gets the job done nicely. The addition of 8 minutes of bonus material from Stagecoach will please the fans, while The Loner cues are a nice addition (but were equally available on the Film Score Monthly release of 1998). In general, food for Goldsmith enthusiasts, but for mainstream fans it remains a rather sincere effort by Goldsmith standards. The quality is high in the details (as usual with Goldsmith), but rather restrained and offers to be blunt nothing remotely earth shattering. Just a nice breezy listening experience that will work pleasantly on the background.

Easy nice affair.
Sound quality is rather good.
The catchy theme of The Loner takes me back to the Barnaby Jones theme, or Under Fire for that matter.
Nice yes, but nothing remotely amazing. So fans will perhaps be disappointed if they expect too much.

Track Listing

1. Main Title (2.31)
2. The Stage is Coming (0.15)
3. The Reward (1.46)
4. The First Born (1.08)
5. Family History (4/35)
6. The Aftermath (3.09)
7. A New Passenger (1.34)
8. All is Forgiven (2.39)
9. Escape Route (1.55)
10. No More Indians (1.08)
11. Get Out of Town (2.41)
12. Stagecoach to Cheyenne: Wayne Newton * (1.33)

Bonus Tracks
13. The Texas Cowboy (1.18)
14. Cindy (1.51)
15. Buffalo Gals (1.21)
16. Main Title (alternate) (2.51)
17. The Stage is Coming (raw takes) (1.03)
The Loner
18. An Echo of Bugles (8.49)
19. One of the Wounded (10.21)
20. Main Title (with narration) (0.53)

* Words and Music by Lee J. Pockriss, Paul Vance

Total Length: 53.21
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(total of 2 votes - average 4/5)

Released by

La-La Land Records LLLCD 1215 (limited release 2012)

Orchestrations by

Arthur Morton & David Tamkin