Best Soundtrack Evah
 

What's your poison?

What is, IYHO, the best movie soundtrack ever recorded?

Don't be shy. Let 'em fly.

Xanadu! ;)

Pulp Fiction. Not original songs but goodies.

Flash by Queen for Flash Gordon. Is that the name of the song?

Oh and st for Boogie Nights.

John Williams is the undisputed champ, but not many people just listen to his music.

In high school, it was The Big Chill.

I like Mark Knopfler's Local Hero a lot.

Saturday Night Fever was huge.

John Williams has written everything!

Except for what Randy Newman and Dolly Parton wrote.

Oooh...Nine to Five!

Dated now, but Flashdance and Footloose both sold well.

Danny Elfman seems to be the new John Williams

I'm a big fan of tv series soundtracks. I particularly like those series that use leitmotifs as a part of the storytelling (for anybody not aware of leitmotif, basically it's the use of particular 'themes' for individual characters or plotlines, that then come together and merge as the characters and plots merge).

My favourites are:

Battlestar Galactica, by the composer Bear McCreary. These are some of my favourite ever orchestral pieces, and the way the diffeent themes intertwine is just wonderful

Doctor Who, by Murray Gold. Again, what I love is the way the individual themes intertwine. So, for instance, the Doctor has his own theme(different for each new doc and series) and there's a theme for 'Gallifrey' that shares certain elements of the Doctor's theme. In the episode The Doctor's Daughter, the daughter's theme is a separate theme but incorporates elements of both the Doctor's theme and Gallifrey (nice touch I think).

Am currently very into the series soundtrack for Camelot. Beautiful combination of orchestral, drum beats and plainsong.

Also love the Being Human soundtrack. Some lovely pieces on that, especially 'Ancestors' which plays over the meeting of two of the main characters.

So... examples.

Some very different examples of the BSG music.

First one is a real tubthumper, like a military tattoo in places, but with the sense of increased momentum almost like a train gathering speed. It starts slow, but you can feel the gathering pace until you end up with an amazing blend of drums and wailing pipes.



Second one is a gentle tune. Has a real sense of pathos.



Third is another that gathers to a crescendo



And then just to show how varied the soundtrack is, here's a little piano piece, a reworking of one of Mozart's 'Sonatas'. This played across a scene in which one of the characters found himself in a strange nightmare of his own making.



And a lovely vocal piece:




Doctor Who:

Gallifrey/Our Childhood Home


The Doctor's theme (No.10) alsoknown as The Lonely Angel, a much darker theme than the previous year. This is the Doctor having lost everything.



The Doctor's Daughter. A much lighter affair, with a comedic tone, but if you listen closely, you can hear elements of both the Doctor's theme and Gallifrey



Being Human Soundtrack:

The opening theme. Just a really lovely acoustic guitar piece.

A Wonderful Thing.



Ancestors. I love the violin in this (or it might be a cello?)




Camelot

The wedding song 'Be my Light'. This woman's voice sends a shiver down my spine.



The drowning of Excalibur. Love the drumbeats in this and the use of guitar and pipes. Don't know if there's also a mandolin in there?



The court of Pendragon, i love the use of fanfare.



Morgan's Court

Brilliantly medieval sounding :p




Funeral song


Justice Compared. Quite a stately piece this I think

Jesus Christ Superstar
Camelot
Hair
Rocky Horror Picture Show
Fantasia

For Haunting Mood Music
Blade Runner
Natural Born Killers
The Good Bad and The Ugly

And More Recently
Once
Oh Brother Where Art Thou

Oh, and to answer the original question :p

Anything by John Williams
Also, pretty much anything by Enrico Morricone (The Good the Bad and The Ugly, Fistful of Dollars etc)

And the soundtrack to Star Wars. The music for Darth Vader's entrance in particular!

Har! You got in with TGtBatU before me:p

That was the music we played at dad's funeral. As we entered the chapel:

Easy Rider

1. The Pusher - Steppenwolf
2. Born To Be Wild - Steppenwolf
3. The Weight - Smith
4. Wasn't Born To Follow - The Byrds
5. If You Want To Be A Bird (Bird Song) - Holy Modal Rounders
6. Don't Bogart Me (Aka Don't Bogart That Joint) - The Fraternity Of Man
7. If 6 Was 9 - Jimi Hendrix
8. Kyrie Ellison Mardi Gras - The Electric Prunes
9. It's Alright Ma (I'm Only Bleeding) - Roger McGuinn
10. Ballad Of Easy Rider - Roger McGuinn

"Dazed and Confused" soundtrack rocks.

Jonny Greenwood for "There Will Be Blood". So perfect.