Filmtracks, October 3, 2000

The Adventures of Conan: A Sword and Sorcery Spectacular: (Basil Poledouris) In the early 1980s, Americans were consumed by the need for adventures from the mythical age of sword and sorcery. With films such as Dragonslayer, Excalibur, and Beastmaster came audiences' desire to see even more of such fantasy epics. The most successful film of the genre is, of course, Conan the Barbarian, and not only did the film inspire a full-length motion picture sequel (the substandard Conan the Destroyer), but it also led to the creation of a live-action Conan stage show located at Universal Studios in 1983. The show, formally titled The Adventures of Conan: A Sword and Sorcery Spectacular, ran for ten successful years before being replaced by newer, more technically sophisticated attractions such as Jurassic Park: The Ride. The Conan show was scored in between the two feature films starring Schwarzenegger, and it was therefore logical to ask Conan master Basil Poledouris to score the show as well.

The show isn't all that long, lasting for about 20 minutes, but its intense Hyborean Age action required almost constant underscore of sufficient volume to give the audience a consistent rush of Conan fever. Poledouris tackled the assignment with the same seriousness as for the original film, employing orchestrator Greig McRitchie and the large London Studio Symphony Orchestra and Voices to duplicate the pounding depth of the music from Conan the Barbarian. The resulting quarter of an hour of music by Poledouris remained a difficult item to obtain on CD for quite a while. The suite which comprises the second track on this album had appeared on a few Poledouris compilation bootlegs, some of which selling for hundreds of dollars at online auction houses. This new, limited album from Super Tracks, a soundtrack specialty label, is devoted to only the Conan show and includes two tracks, the music alone and with the original dialogue from the live action on stage.

The music itself is a viable extension of Conan the Barbarian. While neither the title nor love themes from the motion picture score are directly translated into the show, bits and pieces do appear in mutations throughout. For instance, a bar of the title theme from Conan the Barbarian is inserted at (6:50) and the finale in the second track, as the pulsating rhythm of Crom occurs at (8:30) in the same track. Avid fans of Poledouris and the Conan series will recognize many of the composer's woodwind and brass styles continuing from the film as well. A strong timpani and a few new thematic twists keep the live-action score distinct enough to enjoy apart from Conan the Barbarian (unlike the Back to the Future: The Ride score, for which Silvestri just took his original film themes and pieced them together into a suite for the ride). Poledouris' score is heavy with choir and brass in a dramatic effort, with only the shrill scoring for the slaying of the dragon at the end providing a weakness in its musical content.

Taken from analogue originals for digital mastering onto this CD, there is a noticable tinniness to the sound of the music in general, but that's to be expected from a 1983 recording. The first track features select portions of the dialogue and music together, while the second track includes only the expanded score of 16+ minutes by itself. The digital transfer has caused a few notes of interest for those of you running your audio out on Dolby surround systems. On a regular stereo, the CD sounds much more uniform, but audio fanatics such as myself will notice that the music is of slightly poorer quality on the track with the dialogue (it has a small treble hiss). Making this artifact more noticable is the booming, digitally superior quality of the dialogue. On the whole, however, the album is a grand addition to the collection of a devoted film music fan... It is like traveling back in time to the early 80s and living in the great age of Conan mania all over again, with a fresh Poledouris score! Personally, I love the dialogue version, with a rumbling and majestic narrator who will be certain to awaken your neighbors at any hour of the day or night. The man portraying Conan needs to work on his Austrian accent, though...

Music from the Movies, October 4, 2000

Given the big hit Conan the Barbarian was in 1982, it was sort of natural to have Basil Poledouris onboard for the live-action stage show Universal decided to produce one year later. Perhaps it's more surprising that this music shows up as a commercial CD release 17 years later, a limited edition (3 000 copies) from Super Tracks. Now, of course this is a real gem for Poledouris fans and it's really interesting to hear the Conan stylistics in what reminds me more of an orchestral rhapsody or perhaps a ballet score rather than a film score. Well, the cinematic style is there of course, but in terms of form and structure the 'Sword and Sorcery Spectacular' suite has a lot of appeal as an orchestral work on its own.

This album is only 24 minutes, containing two cues: the first, 'The Adventures of Conan', is the story told with music in the background - something for the kids, probably, but not for me. Thankfully, we get to hear the music in extended form in the 16-minute suite 'Sword and Sorcery Spectacular'. This makes no use of the original Conan theme, but the rhythmic figures of the 'Main Title' from Conan the Barbarian is quoted in a Stravinsky-esque action sequence of the suite. There is also some writing for solo oboe which is reminiscent of the love theme in the film. Epic and swashbuckling, written for orchestra and choir, this work will satisfy any fan of the Conan film scores and maybe even Miklós Rózsa.

Scoreland, October 8, 2000

This is a very odd CD, put out by you-know-who, which is the score Poledouris composed to a stage show that was played in Universal Studios CA back in the early 80s. Now, I'll be the first to admit, the idea of getting MORE Conan music from back with Poledouris was still doing that sort of thing is enough to send most score fanboys into spontaneous ecstatic emmission. The problem is that the CD is much like the proverbial "first time" - short, unsatisfying, and when it's over, you realize your life just hasn't changed that much.

The entire stage show was only about 20 minutes, 17 of which is scored. To pad out the CD, the first track is an expurgated version of the show WITH DIALOGUE, chopped down to eight intolerable minutes. Not only is the music almost entirely obscured by the voices, but the acting is straight out of bad Saturday Morning cartoons. If they were emoting any more, their skins would drop off. Oh wait, that's moulting. Nevermind. At any rate, I've seen Mexican Soap Operas with character acting that seems subtle by comparison. (I live in Texas, ya know. Half the stations on the air are broadcasts picked up from towers in Mexico that could probably broadcast to China)

In fact, I was utterly astounded when I first popped the CD in. The track just kept going on and on, I couldn't hear the music, and I was getting a headache from the booming voices. "Surely this can't be IT!" I shouted to myself. Luckily, it wasn't.

Track 2 is the entire score, sans comic book scripting. And the music is EXTREMELY good. This is Poledouris doing what he does best, with a full orchestra and choir merrily bounding along to epic heights. (although the girls singing out "Cooo-NAAAN!" is a bit cheesy) All of the music is directly descended from his work on the movies, although it doesn't actually contain any motifs from the two films that I could recognize. (the slower theme sounds directly related to the "wifeing" theme from Barbarian, though) I suppose an all new bombastic performance of Thulsa Doom's theme would be a bit too much to hope for.

Otherwise, it's 20 minutes of Cimmerianey goodness. (like that cereal that looks like toast) There are several motifs played with throughout, the performance is excellent, and IT'S FUCKING CONAN MUSIC!!!!!!!! It's like he took all the best bits of Conan the Barbarian and rolled them into 20 minutes. Anyone who likes the original score (which is to say, 99.9% of the score population) will eat this up.

This is a limited edition of only 3,000 copies, so if you want one, you'd better snatch it up really soon. I just have a hard time truly recommending this because, as truly great as the music is, the fact is you're paying about a dollar for every minute of usable music. (I'm not counting the horrible first track) Only serious Conan fanatics (or those who have fond childhood memories of the stage show) need apply, but then, that's probably why it's a limited edition.

Soundtrack Express, October 16, 2000

After the success of the first two Conan films it was perhaps inevitable that there would be some kind of theme park spin off attraction with plenty of scope for sword fights and dramatic staging. Film composers are frequently asked to write music for theme park rides, perhaps Bruce Broughton having contributed the most scores for rides and shows, but in this case they decided to return to the composer who penned the music for the film, Basil Poledouris.

The first track is a condensed version of the music with narration and voice overs which are horrendously cheesy. Poledouris' music is gutsy and dramatic, but the melodramatic vocals do little but act as an embaressing way to drown out some good music. It also as quite a lot of hiss and is easily missable. Fortunately the second, lengthier track is devoid of dialogue and contains the full selection of music from the "Spectacular." I'm uncertain as to whether Poledouris deliberately avoided directly quoting the original Conan themes, but for one reason or another, the melodic material from the films is only alluded to and not fully quoted.

While it's nice to have things that start with a bang, Poledouris starts with a low key horn fanfare, but builds the music up to a section midway through that recalls the Anvil of Crom. Again, aside from similar rhythmic percussion and accompaniment, Poledouris doesn't actually go so far as quoting the horn fanfare from that particular cue. In fact it tends to sound more like the oft-quoted title music to Goldsmith's Capricorn One.

I'm sure that die hard Poledouris and Conan fans will enjoy this album immensely, but to be fair anyone else who has the original Conan scores will probably find little else of interest here. The fact that Poledouris doesn't use the themes leaves the lingering impression of it sounding like a poor imitation of the original scores. However his consummate skill as a composer does allow for it to be enjoyable enough. Having said that, the short running time and the inclusion of the dreadful Adventures of Conan (the track with narration) means it's tough to recommend.

SoundtrackNet, October 10, 2000

Following on the heels of Conan The Barbarian's success in movie theaters, Universal Studios decided to take out their old House of Dracula stage show and replace it with the Sword and Sorcery Spectacular. The show followed the further adventures of everyone's favorite barbarian in his quest to find a unique stone, the Dragon's Eye, before the evil wizard does. To score the show, Universal wisely turned to the man who provided the thundering music to the movie, Basil Poledouris. For the show, Poledouris created close to 20 minutes of wall-to-wall music using his original score as a jumping off point.

The score begins with allusions to the familiar strains of "Anvil of Crom" and segues into the show's main theme, which is completely different than what is in the movie. What follows is something akin to the structure of a very short opera. It quickly builds momentum as it sets up the characters and the situation, followed by fast paced action music, grand choirs, and a rousing finale. While the score is heavy on the action cues, Poledouris isn't afraid to slow the pace down with quiet bits filled with dissonant strings. The chorus' ever-rising voices are used to evoke the power of evil and its fleeting triumph over good. Overall, the music has a no-holds-barred feeling of high adventure.

The first thing you notice when listening to this score is that it's low on the cheese factor, especially considering what others of its ilk sound like. Poledouris has created a companion piece to his film score without relying on simple rehashes of familiar themes. It's a well-crafted score that stands on its own. There are parts that sound distinctly Conan-esque and others that sound a bit like Williams' score to Raiders of the Lost Ark. That said, the music isn't as a grand as you might expect it to be. This is a Conan score by Poledouris and one expects it to be great, yet it somehow misses the power and beauty of the film's original score.

The sound quality on this promotional CD is quite good considering it's dated source (1983). The London Studio Symphony Orchestra gives the piece a nice full sound, but the choir sometimes falls short and never reaches the driving operatic heights of the film score. There are two tracks on the promotional CD released by SuperTracks. The first is an abridged version of the score with some of the show's dialogue, which is definitely cheesy. The second track is the heart of the disc: the complete score to the show without any dialogue. For Poledouris and Conan fans, it's definitely worth getting. The score can be purchased through Super Collector at http://www.supercollector.com/

Cinemusic, October 3, 2000

Basil Poledouris' CONAN THE BARBARIAN score is one of filmmusic's most popular and enduring scores. Despite it's shortcomings (performance and sound quality) it has remained as an icon of thematic scores with rich orchestrations and a memorable choral element. It's disappointing then that Poledouris' CONAN SWORD AND SORCERY seems so anonymous compared to the original. Perhaps this is because none of the themes from the original are carried over here - sure there are some motifs and similiar orchestration, but no thundering anvil, and the heavenly voices have been replaced by what sounds like a smaller unit of singers. This isn't to say that the 16 minutes of Poledouris' attraction music isn't fun - it just isn't as involving or as dynamic as BARBARIAN is. The album from Super Tracks is just shy of 25 minutes long with almost 9 minutes of narration and sound effects from the Universal Studios ride crowding the rest of the disc. Crazed CONAN fans should seek this disc out, otherwise you'll do just fine without it.

Film Music on the Web, November 1, 2000

First, an explanation of the very short playing time of this CD. This was music specially composed by Poledouris for the 20 minute presentation at the Universal Theme Park based on the highly popular Conan films. There are only two tracks. The first has the music subordinated to a smoky, muscular narration of a Conan adventure complete with sound effects that include roaring monsters. Thankfully it is the shorter of the two cues for with repetition it quickly palls (although I am sure the kids will want to play it to death).

The second track is devoted to Poledouris' specially composed music, performed by the London Studio Symphony Orchestra and Voices (presumably a contract ensemble). It begins with a reference to the Universal Fanfare and is full of heroic sweep, excitement and exotic imagery. There is a nice lilting waltz for the romantic interest and one can detect homage to both Rosza and Herrmann although this is undoubtedly Poledouris, written in the spirit of his original Conan scores. His somewhat Wagnerian style manifests itself most strongly in his heavier, darker material for the villains; those dark riders with their heavy armor and grotesque headgear. This music is wild and primitive indeed. As usual he employs a supporting chorus in parts of the score and there is a highly dramatic climactic effect employing vast swirls and rich glissandi.

All Poledouris fans will appreciate this album that is if they can wrestle it from the kids!

Soundtrack Review Central, December 24, 2000

Like most other self-respecting soundtrack fans, I love Basil Poledouris' score to the original Conan the Barbarian. I mean, what is there not to love about the terrific themes and stunning chorus work? So it was with anticipation that I popped in this newly released music from Poledouris' "score" to the live-action stage show of The Adventures of Conan that appeared at the Universal Studios Hollywood theme park in 1983. Everything I expected out of this music was generally met with the exception of one major letdown.

Before I get to the main problem I had with this entry into the musical Conan history, I'll give a rundown of what this is exactly. The CD consists of two tracks, the first being the the audio (dialogue and a few sound effects here and there) of the original show, with the second track being the isolated score. Interestingly, the isolated score portion runs more than twice as long as the first track. Perhaps Poledouris scored a lengthy selection to allow those associated with the show to cut the score around the action and pick just what they needed. The dialogue track is really cheesy with plenty of over-the-top acting, and I was a little annoyed at not being completely able to follow what was going on. Also, the isolated score track is nicely mastered, but the dialogue track does contain a noticeable analog hiss to it. That's not a big problem really, since at least the isolated music portion sounds great. And that's what we're really interested in, right?

The score itself bears all that would be expected of big orchestral fantasy music from Basil Poledouris. It has everything from nice pastoral cues to rousing action sequences backed with a full chorus. The chorus is used really well, but I prefer the work in the original as opposed to this. The music pretty much runs the gauntlet of what was found in the original Conan, and the running time of 16 minutes is enough to do justice to the different sections.

I have not yet reviewed Poledouris' sequel score, Conan the Destroyer, but from what I've heard, he doesn't really includes any of the themes from the original, but instead merely hints at them. Well, that leads in to the biggest problem I have with the music. It is really good, but I really wish he would utilize his some of his themes from the original score. One of the themes in here is reminiscent of a theme from the original, but that only served to annoy me because I wanted the music to swell into the theme that I've come to know and love. I don't know why Poledouris just wouldn't up and use his own previous themes again. Oh well, that's enough of my grousing.

Despite my complaints, this is really good music, and if you're a big fan of the Conan series of scores, you should be thankful to Super Collector for putting out this album.