La-La Land Records Present Moonraker: 45th Anniversary Remastered & Expanded 2CD Album

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Comments

  • MurdockMurdock The minus world
    Posts: 16,367
    They are amazing and worth every penny. This is everything I wanted out of a Moonraker expansion.
  • R1s1ngs0nR1s1ngs0n France
    edited December 2024 Posts: 2,178
    Absolutely amazing release. Nothing like drifting away to sleep while listening to it at night in bed.
    Also noticed Corinne is misspelled Corrine on the track list. While both spellings of the name exist, the actual spelling of the actress and character’s name is the former.
  • DarthDimiDarthDimi Behind you!Moderator
    Posts: 24,371
    I have to get used to the arrangement of Bond Theme notes during the Boat Chase (disc 1, track 11, about 2:30 and onwards). The Italian 'flavour' comes from an instrument that seemingly plays false notes. I know that's not the case, but it takes some getting used to. ;-)

    Other than that, this is an absolutely magnificent release; it ends a lifelong journey for me: looking for a great MR score.
  • SecretAgentMan⁰⁰⁷SecretAgentMan⁰⁰⁷ Lekki, Lagos, Nigeria
    Posts: 2,235
    What an awesome listen this version of Barry's Moonraker is! It just reaffirms Moonraker as the most celestial-sounding Bond score.
  • MurdockMurdock The minus world
    Posts: 16,367
    Having finally received both, I'm more than pleased with this excellent double release by La la land. The audio quality is top notch and they include all the unreleased cues I've wanted for so long. Moonraker especially being on of my holy grail soundtracks. Getting to hear all new music was such a delight. I do see why some cues were ultimately cut but it's still an incredible score that I'm proud to own. TMWTGG too. I'm very excited to see what 2025 brings because I've been hoping for an expansion of AVTAK and GE for a long time as well.
  • SecretAgentMan⁰⁰⁷SecretAgentMan⁰⁰⁷ Lekki, Lagos, Nigeria
    Posts: 2,235
    I think LLL doing Dr. No, TSWLM, AVTAK, LTK & GE...would make it complete. I wouldn't mind TLD, just to include the beautiful instrumental build-up of If There Was A Man, before Bond calls Kara with the Whistle keychain at the end of the film.
  • mattjoesmattjoes J.W. Pepper winner J.W. Pepper.
    edited January 24 Posts: 7,072
    In the film, I can't hear the mandolins at the beginning of the gondola chase, non any audio channel of the mix and not on the full mix. I was thinking I'd missed them in my reconstruction of the piece but now I'm thinking perhaps they were removed.
  • mtmmtm United Kingdom
    Posts: 16,850
    Are they so low down in the mix that they're drowned out? I haven't gone back to listen.

    What I like about that cue is that when the guitar riff of the theme ends, it's kind of carried on very quietly in the background by some other instruments, just sort of echoing it for a line. It's a nice little touch.
  • mattjoesmattjoes J.W. Pepper winner J.W. Pepper.
    Posts: 7,072
    mtm wrote: »
    Are they so low down in the mix that they're drowned out? I haven't gone back to listen.
    I expected so, especially since there is a lot of noise in the scene, but I still thought I'd hear some inkling of the mandolins-- the percussive sound of the strumming, or something, but there appears to be nothing. I can't hear the concertina (?) either. The new album has two mixes of the piece, one with the "Italian" instruments much louder and another with them much lower. I suppose it's possible they flat out removed them in the end.

    mtm wrote: »
    What I like about that cue is that when the guitar riff of the theme ends, it's kind of carried on very quietly in the background by some other instruments, just sort of echoing it for a line. It's a nice little touch.
    I noticed the clarinet doing that. In my reconstruction, I only included the very last note of that "echoing" phrase, because I couldn't hear the preceding notes. In fact, I remember even doubting about that last note.
  • mtmmtm United Kingdom
    edited January 24 Posts: 16,850
    Ah it's a clarinet is it? Lovely, good spot! Interesting that's the only time he did that with the theme as far as I'm aware.
    Even doing a sort of foreign-themed version is very unusual for him, he didn't do that a huge amount with the music. Obviously there's the Rio-themed version of Moonraker later in the film, and a bit of vaguely Indian-themed stuff in Octopussy (a touch of Russian), but not a huge amount elsewhere that I can think of. I guess Golden Gun goes a bit eastern.
  • MurdockMurdock The minus world
    Posts: 16,367
    I rewatched the movie recently with headphones on and the mandolins are there but are very quiet. You would only be able to hear them with headphones or maybe a nice sound system setup.
  • morcarvicmorcarvic france
    Posts: 85
    this" is it there"," is it not" business reminds me of the debate about the intro to "lets go get em" which however many times i watch that tmwtgg scene i cant detect it being there,so for me there's a good chance the mandolins were completely muted in the final mix just as i feel lets go get em the intro was edited out on the film version ,at least to all audible purposes.
  • mattjoesmattjoes J.W. Pepper winner J.W. Pepper.
    edited January 26 Posts: 7,072
    Here's some of the things that caught my ear of the new Moonraker album:

    The sly Bond theme of Look After Mr. Bond.

    The violas playing so high at 0:30 in Venini Glass.

    The unused part of Venice Boat Chase, which sounds comedic but not too comedic. And its use of triplets.

    Mardi Gras, a surprise highlight to me, one of my favorite tracks from the album and these films in general. How it keeps building with more instrumentation, strings, palms, more and more people singing and shouting... And the strange suspended string/woodwind notes in the middle part, which I imagine where meant to create suspense as Bond examines the warehouse. Great contrast there between festive atmosphere and intrigue.

    How the Flight in Space chords were part of the Moonraker theme at one point. They would've worked very nicely. A bit of Bondian drama to start things up.

    The ticking clock pizzicato of I Bid You Farewell.

    The uplifting lyricism of Jaws Lends a Hand, very Barry but not typically heard in that way in a Bond score.

    How certain decorative notes of Bond Arrives in Rio (played in groups of two by guitar/woodwind/pizzicato) were in the unused Moonraker versions (played on piano/pizzicato).

    The unused music makes the score feel more substantial and rounded.
  • mtmmtm United Kingdom
    Posts: 16,850
    I rather like the monk song: you can tell it's a Barry composition and would even be quite nice orchestrally.
    mattjoes wrote: »
    How the Flight in Space chords were part of the Moonraker theme at one point. They would've worked very nicely. A bit of Bondian drama to start things up.

    To be fair they've always been in the end titles funky version.
    mattjoes wrote: »

    The uplifting lyricism of Jaws Lends a Hand, very Barry but not typically heard in that way in a Bond score.

    That is mad, it sounds like something from his Beyondness of Things period. I can't figure out where it was going in the film!
  • mattjoesmattjoes J.W. Pepper winner J.W. Pepper.
    edited January 26 Posts: 7,072
    mtm wrote: »
    mattjoes wrote: »
    How the Flight in Space chords were part of the Moonraker theme at one point. They would've worked very nicely. A bit of Bondian drama to start things up.

    To be fair they've always been in the end titles funky version.
    Oh yeah, I'd forgotten about that. Those chords sound more dramatic in the alternates, played in the same key as in the film and without the funky stuff around.

    mtm wrote: »
    mattjoes wrote: »

    The uplifting lyricism of Jaws Lends a Hand, very Barry but not typically heard in that way in a Bond score.

    That is mad, it sounds like something from his Beyondness of Things period. I can't figure out where it was going in the film!
    I suppose it's when Jaws helps Bond leave the station. The first bit sounds like Jaws starting to bend the metal, and then I imagine the happier music signals that his effort has paid off.

    mtm wrote: »
    I rather like the monk song: you can tell it's a Barry composition and would even be quite nice orchestrally.
    Yeah, I hear it too.

    ---

    One thing I like in Venice Boat Chase is how after the pause in the Bond theme when the coffin falls off the boat, the theme comes back, but now with sustained strings, until the main melody starts. A subtle touch to break monotony and repetition, it sounds so obvious in hindsight, but I'm sure it wasn't necessarily so in the first place.
  • Posts: 6
    When I laid it over the film, "Jaws Lends a Hand" came off as pretty comedic to me, this light, hopeful tune playing as Jaws and Dolly's part of the space station flies off into the void. "They'll be alright", indeed.

    "Hang Glider Crash" is nice to have, that major to minor progression reminding me a lot of You Only Live Twice.

    And I really liked hearing the awkwardly-titled "It Could Have Its Compensations", slightly different from the old "Miss Goodhead Meets Bond". The chord change about a minute in, accompanying the shot of Holly in bed in the Hotel Danieli, is just exquisite.
  • mtmmtm United Kingdom
    Posts: 16,850
    I've always loved Hang Glider Crash, yeah.
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