Wyatt Earp

Review by Thomas Glorieux:

Lawrence Kasdan has always held a strong relationship with composer James Newton Howard, because Newton Howard has worked on already now 5 films with Kasdan, and Wyatt Earp stands as nr. 2 in line. For a composer this is a golden opportunity because you can unleash the forgotten adventure sound of the Western on an epic classic. Why Bruce Broughton wasn't hand picked after scoring already Silverado so wonderfully for Kasdan is beyond me, but James surely wasn't a bad pick either. On the contrary, some people favor Silverado, I favor Wyatt Earp so much more, simply because I like the composer's voice and above all adventure themes like this one are a must. For years I neglected it because I listened to it only once, how stupid was I! Because Wyatt Earp is like Waterworld a simply terrific score full of blazing orchestral momentum and strong thematic moments, the simple difference with Waterworld is that it lasts for the entire running length, with Wyatt Earp it has the wonderful bliss all in the first part, while the second is no longer so wonderful but more occasionally that staggering. But don't let this fool you because its Wyatt Earp's whole sound which makes it a must for the fans of Newton Howard. It starts with the main theme of the movie, a wonderful noble in effect Western theme for the era, 'Main Title', subdued on horns and you can't help but hear various parts of Treasure Planet and Waterworld near the end in it, aka the composer's voice. Luckily The Postman is in there too since I like to compare it the most with that other wonderful score, and 'Home from the War' is like that, emotional growing material. 'Going to Town' brings 2 themes together, first some brief Texan scoring, then main theme and secondary theme in wonderful orchestral unison and it makes for another smooth tone.

There is some action on effect too, but 'The Wagon Chase' is more the adventure piece without any dark lit on it, with the main theme faster in more heroic orchestral outings. Not like 'O.K. Corral' which is more based around darker moments and just sparingly string emotion or heroic main theme statements, but then more seriously used in tone. After some Texan licks, some Irish moves are for 'Railroad' but the effect is once again perfect for the scene, its a wonderful theme and you could just use it over a floating camera over Scottish lakes like that. However, what's most staggering is when Howard simply shows his orchestral oomph in emotional grandeur, which means this score shows The Postman's good points, and 'Nicholas Springs Wyatt' is just brilliant. Just like the wonderful moments in 'The Wedding' and 'Stilwell Makes Bail' which erupts in some darker adventure scoring ala Waterworld but still that Western touch is not far off. More Postman drums and styles in 'It all Ends Now' but after track 11 the lack of it all doesn't weaken the score, but not anymore the constant swelling grandeur is noticed. The sad strings are for 'Urilla Dies' while the secondary theme and nice soft tones are for 'Tell me About Missouri', with a wonderful solo violin too. 'Kill 'em All' is somewhat boring on moments but the main theme surely makes up for that while 'Dodge City' is back to Western scoring for good, with again Treasure Planet moments and main theme statements. 'It Happened that Way' is the final time that the main theme states its presence. Perhaps sadly Wyatt Earp couldn't continue to show that grandeur of the first 11 tracks because then the score would stand alongside Waterworld as ultimate pleaser, but the second part surely makes for diversity and for more darker moments with orchestral grows in between. But above all this makes Wyatt Earp a darn fine score I neglected to cheer for for many hours, and I hope many fans will not make the same mistake as I did, because its orchestral cheers are as fantastic as The Postman and Waterworld deliver constantly.

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Tracks

Single Disc

1. Main Title (4.40) Excellent Track

2. Home From The War (1.58)

3. Going To Town (2.00) Excellent Track

4. The Wagon Chase (2.42) Excellent Track

5. Mattie Wants Children (1.55)

6. Railroad (1.50) Excellent Track

7. Nicholas Springs Wyatt (1.31) Excellent Track

8. Is That Your Hat? (2.06)

9. The Wedding (3.16) Excellent Track

10. Stilwell Makes Bail (2.37) Excellent Track

11. It All Ends Now (1.54)

12. Urilla Dies (4.34)

13. Tell Me About Missouri (2.56)

14. The Night Before (3.11)

15. O.K. Corral (7.01)

16. Down By The River (2.57)

17. Kill 'Em All (5.02)

18. Dodge City (1.01)

19. Leaving Dodge (1.23)

20. Indian Charlie (1.33)

21. We Stayed Too Long (1.50)

22. Winter To Spring (1.17)

23. It Happened That Way (1.10)

Total Length: 61.19

The use of artwork or photos is posted for non profitable reasons

=== Link to Composer Site: James Newton Howard ===