Hello! I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving! I certainly did! I am still stuffed from all the food I ate last night. Interestingly enough, a few friends and relatives were discussing with me the list I made of my favorite soundtracks and I decided to expand it to 25 choices. Here is the remaining list, once again, not necessarily in this order: 11-Shaft: Isaac Hayes- that eight note hi-hat pattern, then that unmistakeable wah-wah guitar that starts the Shaft theme captures the attention right away. The whole soundtrack is stunning from start to finish. "Soulsville" can still be applied to today's urbansocietal problems. 12- Lord of the Rings: Fellowship of the Ring: Howard Shore. Spectacular! The Fellowship theme soars; the descending 8-note Isengard/ Ring motif is chilling, indeed! 13- Lord Of The Rings: The Two Towers: Howard Shore. Brilliant opening music that cradles the mountain slopes; the Celtic fiddle for the Golden Hall music is captivating. 14- The Lord Of The Rings: Return Of The King: Howard Shore. Perhaps my favorite score of the three. Astoundingly beautiful new motifs including the ones for the Amon Din beacon sequence, Shelob's Lair (frightening), and the mournful parting of Frodo and Sam at the shores that lead to the Undying Lands. Excellent! 15- The Last Unicorn: Jimmy Webb. One of my favorite songwriters wrote the score for an animated feature that isn't really talked about much, but the music deserves another listen to, for sure! Mr. Webb never ceases to amaze me. 16-The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly: Ennio Morricone: perhaps some of the greatest music ever for a western. It should be noted that maestro Morricone wanted to go for unconventiality as far as the orchestration, from hyena howls to a rather strangely beautiful tune"The Story of a Soldier" that acompanies a rather brutal treatment of Eli Wallach's memorable charachter, Tuco. "The Ecstasy of Gold" is a triumph as Tuco is feverishly searching for the grave of his promised fortunes.Its piano ostinato drives the music and underlines one of the greatest climaxes in film history. 17- Beowulf: Alan Silvestri. I listyen to this score over and over again. Glen Ballard and the composer wrote some great songs sung by Wealthow (Robin Wright Penn). 18-Superfly: Curtis Mayfield. Excellent urban soundtrack with "Pusher Man" as a highlight. Mr. Mayfield, one of America's great musical treasures, is sorrowfully no longer with us, but his legacy continues. 19-Goldfinger: John Barry. I am also a Bond fan and this score by Mr. Barry, in my opinion, elevated the franchise to new heights. Shirley Bassey's powerful vocals in the title song are unsurpassable. 20-On Her Majesty's Secret Service: John Barry. Another Bond treasure that is underrated as far as a film and score, I might add. It also contains a performance of the iconic Louis Armstrong ("We Have All The Time In The World"). 21- Journey Through the Secret Life Of Plants: Stevie Wonder. This is a film I never saw but Mr. Wonder's score is utterly brilliant, from "Earth's Creation" to "Finale". He has included Japanese chants, nature sounds, and the latest in technology. At the time of the album's release, digital recordings were very new. "Send One Your Love" was the hit. 22-The Dark Knight: Hans Zimmer. I LOVE that one-note Joker motif and as I mentioned in a past blog, Batman's theme only has two notes repeated over and over, D, and F. Talk about minimalism!:) 23-BraveHeart: James Horner. Such a massively impressive score with beautiful orchestration. 24-Star Trek 2: Wrath Of Khan: James Horner. Excellent treatment of horns and strings, especially. 25-Alexander Nevsky: Sergei Prokofiev. Yes, the Russian maestro and composer did write films scores for noted direstor, Sergei Eisenstein. I study the manuscript once every year. I always discover new things. (How could I forget "Psycho" by Bernard Hermann; ok, I guess that makes 26! lol) Well, there it is: this list is based solely upon my favorites and by no means, purposely demeans other great composers or scores. These are just a humble musician's opinion and is expressed all in good fun:). Hope you enjoyed reading! BKT