In what will probably be the final release of the original Star Wars Trilogy scores, the legendary Williams music has been remastered and arranged in chronological order as in the movie. This expensive double CD set sure to become a collector's item. The first releases were in special booklet style cases with embossed discs that had images of the Death Star on them. Later releases were released in a regular CD case found with other double CD releases. It is attractive and contains new material not found in the Star Wars Anthology that was released in the winter of 1993. As with the other releases from the Trilogy Special Edition; much of the "previously unreleased" material is not easily dicernable unless you know the music by heart like I do.
There is no need to describe what pieces are better than others simply because the entire soundtrack
is a classic of our time and deserves equal praise. There are a few special treats for those who pay the
hefty price for this double set. The last track of the first CD, which contains an interesting alternate
version of the score to the Binary Sunset scene, is listed as being only two minutes long but if
you were lazy like me and let it play on after a few minutes of silence, you'll be suprised to find five
alternate versions of the opening titles which makes for some interesting listening. Finally, there is
a chart of all the recorded takes, cue names, and a detailed list of the order in which they were recorded
and mixed in with the film.
Overall, if this is indeed the final release of the fourth Star Wars installment, then I recommend to everyone (it does appear that this will be the last release of it anyway). Don't be scared away from the price tag, if you're a Star Wars fan you'll want this anyways; if you're a soundtrack collector, you'll want it simply because it is one of the best soundtracks to ever have been released; and if you're just starting your collection, this one is well worth the price and it will get you started off on the right foot.
Total time: Disc 1: 57:32; Disc 2: 48:13
DISC 1
1: 20th Century Fox Fanfare (Alfred Newman, 1954) (0:23)
2: Main Title/Rebel Blockade Runner (2:14)
3: Imperial Attack (6:43)
4: The Dune Sea of Tatooine/Jawa Sandcrawler (5:01)
5: The Moisture Farm** (2:25)
6: The Hologram/Binary Sunset (4:10)
7: Landspeeder Search/Attack of the Sand People** (3:20)
8: Tales of a Jedi Knight**/Learn About the Force* (4:29)
9: Burning Homestead (2:50)
10: Mos Eisley Spaceport (2:16)
11: Cantina Band (2:47)
12: Cantina Band #2 (3:56)
13: Binary Sunset (Alternate)* (2:19)
Special: Main Title Archive** (14:40)
DISC 2
1: Princess Leia's Theme (4:27)
2: The Millennium Falcon/Imperial Cruiser Pursuit** (3:51)
3: Destruction of Alderaan (1:32)
4: The Death Star/The Stormtroopers* (3:35)
5: Wookie Prisoner/Detention Block Ambush (4:01)
6: Shootout in the Cell Bay/Dianoga (3:48)
7: The Trash Compactor (3:07)
8: The Tractor Beam/Chasm Crossfire (5:18)
9: Ben Kenobi's Death/Tie Fighter Attack (3:51)
10: The Battle of Yavin (9:07)
11: The Throne Room/End Title (5:38)