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Heaven Help Us, the score Horner was asked to rewrite twice before appeasing the film's producers, has been released as a bootleg. It is an import, and costs around $28, from the usual soundtrack retailers. I don't imagine many copies of this disc were pressed, so I'd try to get a copy as soon as possible, if you're a Horner completist, or perchance have actually been looking for this score to be released.

Of all of Horner's unreleased scores, this is probably one of the least suspected candidates for bootleg release. Recent releases of Testament, Honey, I Shrunk the Kids, In Country, Something Wicked This Way Comes, and Horner's earliest scores to Battle Beyond the Stars and Humanoids From the Deep were far more likely to receive bootlegs, since many people wished they could have these scores.

However, we don;t question the gods when they decide to release random mystery material. We are thankful for what we have, and we wait for their grace to offer more desirable bounty--for example--Journey of Natty Gann (and I mean a "real" bootleg release--not that rather muddy-sounding, nobody-knew-about-it, private release). One day, it will come.

In the meantime, we enjoy one of Horner's earliest Irish efforts. Review forthcoming (as soon as I receive the disc in the mail).

The much-anticipated concert set was cancelled. The official reason was because Bill Silva Presents would not be able to impliment the special effects and props in time for the concerts, scheduled for October 9th and 10th.

Reliable sources, however, indicate that the concerts were truly cancelled due to sluggish ticket sales.

The entire affair was handled rather poorly, as Shrine Regular, Sheri Vi, reported showing up to the Bowl, the scheduled venue, the night of the 9th, and witnessing hundreds of ticket holders being turned away--all of whom were completely unaware of the concert's cancelation. Very poor business, if you ask me.

We all wait, however, since we know that good things come to them who wait; we know that, as popular as Horner is these days, he will indeed have his day in the spotlight, and we presume that time isn't too far off.

Alas! News of the long-rumoured tour has arrived. The tour will be launched in L.A. on the weekend of October 9th and 10th. Presumably, tickets will go on sale the morning of Monday, August 24th. When more info on other tour locations and dates are avilable, I'll post it here. A group of Horner-fans who frequent this site and who reside in the So. Cal area is interested in getting together for this event. Check out the Discussion Board for the planning of this potential gathering.

Sony Classical finally releases the long-awaited follow-up album to the stunningly successful Titanic album. As anticipated, the disc will feature Horner's concert arrangement of themes from Titanic, cues from the film previously unreleased on the first album (including The Portrait piano solo, performed by James Horner) , Gaelic Storm's Irish folk/dance music, I Salonisti's haunting performance of "Nearer My God To Thee", and an additional Titanic cue entitled, "Epilogue: The Deep and Timeless Sea". Sony Classical has a very nicely designed site devoted to this release, which features some great video clips (in a variety of formats), including shots of Horner conducting and some very cool shots of Eric Rigler and Tony Hennigan playing their instruments.

Horner's second effort since Titanic is now available. An action packed adventure score with a stunning love theme, this disc should please any Horner fan. Disc also contains the most recent Horner-Jennings collaboration, "I Want to Spend My Lifetime Loving You", which already is receiving significant air-play.

As predicted, additional Horner compilation albums are appearing, and the most interesting is the bootleg, "James Horner Suites and Themes". Every track on the album is either previously unreleased or one/two track cuts from the "Horner Rarities"--that is, hard-to-find albums that only contained one or two Horner cuts. So, this disc, while being a compilation album, contains music that's nearly impossible to find anywhere else, so order a copy if you can. Review forthcoming.

A limited run of 500 copies of a very cool bootleg has been produced by "Natty Gann Records". It showcases Honey, I Shrunk the Kids, featuring 38 minutes from that score, as well as half an hour of score from In Country. All the music from In Country presented on this album was previously published as a so-called "suite" on the Testament bootleg relased in mid 1997. A 9:27 suite from Testament is also included on the album. The score to Honey, I Shrunk the Kids is a very rare treat, given Disney's legal problems with the score. Sound quality is very good, so I recommend trying to find a copy before the 500 copies disappear. Review forthcoming.

Though this score has seen a (VERY) private release, taken from the recent Laser Discs mono isolation of the music, someone (operating under the faux moniker of "Dark Records") has taken the time to release a long-overdue quality presentation of Horner's brooding score to Disney's adaptation of Ray Bradbury's eerie short novel, "Something Wicked This Way Comes". Review forthcoming. Good sound quality for a boot.

It was bound to happen. Many other film score composers have had compilation albums produced (some with multiple albums to celebrate their works). It's a shame that it took the earth-shattering success of Titanic and everything Titanic-related before our composer had his work spot-lighted in an album of its own. This album contains cut from secondary sources, rerecordings, etc., making it a less than desireable representation of Horner's music. Expect additional offerings to this one in the near future as record producers attempt to capitalise on Horner's current popularity. Review forthcoming.

The hugely anticipated score to Mimi Leder's space disaster drama has made its way to a music store near you. This is Horner's first effort since record-breaking Titanic, so the preasure's on. Read my review to see how well I think he delivered.

The two disc set from Super Collector is now available. As promised, every tiny moment of music from this 1983 SciFi/Fantasy film has been included, adding 12 minutes of extra music to the hard-to-find SCSE limited release of the score. Any of the Soundtrack Retailers should cary this title for a while.

Though only available for a very limited time, this release was available around May of 1998. As of the writing of this post (8/98), copies are very hard to come by--even I failed to snag a copy, due to my possession of home-made CDs burned from high-quality tapes. However, with the deluge of sudden Horner rleases, I thought I should at least mention that this was a great surprise offering for the short time it was available.

Jasmes Horner! ...Twice. Horner brought home two Academy awards--one for Best Song in a Motion Picture, and one for Best Dramatic Score. Congratulations, Dr. Horner, for your well-deserved recognition.

A variety of reliable sources indicate that the scoring sessions for Deep Impact have recently completed. There is no indication as to whether the score has been locked, or whether Horner is recording any additional synthesiser music, but the ahead-of-the-game schedule may mean yet another pre-film release of a Horner score. This is certainly time to be a Horner fan.

Due to delays in the artowrk for the release's artwork, the release date for this 2-CD expanded edition ofof the Horner classic, Krull, has been pushed back to mid-April

How many times have you thought to yourself--"What I wouldn't give to see Horner live..."? Well, you may be in a position to see exactly how much it's worth to you, because very early press releases and rumours indicate that Horner is interested in taking his act on the road.

There has been much speculation as to why Horner has never done concerts. Williams does it all the time (he was conductor for the Boston Pops orchestra for 18 years), and Goldsmith has on occasion graced an audience with his baton. Horner has made himself a modestly successful composer, why not take his music to the concert-going public, especially if this is where his original passions had been? Horner's initial disappointment with the futility of trying to make his first (ond only) concert work, Spectral Shimmers, originally brought him to film music, then why not take the first opportunity to return to the concert milieu.

Well, I have often said that beyond being a composer, Horner is a shrewd man who knows how to play his cards right. Never has there been a more ripe time for Horner to take his music to the masses then now when his name is making even more of an impact than Williams's.

So, I hope, as Im sure do all you, that these rumours are true and that the powers that be bring this amazing prospect to fruition. For those who live in Ca--maybe we'll dine together at the Hollywood Bowl before the concert event of a lifetime...

When more information becomes available, it will be posted here. Check with the Discussion Board, too, where my spies are continually checking in...

In spite of Horner thre Grammies, Horner has been nominated four times for an Academy Award and four times to win the Golden Globe (not the same exact four Oscar-nominees) without winning a single award from the film industry honouring him for his spectacular achievements in the past 20 years--until now. Sunday night, 18 January 1998, Horner finally won himself the film-industry recognition he so richly deserves. As many point out, it's not necessarily because Titanic was all that (though it was wonderful), but because so moch of his work worthy of awards has gone ignored.

Horner walked away with two awards, one for Best Song in a Motion Picture, and a second for Best Original Score for a Motion Picture.

Congratulations, Maestro.

Well, we all know that the underscore for a 3:14 film could never fit on a 74 minute disc. So, either, much of the beautiful music is to be left unheard in its individual glory, or a second disc must be released. Well, it was known from the beginning that a concert arrangement of Horner's material from Titanic was part of the deal with Sony Classical, and why not kill two birds with one stone?

So exactly what's up with the vol. II? for Titanic? Well, there's good news and bad news.

Bad News first--it will be released when Titanic hits home video in mid/late-1998. Yes, you read that right. Now get over it.

Good News: Yes, the concert arrangement of the Titanic score, composed and orchestrated by Horner himself, will be on the disc. The wonderful "Celtic" music to which every one refers when thinking of the party in steerage will also be on the disc. Though Horner wrote a number of cues incorporating Gaelic-spiced music, the below-deks dancing was performed and presumably composed by the So. Californian-based band, Gaelic Storm. While their music will be featured on the Vol. II for Titanic, they currently are also working out an album of their own. See their website for mor details. Horner is fine-tuning his Gaelic-flavoured music to be performed by Gaelic Storm on the Titanic vol. II album. Also on this disc will be the source music played by I Salonisti, the string quintet heard in the dining hall and on the first class decks of the luxury vessel. My greatest hope is that their arrangement of "Nearer God to Thee" will be included on the album. And in addition to this, what every Horner fan wants to hear--there will also be more music from Horner's score. I am hoping more than anything that the music underscoring the flooding of the interior of the first class decks is included, as this was my favourite part of the score. Other additions should include the slow and soft main titles from the film.

Well, I guess patience is a virtue, because I will be patiently anticipating the arrival of more music from Titanic.

In Mid-January, Titanic's score album hit the number one position on the coveted Bilboard Top 200 Albums list. Few orchestral soundtrack albums have ever accomplished this, Dr. Zhivago, and Star Wars, and Dances With Wolves being this OST's only peers (e-mail if I'm wrong in this point--correct info is hard to find on this). However, in sheer volume and record sales, this album stands alone. In it's fourth week in the #1 slot (as of 2/7/98) seven weeks after it's release, the album has already gone quadruple platinum, and is the fastest-selling orchestral soundtrack ever. The album would have an even more impressive record had retailers been paying more attention and prepared themselves for the onslaught of Titanic score-seekers to deluge their stores during Christmas time and into the post-holiday season.

Those wishing to attribute the album's success simply to the Celine Dion song, I have a few things to say. First, obviously the song is very popular. Celine's album, also featuring the disc, is # 2 on Billboard. However, if all these score-buyers wanted were the Celine Dion song, then why buy the score album when it's already on the Celine disc? While "My Heart Will Go On" is obviously a significant part of this phenomenon, we must first recognise that Celine's song is really Horner's song. It was his idea, and it's his music. Besides which, I have been in many stores where people have been looking for the Titanic album. I know non-score-fan friends who have bought the album. Everyone I've encountered did not buy the album because of the Celine Dion song, though they considered its presence on the album a bonus.

I do, however, believe a some of the album's success can be attributed to people searching for Gaelic Storm's music, which is heard in the party in steerage. Which furthur ensures the success of the forthcoming second album...

The fabled score to Krull is about to receive its fifth release. That's right--fifth. First was the L.P. in 1983 when the film was released. This vinyl release contained half of the music from the film--eight cuts totallying about 40 minutes. In 1987, Southern Cross, the original L.P. distributor released the score on compact disc. S.C., however, did not take advantage of the new format, and did not include any additional material. Finally, in 1992, Southern Cross got a clue and realised that many fans wanted the WHOLE score. So, they did their best and fit 78 minutes of score onto a format that, according to tech specs, should only contain 74 minutes and fifteen seconds of audio data thus was born the Extended Release of Krull, which finally contained the unparaleled "Main Titles and Corwyn's Arrival". This release saw 2,000 copies, which sold very quickly.

With so many fans left in the cold due to its limited run, S.C. decided to do it again, but this time, it was going to be even more grandiose. All the same material from E.R. Krull was to be put on a special numbered Limited Edition Gold CD. This fan's copy is issue number 438 of 750. Well, if this weren't enough, there have still been grumblings that not every single second of music has been released; not enough copies are available to suit every fans thirst for this score; etc. So, what next?

Super Tracks is releasing Krull on 2 discs--that's what's next. About ten additional minutes of music from the legendary score will be presented on this wider two-volume format. Not many--if any scores ever find every second of their content on album. But what else could serve justice to Krull, Horner's most epic and heroic score, written in the early days of his hallowed career?

According to Craig Spaulding with Screen Archives Entertainment, this two-volume release will be headed our way in March/April of 1998.

Well, now that Titanic has been released, concluding Horner's least prolific year ever, we wonder, what will be next?

Horner to Write Concert Arrangement of Titanic
The current Titanic album, released by Sony Classical, is the forerunner to a second disc, which will be released early 1998. The second disc is to feature a concert arrangement of the material from Titanic's score, plus previously unreleased cues. This concert arrangement, dubbed a "symphony" in press releases, is the first project in an exclusive contract Horner has signed with Sony Classical. A press release mentions at least one other work to be written by Horner for the label, perhaps a ballet (?)...

Deep Impact
Horner has been slated to score this film, based on the novels When Worlds Colide and Hammer of God. The film is about an astroid coliding with the Earth, and should yield an interesting score from the composer whose career stands firmly on its sicence fiction origins. Deep Impact is set for release on May 6, 1998.

The Mask of Zoro
Trailers for this film starring Antonio Banderas and Sir Anthony Hopkins have already made their way to a theatre near you, and anticipation of Horner's score to this heroic tale is very high. Horner fans have high hopes that this score will be his first heroic orchestral romp since 1991's Rocketeer. Release for this film is set for June 1998.

The Mighty Joe Young Horner has been confirmed to be assigned to this remake of the 1949 classic of the same title. The film is about a twenty-foot ape from Africa transplanted in the U.S. I honestly am not sure what to expect from this film. Perhaps Jumanji meets Project X? Release is set for July 10, 1998.

This long awaited score finally finds its release to the hording masses, a full month before the film's release on December 19th. The score features 67:18 of Horner's score for the film, plus the song, "My Heart Will Go On," co-written by Will Jenning and James Horner, and performed by Celine Dion.

Well, that this film woulld have an LD release baffles many as it is; but isoltaing the score? Crazy. But, to those who have ears to hear, rejoice! Though the music is isolated ins tereo, the original LP was mastered in mono, and the LP masters were the only sound sources they could located for the project. However, the score is chaptered for easy play-back, and there are NO volume drop-offs in the isolated score. Though it would be very easy for this score to be released on CD privately, there has not historically been much interest in this score (as in Something Wicked this Way Comes, Project X, Testament, etc.) Thanks to Ray Ell for providing this information.

After many months of anticipation, this coveted score finally found its rerelease to the jubilation of hordes of soundtrack fans. It has been reissued by Pendulum Entertainment group, and while I have seen nary a copy in local music stores, it is certainly available at the specialty soundtrack retailers. There is no additional music, and from all reports, there is little difference in the packaging.

The score album to Braveheart has turned out to be one of the best selling soundtrack albums since Star Trek II, and its sales don't quite rival Star Wars, but it has been a very profitable release indeed. So why stop there, when more money is to be made? This new disc, titled "More Music from Braveheart" contains five new Horner cues comprising a total of eight minutes and twenty-three seconds of new Horner music, including "Outlawed Tunes on Outlawed Pipes" and "The Royal Wedding". While most of this disc is rehash of previously released music with dialogue clips over the music, most of the new cues are unadultered by any extra-musical sources. A few cues of wonderufl traditional Scottish music are included as well, featuring the highland bagpipes sadly absent in Horner's score to this film.

Many a soundtrack fan have been saddened at the news that no score to Project X was ever released. Well, an outfit named VIRGIL (dubbed, no doubt, after the vhimpansee character in Project X) has put together a private release for all those who have been longing for this score in vein. The disc features 40:54 of music from Project X comprising eight cues, plus a bonus suite from Horner's first work for a major studio (Orion Pictures), The Hand. The suite is fourteen minutes long, and fashioned in the same manner as his other early horror scores, which frankly, do not lend for a very enjoyable listening experience. This private release is probably still available as of this writing (12/97) from the soundtrack retailers.

The score to Something Wicked This Way Comes has been isolated on the new Laser Disc release of this 1983 cinematic telling of Ray Bradbury's classic tale. The score is on only one of the two analog chanels, so as to accomodate interviews with Bradbury on the other channel, so the score is only in mono. Also, the only recordings of the score the producers of this disc were able to lacte were the post-production tracks, meaning that all the volume drop-offs (to accomodate dialogue and special effects) which are prevalent in a scores presentation within the context of the film, are all present in the isolated channel. So, basically, while it's nice to hear the score by itself, the fact that it's in mono and there are frequent volume shifts, doesn't make for the most pleasant listening experience.