Inchon
Intrada Special Collection Volume ISC 452 (2021)

All newly-remastered and presented in 24bit 96kHz hi-res audio for the digital marketplace! This 3-CD presentation of Jerry Goldsmith’s dynamic and exciting score for Inchon includes both previously available discs that offered the original 38-minute 1982 soundtrack album as edited and assembled by Goldsmith with recording session engineer Len Engel and Intrada’s earlier complete program which expanded the release, retaining the editorial assemblies made for Intrada by both composer and engineer back in 1988. A subsequent 2006 issue of the popular best-seller re-sequenced the complete score into an approximation of the picture chronology albeit retaining Goldsmith’s musically creative assemblies and was also later re-pressed. Now - finally - Intrada has returned to the original 1” recording session rolls made by Engel at the Forum Studios in Italy and remastered the audio for the first time in hi-res format. By returning to the sessions, Intrada was also for the first time able to present the entire score in chronological sequence with every cue playing complete without the creative assemblies as a 3rd CD for listeners desiring the opportunity to hear the beginnings and endings of cues that previously were edited to allow for creative assemblies which often were not in actual chronological sequence. While the same music, this version is quite a different experience which not only remains faithful to Goldsmith’s actual picture sequence but does offer some precious few bars previously edited or crossfaded into otherwise unrelated cues. So three different presentations of this magnificent score, each with its own merits! The film itself, chronicling events surrounding the Korean war, had a much-troubled production history that spanned two years, saw the death of cast member David Janssen and ultimately led to the editing of more than a half hour of footage prior to its general release. Happily Goldsmith scored the longer version and all of his music survived in beautiful condition. Other film production credits were top drawer, including Terence Young (of James Bond fame) at the helm and stars Laurence Olivier, Jacqueline Bisset, Ben Gazzara, Toshiro Mifune and Richard Rountree in the cast. Goldsmith’s “Main Title” opens in aggressive, declamatory fashion, an abundance of propulsive energy and jagged rhythm that puts it in a very small family of Goldsmith title music that includes Night Crossing, Capricorn One, Face Of A Fugitive and The Salamander. The score is thematically rich with ideas for not only the conflict, but the locale and specific characters (Lim’s theme is an emotional highlight) as well. A sparingly used love theme and powerful action material for the tank sequences are major assets! Len Engel engineers, Arthur Morton orchestrates, Jerry Goldsmith composes, conducts. 3-CD set available until January 30, 2021 or until quantities run out. After that this thrilling score will live on in the high-res digital format!