Search - laurie johnson :: The Avengers: Also Includes Dr. Strangelove, First Men In The Moon, Captain Kronos, Vampire Hunter, Hedda (Television And Film Score Re-recordings)

Fair Warning to "Avengers" fans...

trebe | 11/23/2001

(1 out of 5 stars)

"If this CD was entitled something like "The Best of Laurie Johnson", I would have absolutely no problems at all with it. It is however entitled "The Avengers", which is a very misleading title, as only a minimal amount of music on this CD has anything to do with the original "Avengers" TV program. Composer Laurie Johnson is probably most well known for his "Main Title" music for the "Avengers". Yet of the twenty-four tracks in this collection, just three are credited as being from the original program. It is just unbelievable that from such a long running series, a total of less than 9 minutes of music was deemed suitable for inclusion on this CD which has a total of 62 minutes of music.To say that it is disappointing, that such a small quantity of music from the original "Avengers" was included on this CD, is a gross understatement. Surely there was more than 9 minutes worth of quality music present, in even a season's worth episodes. This is just a pitifully poor effort. The way the product was produced and packaged makes one question the sincerity of both the studio and the artist. The intent was obviously not to produce a genuine compilation of music from the "Avengers" series. Instead other works by Laurie Johnson are being marketed under the "Avengers" name.These other works consist of musical selections from "The New Avengers", the 70's revival show, and various other movie soundtracks scored by Laurie Johnson. Included is music from "Dr. Strangelove", "First Men on the Moon", "Hedda" and "Captain Kronos, Vampire Killer". These titles are plainly listed on the cover of the CD, so of course the studio can claim that the buyer should have known what they were getting.The music from the "New Avengers Suite" is four tracks, totaling 12 minutes. So apparently more quality music was present in the sequel than the original.The "non-Avengers" music is actually not bad at all, with the selections from "First Men In the Moon" being the most exciting, and "Captain Kronos" coming in second. There is no doubt that Laurie Johnson is a very capable composer, and his other "non-Avengers" music does stand on its own merits. That is not the issue at hand, honesty is.What is truly disappointing is that this "bait and switch" collection is all there is available. A CD with music exclusively from the original "Avengers" apparently doesn't exist, and that's a shame. Based on the continuing popularity of the show, there is probably adequate economic incentive to put such a collection on the market. Perhaps it may happen.The music was recorded in 1979-80 and then was apparently first issued in 1980, maybe on vinyl? I have no idea what music was actually on that recording, but the bottom line regarding this particular CD is, do not buy it if you are looking for a decent collection of music from the original "Avengers"."

The Best of Laurie Johnson

trebe | 05/11/2001

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I didn't know of what this digital score soundtrack was going to be like, because I mainly got since it had the films "Dr. Stranglove" and "First Men In The Moon." But I heard a sample of two "Avengers" music and just fell in love with it. It's sad to see that Laurie never got any awards or nominations, because his music for "Hedda" was just beautiful, and I haven't even seen the film. After hearing the music for "The Avengers," I wish that I could've saw the shows in the 60s. Thank you Laurie for making this album and for being the conducter for it, because I doubt that anyone could do it better than you can!"

The Avengers - a must have for Avengers Fans.

trebe | 08/30/1998

(4 out of 5 stars)

"A first rate Soundtrack. I just wish it were a longer. Part of the album contains other soundtracks by Laurie Johnson which are'nt bad, but they are not from The Avengers. Still its well worth a listen. Highly Recommended."