# The Empire Strikes Back OST



## Judas Priest Fan (Apr 27, 2018)

Back in 1985, I was a die hard Metal Head, but I loved the Empire Strikes Back OST , and bought it on CD.

I was never really satisfied with the quality of the recording, and recently bought the remaster from Disney.

The sound quality is MUCH better IMHO; but the music, is just fantastic!

I listened to it last week and really enjoyed it. I listened to it again tonight, and it moved me to tears.

Do any of you have this recording? Do you feel the same?


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## Fabulin (Jun 10, 2019)

OST is more than a suite but less than an entire work. The real deal is the 1997 2-CD RCA Victor release or its 2004 re-issue by Sony. As for sound quality, the Disney remasters have a mixed reputation based on what I've heard. They are considered a missed opportunity.

The eventual complete release of this and other Star Wars scores helmed by the producer Mike Matessino is something that everybody aware awaits like a second coming.

So far quiet about it though, and many don't expect Disney to greenlight the ultimate project until Williams is gone.

As for the music itself, not for nothing is ESB often considered Williams' best work. An evergreen for listeners and a gold mine for scholars. No matter what sort of comments follow - no, you are certainly not alone in hearing it for what it is.


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## bharbeke (Mar 4, 2013)

The 2-disc Special Edition soundtrack is definitely worth seeking out. The liner notes are among the best I've seen, and as you have mentioned, the score itself is top notch. I enjoyed streaming the latest release of Empire, but it's hard to go back to a one-disc release after listening to the two-disc release for decades.


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## abcedem (Nov 8, 2020)

The original Star Wars trilogy soundtracks have been issued a number of times; people who know more than I do would say that every issue has some flaw or another. I have 4 versions of these soundtracks - the 2 disc versions mentioned above, the 2015/6 Sony reissues, the 2018 Disneys and the versions on the Star Wars Trilogy Original Soundtrack Anthology boxset.

Unfortunately some of the Disney version of Empire has strange tape issues; for example there's something seriously wrong with the version of "The Asteroid Field" on the Disney vs other versions - the right channel seems to be missing in action.


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## adriesba (Dec 30, 2019)

I have the Disney RotJ release, and it sounds spectacular, but I'm not familiar with the ESB one. I haven't listened to the ESB one much, mostly because I have the two disc set. The main reason I got the RotJ one is because the two disc set doesn't have some of the original music (the original ending music and "Lapti Nek" instead of "Jedi Rocks"). But even so, the alternative music that the Disney release has is not the same as the versions in the actual movie. Plus, to my knowledge there are other sections of the score that have never been released. But what we have will have to do unless they release everything.

Otherwise, the one disc sets haven't gotten a lot of attention from me because so much from the score is not there, including lots of really good music. It's also a shame that the two disc albums have been taken off streaming with the sets increasing in price. I got a set with all three of them plus the prequel albums, and it is now also expensive. 

The real pity though is that AotC and RotS haven't had a full score release. Hopefully every bit of the recordings will eventually be released and given whatever remastering or special treatment they need. Unfortunately, some parts of the two disc sets don't sound that good.

Glad to see that others also enjoy these soundtracks!


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## Rogerx (Apr 27, 2018)

https://www.talkclassical.com/the-movie-corner-music-for-cinema-and-tv/


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## Fabulin (Jun 10, 2019)

Rogerx said:


> https://www.talkclassical.com/the-movie-corner-music-for-cinema-and-tv/


I somehow don't see you doing that for a thread dedicated to a Bruckner symphony which is not in "Orchestral Music".


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## Coach G (Apr 22, 2020)

Judas Priest Fan said:


> Back in 1985, I was a die hard Metal Head, but I loved the Empire Strikes Back OST , and bought it on CD.
> 
> I was never really satisfied with the quality of the recording, and recently bought the remaster from Disney.
> 
> ...


Though we're probably about the same age (50s?) I was no metal head, and I couldn't relate to rap either. Even so, the music from the original _Star Wars_ trilogy had a big impact upon me as I was as caught up John Williams' classically-inspired score as I was with the _Star Wars_ message and mythology. So when I was young and full of testosterone, I naturally sought out classical music followed along the lines of Williams' big and brassy soundtrack; and I found stuff like Richard Strauss' _Also Sprach Zarathustra_, Stravinsky's _Rite of Spring_, Holst's _The Planets_, Vaughan Williams' _Sinfonia Antarctica_, Nielsen's _Sinfonia Espansiva_ and _Symphony #5_, and then there was Shostakovich with _Symphonies #5, 7, 11_, and _15_.

In a way, that music _was_ my heavy metal, or my rap music, and I'd blast it on the stereo the same way other boys my age would blast the rebellious sounds of metal and rap.


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## Judas Priest Fan (Apr 27, 2018)

Yeah, I´m 55, so we are about the same age  I need to check out those pieces from V. Williams and Nielsen.

I´m not really into soundtracks at all. A friend of mine sent me a CD of some of his favorite soundtrack pieces, and it did nothing for me. It just sounds like "film music"  ESB, on the other hand, always has a melody going on that sticks in my head. I find myself whistling or humming parts of it even days later.

While I enjoyed the additional 7 tracks on the Disney release, it is a bit long for my listening habits, and I have become so accustomed to the tracklist of my 1985 CD. So I just play the 10 tracks from the Disney release  When I have more time someday, I´ll re listen to the entire Disney CD.


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## SanAntone (May 10, 2020)

Shouldn't this thread have been put in the *Music for Cinema* sub-forum?


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## Christine (Sep 29, 2020)

I bought the OST when the movie came out. I loved it. Of course, it was on a record player. I've never heard it on CD, let alone remastered. But now after reading your post I'll probably get the CD.


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## Alfacharger (Dec 6, 2013)

SanAntone said:


> Shouldn't this thread have been put in the *Music for Cinema* sub-forum?


If the music is divorced from the film in recordings or concerts, then it becomes a concert work.


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## Fabulin (Jun 10, 2019)

SanAntone said:


> Shouldn't this thread have been put in the *Music for Cinema* sub-forum?


As I said:


Fabulin said:


> I somehow don't see you doing that for a thread dedicated to a Bruckner symphony which is not in "Orchestral Music".


I'm fine with this, if there is an absolute consistency.


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## Joe B (Aug 10, 2017)

When I'm in the mood for music from "Star Wars" I play this:










Sound quality and performances are really good.


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## Rogerx (Apr 27, 2018)

Fabulin said:


> I somehow don't see you doing that for a thread dedicated to a Bruckner symphony which is not in "Orchestral Music".


A soundtrack is a sound track, just a suggestion that we have a cinema corner.


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## Fabulin (Jun 10, 2019)

Rogerx said:


> A soundtrack is a sound track, just a suggestion that we have a cinema corner.


Soundtrack contains dialogue and sound effects. It doesn't even apply here. We are talking about the score, the musical score, and its recording.


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## Barbebleu (May 17, 2015)

COVID has given us all way too much time on our hands to nit-pick threads. Who actually gives a toss where a thread is? You can always use the super-efficient search function when you’re looking for something.


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