King Kong (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)
Music by James Newton Howard
Renovatio Records proudly presents you a brand new re-launch of composer James Newton Howard's magnificent score for Peter Jackson's 2005 remake of King Kong. The premise this version is identical to the 1933 original RKO Radio Pictures classic. The plot follows film director Carl Denham (Jack Black) and his crew on a journey from New York City to the legendary Skull Island in hopes of filming a new movie. He is accompanied by screenwriter Jack Driscoll (Adrien Brody) and the newly discovered actress Ann Darrow (Naomi Watts). On the island, the encounters all sorts of creatures, from giant bugs to thought-to-be-extinct dinosaurs, but most notably a giant ape who forms a bond with the young actress. Relying heavily on the use of motion capture and CGI technologies, the film impressed both critics and audiences alike, standing as a worthy modern version of the original motion picture.
Initially, Jackson's music collaborator during his Lord of the Rings trilogy, Howard Shore, was set to compose the score for King Kong. However, due to "creative differences", the veteran composer's music was rejected and James Newton Howard was brought on board, leaving him and his crew with only five weeks to write and record a 3-hour-long replacement score. In spite of this, Howard proved how capable he is by providing one of the best scores he's composed throughout his entire career. Howard's approach was to have a straight-forward orchestral orchestral, full with leitmotifs and genre variations, moving from jazzy melodies to bombastic and choral action music all the way to dark and ominous palettes of sound designs. Harmonically pleasing from star to finish, it can be easily said that King Kong is inarguably one of the finest action-adventure scores of the XXI century.
The original Decca/Universal album treatment of the score represents only one third of the amount of music produced by Howard. Bootlegs containing the complete score have surfaced since the film's release. Now, Renovatio Records has put quite the effort in having a faithful representation of Howard's work, summarized in a two CD album compilation that offers almost one additional hour of unreleased music fully remastered for your enjoyment. Venture yourself into this masterpiece!
Track listing:
CD 1:
1. King Kong Overture (1:10)
2. Ann (1:55)
3. Defeat Is Always Momentary (2:47)
4. Ann Boards The Ship (2:50)
5. Two Grand (2:38)
6. Venture Departure (1:53)
7. Jimmy (1:33)
8. Ann Meets Jack (1:43)
9. A Fateful Meeting (2:52)
10. It's In The Subtext (3:17)
11. There Are No Stars (3:37)
12. Last Blank Space On The Map (4:44)
13. It's Deserted / Ann Is Kidnapped (7:19)
14. Hail To The King (3:51)
15. Something Monstrous (2:36)
16. Jungle Run (2:31)
17. Trek To Save Ann (2:30)
18. Head Towards The Animals (3:42)
19. Canyon Stampede (2:47)
20. That's All There Is... (4:42)
CD 2:
1. V-Rex (1:31)
2. Kong & Rex Battle (6:20)
3. Bug Pit (4:39)
4. Beautiful (4:08)
5. Jack Reaches Ann (2:51)
6. Escape From Kong (4:20)
7. Kong Through The Gate (3:23)
8. Captured (3:52)
9. The Eighth Wonder of the World (2:00)
10. Beauty Stayed His Hand (0:46)
11. New York Pursuit (2:46)
12. Central Park (4:35)
13. The Empire State Building (2:35)
14. Battle Against The Planes (6:38)
15. Beauty Killed The Beast (8:59)
CD 1 Running Time: 60:57
CD 2 Running Time: 59:23
Total Running Time: 120:20
Cover Artwork:
