Bernard Herrmann | Best Movie Soundtracks

Welcome to bestmoviesoundtracks.co.uk

This site was conceived as a side project by a "tekkie" friend of mine who suggested I use my journalistic experience to write about something I love. We bandied about some ideas before settling on this one - largely because I had collected movie soundtracks for much of my life and thought I could write about them. We wanted the site to be user friendly, well-written and reliable.

Over time, I hope to attract other writers keen to contribute to the site, who don't mind foregoing the financial benefits they may be used to in the short-term for something that may, or may not, be profitable further down the line.

The gradual demise of the cd format, re-emergence of vinyl, along with the expansion of blu-ray dvd and downloads translate to an ever-changing market place; despite this, most of us still buy cd's and dvd's and I hope that you will use the Amazon links on this site to buy online.

We have also included mini YouTube video links that accompany the reviews, so that you can listen to your favourite theme music while watching a related trailer or clip from the movie; because film is a visual medium, there seems no better way of presenting it.

Finally, a note on the type of soundtracks featured. Though purists generally view albums such as "Top Gun", "Flashdance" and others like them, as unworthy of coverage on a film soundtrack site, preferring instead to focus on orchestral scores, we have taken the view that these albums have earned their place based on their continued saleability and affection with a large section of cinema-goers. We wanted to reach as broad an audience as possible and have developed the site with this in mind, without forgetting those fans for whom composers such as Bernard Herrmann and Jerry Goldsmith, among many others, are considered on a par with the master composers. We hope you can find your best movie soundtracks on this site.

Enjoy it.

Taxi Driver Movie Soundtrack

1970s

Taxi Driver Soundtrack CD

Taxi Driver.
1976, Columbia.
Bernard Herrmann.
Arista CD, 1998, 07822-19005-2
Rating:

Completed just hours before his death, Bernard Herrmann’s score to Martin Scorsese’s ‘Taxi Driver’ is considered to be some of his best work. In the film, Robert DeNiro plays Travis Bickle, a New York cabbie whose mental instability and dislocation from the world around him lead to violence. The soundtrack, a departure from Herrmann’s usual style is generally a downbeat affair with jazz saxophone used to underscore the city at night theme. In ‘The .44 Magnum Is A Monster’, sax is combined with sweeping harp and Herrmann’s signature flexing sound to create a powerful and interesting cue. It is the ‘Main Title’ that dominates this score however giving the whole piece a central theme that resonates throughout. Originally released on vinyl in 1976 with a fraction of the content delivered here, this release is essential for any collector. Featuring all of Herrmann’s cues presented in sequential order and extra material, including dialogue and musical interpretations.
Taxi Driver Movie Soundtrack. Review: Tim Mowbray.

Track Listing:
1. Main Title
2. Thank God For The Rain
3. Cleaning The Cab
4. I Still Can’t Sleep/They Cannot Touch Her (Betsy’s Theme)
5. Phone Call/I Realize How Much She IS Like The Others/A Strange Customer/Watching Palantine On TV/You’re Gonna Die In Hell/Betsy’s Theme/Hitting The Girl
6. The .44 Magnum Is A Monster
7. Getting Into Shape/Listen You Screwheads/Gun Play/Dear Father & Mother/The Card/Soap Opera
8. Sport And Iris
9. The $20 Bill/Target Practice
10. Assassination Attempt/After The Carnage
11. A Reluctant Hero/Betsy/End Credits
12. Diary Of A Taxi Driver (Album Version)
13. God’s Lonely Man (album Version With Alternate Ending)
14. Theme From Taxi Driver
15. I Work The Whole City
16. Betsy In A White Dress
17. The Days Do Not End
18. Theme From Taxi Driver (Reprise)

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