LISTS: Top 5 Underappreciated John Williams Tracks

There are some rules here. No main themes, and no double listings.

John Williams is widely heralded as the godfather of modern big-bowl hollywood scores. Personally, I also believe he'd sit comfortably amongst some of the greatest musicians of all time. A scroll through his ridiculous lengths of achievement will quickly show you just how much John Williams has disproved the 'lightning only strikes once' theory. However, despite his catalogue of iconic themes (think Star Wars, Harry Potter, E.T, Saving Private Ryan, Indiana Jones, Jurassic Park etc.), it's when you begin to look at his compositions as a whole that you begin to see the magic of his emotional ventriloquism. Here's a list of what I believe to be some seriously under-appreciated masterpieces, which have been overshadowed by their respective main themes.

1) Across the Stars (Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones)

I grew up in the prequel era, something I don't apologize for. This is one of the reasons why; John William's work on The Phantom Menace, Attack of the Clones, and Revenge of the Sith provided us with some his most evocative work in the saga. 'Across the Stars' is used as a musical motif throughout the trilogy, acting as the theme for Padme and Anakin. This piece is nostalgic in a way that completely foreshadows the futile nature of their relationship to the audience.

2) The Arrival of Harry (Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone)

The opening Celesta notes of this track completely embody the mysterious, fantastical nature of Harry Potter's earliest chapters. As Dumbledore arrives in the middle of the night down privet drive, this swirling piece let audiences in on two things. John Williams had struck gold in a franchise for the fourth time, and that this is exactly what the pages of Harry Potter sounded like. This piece immediately transports me to a time when I was much younger, a time when Harry Potter ruled king, and the stories felt like they could never end. Despite having fragments of the main theme toward the end, I'm counting this one.

3) Growing Up (Superman, 1978)

This is the calm before the storm. The moments where Clark Kent 'becomes' Superman in the truest sense of the word. You can hear the transition in this track, as bits of the main theme swirl around in a sense of nostalgic yearning. Clark's growing up, and his thoughts are audible.

It also just sounds really nice.

4) Hook Medley (Hook)

This one's cheating a bit. Here's 9 minutes of some of the best things you'll hear in Spielberg's 1991 Peter Pan adaption 'Hook'. Yes, there's some themes in here, but I still believe Hook is one of his more under-appreciated pieces of work. Once again using his magical skill of giving you a sense of nostalgia for something you may have never seen before, Williams score for Hook is whimsical, and just sounds like Spielberg. Listening to this makes you feel like you've just walked into Universal Studios, and that anything is possible. It's a classic Hollywood sound, with some really decent helpings of Williams magic.

5) E.T is Alive (E.T)

It's been a while since I've seen E.T, I'll be honest. However, as soon as I played this piece, I quite imediately knew where it fit in with the narrative. That's part of the appeal. Williams has his finger on the pulse of how to manipulate human emotion unlike anyone else. I knew where it fit in, because it just made sense. I knew how I felt. The piece may lack subtelty for some, as you can clearly hear a progression of thought and emotion, but damn it's impressive. Williams is positioning you to feel whatever he wants you to feel as Elliot discovers that his strange friend might be alive after all, and it works everytime. Because he's a fucking genius.

What do you guys think? What are some of your favorite John Williams scores? Let us know at paperclipnews@gmail.com