The Best Composers: Randy Edelman

Continuing with the theme of film composers, I picked Randy Edelman as my next topic.  Born in New Jersey, Randy Edelman has some of the most memorable film scores under his belt.  While the films in question may not necessarily be the highest quality, there is no doubt in my mind that the music he wrote for some of these films are the finest that I’ve ever heard.  His big break came in 1989 when he composed the music for Ghostbusters II.  Nothing particularly memorable, but it was a Ghostbusters film.  This man has nearly a 100 titles to his name as a composer, but some of his most memorable themes and compositions would show up during the 90s.

The Last Of The Mohicans

I’m kind of cheating on this one as it was a collaboration between Randy Edelman and fellow composer Trevor Jones.  The resulting film was an absolute masterpiece featuring Daniel Day-Lewis in one of his most memorable roles.  The film was incredibly well-constructed, acted and had some of the most riveting sequences in any film up to that point.  It’s incredibly rare for a film’s soundtrack to be as memorable if not more so than the film it accompanies.  The Last of the Mohicans is one of the greatest soundtracks in film history.  It has a very grand and epic that also brings a certain emotional and foreboding weight to the whole affair.  The use of string instruments is astonishing, especially during the last battle.  In a word, it’s poetic.  If you have not seen The Last of the Mohicans, I suggest you see it now.  It’s brilliant.

Dragon: The Bruce Lee Story

With The Last of the Mohicans, Randy Edelman proved that he is a force to be reckoned with in terms of film music.  He does it again with the main theme from Dragon: The Bruce Lee Story.  The film is a biopic loosely based on Bruce Lee’s life.  A good chunk of it is fictionalized, but it still ended up being a pretty good movie.  The theme became so popular it was used in multiple film trailers during the 90s.  It starts off with a simple piano solo and than flourishes into a grander and emotional piece that I feel is really appropriate for Bruce Lee.  While I don’t think Lee would have approved of the movie, I think he would have liked the music composed by Randy Edelman.  It’s an uplifting and amazing theme for one of the most influential people in film history.  The film is definitely worth a watch.

Dragonheart

Mr. Edelman hits it out of the park yet again with Dragonheart.  It has a very soulful and emotional theme that is not only epic, but very playful at times.  Personally, I loved the film itself with Sean Connery’s Draco stealing the show at every turn.  It was an old-fashioned adventure film with great visual effects that ended up being really fun, and yet emotionally engaging at the same time.  The film’s music reflects this in almost every single way.  This was also a soundtrack that used for movie trailers, because it was so memorable.  Even if you haven’t seen the film, you’ve heard the music, and that is how powerful a movie’s soundtrack can and should be.  While the main theme would be used for the direct-to-video sequels, it still manages to impress 20 years later.  I think Randy Edelman should be really proud of this particular film’s soundtrack.

Randy Edelman would later go on to score movies such as Shanghai Noon, xXx, and The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor.  Unfortunately, as the 90s came to a close, Randy Edelman’s work became less and less memorable as time went on.  It’s a shame, because he’s extremely talented.  His work during the 90s has yet to be matched by anyone.  As it stands, the man has had a fantastic career and shows no signs of slowing down.  I just wish he would come up with another memorable theme.  Well, that wraps up my second post on The Best Composers for the day and I will be back with another one quite soon.  Stay tuned.

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