Ilker Yucel | Annapolis, MD United States | 12/30/2001
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Okay, so some people complain that this can not be considered the definitive soundtrack since it does not include the '80's pop songs that were played in the Tech Noir scenes or in the walkman...therefore, the flaw in this CD is that it should be labeled the definitive "SCORE" composed by Brad Fiedel. That way, it is by no means an incorrect label. This CD has it all! All the original music Brad Fiedel wrote for this classic sci-fi action film is included here...and while it does succumb to the '80's sensibility of overuse of synthesizers and sequencers, the score hardly suffers from it. Fiedel's use of metallic percussion gives a chilling sense of the mechanical masters of the future and the monstrous terminator. It's frightening, heart pouding, frenetic, and above all...a GREAT FILM SCORE!!! The second film's score was more dynamic (both because it used a full orchestra, and because the compositions deviated from the single key...practically every piece of music on this CD is in the same key without a lot of changes, but that's the musician in me talking), but that hardly hurts this CD. This is truly one of the great film scores of all time!"
Definitively definitive
Christopher Provencal | Ontario, Canada | 09/03/2008
(5 out of 5 stars)
"This is indeed the definitive Terminator score to own. The key word being score (score = the music composed for the film, heard in the background by the audience and not the movie characters). The Technoir music is part of the plot, not the score. I notice some variations in the customer pictures. As this is now a collector's item, I figure I'd add my 2 cents as to some confusion over versions:
I picked up my copy when in was released in Canada. My copy is made in Germany, "(c) 1994 edel company" (not "edel america"), has UPC 8212429022, and has a red label on the front saying "Includes Previously Unreleased Material".
There's another version that is from "Edel America" with UPC 782124290221. I suspect that this one has a red label that says "Included New Material", based on images I've seen.
So it seems there's an USA (edel america) and international (edel company) version. Except for the place of manufacture and some cosmetic differences they're otherwise identical. But if you're particular over such things, check to make sure you're getting the version you want."
The Terminator: The Definitive Edition
Mr. S. R. Targett | Thatcham, Berks United Kingdom | 04/04/2004
(5 out of 5 stars)
"This is basically is the best soundtrack you could get its espically better then the first Version of the Track you got all the music from the theme then just like 4 tracks and the rest its songs. but this is for the fans who like the Terminator music not the songs, everyone can remember the Terminator theme in the back ground on the main titles and at the end, The Terminators Arrival that beats it way though out the film? thats the Definitive Edition"
The Archetypal Industrial Epic of Film Scores
Mick Yerman | Ireland | 11/10/2009
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Brad Fiedel's 'The Terminator' is a soundscape, unparalleled. His unique creation of an industrial-electronic score gives Jim Cameron's 1984 classic a vital sensory dimension that is intrinsic to the film's success and it's enduring legacy. That 'The Terminator' is one of the most famous films of all time it would not be illogical to suspect that Fiedel's score is highly appreciated and acknowledged as a clear influence on synth based industrial and electronic music that has followed in the 25 years since its release. What is illogical is that it is NOT highly appreciated today or even accorded its visionary status. That this 'Definite' edition of the soundtrack, which was released in 1994, has been out of print for a few years now is not only baffling but saddening. While I will not postulate at length why I think Fiedel's score has largely been ignored by today's listeners, I will attempt to qualify why I think this album is deserving of a much higher appreciation and why it most certainly should not be out of print but still selling well today.
The tale of an unrelenting killing machine from the future methodically hunting down its target in 1980s L.A. made for a visual delight in more ways than one. But the films delivery would not have stuck so well with its audience if it was not for the mechanical thumping, droning, clanging beats and the unnerving and even at times emotive synths that played out over its unfolding. Fiedel set out to compose a score that was "strictly mechanical in nature" to accord not only to the terminator itself but to the bleak dystopian wasteland of the future that was frequently alluded to and the sheer terror that the film's protagonists have to endure in their survival against the machine. A few basic elements make up the theme track and these elements are repeated for the most part for the rest of the album. First we have the percussion which in the opening track is muffled but thumps along with a tense energy rounded by a steel drum. The percussion is layered with droning synths that fade in and out like a slowly rotating beam from a lighthouse. Then the higher pitched keyboard notes enter to give the song its focus (often what some refer to as the "du du dooo" melody). The same formula is used for much of the album as already stated, but their construction is mixed up with varying pace and sharpness to suit the scenes over which it accompanies. The exceptions are with track 5, 13 & 18; the first being a lighter, sweeter natured piano tune to represent Sarah Connor's soon to be extinguished innocence, the latter two songs are alterante versions of the love theme, using just piano and oboe, that gives the score its emotive even plaintive counterpart to the harsh, unsettling, industrial assault that pervades most of the album. The love theme is a tender gem and adapts to the love scene by matching Sarah and Reese's intimacy. The polar end to this delicacy is the thudding, energetic, visceral chase themes of tracks 6, 8, 9 & 14. Track 6 introduces Reese's "troubles" as he runs from the police. Again we have the underpinning percussion, staccato but flowing. The invasive synths are very much recognizable as the product of the 1980s but have a charm to them that is not all comforting but compelling. Tracks 8 & 9 are what could be the highlight of the score. It is here, during the first chase from the terminator, that Fiedel lets rip the furious industrial beats that make this score so exciting. Both tracks are over six minutes long as they weave in and out of the narrative. In track 8 we have the tense build up to the terminator's discovery of Sarah in the club then the shoot out followed by the alley and car chase. Cameron excelled himself in directing those scenes, Fiedel did have the work for him. When Sarah and Reese have a brief respite in the garage we have this nefarious but subtle electronic hum as Reese tells Sarah about the future. Then when the terminator re-discovers them the energy bursts back out at us with the same beat as the alley chase but topped now with piercing, high pitched notes. In track 14 we have a sudden departure from the love theme to the rage of the tracks 8 & 9 this time the relentless, unnerving synths ring out the loudest. On track 12 we have what could be the hero's theme of Reese in the future but this is then juxtaposed by the attack of the terminator on the bunker. Tracks 15-18 set the final chase sequences, each track expertly matches what plays out on screen; the collapse of the terminator on fire, his frigthening resurrection, the corridor and factory chase, Reese's final blows on the terminator, Reese's death, the second rise of the machine, its stalking of Sarah through the claustrophobic machinery and then its ultimate demise. Listening to the tracks without the visual does not divorce us from the action, it plays it for us through a different sensory perception, the end result is the same, proving Fiedel's mastery at scoring films.
Some might suggest that this score is dated. While it is unmistakeably 1980s in character, I feel it does not fall foul of being no longer relevant. The sounds are as exciting, unsettling, and stirring as they ever were (all tracks have been remixed and remastered for this 'Definite' edition). Regarding the bass effects throughout the album, the quicker paced songs are great on a good sound system. Occasionally the layering of synths to the underlying beats seem awkwardly timed, but I stress this is a rare occurence and does not detract from the albums enjoyment.
Whats apparent to me is how much the sounds on this score prefigured the rise of electronic music from the 80s onwards. I am not suggesting Fiedel was the first to use synths and industrial beats, that would be naive. But I would assert he was one of the first to deliver it with such a powerful execution. It would be another 4 years until Ministry burst forth with their industrial fury on 'The Land of Rape and Honey' and another 5 until NIN appeared and who subsequently came to popularise industrial in the 1990s. Fiedel's score should have pride of place as the father of the fusion between industrial rythym and electronic sounds.
Fiedel followed later with the soundtrack for the sequel T2. This time he expanded his instrumental focus to demands of the film and its setting. It's a generally lighter but much smoother, refined approach that befits the film but with the exception of tracks 2 & 3 on that album, it doesn't get near the energy or tension that you have with this album.
If you love the film, I would propose it's a foregone you'll appreciate this album. I would be a happier man if this album came to get the recognition it deserved. But until then I'll keep listening and dream furiously."
Terminator Trilogy Fan
Terminator Trilogy Fan | USA | 04/06/2006
(5 out of 5 stars)
"I love the dark themed plays throughout this soundtrack, I was considering getting the standard Soundtrack of this Motion Picture, however I saw there was too much missing content, so I decided to purchase this one, and I have to say, its an excellent score. Brad Fiedel made a classic, rememberable theme if you ask me, He did even better with the second installment of the series and its score. The Terminator Definative Soundtrack is the one recommended for True Die Hard Fans of this series. Yes it excludes the 80's Pop Tech-Nor Bar songs, but those weren't the best anyway, Brad Fiedels work alone makes this soundtrack worth buying. If your a big Terminator Fan and you love the music from the film, I highly recommend this soundtrack, and the Terminator 2 Judgement Day: Soundtrack as well.
Track Listings (19) - Disc #1