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 |
Title |
| Godzilla Soundtrack
Perfect Collection - Box 1 |
| International Title |
| [Box Set] |
Music
By:
Various
Record Label: Toho Music
| Running
Time: 416:23 (Total) |
Discs:
7 |
| Release:
September 2004 |
CD
Number: GB1 |
|
| Comments |
The first
in Toho Music's highly anticipated Godzilla Soundtrack
Perfect Collection line, a series of six box sets containing
the soundtracks to all 28 Toho produced Godzilla films
complete with unreleased content and newly remastered
for superior sound. Box 1 contains the scores for the
first five Godzilla movies and an extra CD which is a
reproduction of an earlier LP compilation. The stand out
feature of this set, at least at the time of release,
was the inclusion of the rare stereo score to King
Kong vs. Godzilla (1962), although the impact
of this has been significantly hampered since it was later
released by La-La Land Records (LLLCD-1041)
in the United States.
Like a lot of Toho Music's releases, the overall design
and layout of this set is very attractive and well done.
Each disc comes in its own jewel case and includes a thick
booklet printed on very nice stock paper, not at all the
flimsy material one is used to for these. The discs all
carry a similar style with a color scheme similar to that
of a faded newspaper with a slight red tint, except the
LP reissue. The covers themselves though are, oddly enough,
the least attractive aspect of this release, as each contains
just a close up head shot of the particular Godzilla suit
seen in the movie. This gives the releases in general
a fairly boring look when all placed together, and why
they didn't just place the much more enticing back cover
shots here instead, which are often action oriented moments
or great sequences from the films, is beyond me. The booklets
themselves, though, show Toho Music's excellent attention
to detail, containing nice black and white production
stills before ending with color shots of things like pamphlets
and other promotional material for the films.
In terms of the remastering process, Toho Music has succeeded
in making this music sound better then ever before, and
for that they deserve some credit. Unfortunately, those
expecting a vastly improved experience are probably going
to be disappointed as one is literally going to have to
play these tracks back-to-back with the older releases
to really notice any difference in quality. To that point,
it's suffice to say that if you own these earlier releases
and are considering purchasing this set simply for the
improved sound, don't bother. The difference in quality
along is, in no way, worth the $125 or so price tag of
this set. In fact, if one owns the earlier Toshiba discs
covered by this set, just skip this first box and buy
La-La Land Records' releases for both Godzilla
(LLLCD-1022)
and King Kong vs. Godzilla (LLLCD-1041).
One won't be missing much at all in doing so, and it's
infinitely cheaper considering each retails for $16. If
one has never purchased a soundtrack to one of these films
before, though, then this could be an excellent way to
start one's collection, although its still a sizeable
investment anyway one slices it.
It should be noted that these boxes are limited, with
each being given a run of, reportedly, 1,954 units.
Each is also given a unique number on the back in the
form of a sticker placed above the copyright information.
Expectedly, there is no need to rush though (assuming
they are giving them out in order), as they have only
hit about 700 exactly two years after the first was
released. This shouldn't be surprising either given
that the 2001 Toho
SFX Champion Festival box set was also limited, yet
is still widely available online today as these more
expensive box sets just simply don't seem to move. It
should also be mentioned that all of these sets are
also sold exclusively online at Toho Music's site or Arksquare.net.
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