Title
 Mysterious Robber Ruby
International Title
 Mysterious Robber Ruby
Music By: Masao Yagi
Record Label: Victor Entertainment
 
Running Time: 35:40 Discs: 1
Release: November 1988 CD Number: VDR-1562
Comments
Anthony Romero
This late 1980's score by Masao Yagi is sadly a fairly lackluster affair. Yagi does deserve some credit though for his far reaching scope in his themes, with cues like "Easy Game" sounding very contemporary while the piano done "On the Plum Hill" and the Harmonica aided "The Martinson Case" give the CD a completely different kind of flavor. Unfortunately, none of these orchestrated tracks really stand out, or are particularly memorable. Therefore, it's not surprising that this CD is often remembered for its songs instead, as lead actress Kyoko Koizumi lends her talents for tracks one, eight and thirteen here. The first and last tracks are different versions of the movie's title song, with the first being more upbeat and generally more enticing then the slower version found at the end. Track eight has Koizumi joined by Hiroyuki Sanada for the vocals. Unfortunately, despite how much I enjoy Sanada as an actor, he just doesn't cut it as a singer, but at least his part is confined to only the last minute of the track. This disc also features the classic songs of "Hello Mary Lou" by Gene Pitney and "Poetry in Motion" by Johnny Tillotson, which I will unabashedly admit were actually my favorite tracks off this disc. Overall, though, this CD is hard to recommend to other soundtrack collectors due to the unmemorable compositions, while it's hard for the disc to stand out on just Koizumi's songs, particularly with its very brisk runtime of 35 minutes.
Rating: Star Rating
Tracks
  1. Mysterious Robber Ruby
    By: Kyoko Koizumi, Composer: Eiichi Ohtaki
  2. The Martinson Case - As Time Goes By
  3. A Girl Upstairs
  4. Easy Game
  5. On the Plum Hill
  6. Hello Mary Lou
    By: Gene Pitney
  7. Poetry in Motion
    By: Johnny Tillotson
  8. Forever for Example (Movie Version)
    By: Kyoko Koizumi, Hiroyuki Sanada
  9. Xanadu
  10. Bubble Bath
  11. More and More
  12. The More I Know You
  13. Mysterious Robber Ruby (Movie Version)
    By: Kyoko Koizumi, Composer: Eiichi Ohtaki