BATTERIES NOT INCLUDED – Original Motion Picture Soundtrack

Music Composed and Conducted by JAMES HORNER

Premiere expanded 2-CD release of fanciful 1987 James Horner soundtrack!

Intrada’s latest release is an expanded soundtrack for the 1987 Universal and Amblin film *batteries not included. Composer James Horner wrote 90 minutes of music for the film, about half of which appeared on the MCA album issued at the time of the film’s release. Horner composed a portion of the score for big band, reflecting the generation of the elderly folk living in the film’s NY apartment building setting. The second facet of the score is the traditional symphonic fantasy style Horner had made his mark on during the ’80s. At times the two styles intersect, as fantasy and reality interweave throughout the film.

This release features Shawn Murphy’s original two-track stereo mixes. The new album includes several substantial cues being heard for the first time, not only because they were omitted from the initial album but because they were also omitted from the film. And of course the album features music in the film not on the original release. Since two CDs were required to present the entire 90-minute score, there was enough room to include the original MCA program as a bonus.

The story focuses on a fading property in New York City’s Lower East Side. Landlords Frank and Faye Riley (Hume Cronyn and Jessica Tandy) run a diner on the ground floor and rent out apartments above. But an unscrupulous real estate developer has torn down the rest of the block and only the Rileys and their tenants stand in the way of his major construction project. The ultimate destruction of the building seems inevitable. But help arrives in a most unexpected fashion—two small spaceships that seem able and willing to fix things. These seemingly sentient machines make a nest on the building’s roof and, using bits and pieces of metal, give birth to three “children.” Soon, a lively relationship springs up between the spacecraft family and their  hosts. Meanwhile, the impatient developer decides to surreptitiously torch the building. The resulting explosion leaves only an empty shell. But the Fix-its return and restore both the building and all the residents’ lost hopes.

Adding to all those megawatt names is James Horner with a lengthy, fanciful, richly emotional score full of fantasy, excitement, nostalgia and color. Originally slated as an episode of Steven Spielberg’s television series Amazing Stories, story impressed famed director to develop it for the big screen instead. Composer Horner steps up to the plate with his involved, moving musical tapestry to share the vision. Small diner setting allows for several of the composer’s signature swing-style numbers, mean-spirited tactics of real estate developers to tear down the dwelling affords Horner opportunity to infuse music with solid degree of serious drama, tender love stories both aging and young bring in nostalgia, romantic ideas while arrival of two tiny spaceships with extraordinary abilities lets Horner aim for musical fantasy and magic in healthy doses!

Resulting score is dynamic meld of nostalgia, warmth, intense drama, exciting fantasy action all play in equal doses, albeit tender material supporting two leads remains at heart. Nowhere is this sensitive manner better revealed than an unusually gentle, even fragile “Getting Old” sequence – previously unreleased – featuring oboe, soprano sax and bassoon, followed by flute, harp. Delicate Coplandesque writing displays Horner at his most haunting! At the other end of the spectrum, Horner provides “The Basement” (also previously unreleased) with powerful orchestral outbursts underlining the tension of pending arson sequence. And for rousing excitement, Horner provides lengthy “Aerial Ballet” and even lengthier “The Flying Lesson” – yet two more previously unreleased sequences – to the fore. Top drawer 80’s-style Horner! Other cues balance between all previous orchestral flavors to create so much more depth than original MCA label album allowed for. Twice as much in fact!

Entire 2-CD Intrada release is assembled and mastered from original 1987 two-track stereo masters engineered by Shawn Murphy at The Burbank Studios across seven days in May, 1987 and vaulted by Universal in pristine condition. Flipper-style cover art prepared by Kay Marshall for colorful booklet offers two distinctive artwork campaigns. Informative liner notes from Frank K. DeWald provide insight to release edited, mastered and produced for Intrada by Douglass Fake with executive production work from Roger Feigelson. Since complete score (90 minutes) requires two CDs, second disc also features remastered presentation of Horner’s original 1987 album. Greig McRitchie, Billy May orchestrate, James Horner composes, conducts.