In August of 1985, the small San Francisco-based soundtrack record shop, Intrada, made a mighty leap from retailer to record label with its inaugural release: Basil Poledouris' score to RED DAWN. Now, 22 years later, Intrada has revisited the score that started it all. Going back to the original multi-track elements, Intrada remixed, re-edited and remastered the complete score, including music not heard in the final film.
The score, featuring some 88 players, emphasizes low brass, with spotlights on tuba and bass trombone. Recording the electronics live on stage, Poledouris uses keyboards in rhythmic passages, sometimes embellishing chords, other times actually carrying melodic weight while the orchestra is busy elsewhere. Eschewing the 1985 LP reverb and EQ parameters as well, the new digital mixes allow for a crisper, more detailed examination of the unique sound Poledouris created, especially with respect to that formidable low brass writing in tandem with synthesizers.
This release also expands the original LP's length from 35 minutes to over an hour of this dramatic, powerful Poledouris score.
RED DAWN was directed by John Milius, for whom Poledouris also worked on the earlier CONAN THE BARBARIAN and BIG WEDNESDAY. The 1984 MGM/UA film is a take-no-prisoners, stark depiction of a near-future Soviet Invasion of America's heartland.
The film features a strong cast including Patrick Swayze, Charlie Sheen, Lea Thompson, Jennifer Grey, C. Thomas Howell, and Powers Boothe.
This release is dedicated in loving memory to Basil Poledouris, whose importance at Intrada is second to none, for he was instrumental in helping this label get its start.
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