Durr-duh-duh-durr-durrrrrr-durr

Continuing my trip back through the 1981 album charts.

07/06/81 : Chariots Of Fire - Vangelis

Yes, it's a soundtrack but it's an original soundtrack so it gets included - even though it's an instrumental (our second in a row) so I'm not going to like it. I actually remember my parents owning this - I know approximately ten notes of it and that's your lot.

Yup, having listened to it, I can understand that - although I was surprised to see a version of "Jerusalem" on there (although from what I remember of the film it feels like it would fit in nicely). The main theme, "Titles", is the one that everyone knows and it's the obvious quality number - the rest are in a similar vein, but I'd struggle to say the album has a huge amount of variety across it. I'd say it's fine to have on in the background, but I'd struggle to see how many people would actively ever listen to it.

We're at an impressive #5 in the charts this week on his ninth week of an impressive 26 week run with this being as high as it got. All of which will have made him very happy, so imagine how he felt when it came back for a 49 week run covering most of '82 - all in all, this has spent 106 weeks in the chart. I'm amazed - and very glad I included it, because it certainly counts as culturally significant. The rest of the top five were Stars on 45, UB40, Disco Days/Nites and Toyah, with the highest new entry being George Harrison (#13). 

Wikipedia tells us that the "music that he came up with, mostly electronic for a period film, initiated a new style in film scoring" - the main thrust of the argument is that synthesisers made all the difference and I won't be commenting any further than that due to a complete lack of knowledge on the subject. Interestingly, the music in the film was all re-recorded for the album - apparently this was "for artistic reasons". It also wasn't Vangelis's favourite work with him declaring "Mutiny on the Bounty as endlessly more interesting than Chariots of Fire". There's no word on critical reviews other than noting a two star review from FilmTracks (a website dedicated solely to film scores - some people are so rock and roll) but it did very well commercially globally, bizarrely doing best in the US where it spent four weeks at #1 and sold a million copies, making it the best selling instrumental film score until Titanic in '97. How very odd indeed (on several fronts).

discogs.com tells us you can pick up a decent version of this for £1.50, but if you want to splash out then there's a 24 carat gold-plated CD reissue from '95 available for £80 - why on earth would anyone want that? Which, with the exception of the main theme, is pretty much what I think of any copy of this - it's all perfectly pleasant but very inessential when separated from the moving pictures. 

14/06/81 - Could have been worse