A review by JAMES SOUTHALL

One of the least well-known of John Williams's scores, at least from the time since he wrote Jaws in 1975, is The River.  The movie is directed by Mark Rydell, who also worked with Williams on The Reivers and The Cowboys, two of his earliest truly impressive scores, and stars Mel Gibson as a struggling farmer in the mid-West of America.  In common with his other music for Rydell, Williams crafted a lovely piece of Americana, nostalgic but also very beautiful, but whereas the two previous scores contained great big hints of especially Copland but also other American composers, this one seems to be more like pure Williams.

The main theme is a gem.  Setting it, as he does, against a pop beat most of the time dates it a little and, perhaps, cheapens it a little, but its underlying charm is impossible to deny.  In fact the opening cue is wonderful all the way though - the middle part sees the main theme, but either side there is some terrific writing for flute and trumpet, featuring sterling work by the Hollywood musicians.  "Growing Up" is a lovely piece dominated by guitar, sounding remarkably fresh and highly-evocative.  The "Love Theme" is an expansion on the trumpet melody heard in the opening cue; for a love theme it's surprisingly mournful and is peculiarly similar to Jerry Goldsmith's Chinatown, but none the worse for that.  "The Ancestral Home" is one of the best cues, a stirring and powerful version of the main theme without the synth accompaniment.

Things take on a darker tone in "From Farm to Factory", but Williams's orchestral magic still weaves its spell.  "Back from Town" begins with some very attractive material but then turns somewhat sour and suspenseful, signaling a change in direction for the score as a whole.  "Tractor Scene" is actually fairly dissonant, representing the tougher side of life, but also reasonably anonymous.  Things do then pick up again for the final couple of cues, "A Family Meeting" - quite beautiful and also admirably restrained, not perhaps a quality often associated with Williams - and "Young Friends' Farewell", in which the guitar is again allowed to take centre-stage.  I know not many people agree, but I think that this is the kind of score that Williams is best at, in which his mastery of the orchestra is perhaps allowed to shine on a slightly smaller scale.  The River is a warm and very attractive score but, unlike many of its type, it is composed so well that there is always more to discover with each new listen.  Sadly, the CD's quite rare now, but if you can find a copy (possibly used from Amazon at the link below) then it's well worth it.

Tracks

1. The River (4:29)
2. Growing Up (2:52)
3. The Pony Ride (3:16)
4. Love Theme (4:53)
5. The Ancestral Home (4:31)
6. Rain Clouds Gather (3:06)
7. From Farm to Factory (2:44)
8. Back from Town (3:39)
9. Tractor Scene (2:18)
10. A Family Meeting (2:39)
11. Young Friends' Farewell (2:38)