Rahul Sharma (Editor)

Aliens (soundtrack)

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Released
  
October 25, 1987

Producer
  
James Horner

Movie
  
Aliens

Length
  
39:57

Release date
  
25 October 1987

Label
  
Varèse Sarabande

Aliens (soundtrack) wwwgameostcomstaticcoverssoundtracks12125

Artists
  
James Horner, London Symphony Orchestra

Genres
  
Soundtrack, Classical music

Similar
  
James Horner albums, Soundtracks

The score to the 1986 James Cameron film Aliens was composed by James Horner. The score itself includes musical references to Gayane's Adagio from Aram Khachaturian's Gayane ballet suite, which had been used in Stanley Kubrick's 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968). The score also uses musical motifs, sound treatments and excerpts from Jerry Goldsmith's original soundtrack to Alien (1979). Additional cues taken from Jerry Goldsmith's Alien score were used in the climax of the film when Horner was unable to finish some cues to Cameron's satisfaction. The film's editors also reportedly altered the score's chronological flow, sometimes looping, truncating or removing the music and placing it in fragmented form in the film out of context. Despite production issues, it was nominated for an Academy Award in 1986. It was performed by the London Symphony Orchestra. The soundtrack album was released the following year, in 1987.

Contents

Original track listing

  1. "Main Title" (5:10)
  2. "Going After Newt" (3:08)
  3. "Sub-Level 3" (6:11)
  4. "Ripley's Rescue" (3:13)
  5. "Atmosphere Station" (3:05)
  6. "Futile Escape" (8:13)
  7. "Dark Discovery" (2:00)
  8. "Bishop's Countdown" (2:47)
  9. "Resolution and Hyperspace" (6:10)

Deluxe edition track listing

  1. "Main Title" (5:13)
  2. "Bad Dreams" (1:22)
  3. "Dark Discovery/Newt's Horror" (2:07)
  4. "LV-426" (2:03)
  5. "Combat Drop" (3:29)
  6. "The Complex" (1:34)
  7. "Atmosphere Station" (3:11)
  8. "Med.Lab." (2:04)
  9. "Newt" (1:14)
  10. "Sub-Level 3" (6:36)
  11. "Ripley's Rescue" (3:19)
  12. "FaceHuggers" (4:24)
  13. "Futile Escape" (8:29)
  14. "Newt is Taken" (2:04)
  15. "Going After Newt" (3:18)
  16. "The Queen" (1:45)
  17. "Bishop's Countdown" (2:50)
  18. "Queen To Bishop" (2:31)
  19. "Resolution and Hyperspace" (6:27)
Bonus Tracks
  1. "Bad Dreams" (alternate) (1:23)
  2. "Ripley's Rescue" (percussion only) (3:20)
  3. "LV-426" (alternate edit – film version) (1:13)
  4. "Combat Drop" (percussion only) (3:24)
  5. "Hyperspace" (alternate ending) (2:08)

Special edition track listing

Disk 1
  1. "Twentieth Century Fox Fanfare" (00:15)
  2. "Main Title ~ Shuttle Discovered" (02:50)
  3. "Crew Enters Shuttle" (00:52)
  4. "Est. Gateway Station" (00:33)
  5. "Ripley's Nightmare" (01:03)
  6. "Ripley Holds Jones" (00:24)
  7. "Ripley is In ~ Transition to Sulaco" (00:44)
  8. "Sulaco Credits Planet" (00:20)
  9. "Landing Preparation Sequence Part I" (00:59)
  10. "Landing Preparation Sequence Part II" (01:59)
  11. "The Complex (Edited)" (01:14)
  12. "Searching Levels (Edited)" (02:52)
  13. "Ripley Enters Complex ~ Into Med Lab" (01:34)
  14. "Marines Detect Newt Moving" (00:40)
  15. "Bishop Exam ~ Colonists Found" (00:59)
  16. "APC to Atmosphere Processor" (00:44)
  17. "Marines Enter Alien Hive" (01:38)
  18. "Chestbuster Victim" (02:40)
  19. "Aliens Emerge" (00:59)
  20. "Aliens Attack ~ Ripley Rescue Sequence" (05:48)
  21. "Ripley Joins Newt under Bed" (00:41)
  22. "Facehugger Attack in Med Lab" (04:28)
  23. "Lights Go Off in Operations" (00:24)
  24. "Group Seals up Operations" (00:40)
  25. "Aliens Approach OPS Via Ceiling" (00:38)
  26. "Fight in OPS ~ Escape in Vents" (05:16)
  27. "Explosion Makes Newt Fall" (00:41)
  28. "Alien Takes Newt" (01:44)
  29. "Ripley Prepares (Film Edit)" (03:02)
  30. "Ripley Finds Newt in Hive" (01:44)
  31. "Ripley Confronts Queen" (01:43)
  32. "Ripley Destroys Hive" (01:14)
  33. "Queen Towards Elevator" (01:19)
  34. "Escape (Edited)" (01:19)
  35. "False End (Edited)" (00:50)
  36. "Bishop Stabbed (Edited)" (02:12)
  37. "Opening Air Lock (As On Iso Track #1)" (00:15)
  38. "Queen Shot Into Space" (00:49)
  39. "End Title (Edited)" (04:11)
Disk 2
  1. "Main Title" (05:18)
  2. "Bad Dream" (01:26)
  3. "Alright, I'm in" (01:12)
  4. "Landing Preparations" (03:34)
  5. "Landing Drop" (01:34)
  6. "Searching Levels" (02:47)
  7. "Med Lab" (02:15)
  8. "Atmosphere Station" (01:14)
  9. "Sub-Lever 3" (06:39)
  10. "Ripley to Rescue" (03:17)
  11. "Facehuggers" (04:25)
  12. "Battle in Operations" (08:23)
  13. "Alien Takes Newt" (02:04)
  14. "Ripley Prepares" (02:57)
  15. "Egg Chamber" (01:44)
  16. "Escape ~ False End" (02:50)
  17. "Bishop Stabbed" (02:15)
  18. "Opening Air Lock" (00:15)
  19. "End Titles" (05:34)
  20. "Bad Dreams (Alternate)" (01:23)
  21. "Ripley's Rescue (Percussion Only)" (03:18)
  22. "Combat Drop (Percussion Only)" (03:23)
  23. "Hyperspace (Alternate Ending)" (02:09)

Credits

  • Edited By [Music] – Michael Clifford (2), Robin Clark (3)
  • Executive-Producer – Richard Kraft, Tom Null
  • Mixed By [Music Scoring Mixer] – Eric Tomlinson
  • Orchestra – The London Symphony Orchestra
  • Orchestrated By – Greig McRitchie
  • Producer, Conductor, Composed By – James Horner

    • ℗ © 1986 Twentieth Century Fox Film Corp.

    Uses in other films and trailers

    Some of the soundtrack has been used many times in trailers for other movies. As of April 2011, there were reportedly 24 different movie trailers that used "Bishop's Countdown" alone. Some of those trailers include Misery (1990), Alien 3 (1992), Broken Arrow (1996), From Dusk Till Dawn (1996), Dante's Peak (1997), and Minority Report (2002).

    Other tracks have been used in other movies, as well, such as the use of "Resolution and Hyperspace" in Die Hard (1988) at the last action sequence in the movie.

    Songs

    1Main Title5:10
    2Going After Newt3:17
    3Sub-Level 36:08

    References

    Aliens (soundtrack) Wikipedia
    (Text) CC BY-SA