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Review

The original “Titanic” soundtrack was a great commercial success, and also the sheer length of this most successful movie ever demanded for a second soundtrack. Here it is. Is it a worthy release, or a mere rehash? 

Many of the more prominent pieces of the film have been included: the Irish party music, Alexander's Ragtime Band, Nearer My God To Thee, and (unfortunately) Come Josephine In My Flying Machine. The piano version of the main theme (called “The Portrait”), which is played by James Horner himself and heard when Jack is painting Rose, is appreciated, too. However, you will not hear the original versions of all of these pieces as they appear in the movie, which might disappoint you (it did disappoint me). Sadly, the recording of the piano piece is lacking some directness and clarity. Also, I would have expected to see “Eternal father strong to save” on the track list. This song was used to great effect in the score to the movie Crimson Tide. And I still miss the icy sounds from the scene where the ill-fated passengers of the Titanic float in the freezing water.

Instead we get another Irish folk music piece, which I personally do not like. And we get another version of Celine Dion's “My Heart Will Go On” (the Pop ballad version of the main theme), a missing piece from the original score (“A Building Panic”), and a lengthy Titanic suite, which is a good idea, but at that opportunity I would have preferred a full replacement of the synthesized choir with a human choir. The new orchestral tracks are performed by the London Symphony Orchestra. I think they are somehow imperfect. They sound well, but they lack the spirit the original music had. The original versions were more to the point. Some of the old themes now have been altered and extended, e.g. in “Epilogue”, but not in an entirely convincing way. And somehow I do not like the Irish pipes any more. 

Yes, this album may be called a rehash by some. But if you liked the music of Titanic very much, you will enjoy this CD as well. It's just not the original any more at times. Note that there are some dialog samples from the film, which I appreciate.

Track Rating

	Title	Time
1	Titanic Suite	19:05
2	An Irish Party In Third Class	3:49
3	Alexander's Ragtime Band	2:31
4	The Portrait	4:43
5	Jack Dawson's Luck	5:39
6	A Building Panic	8:09
7	Nearer My God To Thee	2:50	-
8	Come Josephine, In My Flying Machine	3:32	-
9	Lament	4:37
10	A Shore Never Reached	4:27
11	My Heart Will Go On (song)	4:43	-
12	Nearer My God To Thee	2:22
13	Epilogue - The Deep And Timeless Sea	12:37
		79:07

Overall Rating

Add 1 if you are a fan of Irish folk music.