
Playtime: 1:53:49
Disc 1
1. Overture (02:57)
2. Main Title (03:04)
3. "Peking, China, the summer of the year 1900…" * (00:46)
4. Order From A Prime Minister / In The Palace * (01:47)
5. Oriental * (01:21)
6. The Water Wheel Torture * (01:38)
7. A Dead Britis* Missionary * (00:40)
8. Welcome Marines (01:56)
9. Hotel Blanc (02:26)
10. Lewis And Natasha’s First Encounter * (02:21)
11. Prince Tuan * (02:05)
12. Dance At The Britis* Embassy (Mono)* (The Belfry Two-Step) (03:07) Conducted by Herb Taylor
13. The Boxers Entertain* (02:44)
14. Natasha’s Waltz (02:22)
15. Murder Of The German Minister (02:13)
16. Mass Execution * (00:30)
17. An Empress’ Warning * (01:11)
18. Rescued From An Angry Crowd * (01:10)
19. Preparing For Battle * (02:14)
20. Natasha Visits A Chinaman * (01:39)
21. Lewis And Natasha Disagree *+ (01:11)
22. Attack On The French Legation (03:18)
23. Britis* Soldier Wounded * (00:50)
24. On Top Of The Wall * (02:07)
25. All Quiet On The Eastern Front * (Mono) (00:35)
26. Here They Come (Peking First Battle) (02:46)
27. Hospital Scene * (01:05)
28. Moon Fire (05:44)
Disc 2
1. Intermission: The Peking Theme (So Little Time) (02:29) D. Tiomkin / P.F. Webster
2. Children’s Corner (01:40)
3. At The Hospital * (01:06)
4. A Message From Admiral Sidney * (01:21)
5. Lewis And Natasha * (03:04)
6. Theresa In Danger * (01:56)
7. Religious Ceremony / Covert Operation * (04:15)
8. Spoiling The Empress’ Party: Explosion Of The Arsenal (02:39)
9. Old Soldiers Never Volunteer * (02:15)
10. Lewis Saves The Boy * (01:49)
11. Necklace For Drugs * (01:15)
12. The Truce Is Over * (01:08)
13. Theresa And Lewis * (01:01)
14. Death Of Natasha+ (02:52)
15. A New Kind Of Weapon * (02:28)
16. Peking Second Battle (00:45)
17. Bad News * (02:18)
18. Attack On The Compound * (01:51)
19. Help Arrives (02:52)
20. The Empress Alone * (01:37)
21. Auld Lang Syne* (Sir Arthur And Lewis Say Goodbye) (00:42)
22. End Title (01:37)
23. Exit Music: The Peking Theme (So Little Time) (02:50) D. Tiomkin / P.F. Webster Vocal: Andy Williams
24. So Little Time* (Mono) EP version (02:15)
25. March* (Mono) EP version (01:56)
26. Natasha* (Mono) EP version (01:57)
27. Theresa* (Mono) EP version (02:06)
28. So Little Time (Mono) Single version (02:16)
29. Moon Fire (Mono) Single version (02:02)
* Previously unreleased + Unused in film
Download 55DaysPeking.zip for free on Filesonic.com (http://www.filesonic.com/file/4079867605/55DaysPeking.zip)
How are you listening to this? hopefully not with your Ipod Ear Buds, perish the thought.
There is a bit of hiss throughout when played at higher volumes but considering the age (almost 50 years) and the fact the original release had around 40 minutes or so, this is a worthy release.
When played on my high end home stereo it sounds fantastic, although I haven’t tried on my Ipod yet, perhaps this afternoon I will.
The liner notes also make mention of tracks that are presented in mono, it’s a bit disconcerting at first listen to hear the mono to stereo transition.
Thank you
I tend to agree with this, though I’d stop short of calling it "the most inferior"–I’ve certainly heard worse. And I would also comment on WildwoodPark’s reply to your post that there’s no particular reason why a 50 year old recording should sound inferior. By 1963, when this film was made, most recordings were of a very good quality, and certainly Samuel Bronston never stinted on buying the best equipment. Besides, King of Kings, made 2 years before, sounds noticeably better. I’m inclined to think it has to do with the storing of the tapes, though I’m not informed enough to comment further. I do wonder though why a company putting out material of this quality doesn’t use a simple equaliser to improve the sound, such as any home user could do (and I’ve done many times with these "fingernails on a blackboard" recordings). I mean, it’s not as if the original sound is so great it has to be preserved at all costs.
Sure a few tracks sound archival but I would hardly suggest that you have to be a crazy obsessed tiomkin fan to enjoy this. It sounds pretty amazing for the age and most of the tracks are crisp and clean, especially in my lossless copy on CD. Like with most older scores, not everything survived in the same condition and some things sound worse than others, but I am very satisfied with the audio here.