
Hi Gals and Guys! Today I’m going to share my 4th Deluxe Edition for ‘The Shadow’, an obscure movie from 1994, directed by Russel Mulcahy (of ‘Highlander’ fame). Jerry Goldsmith wrote the music for it and he seems to have been very inspired as he composed a fairly complex score considering that he ceased to do so after ‘Total Recall’ (Thread 226520). He took the opportunity to slightly mock the very genre it belongs to (just like the movie did). He devised a theme that’s reminiscent of Danny Elfman’s Batman theme, including the same major/minor mode shifts to represent duality. But before I dive into filmtracks.com (http://filmtracks.com/titles/shadow.html) territory, I better stop 🙂 I’ve always loved the score. And once I got my hand on additional music I started to remaster it. More than a decade ago, samlowry (http://forums.ffshrine.org/member.php?u=407738) provided me with additional files. This all happened within another forum, one that’s long been gone. It wasn’t complete but it was a start. The resulting Deluxe Edition was shared here (one of my first in fact) but the thread was deleted at some point. When Intrada released the complete score in 2012 I bought it and immediately remastered it for my own listening pleasure. But I was never happy (I didn’t spend the necessary time with it) with what I did and when I got to know Fink (http://forums.ffshrine.org/member.php?u=112417) in 2015 I remastered it again as he didn’t know it and wanted to listen to it. That was Version 3.0. For the release today, I expanded upon that remaster and improved it considerably.
The Intrada version has several shortcomings I’ve described in detail before. Most unnerving are the constant gain fluctuations from track to track, sometimes within the same piece; Douglass Fake (who mastered it) thinks he doesn’t employ dynamic compression but that’s exactly what he does. I also didn’t like the overall frequency response and I didn’t like that so many pieces were seperate when the opposite would have been helpful for musical flow. What turned it into a very tedious listening experience was the fact that you sometimes couldn’t hear soft parts of the music. While this is how it was recorded and represents the organic dynamic range of an orchestra, it’s not very pleasant to listen to in everyday situations. I solved this by using dynamic compression (with manual faders… and I don’t have any reservations calling it what it is). I have done so for most of the scores I’ve been working on. The frequency response made the score sound thin and brittle, "warmth" was missing. I also changed that, it has more impact now but doesn’t sound as "charming" (aka muffled) as my first Deluxe Edition. I also remixed at least one piece: "The Mirrors (Alternate)". Compared to the rest it was sounding very distant and very different. I brought it closer to the rest and diminished reverb a little (as it contains much more reverb than the rest of the score). Please note that I also deleted the material that wasn’t the score by Goldsmith, if you want to listen to that you’d have to buy the Intrada. If you look at the tracklist below you will notice fewer tracks compared to the Intrada yet musical contents are the same. As usual, I combined tracks as often as possible and when it made sense so if you don’t like that, don’t download it.
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Something else left to say? Well, this score has developed into one of my favourite Goldsmith scores over the years, I love it and now I also love its sound. So please, have fun! 🙂
Tracklist:
01. The Poppy Fields
02. The clouded Mind
03. I’ll be there
04. No Shadow
05. Secrets
06. Don’t open it!
07. Do you believe?
08. The Sanctum
09. Who are you?
10. The Code
11. The Call
12. No Thought
13. Chest Pains
14. A Mission
15. Nice Tie
16. The Knife
17. What I know
18. The Jumper
19. The Tank
20. The Dream
21. Get Dr. Lane
22. The Hotel
23. Fight like a Man
24. The Mirrors
25. The Mirrors (Alternate)
26. Frontal Lobotomy
To War or not to War
Yes, this is still a Loudness War release. I’m sick of catering to just one crowd: Audiophiles. I cannot ignore other people who simply don’t care about sound. I may not like that… but hey, who am I to be so high and mighty? Mastering is making compromises. The compromise is that something should play well anywhere. And if that means that it’s as loud as possible, so be it. I became aware of it when someone wrote to me in private that he never hears a difference to the official versions, only that my Editions are softer. Meaning that people don’t know that if something is softer it probably has more dynamic range. They may have heard about the Loudness War but only because other people mentioned it. The fact is that other people have better things to do than to bother themselves with things not important to them. That’s how it should be, you know. For that reason I will from now on offer two versions: an Audiophile Version and a Loudness War version. The latter will encompass lossless and lossy releases, the former only lossless. The difference between them is bit depth, samplerate and brickwall limiting. The Audiophile version lacks it, the Loudness War version is limited. I have to say, even the sound of the Loudness War version is pretty good (I have the good stuff… erm, tools).
Which version should you take?
Simple: have you ever heard the expression Loudness War? No? Then take exactly that version, either FLAC or MP3. You don’t really care about sound but you want something a little different, a little more modern? The same. If you can’t stand something that’s dynamically limited or if you believe in the superiority of HiRes, take the Audiophile version. Easy, no?
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Audiophile FLAC (24/48):
https://www.mirrored.to/files/0B7BCUZW/HeKnowsEvil.rar_links
Loudness War FLAC & MP3:
https://www.mirrored.to/files/USBCFX6E/HeDoesntKnowIt.part1.rar_links
https://www.mirrored.to/files/0W06WUGF/HeDoesntKnowIt.part2.rar_links
Password for all: ScarletLipsAndBoatSizedCars
and you think you are better then him?
Lol
and you think you are better them him?
Lol
well said
and you think you are better them him?
Lol
well said
No, it wasn’t. It wasn’t helpful at all. Download it, listen and THEN say that this is worse and why. I couldn’t find one word where Sonic said that he was better than Douglass Fake. This was Sonic’s personal take on it. Nothing more, nothing less.
That said – Thanks for the upload and all the work put into it.
Cant you see it?
That said – Thanks for the upload and all the work put into it.
No This…. IS WELL Said.
Same as what he did with Rambo First Blood Part II.
Now The Shadow.
What,s Next? Attacking Mike Matesinno?
and you think you are better then him?
Lol
And why not ? Mr Fake is out there to make a living on selling discs, he may not put his time in bringing us the utmost sonic quality, while SonicAdventure probably has some marvelous short circuits in his mind which allow
him to offer us fantastic upgrades to enjoy.
You’re always free to stick to the original if you want.
Another great score to rediscover. Great stuff, man.
him to offer us fantastic upgrades to enjoy.
You’re always free to stick to the original if you want.
Another great score to rediscover. Great stuff, man.
I,m sure it,s not just his living selling discs.I,m sure it,s his passion to release it in the best sound out there in complete chronological form.
I,m very grateful having the 2 cd Intrada set.It sounds Great and nothing can improve on that period.
Same as what he did with Rambo First Blood Part II.
Now The Shadow.
What,s Next? Attacking Mike Matesinno?
The only reason why Douglass Fake does the mastering for the Intrada releases is to save money. Nothing more. He is the head of the company alongside Roger Feigelson so he is – for Intrada – the cheapest mastering engineer they don’t even need to hire. And why? Mastering costs money. Good mastering takes time and time is money. I have said it before, I like Douglass Fake personally. But his mastering? Not so. If some mastering engineer does a sloppy job, I’m allowed to say so. I’m also allowed to do something about it. As it happens, I’m a mastering engineer myself. Which puts me in a favourable position, wouldn’t you agree?
I would love it if I wouldn’t need to do anything. You know, I actually buy those releases. They are fairly expensive. For the money, I can expect the full or expanded score, a nicely designed booklet and the best sound possible. In short, a quality product. In 95% of all cases the sound is mediocre or worse than releases before and I always have to work on it. I’m spending my time to improve the sound, something for which I usually take money myself. And because I don’t care about money only (you see, scores happen to be a hobby of mine) I share the result of the time I spent on these scores with all of you.
I’m uploading here and you want to know my real life name? Are you kidding?
Well, I won’t say.
Actually, I not only love the score, I also like the movie. There are some scenes in it that are either hilarious, quite clever or both. And the movie looks fantastic.
Thank You so much for sharing this newly improved version with us! 🙂
"Actually, I not only love the score, I also like the movie. There are some scenes in it that are either hilarious, quite clever or both. And the movie looks fantastic."
I couldn’t agree more.
Thank You so much for sharing this newly improved version with us! 🙂
Don’t be so quick with your praise, maybe you won’t like it 😉
Now, you must do Supergirl next. Bad movie, but it contains a great score by Goldsmith. I remember the Silva Screen Records CD having a somewhat decent sound, but I think it could use a few improvements here and there.
Completely agree. Also happened to be my favourite score. Thank you for this! And remember having your 1st edit many years ago.
Now, you must do Supergirl next. Bad movie, but it contains a great score by Goldsmith. I remember the Silva Screen Records CD having a somewhat decent sound, but I think it could use a few improvements here and there.
If he’s gonna do that one, I have a resource for him. 🙂
I’m quite sure he already did a Deluxe Edition of Supergirl…..
Peter is correct, I do have a Deluxe Edition for Supergirl. But it isn’t very good so I never shared it here (though I seem to remember that I did – but I can’t find it anymore).
If he’s gonna do that one, I have a resource for him. 🙂
Something additional to the Silva??
I also like the the flying sequences and the film’s playfulness and comedic tone (similar to Superman III), but the Argo City start has some very wooden acting from Mia Farrow, Simon Ward and Peter O’Toole.
Sonic I have a tech question though what is the cause for a CD release to sound lower in volume then the Original LP release?
Same company released both but the CD version sounds so much lower in volume then the Original Vinyl? Is there something that could be do to bring it up?
I kinda hinted about this score in your Total Recall thread but I can’t really mention the title due to right issues.
Just thought I could ask if not np Have A Great Week & again Thanks!
I also like the the flying sequences and the film’s playfulness and comedic tone (similar to Superman III), but the Argo City start has some very wooden acting from Mia Farrow, Simon Ward and Peter O’Toole.
Forgive me… but the Silva release for Supergirl sounds truly awful 😉 The mastering engineer has just one orchestral release under his belt: Supergirl. It was processed with some dubious technology all the rage in certain circles back then. The overall sound of the Silva attempts to linearize the frequency response… but it’s a recording done by Eric Tomlinson. Which can’t be linearized without ill effect. If you want the original sound you’d have to look for the Varese version of that score. It can be used as a starting point and then the result will be ok.
———- Post added at 03:52 PM ———- Previous post was at 03:47 PM ———-
Thanks for your hard work and time, I like this soundtrack as well and was so disappointed in the Original Release. Looking forward to listening to this.
Sonic I have a tech question though what is the cause for a CD release to sound lower in volume then the Original LP release?
Same company released both but the CD version sounds so much lower in volume then the Original Vinyl? Is there something that could be do to bring it up?
I kinda hinted about this score in your Total Recall thread but I can’t really mention the title due to right issues.
Just thought I could ask if not np Have A Great Week & again Thanks!
Go ahead and mention it, this is not the FSM forum where something like that will get you expelled. We can mention certain releases but we’re not allowed to share them 🙂
There are several reasons why a vinyl release might seem louder, the most likely reason would be dynamic compression (not to be mistaken with data compression, aka mp3). Vinyl has very limited dynamic capabilities (difference between soft and loud), furthermore, soft parts will always be distorted because of the formats’ inherent flaws. On CD you don’t need dynamic compression as it has a much bigger dynamic range than vinyl (and no low-level errors to boot). So for the score you’re referring to, it is entirely possible for the vinyl to be dynamically compressed while the CD version was lacking this dynamic compression.
Thank again for the time you take to do these Deluxe Editions I like them very much and hope that none of the negative talk will stop you.
Sorry folks for all the jabber I just really have wondered about this!
Thank again for the time you take to do these Deluxe Editions I like them very much and hope that none of the negative talk will stop you.
Sorry folks for all the jabber I just really have wondered about this!
Which famous soundtrack? Brian May wrote a few in fact 😉
And what negative talk? I don’t think you were negative at all so don’t beat yourself up.
Scott
I also re-watched the movie a few weeks back, it’s not that bad.
I also would like to join you in my dislike of Doug Fake’s mastering approach, in particular circa 2012 when he did the Shadow (I haven’t really analysed his most recent efforts). Music should be enjoyed without having to constantly adjust the volume level while listening. So thanks for transforming a frustrating experience into a very pleasurable one!
Excellent job as each time!
I also would like to join you in my dislike of Doug Fake’s mastering approach, in particular circa 2012 when he did the Shadow (I haven’t really analysed his most recent efforts). Music should be enjoyed without having to constantly adjust the volume level while listening. So thanks for transforming a frustrating experience into a very pleasurable one!
Well, you were the first who shared an expanded version. When was it? Back in 2008? So ten years ago. Wow.
And your reason is exactly mine. Dynamic range is important and "correct" – but ultimately not very pleasant to listen to.
Have A Great Week.
I actually don’t remember the first three movies. I’ve seen them but it was too long ago. I plan to re-watch them in the near future.
And I meant all the bad replies people post in your threads, I just don’t get it, folks offer something different for free and people just want to complain and say their negative opinion, instead of just saying Thank You!
Well, I have my opinion and I can come across too strong when voicing it. Some people then take offence, it’s only natural. And the guy who was complaining about me criticizing Douglass Fake actually has a point – but he brought it along so stupidly that he effectively was just trolling.
Anyway I thought about all info you gave me and I also think this is the same case as Bernard Herrmann’s PSYCHO Soundtrack. Low budget, cheap Low Quality recording conditions.
I can recommend the re-recording by Joel McNeely on Var�se, it’s very good. Sound could be even better though.
can never get tired of this one.
I really need to buy the Shout!Factory remaster.
can never get tired of this one.
I really need to buy the Shout!Factory remaster.
Huh? Does it exist? I didn’t find it.
EDIT: found it! 😀
You’re too charming, thank you 🙂
Calling me a leech from the start ,now i,m trolling?
You should Behave and Maintain!
You should Behave and Maintain!
Why don’t you go ahead and block me? That way you won’t read any bullshit I write.
can never get tired of this one.
I really need to buy the Shout!Factory remaster.
Yeah, some people find it too saturated/colorful.
But, given how the whole movie is, I think it’s perfect.
Because then that would mean he no longer has anything to do, and he just won’t stand for that! 😀
You might be right.
———- Post added at 01:50 AM ———- Previous post was at 01:46 AM ———-
Yeah, some people find it too saturated/colorful.
But, given how the whole movie is, I think it’s perfect.
Depends how colourful "too saturated" is. If skintones are wrong, in that case it might look strange. But for the rest? Why not?
I notice there’s no Taylor Dayne on your version 😉
I notice there’s no Taylor Dayne on your version 😉
Thanks! Always great to see someone who enjoyed the movie, especially when critics didn’t really like it back then (except maybe Roger Ebert and a few others). About Taylor Dayne: When I uploaded this it suddenly dawned on me and I thought "Fuck, I forgot the songs!". I don’t think that the song is great. But it’s serviceable and in the end was put to better use within this musical (Dance Of The Vampires?).
I also enjoyed The Phantom when it came out. Those pulp-era comics made fun movies, but not for everyone (or critics).
And the song is not great. Taylor Dane peaked in ’87. 😉
Thanks again!!!
———- Post added at 12:09 PM ———- Previous post was at 12:02 PM ———-
Many thanks for sharing.
And the song is not great. Taylor Dane peaked in ’87. 😉
Thanks again!!!
Yes, and they didn’t take themselves too seriously. Always a good thing. So a little guilty pleasure.
And the song is top-drawer Steinman. If anyone says differently, I WILL FIGHT YOU.
As always, S.A., you are a god among men.
Listened to your presentation today and it’s great. Love the warmth and the depth you added. Listened to both Mirrors cues and marveled, also how you brought the love theme out a bit more. Cheers for this!
And the song is top-drawer Steinman. If anyone says differently, I WILL FIGHT YOU.
As always, S.A., you are a god among men.
awesome. 🙂
Thanks a lot!
Well, I checked all of the links (for the Audiophile version), and the only one I found working was from "BayFiles", but because all the other links have been removed, I’m pretty sure that link will be removed sooner than later. So heres one to make things easier for the time being.
https://www.mediafire.com/file/jh1747an9t9w3pi/Shadow+Deluxe+Edition.zip
All credit goes to SonicAdventure for this amazing set. 🙂
https://www.mediafire.com/file/jh1747an9t9w3pi/Shadow+Deluxe+Edition.zip
All credit goes to SonicAdventure for this amazing set. 🙂
Many thanks to SonicAdventure and to you for Mediafire link!
also big thanks for original up-loader and poster SonicAdventure …