CHERRY 2000

BASIL POLEDOURIS

Rating:

Original Review: Surely everyone must know by now that, at the time of writing (June 1999), this score holds the world record for the single highest amount ever paid for a soundtrack CD - $2,500, back in 1997. Cherry 2000 was released as part of the increasingly rare valuable Varèse CD Club in 1993, and has been one of the market's top collectibles ever since. There only a couple of hundred legitimate copies of this in existence. Many people have commented, quite rightly, that a rare score doesn't automatically equate to a good score but, in this case, the opposite is true. Cherry 2000 is a GREAT score.

Before hearing about the circumstances surrounding the CD, I had never even heard of this film, let alone seen it or known about the quality of the score. Apparently, the film was a 1987 science fiction flick directed by Steve De Jarnatt which starred Melanie Griffith as a futuristic female mercenary in a post-apocalyptic world sent to infiltrate a covert robotics factory run by psychos, in order to stop them taking over the remains of society with their deadly androids. Basil Poledouris wrote Cherry 2000 right around same time as he did Robocop, and it shares many musical similarities with that score, including the prominent use of electronic effects and synthesisers working alongside the regular large orchestra.

The main theme, first heard in 'Prologue' is based upon an undulating four note motif for winds and brass, and plays like the flip-side of the Robocop march. Whereas the theme for the unstoppable cyborg was large and powerful, Cherry 2000's theme has a somewhat lighter touch, as if alluding to the gentler nature of Griffith's character. The theme is highly memorable, and is afforded further excellent renditions in the xylophone driven 'Rauda', the electric guitar-led 'Drive to Gloryhole', the rhythmic 'Photograb', and the rock-driven 'Lights Out'. The other core themes, which include a rapid motif for woodwinds, synths and piano, and a slow but attractive love theme are presented in 'Lights On' and in 'Main Title', outlining the structure and melodic content of the score for the listener early on. The love theme is majestically recapitulated by the full orchestra during the lovely five-minute long 'Lester', while in 'Hooded Love' it is performed by synths to give it a much more ambient and mystical nature. Action cues such as 'The Barricades', 'Magneto', 'Thrashing of Sky Ranch' and 'Ambush In The Cave/Truck Fight' are dense and propulsive, adding a sense of power and urgency to the score.

Basil has always had a gift for writing thematically complex, yet memorable and likeable scores, but unlike other works, the orchestra in Cherry 2000 never truly rises to massive proportions. However, this is not of detriment to the album as a whole - instead, the slightly subtler performances and the increased awareness of the electronic accompaniments make it a much more involving, less overpowering listen. I like "bombastic Basil" as much as the next guy, but it's also nice to occasionally hear the music toned down a little, as it makes the intricacies of his melodies easier to define. Having never seen the film, I honestly have no idea what the music is accompanying on-screen, but it seems as though Don Davis gained inspiration for some of Bound's cue titles from Basil here - 'Hooded Love', 'Drive To Gloryhole' and 'Thrashing of Sky Ranch' sound more like tracks from a cheesy porno film to me - or maybe it's just my warped sense of humour kicking in again. Whatever the case may be, Cherry 2000 is undoubtedly an excellent score, and is surely one of Poledouris' best efforts of the late Eighties. It's a shame that so few collectors will be able to hear this marvellous composition - unless you have $2500 to spare, or a generous friend with a CD burner, of course.

Track Listing: Running Time: 39 minutes 05 seconds

Varèse Sarabande VCL-8903-1 (1987)

Music composed and conducted by Basil Poledouris. Orchestrations by Steven Scott Smalley. Album produced by Basil Poledouris.


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