Product Description
Amazon.co.uk Review
Kim Basinger's romance in the wild is very much about Nature's beauty. As a composer, Jarre is a natural to capture both a sense of the expansive landscapes and inner beauty of the woman. This album gives us very lengthy cues for a film score (none under six minutes, most over eight) that paint consistently broad musical images. The opening "Arrival In Africa" has the feel of a travelogue aboard a safari jeep, as rolling melodies peak and trough to the undulating scenery. This is punctuated by favourably recorded ethnic percussion ensembles; the effect is like passing swiftly through a village dance. The chirpy motif for Basinger keeps re-appearing after its introduction, but enjoys its most resplendent rendition in the truly joyous and uplifting finale of "Kuki's Determination". Jarre's score in-between suffers only minor interruption: there are two sourced tracks from Ayub Ogada featuring his Afrikaans vocals and light ensemble backing, and "Kel Kweyo" from Geoffrey Oryema, which sustains the geographic atmosphere just as well. The only real surprise is the segue midway through "Death and Misery" into Richard Strauss' "Im Abendrot". Fans of Jarre's percussionist origins will appreciate the furious set-piece outbursts earlier in the cue. --Paul Tonks
