"Rio Bravo" Soundtrack CD

Above, the Rio Bravo CD set. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

In 1959, the classic Howard Hawks/John Wayne western was released.

From Wikipedia:

Rio Bravo is a 1959 American Western film produced and directed by Howard Hawks and starring John Wayne, Dean Martin, Ricky Nelson, Angie Dickinson, Walter Brennan, and Ward Bond. 

Roger Ebert called Rio Bravo Hawks's "masterpiece". While that may be the case, it was aided by a great soundtrack by Dimitri Tiomkin.

I went on a little CD-buying spree last week and the first one arrived today. It is the two-disc Rio Bravo soundtrack album. This was perfect timing for me as it has been raining today and this gave me something new to listen to (maybe I'll watch the movie while having dinner tonight).

This will come in handy on long RV drives in The Beast during camping/travel season.

As I mentioned, this is a two-disc set and there's lots to enjoy. Disc One has most, if not all, music cues along with the main theme. On the case, it is listed as "The Score Part 1".

Disc 2 is a lot more enjoyable. It is listed as "The Score Part 2" with more music cues. Then it goes into the "Original Soundtrack" and "Bonus Tracks".

It is on Disc 2 that various version of "My Rifle, My Pony and Me" are presented, including the version with Dean Martin, Ricky Nelson and Walter Brennan. There's also studio versions featuring Martin alone (man, he had a smooth voice and style). There's also "Cindy" from the movie and studio versions by Nelson. And, there's a recording of Nelson singing "Restless Kid".

Also, in Disc 2, is an introduction by John Wayne of Dean Martin and Ricky Nelson.

I'd say Disc 2 is worth the purchase price alone! And, there's also a 16-page booklet!

If one is a western movie fan or just a fan of movie soundtracks, I highly recommend the Rio Bravo CD set.

My grade: A+.