The best movie soundtrack ever? Tuscaloosa News readers sound off

In a summer when Indiana Jones and "Mission Impossible" sequels return to the big screen — along with revival/revisits to oldies at the Bama Theatre, and through the Hollywood 16's classics showings — thumping, soothing, danceable, easily recalled movie themes play not just within theaters, but in our heads.

Though the name Lalo Schifrin, composer of more than 200 film and TV projects, might not leap immediately to mind, his 5/4 time, funky-driving theme to the "MI" TV series and films almost certainly could. If any film composer's become a household name, it's John Williams, the trivia go-to guess to "Who wrote that theme?," because odds are, if you can hum it, he did.

More: DeLorean Time Machine replica to appear at Bama Theatre's 'Back to the Future' showing

What movie soundtracks/themes are your favorites? The ones that make your heart pound, draw you out of yourself and into another time and place? And why? What is it about that particular melody, beat or whatnot?

If others would like to add their thoughts to the online story, email mark.cobb@tuscaloosanews.com.

Top media responses so far: Anything/everything by John Williams. The Queens-born, L.A.-raised composer cooked up "Jaws," "E.T., The Extra-Terrestrial," "Schindler's "List," "Saving Private Ryan," and numerous others, including franchise works for Star Wars, Indiana Jones, Harry Potter, Jurassic Park, and four Superman movies. Winner of nine Academy Awards, he's been nominated for more Oscars (53) than anyone except Walt Disney (59).

• Chris Gordon: "Everything John Williams, the greatest film composer of all time. His ability to brand melodic motifs to characters and or emotions (love, patriotism, victory, etc.) helps tell the story through music, even when there is no dialog to speak that information. Much like opera (Wagner) of which he knew well."

• Valerie E. Trull: "... anything John Williams. His music is just perfect for whatever subject matter he takes on. Probably has some connection to playing a compilation of his movie themes in high school band."

• Paul Whitehurst: " 'Schindler's List.' I'm sure no explanation is necessary, but imagine the movie without a soundtrack. I've only seen it maybe twice because the emotional impact is too demanding on my psyche. The closing scene is particularly hard, and that's primarily due to the score."

• Thomas 'Flip' Lower: "I can't speak for the entire soundtrack, but the main theme from ('Schindler's List') is quite capable of bringing me to tears."

• David Derringer: "I am obsessed with Indiana Jones. Or at least I was when I was a kid and the music immediately puts me back into that place and the sense of imagination and adventure. I have a ton of paraphernalia and dolls and comic books from the Indiana Jones franchise."

James Bond, the Godfather and 'Lord of the Rings'

Other franchises praised included the trios of "Godfather" and "Lord of the Rings" films, and the seemingly never-ending run of 007 music.

• Ana Self Schuber: "For me it is the 'Lord of the Rings' series (Editor's note: Scored by Howard Shore, who won three Oscars for the series, two for best score, and one for best song, 'Into the West' from 'Return of the King'). But then it seems that each generation has its own unique, yet not so unique, series of 'good versus evil' story lines. The Bible did that for a very long time. Narnia, Lord of The Rings, Star Trek, Star Wars and Harry Potter all strike at the same emotions, same story, same-same. One wonders what will come next .… it seems we 'have' to have them. We cling to them as we age. I still, when seeing a red sunset immediately think of Mordor, and I am 68."

• Will North Cleckler: "All of Howard Shore's 'LOTR' scores. For me, there is no close second place."

• Wescott Youngson: " 'The Godfather' score perfectly sets the tone for what is to come. Stark, Ominous and at times grandiose. (Editor's note: Nino Rota composed for all three Francis Ford Coppola films. Rota was also famous for his scores for Franco Zeffirelli's 1968 'Romeo and Juliet,' and Federico Fellini's 1960 'La Dolce Vita,' and 1963 '8 1/2')."

• Derringer: "... the James Bond theme song as well as almost all the title songs from each of the Bond movies. Good or bad, they all perfectly match the era from which they were written, and I can tell you immediately what movie the song was from and who was the Bond actor for that film. Some still hold the test of time, such as 'Goldfinger' and 'Live and Let Die.' And others such as 'Skyfall' I think will still be on the list 50 years from now of all time greatest Bond songs. But all in all, there is something about the brass section in all of these iconic pieces that is perfect for a grand adventure of whip cracking or Q gadgetry. They just scream, 'What you are about to see is larger than life, so buckle up for a wild ride!' "

Composer-performers of Bond songs have ranged from Paul McCartney to Sheryl Crow to Chris Cornell to Adele to Billie Eilish, with singers including Shirley Bassey, Tom Jones, Nancy Sinatra, Carly Simon, Garbage's Shirley Manson, Tina Turner, Rita Coolidge and Gladys Knight performing songs written by others.

The brassy "James Bond Theme," with twangy surf-guitar line played by Vic Flick, and written by Monty Norman, has been in every one of the movies since the debut 1962 "Dr. No." Other composers who've written for the 50-plus years of Eon Productions Bond films include John Barry, David Arnold, Thomas Newman, George Martin (producer for The Beatles), Bill Conti, Michael Kamen, Marvin Hamlisch, Éric Serra and Hans Zimmer.

• Suzy Lea: "Although it isn't and never was a blockbuster, Aimee Mann did the entire soundtrack for the film, 'Magnolia.' Every song on that soundtrack is so perfect and powerful! That film even made Tom Cruise bearable!" (Editor's note: Director Paul Thomas Anderson wove Mann's music into the film both as atmospheric tracks and digetic sound: At one pivotal moment, virtually everyone in the ensemble movie sings her song 'Wise Up.' Mann's song 'Save Me' was nominated for an Oscar).

• Dianne Teague: "Although the movie no longer moves me, Max Steiner’s powerful and haunting music for 'Gone With the Wind' always will."

• Molly Page: "The score to Disney's 'Hunchback of Notre Dame' (Editor's Note: By Alan Menken and Stephen Schwartz) is a masterpiece, in my opinion. I adore its ability to be gentle and swelling, poignant and dramatic."

• Gordon: "Dave Grusin’s soundtrack and scoring for the film 'On Golden Pond' is excellent for setting the mood of the location and the characters. ... Quincy Jones, 'In the Heat of the Night' and 'They Call Me Mr. Tibbs,' 'The Color Purple,' always speaks to the ethnicity and struggle of Black characters in principal roles. The greatest Black film composer!"

• Paul Horwitz: "In recent years, 'Arrival' (Editor's note: Johann Johannsson), 'Interstellar,' (Editor's note: Zimmer) and 'Dune' (Editor's note: Zimmer and others). Overlooked and brilliant is the late Johannsson’s score for 'Mandy.' Michael Brook for 'Brooklyn.' Carter Burwell for 'Miller’s Crossing,' one of the last acceptable uses of faux-Celtic before it became an over-saturated device. Peter Gabriel for 'The Last Temptation of Christ.' Michael Nyman for 'The End of the Affair' and the odds and ends of Nyman that adorned 'The Trip.' "

Musicals and compilations

Many favored musicals adapted from stage shows, while others like compilations using existing music.

• Zee Evelsizer: "I love both 'Man of La Mancha' and 'The Music Man' (musicals first, I know) because I grew up with them and can sing all the songs! There are lots of great film soundtracks, but 'A Clockwork Orange' is in my opinion one of the best ever uses of music to enhance a film. (Editor's note: Director Stanley Kubrick set his dark parody to classical, folk and pop music from Beethoven to Elgar to Rossini, with original early-synthesizer music by Wendy Carlos)."

• Johnny Townsend: "I watched the original 'The Magnificent Seven' (1960) with Yul Brynner and Steve McQueen a couple of nights ago. That theme is still one of the most stirring out there. (Editor's note: Elmer Bernstein's score earned an Oscar nomination). But, for overall soundtracks, it's still hard to beat the original 'West Side Story' (Editor's note: The 1961 movie, from the musical by Stephen Sondheim and Leonard Bernstein; no relation to Elmer Bernstein, though they were friends). Sondheim and Bernstein are at the head of the class to this day."

• Soapy Jones: "The soundtracks that stick with me through the years are 'Flash Gordon' and 'The Highlander' (Editor's note: Both performed and scored by Queen). I also enjoy the soundtracks to all the Simon Pegg movies, especially the Cornetto Trilogy: 'Shawn of the Dead,' Hot Fuzz' and 'The World's End.' (Editor's note: Each features mixed bags of punk, pop and metal, along with original music)."

• Wade Woodall: " 'Pretty in Pink' I was a senior in high school when it came out in ‘86. I was a fan of several of the bands on the soundtrack (New Order, OMD, the Psychedelic Furs, INXS, etc.) and it really takes me back to those days when I hear those songs."

• Sheldon Rosenzweig: " 'Wonder Boys'! The whole deal. (Editor's note: The whole deal included Bob Dylan's Oscar-winning original song 'Things Have Changed,' and a mix of existing blues, classic rock, pop and film music, plus two more songs by Dylan)."

• Jo Russell: "It’s corny and old-fashioned but so am I. 'The Sound of Music' makes my heart happy and I can sing every word. Benny and I visited most of the places in and around Salzburg where it was filmed. It is such a clean and joyful musical that brings back nice memories to my soul."

• Julia McNair: " 'Out of Africa' (Editor's note: Including works by Mozart, along with folk songs, and an original by Al Jarreau and Melissa Manchester) is so beautiful and evokes the soaring wonder of exploration and experiencing a place for the first time. 'Valley Girl' (Editor's note: Lots of then-contemporary '80s songs by the Plimsouls, Josie Cotton, Eddy Grant, Modern English, the Psychedelic Furs and others) is just '80s perfection. Like, totally. Fer sure.

• Athena Tselios Shore: " 'Singles' (Editor's note: Featuring original songs by Paul Westerberg of the Replacements, along with a lot of Seattle-area musicians including Eddie Vedder, Chris Cornell, Mudhoney, and other classic and punk rockers). It reminds my of that particular time in music and my life. I love grunge."

• Beth Stomps Feller: " 'Footloose!' 'Goonies!' 'Back to the Future!' 'Breakfast Club!' "

• Paige Nokoseh: " 'The Karate Kid,' 'Grease,' 'Footloose,' 'Saturday Night Fever,' 'Pretty in Pink,' 'Pulp Fiction' …. I love a good soundtrack!"

Reach Mark Hughes Cobb at mark.cobb@tuscaloosanews.com.

This article originally appeared on The Tuscaloosa News: What's the best movie soundtrack? Tuscaloosa News readers weigh in