The Best of Godzilla 1954-1975: Original Movie Soundtracks

Perhaps the most underrated element of Kaiju Eiga (the Japanese term for the prolific, internationally successful monster genre spawned by Godzilla) is its earnest, nightmarish music. The Toho Studios series' cheese-factor may have waxed and waned (mostly the former) in ensuing years, but its music maintained a remarkably even keel. The dark, often minimalist efforts of original composer Akira Ifukube set the tone, coloring much of the toy-city stomping with ominous, nerve-wracking cues.

This is a great collection of old soundtrack tunes and monster sound effects from the various Godzilla movies during the 1954-75 era. The best parts of this compilation are the first half. The earliest Godzilla music is a bit lo-fi, circa 1954, but the compositions can often be considered classic, and are quickly recognizable. The tracks "Godzilla Comes Ashore" and "Godzilla's Rampage" are two of the most menacing pieces that I have ever heard. They create an atmosphere of certain doom in their slow dramatic buildup. These earliest songs are written so well that they overcome the primitive recording techniques and are very enjoyable anyway. Since the songs are in chronological order matching the release dates of each film, the lo-fi recording quality only last for the first 10 minutes. By the time we get to Godzilla vs. Mothra, (including the priceless singing by the tiny twin girls), the recording quality seems perfectly normal.

The second half of the CD leaves behind the grand themes and monumentally moody atmosphere, and the later music starts to reflect the swinging 60's, Playboy mansion-type atmosphere that is kind of cheesy for trying to be so hip and contemporary. Some of it sort of sounds like the cocktail retro surf sounds that were en vogue in the late 1990's, except these tunes are actually from the authentic era of the 1960's, so it's this crazy Japanese version of trying to mimic American surf and cocktail music. Beautifully campy!

The editors of this CD did a very good job of collecting the best choices from each film, and not repeating basic melody themes too often, unless the theme has been significantly rearranged using different sounding musical instruments. So even though Godzilla films all contain the Godzilla theme song, this CD spreads it out so it isn't too redundant, but rather interesting to hear the different arrangement from many years apart in recording dates.

Track List:
1. Godzilla 1954 - Footsteps FX
2. Godzilla 1954 - Main Title
3. Godzilla 1954 - Ootojima Temple Festival
4. Godzilla 1954 - Japanese Army March
5. Godzilla 1954 - Godzilla Comes Ashore
6. Godzilla 1954 - Godzilla's Rampage
7. Godzilla 1954 - Ending
8. Godzilla Raids Again - Main TitleMasaru Satoh1:24
9. King Kong Vs. Godzilla - Helicopter/Man Screams/SOS FX
10. King Kong Vs. Godzilla - Main Title
11. King Kong Vs. Godzilla - King Kong Roars FX
12. King Kong Vs. Godzilla - Planning King Kong's Transport
13. Mothra - Mothra's Song
14. Mothra Vs. Godzilla - Mothra FX
15. Mothra Vs. Godzilla - Main Title
16. Mothra Vs. Godzilla - Sacred Springs
17. Ghidorah the Three Headed Monster - Main Title/Monsters Appear In Yokohama
18. Invasion of the Astro-Monster - UFO Approaches/Monsters Fight FX/Monster Battle March
19. Son of Godzilla - Main Title
20. Son of Godzilla - Godzilla Vs. Kumonga
21. Son of Godzilla - Ending
22. Destroy All Monsters - Godzilla FX / Toho Mark / Main Title
23. Destroy All Monsters - Title Credits
24. Destroy All Monsters - Four Monsters Attack Tokyo
25. Destroy All Monsters - Destroying The Remote Control
26. Destroy All Monsters - Showdown On Mt. Fuji
27. Destroy All Monsters - Ending
28. Monsters Attack - Cute Kid Theme / Monsters Fight
29. Godzilla Vs. Hedorah - Godzilla's Fight
30. Godzilla Vs. Gigan - Main Title
31. Godzilla Vs. Gigan - Main Title Repeat
32. Godzilla Vs. Gigan - Godzilla March (Record Version)
33. Godzilla Vs. Megalon - Jet Jaguar / Megalon FX
34. Godzilla Vs. Megalon - Main Title
35. Godzilla Vs. Megalon - Godzilla Of Monster Island
36. Godzilla Vs. MechaGodzilla - MechaGodzilla FX
37. Godzilla Vs. MechaGodzilla - Godzilla Vs. Anguiras
38. Godzilla Vs. MechaGodzilla - Miyarabi's Prayer
39. Terror of MechaGodzilla - Main Title
40. Terror of MechaGodzilla - MechaGodzilla II
41. Terror of MechaGodzilla - Godzilla's Entrance
42. Terror of MechaGodzilla - Ending
43. Theme From Godzilla

Download: The Best of Godzilla 1954-1975 (113.9MB)