Celebrating the Score: Raiders of the Lost Ark
The first in a three-part appreciation of John Williams’s scores for the Indiana Jones series
I intend to write about the greatest film composer of all time on a regular basis in this publication. John Williams essentially scored my childhood, as well as a significant part of my adult life. I return to his music again and again, and to my mind, his genius remains unsurpassed.
So far, I’ve contributed one piece on Williams, concerning his more underrated work. Now it’s time to tackle one of the biggies: His music for the Indiana Jones films, which I will cover in a three-part series. First up: Raiders of the Lost Ark. I consider Raiders of the Lost Ark the single greatest adventure film of all time, so it is fitting it should feature one of the greatest musical scores of all time.
Without further ado, here are seven tracks that convey the through-the-roof levels of thrills and excitement generated by this truly remarkable film.
The Raiders March
Starting with the most obvious, here is the Indiana Jones theme itself. Steven Spielberg told Williams that he wanted a heroic march that audiences would leave the cinema humming. I’d say he more than got his wish. The Indiana Jones theme, or Raiders…
