John Williams names his five favourite movie soundtracks
Out of every film composer, living or dead, John Williams is easily one of the most prolific, his pieces the most recognisable. Ever since he started working in cinema, making his debut with 1958’s Daddy-O, Williams has made countless iconic scores that have soundtracked people’s lives, such as Star Wars, Jurassic Park, Jaws and several Harry Potter movies.
Many of us associate childhood with these memorable pieces of music, the dramatic strings and explosive brass sections reminding us of a simpler time when watching movies like E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial felt like unlocking a portal into another world – full of magic and endless possibilities. No one else has managed to soundtrack such a large amount of commercially successful movies like Williams, proving him to be a giant of film scoring – his music influencing practically everyone who has attempted to make scores in his wake.
But which of his many scores are his favourites? In a conversation with the Mercury Times, Williams discussed some of the proudest moments from his tenure as a composer, beginning with one from earlier in his career—How To Steal A Million by William Wyler. The film, released in 1966, saw Williams able to truly demonstrate his capabilities, stating, “It was the first film I ever did for a major, super-talent director.”
He also loves his score for Close Encounters of the Third Kind, which he once called “one of my favourite Steven Spielberg films.”
He added, “With its depiction of the long-awaited visit of the radiant and loving extraterrestrials, the fascinating premonitions of the little boy, and the five-note musical motif used to communicate with our other-worldly guests, the film offered a rich and unusual canvas on which to present the music.” The film came shortly after Spielberg made Jaws, catapulting him to further success while allowing Williams to further carve his place in Hollywood music history. In total, Williams and the director have collaborated 29 times.
Unsurprisingly, Williams also loves the various Star Wars soundtracks he worked on, calling ‘Yoda’s Theme’ one of his favourites, telling Classic.FM, “The simplicity of the tune – combined with the logic of its intervals – seems to carry some gravitas with it.” Although he admits that the Star Wars theme song is perhaps a little “overwritten”, there’s no denying its legendary status. In the interview with the Mercury Times, he admitted that he’s loved working on Star Wars so much that after finishing work on 2019’s The Rise of Skywalker, he still had an urge to keep going: “My feeling was: ‘This is fun. Let’s go back and do nine more.’”
Another movie score he’s particularly fond of is Home Alone, the classic Christmas comedy starring Macaulay Culkin, about a child who must fight off two pesky burglars after his parents accidentally leave for their holiday without him. Williams told Variety that he was “fond” of the score, which earned him one of many Academy Award nominations he has received over the years.
Additionally, Williams was responsible for the soundtrack to Superman, featuring Christopher Reeves, Marlon Brando and Gene Hackman, considering it one of his favourite scores he’s ever worked on. Replacing Jerry Goldsmith as the composer, Williams ended up securing a place at number 81 on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart with the theme song. He, of course, earned an Oscar nomination for the score, although he lost out to Giorgio Moroder for Midnight Express.
