First, a confession. Yes, that's right, something that I don't really like to admit to, but I must say firstly, that I was never really a great fan of the score to Superman. It's not that I thought it was bad in any way at all, it's just that I never really connected with it in the same way as Star Wars or Williams' other blockbuster scores. The main theme is a masterpiece and I love that as well as the love theme, which in fact, I probably like even more (especially since it deviated somewhat from Williams more traditional love themes). It was the other, incidental pieces that I just couldn't grasp, such as the Fortress of Solitude and the action cues from later in the score. Having said all that, I was staggered at how much I enjoyed this new release from Varese. I don't know if it was the greatly improved sonics of Varese's 20 bit digital or the sheer power of the orchestra, but this version got to me much more than the original ever did. I will say that I think the sound quality is probably quite a large issue since the original was muffled, whereas everything the RSNO does can be heard in perfect clarity.
The Prologue and Main Title include an extra section from the prologue that wasn't on the original and it slightly disrupts the flow of Williams' concert arrangement, it is certainly interesting to hear how it was originally scored. The booming immensity of the orchestra is most impressive in The Planet Krypton and The Destruction of Krypton. The Trip to Earth is a strange piece that is quite interesting, but was one of the sections that never quite gelled for me. Other new tracks include Growing Up and Jonathan's Death. The former is a bouncing scherzo once it gets going whereas the latter is a mournful elegy and in this case, the RSNO's talent for warm and subtle Americana comes to the fore. There are extra action highlights on the second disc, such as the Helicopter Rescue, Pushing Boulders and Flying to Lois. Many initial complaints came from the fact that the first of those was performed too slowly. To me it sounds just fine, with the brass doing some wonders with the Superman theme. I think the high point for the brass in the score is the moment a minute or two into Chasing Rockets when the orchestra crescendos and there are some almighty brass outbursts that are incredibly powerful, perfectly in tune and sound great.
The quieter material is treated with equally lovely results. The Flying Sequence was something that I always felt a highlight of the score and so its inclusion was extremely pleasing for me. Unlike many, I was glad that it stopped halfway, I never really liked the other half, with or without the spoken lyrics, but the opening and buoyant music in the first half is a gem. There are some more fun moments, especially in The Truck Convoy which lets Williams play around with the March of the Villains with some witty orchestration - something I've always felt Williams was very good at.
I guess I must register a few negative comments! It is a shame that they didn't include all of the other score cues that were on the original, such as Super Feats and Super Rescues as well as a couple of others. I realise that this was done to facilitate the extra sections, but since the score barely takes up more than a single disc, it is a pity that the extra space couldn't have gone to give an even more complete score - perhaps not including the concert arrangements (March of the Villains and The Love Theme) would have helped. Then again, some people would have griped at this - you can't please all of the people all of the time. However, I understand the cost implications prevented this, so I can't complain too much (especially since I have the original anyway). Last and by all means least, why couldn't they have put it in a double CD case the same size as a single CD case? It ruins my Varese re-recordings section on my shelf (which is growing very rapidly!) Minor gripes aside, this makes a superb companion to the original score. I hope that a full, re-mastered release of the original appears sometime soon so that the glory of the LSO can blaze forth, but for now I'm quite content to hear this classic score in a new and splendidly impressive light. Thanks once again Varese!
Rating ~ 
Disc One Total Time ~ 37:45
Disc Two Total Time ~ 44:25