Sands of Iwo Jima / Island in the Sky

Our program matches for the first time on CD the soundtracks from two classic American dramas starring the legendary John Wayne.

In Sands of Iwo Jima, produced in 1949, Wayne plays Sergeant John M. Stryker, a ruthless US Marine who trains a company of recruits to fight the Japanese during World War II. He ultimately leads them into an assault on the Pacific Island of Iwo Jima. Victor Young manages once again to deliver outstanding music both for the training and action cues, and the more quiet moments associated with the sentimental memories or love encounters of two main characters. The prevalent military music in Sands of Iwo Jima relies often on the United States official Marines' Hymn.

This recording of Sands of Iwo Jima comes from archival acetates preserved at Brigham Young University in Utah, subsequently transferred to tape, and then to vinyl by Citadel in 1981. Some noise inherent to the original support remains noticeable in a few passages of our CD release; still, the music entertains throughout and proves to be a vibrant illustration of Victor Young's genius. Since there was no individual track listing provided, we have established one in accordance with relevant movie scenes.

Island in the Sky is a 1953 Warner Bros. film directed by William A. Wellman, based on Ernest K. Gann's gripping novel Fate is the Hunter. This true story takes place in Labrador shortly after World War II, when a cargo plane crew faces a violent snowstorm and is forced to land in a remote desert of ice. The five men have to struggle for survival in the extreme cold while waiting for rescue by fellow aircraft pilots. Wayne plays the tough and courageous Captain Dooley, who hides his own suffering to maintain the moral of his companions in misfortune: a heroic feature shared with the main character of Sands of Iwo Jima.

The ambitious symphonic score for Island in the Sky, unusually penned by three composers, was first released with narration by John Wayne on a Decca 10" album. In 1982, Varèse Sarabande issued for the first time a version without narration (paired with The Song of Bernadette by Alfred Newman). The music was originally presented on LP as a 30-minute uninterrupted suite. We have split it into several tracks for convenience and corrected some abrupt edits. The sentimental Strings Theme, quite different from the rest of the score, was isolated. We also include the first part of the version with narration to get the movie's dramatic context and preserve The Duke's seminal voice.

The album includes a 12-page full color booklet and inserts.