Access Hollywood

SPINonline Hosting A GE Trivia Contest

Jess tells me that SPINonline (which is accessible only for AOL members at Keyword: SPIN) is hosting a "Great Expectations Trivia Contest" in conjunction with Atlantic. Ten questions related to the groups/singers featured on the soundtrack have to be completed correctly to win "lots of Great Expectations loot."

Rocktropolis.com Giving Away A Great Expectations t-shirt

Rocktropolis.com is having a Great Expectations contest. They are asking questions from the Charles Dickens novel. The winners will received a Great Expectations t-shirt.

PREMIERE Magazine: Article, Interview, Gave Away Free Preview Tickets

In the February 1998 issue of PREMIERE magazine (American version), there was an ad stating that from select cities one could send in a postcard to Premiere magazine, and perhaps receive free preview tickets to Great Expectations by return mail.

This issue of Premiere Magazine also contains an article about the movie and an interview with Gwyneth Paltrow. Apparently, a PREMIERE reporter was onset and watched a party scene being filmed and described the scene in the article. Gwyneth Paltrow had this to say about "Great Expectations" and her character in it:

"I was just shocked by how overtly sexual my character is," Paltrow says after seeing the finished film. She hadn't really given too much thought to how it would all appear on-screen, twenty feet high. "I was so into the psychology of what she does. Estella's such a bitch, it's so part of her act to play that game of being seductive, so I didn't realize that--oh my God," she giggles. "My father saw the trailer and was, like, 'I have two things to say to you. A, this movie looks terrific, and B, I will not go to see this movie."

Marie Claire: Promo Postcard and Contest To Win Gwyneth Paltrow's Costumes

Kim H. informed me of a contest sponsored by Marie Claire magazine, Gwyneth Paltrow and MCI. You can win Gwyneth Paltrow's costumes from the movie Great Expectations. You can enter by calling a 900 number that costs $2. All proceeds go to help the homeless. Go here for more details.

Kim H. also reports:

MARIE CLAIRE magazine must have some serious tie-in to this movie; it's sponsoring a contest, and Gwyneth Paltrow was even a guest editor one month !

I have a subscription and was surprised (pleasantly) to find this postcard in my mailbox one day !

On the front is a black and white photo from the film, of Ethan's and Gwyneth's characters kissing, and it reads: "marie claire has Great Expectations for the new year".

On the back is printed: "Revel in the romance of GREAT EXPECTATIONS from Twentieth Century Fox. Experience this classic love story come to life on the big screen with an all-star cast including Gwyneth Paltrow, Ethan Hawke, Anne Bancroft and Robert De Niro. Only in theaters on January 30th."

It was postmarked from New York City on January 9th.

Release Dates For The Movie & Music

The United States

Both Great Expectations: The Album and Great Expectations: The Score were released in the U.S. on January 6, 1998. The movie debuts nationwide on January 30, 1998.

Canada

Great Expectations:The Album (soundtrack) was released in Canada on January 20, 1998 (Thanks BJ.) However, Great Expectations: The Score was not. I fear the Score will not be released domestically in Canada. It will of course be available as an import from the U.S. and you can also order it online. The debut of the movie in Canada should on January 30, 1998 like in the U.S.

U.K.

The soundtrack to Great Expectations still has not been officially released in the U.K. Toriphile Carl reports that HMV tells him the release date will be April 13. Ken Tough also tells us that "East/West is not dealing with the score." HMV and Virgin Records can order "The Score" from their U.S. counterparts as an import. The movie Great Expectations will debut on April 17, 1998.

I continue to get reports about the availability of Great Expectations the soundtrack and movie in Europe. Toriphile Debbie Pappyn told me that the homepage of the Kinepolis group reports that the release date for the movie is February 25 in Belgium. However, Christoph Viethen found a French web site in Belgium that gives March 4 as the release date. Christoph also tells us that the web site of 20th Century Fox of Germany states that the film will be officially released on March 5th in Germany.

As for the soundtrack, Dennis Snelders, Susanne Tak, and Ruud van Melick tell me the album is already out in the Netherlands. Debbie Pappyn reports that the soundtrack was released in Belgium on February 2, 1998. Katja Laitinen confirms that the soundtrack was released around the same time in Finland. Christoph Viethen reports that the soundtrack was released in Germany on March 2, 1998.

Susanne Tak informs me that the Cine-View website says that the movie Great Expectations will be released on the 9th of April in the Netherlands.

For the movie release dates for other European countries, check out the Official web site for the movie Great Expectations.

Australia

Planet Tori is now reporting that Great Expectations: The Album will be released in Australia on March 23. The Score is not scheduled to be released there, but should be available in some places as an import. The movie Great Expectations is to be released nationally in Australia on March 26. Warner Music Australia has a special Great Expectations Section at their web site.

Asia

Marco Alberto Concepcion tells me that Great Expectations: The Album is available now in the Philippines!

For the movie release dates for Asian/Pacific countries, check out the Official web site for the movie Great Expectations.

Latin America

For the movie release dates for Latin American countries, check out the Official web site for the movie Great Expectations.

Middle East/Africa

For the movie release dates for some countries in the Middle East & Africa, check out the Official web site for the movie Great Expectations.

You can read about the 2 albums that were released for this film in an article that was posted at The MovieTunes web site They introduce the soundtrack and score nicely. More details are below on both of these albums.

Soundtrack Billboard Chart Watch

The soundtrack, Great Expectations: The Album, has fallen to #69 on the U.S. Billboard 200 album chart in the April 4, 1998 issue. These are the positions it has held during its 11 weeks on the chart so far: 80-72-40-27-25- 30-39-51-55-63 -69.

The Atlantic Web site has a news article saying that Great Expectations: The Album has gone gold in the United States, having sold over 500,000 copies! The says, "the album's success has been spurred by radio and video airplay gains of tracks by Grammy nominee Duncan Sheik ("Wishful Thinking"), Scott Weiland ("Lady, Your Roof Brings Me Down," his debut solo recording), Chris Cornell ("Sunshower," the artist's first post-Soundgarden solo track), and Mono ("Life In Mono," the group's U.S. debut). A fifth song, Pulp's "Like A Friend," is already making inroads in its first week at modern rock outlets across the country." Atlantic then tells us that you can see the videos for "Wishful Thinking" and "Life In Mono." in the Atlantic Screening Room.

Great Expectations: The Album (Atlantic 83058)

Atlantic Records has a couple of interesting places at their web site where you can get more information on the Great Expectations soundtrack (officially titled Great Expectations: The Album.) They have a main Great Expectations section that contains photos and sound clips from all the artists on the album, as well as a bio for each. This page also has photos from the movie and RealVideo clips of a trailer to the movie and the video "Wishful Thinking", by Duncan Shiek, which includes footage from the movie. Atlantic also has another section of their site which has photos, a list of news articles, an article about the making of the soundtrack, a complete track listing, the album cover that you see to the right, and RealAudio and AIFF sound clips from almost every song on the album, including Tori's "Siren" and the opening song on the soundtrack, called "Finn (Intro)". The article contains many quotes from and about Tori, including information on Tori's contribution to the album, and how she joined forces with composer Patrick Doyle to do these songs on the soundtrack.

Great Expectations: The Album (Total time 65:48)

1. Finn (Intro) - Tori Amos
   
2. Siren - Tori Amos
   
3. Life In Mono - Mono
   
4. Sunshower - Chris Cornell
   
5. Resignation - Reef
   
6. Like A Friend - Pulp
   
7. Wishful Thinking - Duncan Sheik
   
8. Today - Poe
   
9. Lady, Your Roof Brings Me Down - Scott Weiland
   
10. Her Ornament - The Verve Pipe
    
11. Walk This Earth Alone - Lauren Christy
    
12. Breakable - Fisher
    
13. Success - Iggy Pop
    
14. Slave - David Garza
    
15. Uncle John's Band - The Grateful Dead
    
16. Besame Mucho - Cesaria Evora (CD only)

• The main soundtrack contains 2 songs featuring Tori Amos: "Siren" at 4:02 and "Finn (Intro)" at 1:49.
• Tori co-wrote the music for "Siren" with composer Patrick Doyle. However, the lyrics and production are hers alone. Her engineers Mark Hawley and Marcel Van Limbeck recorded and mixed the song. Tori also plays the piano AND harpsichord on the track. The song is published by Sword & Stone Publishing.
• The soundtrack has the lyrics to "Siren" and they are the same as what I have on my Siren page!
• "Finn (Intro)" was written by Patrick Doyle and features instrumental vocalization by Tori and whistling by Carey Wilson.
• The album credits say that Resignation, Today, Breakable, and Slave do not appear in the actual film. All of Tori's songs do.

More On The Groups Fisher & Mono From The GE Soundtrack

One of my favorite songs on the Great Expectations soundtrack is the song "Breakable" by Fisher. They are a promising new band and I was so impressed with that song that I added them to my Other Artists section. I have personally received email from vocalist/lyricist Kathy Fisher (picture to the right) of the band, and she was extremely grateful and excited about the attention their song has received as a result of being on the soundtrack. They currently have an option deal with Atlantic Records, and they are hoping to be signed full time. I am excited to have discovered such a great new talent and I for one can't wait to hear a full length album from the band. They have just put up a Fisher web site which includes an email address you can use to ask questions and/or make comments.

Another artists many people seem interested in is Mono. You can find out more about them at this Mono web page, as well as on a second Mono web page called Live For Today. (Many thanks to Heather Hansen and Erik and Michele.)

Great Expectations Page At Atlantic Covers Artists On Soundtrack

I am getting quite a few questions about some of the lesser known artists on the Great Expectations soundtrack, including Fisher and Mono. You can find out more information on these artists at the Atlantic Web Site. They have a new Great Expectations section that contains photos and sound clips from all the artists on the album, as well as a bio for each.

"Siren" - New Tori Song On The Soundtrack; Official Lyrics Available

Go to my SIREN page to read thoughts about the song from other Toriphiles and read the official lyrics to the song, along with many guesses about the lyrics that were sent to me by people who heard the song before any official lyrics were known. You can also find out about an Atlantic promo CD that first revealed this song to the public.

ICE Magazine Covers Great Expectations

The following was posted to the Precious Things and RDTRN mailing lists by Beth Winegarner:

Hiya guys... ICE magazine had this to day about Great Expectations:

"On January 6, Atlantic Records will ring in the new year with Great Expectations, a 16-song soundtrack featuring new music by Tori Amos.... [list of other bands & stuff] The complete track list, in sequence: Tori Amos -- "Finn" and "Siren" [followed by all the other tracks]...

"One thing that makes GE unusual is that the composer of the film's classical score, Patrick Doyle, worked closely with the rock artists on the soundtrack. (Doyle is best known for his work with actor/director Kenneth Branagh) 'We brought together these two different worlds of music,' [executive producer Darren] Higman says. 'We wanted the rock musicians to work with Patrick in creating songs that were evocative of the score and vice versa, which no one has really done before.'

"'In particular,' he says, 'Patrick and Tori talked a lot about what they wanted the song ["Siren"] to say. The scene Tori wrote for is one where the Ethan Hawke character has finally decided to get on with his life, but like a siren he's always drawn back to Gwyneth Paltrow. So there's a literal connection to the lyrics.'

"On the same day, Atlantic will release GE: The Score Music by Patrick Doyle, which contains additional vocalizing by Amos not found on the soundtrack."

Promo Copies Of "Great Expectations The Album"

Toriphile Tripp Gwyn gives the following info on the Great Expectations: The Album Promo CD:

It is #83058-2P on Atlantic. The promo is coverless and the back is in black and white and has a tracklisting. There is no lyric insert anywhere.

Ears With Feet Alina works in a record store and has obtained a promotional copy of the Great Expectations Soundtrack. She emailed me a small review of the soundtrack that you see below:

Just thought I'd let ya know that the 2 new songs from "Great Expectations" are GREAT! I work at a record store and my boss let me have the promo copy of the soundtrack (called "Great Expectations The Album") just the other day. The first track is called "Finn" and is basically an instrumental with Tori's melodic voice flowing in and out of the music. The second track is her song, "Siren." To me, it has a hint of "Caught a Lite Sneeze" in it, but it still stands on it's own as yet another great Tori song. If this is any indication as to how her next album will be, we're in for a treat.

I still haven't heard any part of the score that will be coming out, but Tori's vocalization really adds to the little part that's on the album. Without her voice it would most definitely be another boring instrumental score. Anyway, enough blabbing on and on. Just thought I'd let you know that there are promo copies out there available through Atlantic/20th Century Fox.

First Single From Soundtrack By Duncan Sheik Available

The first single from the soundtrack, Wishful Thinking by Duncan Sheik, is now available in stores in the U.S. (Thank you Ian Riley) The Atlantic Web Site had a news item about this single as well.

Great Expectations: The Score (Atlantic 83063)

Atlantic Records has created a section of their site for Great Expectations: The Score, which includes a page that has the complete track listing. You can see the track listing below, which also included information obtain from the CDUniverse web site. (many thanks to Tripp Gwyn. Besides Tori, the soundtrack has performers from the worlds of opera, classical, world music, and jazz, including saxophonist James Carter, pianist Cyrus Chestnut, singer Cesaria Evora, guitarist John Williams, famed soprano Kiri Te Kanawa, and Miriam Stockley.

Great Expectations: The Score (Total time 50:19)

1. Finn - (featuring Tori Amos & whistler Carey Wilson)
   
2. Crossing The Gulf
   
3. Paradiso Perduto - (featuring Tori Amos)
   
4. Estella's Theme - (featuring John Williams)
   
5. Ain't Love Grand - (featuring John Williams)
   
6. Walk In The Park, A - (featuring John Williams/Janis Kelly)
   
7. I Saw No Shadow Of Another Parting (The Aria) - (featuring Kiri Te
   Kanawa)
   
8. Kissing In The Rain - (featuring Miriam Stockley)
   
9. Joe Leaves - (featuring Cyrus Chestnut)
   
10. Day All My Dreams Came True, The
    
11. Pyramid Of Pain
    
12. Planes On A Plane - (featuring Janis Kelly)
    
13. Toast, A - (featuring John Williams)
    
14. Benefactor - (featuring John Williams)
    
15. Lustig Dies
    
16. Pardiso Perduto Revisited - (featuring whistler Carey Wilson)
    
17. It Was Just My Memory Of It - (featuring John Williams)
    
18. Price Of Success, The - (featuring Phil Todd)
    
19. Underfloor - (featuring Miriam Stockley/Phil Todd)
    
20. Besame Mucho - (featuring Cesaria Evora)
    
21. By The Inch Or By The Hour - (featuring Cyrus Chestnut)
    
22. Big Trip, The - (featuring James Carter/Guy Barker)

The Score contains 2 Tori tracks. One is "Finn" which is 2:54. It is the complete version of Finn(intro) from the soundtrack and it seems to have a little more vocalization by Tori, The other songs is "Paradiso Perduto" at 2:09, which features Tori doing wordless vocals just like on "Finn",

Atlantic Promotes The Score Online

There is also a January 8th article at the Atlantic Web Site called "Great Expectations Score Features Tori Amos."

Atlantic News Item On The Score & Composer Patrick Doyle

One of the news items for December 16 at the Atlantic Web Site was a new article about Great Expectations and composer Patrick Doyle. Patrick Doyle is a film composer who Tori worked with on the Score/Soundtrack.

The Score can be hard to find, but you can order it online!

Make a wild dash for your local record store and buy a copy of the Great Expectations soundtrack, called Great Expectations: The Album, and the score to the film, called Great Expectations: The Score", The score can be hard to track down at your local music store! I had to go to 6 record stores before I found one that had it. Either the stores don't know about it or don't feel it is a priority. For those unable to locate the album in their neighborhood record store, you have the option to purchase it online. I have ordered this way many times and it is both safe and convenient. I received a very nice email from Nikke Slight, who is VP of Multimedia at Atlantic Records, reminding me that the score is available for purchase online via the Atlantic web site. If you go to the Atlantic page that includes the discography for the score, there is a link that takes you directly to an online sales area for secure transactions. You can also purchase this release from CDnow and CDUniverse as well.

Great Expectations Soundtrack/Score Reviews

Reviews From My Readers

I am gathering together reviews and reflections of the Great Expectations soundtrack and score from various Toriphiles on a GE reviews page. Check them out! (Last Updated February 6, 1998)

Soundtrack Reviews From The Press

The Courier-Mail in Brisbane, Australia (Mar 28, 1998).

Dayton Daily News (and on the ActiveDayton web site) (March 8, 1998)

Billboard's Review of The Score (Mar 14, 1998).

8days Magazine (Singapore) (Mar 7-14, 1998).

Dutch weekly TV-guide Veronica (Mar 7-13, 1998).

The Met (Weekly in Dallas/Fort Worth) (Feb 25, 1998).

Dutch Newspaper "Algemeen Dagblad" (Feb 20, 1998).

Rumba Magazine In Finland (February 1998).

The Boston Phoenix (February 12-19, 1998) reviews both Great Expectations: The Album and Great Expectations: The Score.

The Arbiter (Student Newspaper At Boise State Univ.) (Feb 1998)

Philadelphia Inquirer (Feb 1, 1998)

This same review also appears online at the Sun Herald (Biloxi/Gulfport MS).




Los Angeles Times Review (Feb 1, 1998)

Boston TAB Newspaper (January 1998)

E! Online Review

Cleveland Live

The Knoxville News-Sentinel

JournalNow: Winston-Salem Journal

Richmond Times-Dispatch

Jam! Music Review

Jacksonville.com

Tulsa World Online

New Jersey Online

MTV web site

VH-1 web site

San Francisco Chronicle (Jan 18, 1998)

The entire review can also be found online at the San Francisco Chronicle Web Site.

People Magazine (Jan 26, 1998)

This review can also be found online at the Pathfinder/People Web Site.

USA Today (Jan 13, 1998)

Seventeen Magazine (February 1998)

Entertainment Weekly (Jan 16, 1998)

Rolling Stone (Feb 5, 1998)

Atlantic Records also has a news story on their web site about the review in Rolling Stone.

Q Magazine (February 1998)

New York Post (Jan 3, 1998)

Orange County Register (Jan 2, 1998)

Billboard (Jan 10, 1998)

MuchMusic Review Posted To AOL


Kristy reports that the MuchMusic section on AOL has a review of the soundtrack, which also includes a sound clip from "Siren."

The Great Expectations soundtrack boasts a pot pourri of top notch talent.

'Expectations' showcases the first post-Soundgarden effort from singer- songwriter Chris Cornell as well as the first ever released solo song from Stone Temple Pilot frontman, Weiland.

On "Sunshower", Cornell evokes some of the Zeppelin-esque quality he previously created on 1992's "Singles" soundtrack with "Seasons."

Weiland currently on hiatus from STP, ( who are currently touring with side project "Talk Show") delivers "Lady, You Bring My Roof Down" which taps the 60's and the psychedelic Beatles era.

Tori Amos is back with "Sirens." Her first new song since 95's "Boys For Pele". She also helped write some of the movies score with composer, Patrick Doyle.

Duncan Sheik adds his stylish suave touch with "Wishful Thinking." A great example of his sensitive pop sensibilities.

The contemporary version of the Dickens classic, "Great Expectations" is now set in the art community of New York. 'Expectations' features two of today's hottest stars Gwyneth Paltrow and Ethan Hawke. Also joining the cast are veteran heavyweights Robert DeNiro and Anne Bancroft.

The soundtrack also features songs by Iggy Pop, Poe, Mono and Pulp, making Great Expectations one of the best, diverse, alternative soundtracks in recent memory.

Additional Information On The Music

Soundtrack To Be Released In DTS 5.1 Format As Well As Standard Stereo Format

For you audio buffs out there, I have the following post that was made to the rec.music.tori-amos newsgroup by Chris:

This may not mean anything to anyone except real audio freaks, but according to DTS software announcements, The Great Expectations Soundtrack is slated to be released in DTS 5.1 format as well as standard stereo format.

The DTS audio format is a digital bitstream which does require an outboard decoder, previous CD titles issued in DTS have been: Pavarotti, Boyz2men, and more.

The DTS format is being used pretty much straight off the DTS movie soundtrack, as a direct soundtrack.

The soundtrack in DTS format should be released with the other DTS format releases between jan/february.

The Great Expectations Trailer: The Music Is From Mono!

Frank Schumacher and Michele Santiago have emailed me to say that they are postive that the song featured in the Trailer/Preview for Great Expectations is called "Life In Mono" by the British Trip Hop-Band MONO. This fact has been verified by Toriphile Mike Johnson, who adds that you can find the single Life In Mono at HMV stores in Canada. The Atlantic Web site has also made sound clips from the album available, and this proves beyond all doubt that the trailer music is from Mono!

You can watch a video clip of this trailer yourself in Quicktime or Video For Windows Format at the Hollywood Online web site.

November 22 Billboard Magazine Has Article On The Soundtrack

EXTRA500 reports that the November 22, 1997 issue of Billboard contains an article with the title "Atlantic has 'Great Expectations' for soundtrack set". It explains some of the details about the soundtrack and has some interesting comments about Tori and a quote from her about the project! You can read this article in my articles section. Here is a summary of the important points:

"When they gave me this project, I felt really challenged," she says. "I tried to contribute something that I thought would add a different subtext to the scene and give Ethan Hawke"s character a different angle." Amos" chantey-like "Siren" evokes the spirit of the ocean and of a female presence--as she puts it, "a primal, primitive sense."

Tori Contributing "wordless vocalizations" To Great Expectations According To Parade Magazine

Toriphile Jeff SooHoo was the first to tell me that Parade Magazine mentioned some information about what Tori was doing for this soundtrack. They printed a small photo that you see to the left that Ears With Feet Ellen kindly sent to me. Here are all the details of the reference sent to the Tori mailing lists by Richard Handal:

In the U.S., there's a syndicated national Sunday newspaper supplement called Parade Magazine. It's inserted into local Sunday papers in many cities around the U.S--maybe Canada, too, but I kinda doubt it. Anyhow, inside the front cover every week they have a column called Walter Scott's Personality Parade. It consists of questions readers submit pertaining to celebrities, and then the magazine prints the questions and answers-- answers usually gathered from official sources, but sometimes when it's difficult to get comments from publicists for the celebs, they reference other sources, too. (I expect most of you in the U.S. already know all that, but we're addressing the world, here.)

Anyway, in this week's issue dated November 9, there's a question about Tori's involvement with Great Expectations, from none other than Doug Smeath, who's on the Really Deep Thoughts (Right Now) mailing list! Way to go, Doug! :-) There's also a small color head shot of Tori from the Calvin Klein news conference last December 4. (Photo credit is Renault/Globe.) Doug's question and answer below. (They got her age wrong, but what *else* is new.)




Q I'm thrilled about the upcoming remake of *Great Expectations.* I heard that Tori Amos plays a big part on the soundtrack. Can you shed some light on this?--Doug Smeath, South Jordan, Utah

A Tori Amos, 33, is indeed heard in this modern retelling of the Dickens classic, with Gwyneth Paltrow and Ethan Hawke. Set for release on New Year's Eve, the film is still being scored, but we're told Amos contributes "wordless vocalizations that are very evocative and emotional." She also recorded an original song called "Siren" for a pivotal scene in the film.

Film Composer Patrick Doyle

Bankybooda has alerted me to a web site for film composer Patrick Doyle. Patrick Doyle is the musical composer who not only wrote the score for the film (which will be released the same day as the soundtrack,) but also contributed to the soundtrack. The site states under the future projects heading:

"In December, Great Expectations, a modernization of the Dickens novel, directed by Alfanzo Cuaron. Doyle is co-writing a song with Tori Amos for this movie, and she is providing additional vocals for the score. The soundtrack will be released on Atlantic Records."

Great Expectations: The Original Classic By Charles Dickens