VIA PRESS RELEASE | Lakeshore Records is set to release the original score on vinyl to the critically-acclaimed BBC/PBS Masterpiece limited series Les Misérables, written by composer John Murphy (28 Days Later, Sunshine, Kick-Ass). The vinyl record will be released on September 6th. Pre-order the vinyl release here.
Series director Tom Shankland wanted John to tell a fresh musical story and to ultimately create a raw and uncompromising score to reflect the trials and misery of “Les Misérables.” John described the scoring process as an experimental journey: “My original idea for the score to Les Mis was ‘1816 Velvet Underground meets ’60s French film music.’ Tom [Shankland] was thinking ‘gnarly, down in the dirt, French folk music.’ Producer Chris Carey suggested, ‘let’s try both, but throw in some vintage analog synths.’ I then gleefully tried all of these elements, often at the same time. And we discovered that you can actually mix a hurdy gurdy with a Moog Sub Phatty, and we loved it. And what started out as a musical standoff, became our score for Les Misérables.”
About Les Misérables | The six-part drama adaptation stars Dominic West (The Affair, The Hour) as Jean Valjean, and David Oyelowo (Selma) as Javert in this landmark drama adaptation. They are joined in this epic event drama by Lily Collins (Rules Don’t Apply, Love, Rosie), in the role of Fantine.
With a striking intensity and relevance to us today, Victor Hugo’s novel is testimony to the struggles of France’s underclass and how far they must go to survive. The six-part television adaptation of the renowned book will vividly and faithfully bring to life the vibrant and engaging characters, the spectacular and authentic imagery and, above all, the incredible yet accessible story that was Hugo’s lifework.
The distinguished British cast also includes Adeel Akhtar (The Night Manager, Murdered By My Father) and Academy Award winner Olivia Colman (The Favourite, Murder On The Orient Express, The Night Manager, Broadchurch) as Monsieur and Madame Thénardier, Ellie Bamber (Nocturnal Animals, Pride And Prejudice And Zombies) as Cosette, Josh O’Connor (The Durrells in Corfu) as Marius and Erin Kellyman (Raised By Wolves) as Éponine.
About John Murphy | Liverpool born John Murphy began scoring movies at the age of 25. In 2001, following the success of Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels and Snatch, he moved to Los Angeles.
Since then he has worked with some of the industry’s most respected and luminary filmmakers, including Danny Boyle, Guy Ritchie, Stephen Frears, Matthew Vaughn, and Michael Mann producing film scores as prominent and diverse as Sunshine, Lock Stock and Two Smoking Barrels, Miami Vice, Snatch, Kick-Ass, and the seminal 28 Days Later.
His movie trailers include Captain America: Winter Soldier, Gravity, X-Men: Origins, Cloverfield, War of the Worlds, Cowboys and Aliens, Blindness, Ex Machina, Southpaw, X-Men: Days of Future Past, and Avatar. His music has been featured in advertising campaigns for Nike, Audi, Microsoft, Louis Vuitton, Samsung, Google, and Apple.
After Kick-Ass, Murphy set up the record label Taped Noise and began work on several non-movie projects. His latest project, BBC’s Les Misérables, premiered in the U.S. on April 14th on PBS Masterpiece.
Track Listing:
Side A 14:41 mins approx
01. Les Misérables – 1:20
02. Javert on the Bridge – 2:21
03. The Morning After – 1:55
04. Valjean Breaks Down – 2:01
05. Fantine’s Descent – 1:42
06. Atonement – 1:38
07. Relentless – 1:46
08. Makeover – 1:55
Side B 12:40 mins approx
09. Scavengers – 2:11
10. Cosette in the Woods – 1:34
11. La Chaumière
12. Fantine and Felix
13. Tension
14. On the River
Side C 10:49 mins approx
15. A Braver Thing to Live – 2:22
16. 5pm – 2:58
17. Luxembourg Gardens – 1:34
18. Leaving Montfermeil – 1:57
19. Riding to Digne – 1:56
Side D 10:59 mins approx
20. Cosette’s Piano – 0:59
21. Javert – 2:09
22. Salvation – 2:18
23. Massacre – 2:06
24. Valjean’s Last Words – 3:25
