It took me a while to realize that we never did this tournament. We did one for Best Star Wars tracks, Best Movie Soundtracks, and Best LOTR moments, but not the Best LOTR tracks. Hopefully it's been long enough that tournament fatigue has worn off a bit.

After careful consideration, I've selected 8 tracks from each movie, for a total of 24 tracks. (This was incredibly tough for me, especially for Fellowship.)

In the opening round, you will select your favorite track from each group. The top two vote-getters from each group will move into the Round of 16. (Each group contains a track from all three movies. I tried to avoid putting three top contenders in one group.)

I've also provided Youtube links to each track. Didn't want to break this page too badly with embeds, but I'll probably embed in the subsequent rounds.

Opening Round

Group 1:
Concerning Hobbits
The King of the Golden Hall
Minas Tirith

Group 2:
A Knife in the Dark
Foundations of Stone
The Lighting of the Beacons

Group 3:
Many Meetings
Forth Eorlingas
The Steward of Gondor ft. Billy Boyd

Group 4:
The Council of Elrond
Samwise the Brave
The Return of the King

Group 5:
The Ring Goes South
Helm's Deep
Minas Morgul

Group 6:
The Bridge of Khazad-dum
Evenstar
The Battle of the Pelennor Fields

Group 7:
Amon Hen
The Last March of the Ents
The Ride of the Rohirrim

Group 8:
The Breaking of the Fellowship ft. In Dreams
The Uruk-Hai
The End of All Things





Vote now!

Am I just not seeing it, or are you missing this.



hard to find the actual soundtrack title, but its the march part


Its right at the end of the Uruk-Hai, all is well

All but one track have already received votes.

This is gonna be a good one.

It aint gon win

So hard to pick one. At the end of the day, I get the most nostalgia and feels from Concerning Hobbits and Ride of the Rohirrim. Edit: I spoke way too soon. Completely forgot about the end of the Bridge of Khazad-Dum. Damn...

But if I had to pick one that immediately makes me want to watch LotR, it is Concerning Hobbits. Nothing else gives that feeling of joy to me that these movies gave me when I saw them for the first time in the theatres. It's the lietmotif that offers the invitation to sit down and enjoy the rest of the masterpiece that is the movies and the score. It's the motif that helps us realize what is at stake in the entire story.

Love her violin version of it:

If everyone were as sophisticated as me, Concerning Hobbits would barely edge out The Breaking of the Fellowship in the final.

But everyone would also hate the movies a little more with every reread.

I haven't actually thought through one of these as much as this one.

• Concerning Hobbits: My explanation above
• Foundations of Stone: Close with Lighting the Beacons, but this one just hit the nostalgia hard. I saw Fellowship without knowing anything about LotR. Waiting to then see The Two Towers, after having read the entire thing a year later, is something i'll never forget.
• Forth Eorlingas: Have to go with the return of my boy, Eomer, to defend his king! I'll avoid the nerdy correction that it was supposed to be Erkenbrand...
• The Return of the King: Just can't even... too many tears.
• The Ring Goes South: C'mon. The build up to the first time we hear the Fellowship's motif?!?
• The Bridge of Khazad-dum: I mean... you know it's great when the ending was used in one of the best teaser trailers for another movie.
• The Ride of the Rohirrim: That nearly lone violin during the charge... freaking Rohan, man. "...a sword-day, a red day, ere the sun rises!"
• The Breaking of the Fellowship: Because anytime the Hobbits motif starts playing, I just love it.

Congrats?

Thanks.

Hate is probably far too strong a word, but there is nothing to dislike about the music.

Agree with pretty much all of your thoughts.

But just fyi -- the track that plays during Theoden's speech and the subsequent charge is "The Battle of the Pelennor Fields".

I was hoping the similarity of those track names wouldn't get too confusing for folks.

gggmann said:

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Ramble On

EOT.

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Misty Mountain Hop? Battle of Evermore?

Ah, damn. The one I was sure of. Forgot that was them mustering. Oh well, screwed that one up. That makes group 6 a tough one for me.

There is literally a thread for this.

https://texags.com/forums/13/topics/3090699/1#discussion

shaynew1 said:

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But everyone would also hate the movies a little more with every reread.

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Bah God that's Solo Tetherball Champ's music

I meant all that far more jokingly than it reads...but I knowed it'd be the STC bat-signal

Ocean Of Funk said:

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There is literally a thread for this.

https://texags.com/forums/13/topics/3090699/1#discussion

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That's the thread for official news and info about the films and the upcoming series. We've always had separate threads for the brackets.

gggmann said:

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Ramble On

EOT.

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I remember sitting in my brother's room convinced I was getting second-hand high as a 12 year old the first time I heard that song and thought did that dude just mention moria and gollum?

Brian Earl Spilner said:

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gggmann said:

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Ramble On

EOT.

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Misty Mountain Hop? Battle of Evermore?

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Ramble On is better than both of those songs. JPJ's bass line is epic.

I also had to go with Concerning Hobbits in Group 1, but that was the toughest group by far, it has my top two favorites and 3 of my top 5.

The others can't overcome the feeling I get when I hear that flute melody.

Ocean Of Funk said:

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There is literally a thread for this.

https://texags.com/forums/13/topics/3090699/1#discussion

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You new?

Voting update:

Groups 1, 3, 7, and 8 are incredibly tight races, with a few ties.

2 and 6 are semi-close.

4 and 5 are the only groups with a clear loser thus far.

Will keep this open until around the end of the work day. Hopefully some ties get broken by then.

Disclaimer: If there are still ties at that time, I will be the tiebreaker as I have not voted myself.

Here's my thoughts on each group. (It's a slow Monday at work.)

Group 1:
There is no chance I would vote for anything other than Concerning Hobbits here. One of the most perfect pieces of movie score ever created. It's the definition of nostalgia.

Group 2:
This one is a little tougher. I love Foundations of Stone, especially that choral part during the wide shot of Gandalf and the Balrog falling into that underground lake. But it's gotta be Lighting of the Beacons for me. That may be the pinnacle of visual+score ever put to film. (Up there with Binary Sunset.)

Group 3:
I freaking love Many Meetings. Instantly puts me in Rivendell when I hear it. And I love Billy Boyd's Edge of Night. But I mean...Forth Eorlingas is just too epic to deny.

"Theoden King stands alone." "Not alone. ROHIRRIM! TO THE KING!!!"

Group 4:
This is one of the tougher ones for me. Samwise the Brave (Sam's Speech in TTT) is absolutely beautiful. And The Council of Elrond has a really awesome, moody atmosphere for me. But Return of the King takes it solely for the "My friends, you bow to no one" scene. Gorgeous rendition of the Shire theme right there.

Group 5:
Probably the easiest for me. Ring Goes South, no question. The first full, complete, and triumphant version of the Fellowship theme. Epic.

Group 6:
This is literally a Sophie's choice between Bridge of Khazad-dum and Battle of Pelennor Fields. I created the group and was simultaneously mad at myself for doing it, and somewhat relieved that I wouldn't have to vote between them. Honestly two of the best pieces of score ever. Gun to my head, I take Bridge of Khazad-dum by a nose hair, simply because FOTR is my favorite movie and that particular sequence is my favorite of the movie. But man, it's hard to vote against Pelennor Fields. That lone violin when the Rohirrim charge on Minas Tirith is the single most chill-inducing moment for me in the trilogy, I think.

Group 7:
Another easy one for me. Last March of the Ents.

Group 8:
The Breaking of the Fellowship is my favorite piece of movie score of all time. Gets the easy win, but I love the other two tracks.

This was incredibly tough

Ocean Of Funk said:

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There is literally a thread for this.

https://texags.com/forums/13/topics/3090699/1#discussion

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lol.

Lol, yeah; you kinda failed me on Group 6. That one hurt to make a decision.

I am surprised you didn't put the Prologue score here. Along with Concerning Hobbits, that is the score that immediately prepares me for the trilogy. The Ring theme for the first time with the title card reveal, preceded and followed with Cate Blanchett's exposition. I mean... best opening to a movie of all time?

It was the one of the last tracks I removed from the final 8.

It's really hard to take out any of the FOTR ones that are in there, honestly.

We have currently have two ties. If they're not broken within the next 20 minutes or so, I'll go ahead and call it and throw in my own tiebreaker vote.