by William Ruhlmann
Lalo Schifrin has done some of his best work as a film and television score composer with action/adventure stories and thrillers, so it's no surprise that his work on the war drama The Eagle Has Landed (which concerns a fictional plot to kidnap Winston Churchill) was one of his better efforts, full of tense, rhythmic music that complemented the suspense plot. Schifrin released some of the music on a 1978 soundtrack album on Entr'acte Records along with music from his score for The Four Musketeers, but now that he had his own record label, he was able to put a more complete version on disc. Apparently this is the score as originally recorded in 1977, most of which sat on the shelf for 22 years. Schifrin was right to resurrect it, since it shows off his strengths as a score composer. By itself, it makes for an anxious listening experience.