I believe John Williams is the best composer in the last hundred years (and there have been some fine composers in the last century), and certainly in the history of film. So what is it exactly that sets J Will light years ahead of his contemporaries?

Well, the musical world is filled with composers that can create atmosphere that effectively evokes a desired emotion (see video games). But why isn’t that music transcendent? Why won’t the soundtrack for W.O.W. endure for generations like the flight theme from ET?

It’s very simple, really. Hum the tune Twinkle Twinkle Little Star. Exactly. Now try Beethoven’s 5th. Perfect. Raiders of the Lost Ark. I’ll bet it’s stuck in your head now.

Melody.

Unforgettable themes and motifs that stand the test of time have always been history’s litmus test for compositional genius. Consider that a number of J.S. Bach’s children became composers. Can you hum any of Johann Christian Bach’s melodies off the top of your head? I’m guessing not. But as I sit here typing I can hear his father’s Toccata and Fugue in D Minor in my head (you’d recognize it instantly if you heard it).

The great ones always lull us into believing it’s so easy, like watching LeBron James dunk appears effortless. I could do that.

This is not a criticism in any way of James Horner, Alan Silvestri, or even the late Jerry Goldsmith. Fab composers all. But even in his late seventies, John’s untouchable. His scores dominated and defined 70′s and 80′s cinema like no one else.

Here’s to you, J Will. You’ve set the bar intimidatingly high for all future film composers.