Breakthrough - Original Motion Picture Soundtrack LP

Steiner – Das Eiserne Kreuz, Teil 2 (aka: Breakthrough) a German-British film from 1979. Starring Richard Burton, Robert Mitchum, Rod Steiger, Curd Jürgens, Klaus Löwitsch, Michael Parks, Werner Pochath, Horst Janson, Helmut Griem, Christoph Waltz (uncredited) and many more.

Details

Following the immensely successful and profitable School Girl Report movies producer Wolf C. Hartwig could afford a much bigger international production: Steiner – Cross of Iron, based on a World War II novel, should be directed by none other than Sam Peckinpah. The music was supposed to come from the pen of Peter Thomas. Unfortunately, the two did not get along (interview with Peter Thomas in “Der Filmkomponist Peter Thomas” by Gerd Naumann, 2009 ibidem Verlag). In the end, the American composer Ernest Gold wrote the music. Despite several financial squabbles the film became a great international success in 1977.

A sequel followed quickly. This time directed by Andrew V. McLaglen, with a score finally written by Peter Thomas. The new director and the composer hit it off right away. The title melody by Peter Thomas was released as a single by Ariola shortly after the film premiere in 1979. The film Steiner – Das Eiserne Kreuz, Teil 2, however, was unable to match the success of the first part, despite a top-class cast. An already considered LP release of the soundtrack was therefore no longer pursued.

The present album is the vinyl premiere of the film music, supplemented by a previously unreleased track that was not included on a long out-of-print CD release from 1993.