THE UNOFFICIAL FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS (FAQ)                      ABOUT MUSIC FROM THE PRISONER                               RELEASE 0.2                           BY VICTOR R. VOLKMAN 1.0  Welcome to the FAQ 2.0  Who wrote the music? 3.0  Who is Albert Elms?  (An Interview with Albert Elms) 4.0  Who is Wilfred Josephs? (Excerpt from review by Howard Foy)      Who is Wilfred Thomson 5.0  What is on the soundtrack recordings? 5.1  What is the Bootleg CD? 5.3  Liner Notes from THE PRISONER, Volume Two , by Roger Langley 6.0  How do I buy the soundtrack recordings? ================================================================= 1.0  Welcome to the FAQ Most of you are familiar with the original PRISONER FAQ from alt.tv.prisoner.  You may well ask:   Why is there a FAQ on the music, surely there is enough information already? .  We all want information and I have been compiling it for some time. First off, I do not want to detract from the official FAQ, which stands very well by itself.  Second, I think that audio is at least one-half of the message.  Certainly the audio portion of the PRISONER is an equal match surrealistic, moody, and triumphant nature of the stories. My primary sources of information in this endeavor include the following: * NUMBER SIX

                     Complete Soundtrack Breakdown CD|Trk| Episode | _title_                             |Time | Composer

When I perused the music bible some years ago, its pages were already yellowing.  Now, a quarter century since The Prisoner was made, we are fortunate that it is still possible to blow the dust off the Chappells library tapes and present the tracks again for listener's appreciation. Eric Mival can justly be proud of his involvement in the whole undertaking, helping to create the unique atmosphere of the Village and in bringing to life the Prisoner screen action... 5.4  Liner Notes from THE PRISONER, Volume Three , by Karen Langley WELL COME, as the illuminated, underground door sign in the final Prisoner episode Fall Out bids us, to Volume 3 of Prisoner music. This collection of tracks is no less enigmatic than those which adorned the first pair of Silva Screen albums of music from the 1967 Prisoner television series.  This third compilation features instrumental gems from Chappell's library, used in various episodes to provide that distinctive Prisoner 'atmosphere'. The series has now reached its 25th anniversary and has enjoyed another national U.K. rescreening, courtesy of Channel 4.  Everybody has a different favourite piece of music, a passage which lingers in the memory, recalling an image from a particular episode or scene.  Much of the music epitomises those carefree far-off days of the sixties.  And yet, this album, along with its two predecessors, offers musical delights which have stood the test of time.  Snappy tunes and clever orchestral arrangements remind us of a bygone era.  How effective was the use of much of the music in providing a counterpoint to the striking images created by The Prisoner

[...]  All things considered, the bootleg is mostly a curiosity and I wouldn't advise spending much time searching out a copy of it. OK.  But, now that I have one, is it even vaguely rare?  And, more importantly (perhaps), should I seek out the legit pressings - i.e., is the sound quality on the real pressings better than this boot I see before me?