For Martin Scorsese's new thriller of duplicitous goings-on on the murkier side of Boston, Howard Shore has come up with a guitar-fest featuring four of New York's finest guitarists with their Gibson, Dobro, Spanish and acoustic guitars. The memorable main theme, a compelling tango heard in the opening track played by GE Smith and Larry Saltzman, is the score's leitmotif. It returns as an elegy for “the faithful departed” (tr 4), in heavy-metal guise (tr 11) and at the end in an elaborate showcase for Dobro player Marc Ribot, his colleagues and percussion.

Sharon Isbin receives star billing and the score's most substantial piece, “Billy's Theme”, named after the film's odd man out played by Leonardo DiCaprio. This insistent, plucked theme accompanied by pianissimo strings builds over a string ostinato that, under Isbin's fingers, is transfigured into a poetic study of a man struggling to express his inner anguish. “Boston Common” is in similar thoughtful vein, a sarabande in which Isbin brings off the intricate part-writing with consummate ease.

As with The Aviator, the last Shore-Scorsese collaboration, the music on this soundtrack is confined to Shore's original work. Those in search of a favourite Scorsese track, “Gimme Shelter”, will have to see the film or buy the DVD when it appears. Make no mistake though, this CD compels attention. Shore's best to date, I'd say.