Bill Conti--Gonna Fly Now (1977)

     Just like many men who's teenaged years spanned the 70's, I have a thing for Rocky. The story is probably as old as professional sports, the guy who had a rough life, who strove for greatness and achieved it (and got the girl too..). However, the only two of the movies that really stuck out for me was Rocky III which had one of the great villains of the 1980's in Mr. T, and the first one.
      Some of the scenes in the first movie were inspiring and downright moving. Most of not all of that was due to the soundtrack which perfectly meshed with movie. The scene where you first hear, "Gonna Fly Now" with it's climax on top of the steps overlooking the city almost made you ready for the ring yourself. Of course, like many movie soundtracks, the song is totally encased in the amber of it's 70's kitschey-ness with the chorus and all, but in it's day, it worked, and really that's all that's necessary.
     Bill Conti already had some success as a writer of soundtracks, but Rocky put him on the map. He wrote for many movies and TV shows throughout the 80's and 90's.