The TD soundtrack version of the film was the one released in the U.S. In Europe the Gerry Goldsmith orchestral soundtrack accompanied the visuals. Both versions have their merits, but the TD score (partly due to the era in which it was written) has probably dated less well. The Jon Anderson (from Yes) vocal on Loved by the Sun now sounds particularly 'twee', but personally I still prefer the TD version. Goldsmith's score is one of his most lyrical & has some typically lilting melodies, but it never really gets out of 3rd gear which is a shame.Until a few years ago UK TV audiences were treated to the U.S. cut of this movie, but more recently the European release has been broadcast a number of times instead.TD have probably never made a better soundtrack (apart perhaps from The Keep - a Michael Mann horror/supernatural film from the 80's, but the score has never been commercially available, for unfathomable legal/copyright reasons).

The music for LEGEND was a subject of great controversy in 1985. Initially, Ridley Scott had turned to composer Jerry Goldsmith to score the film, which would reunite them after their great success on ALIEN in 1979. Goldsmith responded by writing an enchanting, organic symphonic score emphasizing strings, woodwinds and choir, a score that the composer, the director of the film and many others felt was among Goldsmith’s best work. After a disappointing test screening, studio executives encouraged Ridley Scott to replace the music with something that would be more commercially appealing to the film’s expected youth market. Tangerine Dream had realized great success with their score to RISKY BUSINESS in 1983, another film aimed at the youth market and so they were hired to compose a brand new score for the film.Tangerine Dream ultimately composed 80 minutes of music for LEGEND, using 35 different synthesizers, yielding a score that many feel is the group’s finest musical endeavor for film. Despite inevitable comparison between the two scores, the music that Tangerine Dream composed for the film was extremely effective and remains their most lyrical and complex work for films, from the delicate melody for Nell’s Cottage, the hauntingly fragile melody for the Unicorns, the crackling percussive motif for the Goblins and and the pervasive dark synthetic pulses associated with Darkness.