Aliens Gets A 40th Anniversary Edition Vinyl Soundtrack

This looks like a must for fans and collectors.

Varèse Sarabande celebrates the 40th anniversary of James Cameron’s ALIENS with three new vinyl editions featuring James Horner’s acclaimed score. The releases include a Silver 40th-Anniversary Edition, a Barnes & Noble Exclusive “Alien Green” edition, and a Varèse Sarabande Exclusive “Xenomorph Glow” glow-in-the-dark edition. All three are available to pre-order now ahead of their November 13 release.

Horner’s score, performed by the London Symphony Orchestra and recorded at Abbey Road Studios, helped shape the film’s tense and expansive sci-fi atmosphere. The score earned Horner his first Academy Award® nomination and began his long-running creative relationship with Cameron, which later continued with TITANIC and AVATAR.

The ALIENS 40th-anniversary vinyl editions are available to pre-order now.

ALIENS CELEBRATES 40TH ANNIVERSARY WITH 

NEW VINYL SOUNDTRACK REISSUES

James Horner’s soundtrack to the classic James Cameron sci-fi movie

 to be made available November 13 on LP

Click here to visit the online media kit

Click here to pre-order Aliens (40th Anniversary Edition)  

Los Angeles, CA (September 15, 2026)— Varèse Sarabande is excited to announce three new 40th-anniversary vinyl reissues of James Horner’s celebrated soundtrack to James Cameron’s iconic 1986 sci-fi action movie Aliens.

The album will be made available in three new variants, a wide 40th-Anniversary Edition LP on Silver color vinyl, a Barnes & Noble Exclusive 40th-Anniversary Edition LP on “Alien Green” color vinyl, and a Varèse Sarabande 40th-Anniversary Edition LP on “Xenomorph Glow” glow in the dark vinyl. Available to pre-order today, the album will hit shelves on November 13.

Cameron’s Aliens, the sequel to Ridley Scott’s 1979 sci-fi classic Alien, follows Ellen Ripley (Sigourney Weaver), the sole survivor of the original film’s deadly encounter with the Xenomorph. Composed and conducted by Horner, the score was performed by the London Symphony Orchestra and recorded at London’s famed Abbey Road Studios. Aliens also marked the first collaboration between Cameron and Horner, who would later reunite for two of the highest-grossing films of all time: Titanic and Avatar.

Although Aliens ultimately became a critical and commercial success, the film was completed under intense deadline pressure. Cameron’s meticulous approach to filmmaking created significant challenges for everyone involved. “Cameron’s vision and hands-on oversight of every aspect of film production was also his curse,” Cinephilia & Beyond notes. “He knew exactly what he wanted and expected others to deliver it. The film was being completed with edits, effects and music cues right up to the wire. James Horner had just two weeks to complete his score.” 

Yet Horner’s score earned him his first Academy Award® nomination. As Cinephilia & Beyond notes, “The first time many of the crew saw the completed film (there was no time for previews) was at the premiere. Grudgingly, many of the talented people who worked long hours would agree that the aggravation was worth it to create such a landmark film.” 

The demanding production strained Horner and Cameron’s relationship, and the two did not work together again for several years before reuniting on Titanic. Despite the friction, Cameron never lost sight of Horner’s talents as a composer. 

“I never lost track of James Horner and his career. The craziest things have been written about what I wanted musically for Titanic, some people even suggested that my first choice was John Williams. It’s true that over the years Michael Gorfaine has often suggested the great John Williams, but ever since Apollo 13, I knew James Horner was the right guy for me,” Cameron said. “I admire John Williams but his style would have been at odds with my musical vision of Titanic, and I do not think that we would have come up with the best score for the film.” Horner’s distinctive style would become an integral part of Cameron’s later work.

The two eventually grew close again and collaborated over the following decades. “He was a great guy, and I think the depth of his emotion and his sensitivity is what gave him a lot of his musical talent,” Cameron recalled shortly after Horner died in 2015. “I mean, sure, he was classically trained and he was a pianist and all that. But I think it was that he, himself, was a very emotional person,” Cameron concluded.

Though it took significant effort from all involved to pull Aliens across the finish line, the result was a landmark achievement in sci-fi cinema. Celebrate its 40th anniversary with the new vinyl edition of Horner’s seminal score.

Click here to pre-order Aliens (40th Anniversary Edition).

L-R: Silver (wide), Alien Green (Barnes & Noble), Xenomorph Glow (Varèse Sarabande)

Aliens (40th Anniversary Edition) Tracklist: 

Side A:

1. Aliens Main Title
2. Going After Newt
3. Sub-Level 3
4. Ripley’s Rescue
5. Atmosphere Station

Side B

1. Futile Escape
2. Dark Discovery
3. Bishop’s Countdown
4. Resolution and Hyperspace

About Varèse Sarabande:

Varèse Sarabande is one of the leading and most prolific producers of film and television soundtracks. The label was formed as a merger between Varèse International Records (named for composer Edgar Varèse) and Sarabande Records (named after a musical dance form). Initially a classical label, Varèse Sarabande has released thousands of soundtracks and new recordings of classic film scores conducted by celebrated composers with the world’s best-known orchestras since 1977. The label upped the ante for fans by creating the Varèse Sarabande CD Club—releasing exclusive limited-edition deluxe soundtracks featuring rare and long-requested titles. The CD Club ran initially from 1989–92 and was restarted in 2001, and Varèse continues to create Deluxe Editions of cherished scores that might otherwise never see a release.  Since joining Concord in 2018, Varèse Sarabande continues its mission to release new scores, high quality vinyl and Deluxe Edition soundtracks.  

For more info, visit VareseSarabande.com and follow on Facebook, X, Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube. 

About Craft Recordings:

Craft Recordings is home to one of the largest and most essential collections of master recordings and compositions in the world. Its storied repertoire includes landmark releases from icons such as Joan Baez, John Coltrane, Creedence Clearwater Revival, Celia Cruz, Miles Davis, Isaac Hayes, John Lee Hooker, Little Richard, R.E.M., and Joan Sebastian. Plus, the catalog recordings of celebrated contemporary acts including A Day to Remember, Daddy Yankee, Evanescence, Alison Krauss, Nine Inch Nails, Taking Back Sunday and Violent Femmes, to name just a few. Renowned imprints with catalogs issued under the Craft banner include Fania, Fantasy, Fearless, Musart, Nitro, Panart, Prestige, Riverside, Rounder, Specialty, Stax, Vanguard, Varèse Sarabande, Vee-Jay and Victory, among many others. Craft creates thoughtfully curated packages, with a meticulous devotion to quality and a commitment to preservation—ensuring that these recordings endure for new generations to discover. Craft is also home to the Billie Holiday and Tammy Wynette estates which preserve and protect their respective names, likeness and music through day-to-day legacy management of these cultural trailblazers. Craft Recordings is part of BMG. 

For more, visit CraftRecordings.com and follow on Facebook, X, Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube.

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