RSO Records releases a double LP of John Williams’ soundtrack from Star Wars, coinciding with the movie’s release. A fold-out poster of publicity artwork of the climactic Death Star dogfight is included. The album becomes a chart-topper by the end of the year, and cover versions by other artists are released even before the year is out. Many listeners become lifelong film score fanatics on the spot.

RCA Victor Records releases an expanded, 2-CD re-release of John Williams’ complete score from Star Wars, tying into the upcoming Special Edition re-release of the original trilogy. (Previous CD releases of the original LP program had a running time just under the capacity of a standard compact disc, so this release adds roughly half an hour of additional material not previously available.)