I go back and forth between different composers (I like Hans Zimmer, Klaus Badelt, James Horner, and Randy Edelman), but I always fall back on John Williams, and he will always be my all-time favorite. Listening to his music brings back countless memories for me. He has scored so many of my favorite movies, including Jurassic Park and Indiana Jones.

When I was a kid (back when we bought cassette tapes), my favorite album was By Request: The Best Of John Williams And The Boston Pops Orchestra. I remember blaring the theme of Superman whilst running through the house at top speeds, naked, with a bath towel tied around my neck and my mother laughing hysterically at me. Mom, Dad, me and Jen would go on last minute trips up to Disney World and Epcot Center in Orlando. On the three-hour drive, we'd be tearing down the highway to the tunes of Midway, "1941", Jaws, the Mission Theme, the Liberty Fanfare, and the Olympic Fanfare.

I'm sure Williams gives my Dad memories, too. On long the long drive home from the trips we annually took to the Smoky Mountains, Dad would be driving at night, and he'd look over every now and then to see my Mom sleeping next to him, or me in the back seat rocking out to "1941" and E.T.

Indiana Jones was my childhood hero, and back then, when we couldn't find the Jones movie soundtracks (our music store never had them, neither did we have a computer to find them online), I'd fast forward to the end of one of the movies just to listen to the song that plays in the end credits.

I have a lot  ;of John Williams' soundtracks and "Best of" albums, as well as the work he's done for NBC and the Olympics, but I must say my favorite album has got to be the original Jurassic Park soundtrack. Just hearing that theme brings back so many memories of my childhood.

Sometimes my friends would come over when my parents weren't home, and we'd turn out all the lights and put on Jurassic Park, then play hide-and-seek. I'd go prancing through the house making dinosaur noises, with the creepy music playing the background, scaring the crap out of my sister, cousins and friends.

I used to pretend to "dig up" plastic dinosaur bones and pieces of wood in my back yard. I'd also create entire dinosaur habitats in the bushes, with all my JP dinosaurs as the inhabitants. While doing this, I'd bring out a small stereo and play the JP soundtrack. I don't think everybody realizes what a huge part of my life dinosaurs are. I was always told it was "just a fad", that dinosaurs were "scary" or "nasty", and was made fun of quite a bit by my friends. But a "fad" doesn't last well over fifteen years.

I might not play with my dinosaurs any more, but I still collect them and have all the ones I've ever bought, even from the original JP (back in '93). It's hard to believe that was twelve years ago.

For some reason, hearing Jurassic Park even makes me start thinking of my Mom. Sometimes I could get my friends to join me in building dinosaur "habitats" and nests, and Mom would sit outside and watch us every now and then. In the winter months, she'd make hot chocolate for us, or tell us to come inside for a little while to warm up and listen to Christmas music (usually Mannheim Steamroller).

The second main theme of JP (the more uppity one) reminds me of the beautiful waterfall they show when the helicopter first lands on "Isla Nublar". When I first saw that, I was determined to go there some day and see that falls. Hopefully I will.

If you want an amazing album that runs the gamut of Williams' career, I really recommend John Williams: Greatest Hits 1969-1999.