Rocktrospectiva: The 80s Quintessential "Top Gun: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack" Turns 40

Released on 15 May 1986, "Top Gun: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack" was the official soundtrack from the film of the same name which actually was released the day after.

The album reached number one in the US charts for five nonconsecutive weeks in the summer and autumn of 1986. It was the best selling soundtrack of 1986 and one of the best selling of all time. The album spawned eight singles ""Danger Zone", "Take My Breath Away", "Mighty Wings" "Heaven In Your Eyes", "Playing With The Boys", "Hot Summer Nights", "Top Gun Anthem" & "Lead Me One." , the album still remains a quintessential artifact of the mid-'80s", and its hits "still define the bombastic, melodramatic sound that dominated the pop charts of the era."

Back in 1999, the album was reissued as a "Special Expanded Edition" with additional songs, and in 2006, it was reissued again as Music From and Inspired by Top Gun: Deluxe Edition, containing additional songs not in the film. 

Talking about the soundtrack, Toto was originally intended to perform the track "Danger Zone", but legal conflicts between the film's producers and the band's lawyers prevented this. Bryan Adams was approached to perform it, but refused any involvement in the film, feeling that it glorified war and, as such, not wanting any of his work linked to it. Adams also refused to allow his song "Only the Strong Survive" to be featured in the film. REO Speedwagon was approached but declined, due to not being allowed to contribute any of their own compositions to the soundtrack. Corey Hart also declined, preferring to write and perform his own compositions. Eventually, the film's producers agreed that "Danger Zone" would be recorded and performed by Kenny Loggins.

Members of Toto also wrote and intended to perform a song called "Only You" that would have been used as the film's love theme instead of "Take My Breath Away", but legal conflicts prevented doing so. The Motels were originally considered to perform "Take My Breath Away", and a demo version exists on their 2001 compilation Anthologyland.

Judas Priest was also approached to allow their song "Reckless" in the film but declined when the proposed contract stipulated that the filmmakers have exclusive rights to the song, which would have necessitated the band omitting the song from their forthcoming album Turbo (1986). Former Judas Priest guitarist K.K. Downing later called their opting out of the film "a big mistake". The band offered the producers three other songs for the soundtrack, all of which were rejected.

ABC members Martin Fry and Mark White were invited to see the director's rough cut version of Top Gun in 1986. "They were looking to offer a few British bands soundtrack opportunities. Mark and I weren't impressed with the film and chose not to contribute any music to it."

Bobby Blotzer of Ratt proposed using the song "Reach for the Sky", an outtake from Ratt's 1984 album Out of the Cellar. Although the rest of the band seriously considered the idea, they declined under the belief that their long-time fans would not like the song and would accuse the group of selling out. Although the song title "Reach for the Sky" would become the title of the band's 1988 album, the track itself was never officially released until 2024, being remastered and finally released in honour of the 40th anniversary of Out of the Cellar.

The Cars' song "Stranger Eyes" from their 1984 album Heartbeat City was featured in an early teaser trailer for the film, though it was absent from the film's final cut.

For the soundtrack, synth-rock was the orderat the time, plus a Harold Faltermeyer score, and a couple of classics from the 1960s, besides of that, Top Gun was aimed primarily at 1980s teenage audiences. But remains one of the key pop soundtracks of the 1980s, often dismissed by snootier critics or rock music fans, even thought the soundtrack still produced shrivers amongst music enthusiasts 40 years later.

 

Top Gun: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack Track List: 

 

1. Danger Zone

2. Mighty Wings

3. Playing With The Boys

4. Lead Me On

5. Take My Breath Away

6. Hot Summer Nights 

7. Heaven In Your Eyes 

8. Through The Fire

9. Destinantion Unkown

10. Top Gun Anthem 

Rocktrospectiva: The Incredible And Greatest "Pretty In Pink: Soundtrack" Turns 40

 

Released on 28 February 1986 "Pretty In Pink: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack" was the official soundtrack of the film the same name and as with previous films by John Hughes. The title song by the Psychedelic Furs acted as a bit of inspiration for the film and was re-recorded specifically for the film's opening sequence in a version that was less raw than the original version that appeared on the 1981 album Talk Talk Talk. "Left of Center" was remixed by Arthur Baker. The first track, "If You Leave", by Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark, was written in 1985 specifically for the film. In addition to their soundtrack song "Shellshock", New Order also contributed an instrumental version of "Thieves Like Us" and the instrumental "Elegia", both of which appear in the film but not on the soundtrack.

 

The Rave-Ups, who appear in the film performing "Positively Lost Me" and "Shut-Up" from their Town and Country album, do not have any songs on the soundtrack album. Nik Kershaw's "Wouldn't It Be Good" appears on the soundtrack in a version by former Three Dog Night vocalist Danny Hutton's band, Danny Hutton Hitters. The Smiths' "Please Please Please Let Me Get What I Want" appears on the soundtrack and was later covered by the Autumns for the 2000 Isn't She Still... The Original Motion Picture Soundtrack Revisited album. Also noteworthy is the inclusion of Echo & the Bunnymen's "Bring On the Dancing Horses", which, according to the liner notes of the CD release of the band's compilation album Songs to Learn & Sing, was recorded specifically for the film.

The film also includes Otis Redding's "Try a Little Tenderness", to which Duckie lip-synchs in the film, the Association's "Cherish" and Talk Back's "Rudy". These three tracks do not appear on the official soundtrack album.

Another Hughes film cracker and according to certain stories, the idea came from Molly Ringwald herself. She reached out to John Hughes, urging him to create a film inspired by her favourite tune at the time—The Psychedelic Fur' "Pretty in Pink" at the time of its released  it was nothing quite like the soundtrack that Hughes assembled for Pretty in Pink, the third film he'd written to star Molly Ringwald in a lead role, following 1984’s Sixteen Candles and 1985’s The Breakfast Club. 

The film made almost $7.5M in its opening week – In Ringwald’s own words: I made three movies with John Hughes; when they were released, they made enough of a cultural impact to land me on the cover of Time magazine and to get Hughes hailed as a genius.  There was music in Hughes’s previous film, The Breakfast Club, and it even featured a #1, era-defining single in Simple Minds’s “Don’t You (Forget About Me)” – but as many people said, there was not much else on that soundtrack that was particularly memorable.

Pretty in Pink, however, was different cause the album had a number of now-iconic UK college rock artists (back then) on it, none of whom had come anywhere near the tops of the US pops in 1986: New Order had a trio of songs featured in the film, though only  "Shell-Shock" appeared on its soundtrack, Echo and the Bunnymen, the Smiths, Psychedelic Furs and the British synthpop stars Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark, a/k/a OMD, whose "If You Leave" soundtracked the film's climactic prom scene. 

Suzanne Vega, then hot off her self-titled 1985 album, also appears on the soundtrack, with Joe Jackson on piano, INXS, former Time member Jesse Johnson, former Three Dog Night singer Danny Hutton and UK synthpopper Belouis Some, who had notched a pair of top 10 US dance hits in ‘85. 

In summary, the Pretty in Pink soundtrack wasn't just another collection of tracks—it’s was life-changer! and made a huge impact in pop culture regarded as one of the ‘Best Movie Soundtracks: The 15 Film Music Compilations That’ll Change Your Life'.

 

Pretty In Pink Original Motion Picture Soundtrack Track List: 

 

1. If You Leave

2. Left Of Center

3. Get To Know Ya

4. Do Wot You Do

5. Pretty In Pink

6. Shell-Shock

7. Round, Round

8. Wouldn't It Be Good

9. Bring On The Dancing Horses

Rocktrospectiva: The Outstanding "Trainspotting: Music From The Motion Picture" Soundtrack Turns 30

Originally released on 19 February in the UK and 9 July in the USA, "Trainspotting: Music From The Motion Picture" was the soundtrack album for the 1996 film adaptation of Irvine Welsh's novel of the same name. The album spawned the brilliant single "Born Slippy Nuxx". 

The original soundtrack prompted the release of a second soundtrack on 21 October 1997. This second album included songs from the film that did not make the cut for the first album, as well as songs that did not appear in the final film but were involved at earlier stages or were used as inspiration by the filmmakers, and one duplicate song. The popularity of the first volume led EMI to reissue it and continue to press it since 16 June 2003. 

The film's sex, violence and copious drug-taking sparked controversy over whether it glamorised, or condemned, heroin use. But it also inspired a crucially banging soundtrack. Featuring an expertly curated cross-section of '70s rock iconoclasts (Iggy Pop, Lou Reed, Brian Eno), on-trend Britpop (Blur, Pulp, Elastica) and intoxicating electronica (Leftfield, Underworld, Primal Scream), the soundtrack — released 30 years ago today — was a significant part of Trainspotting's cultural impact all over the globe. Representing a golden era of '90s compilation tie-ins, it provided overseas audiences with a Cool Britannia cheat sheet.

The music followed throught the film arrived in the arresting opening sequence, where the pounding drums of Iggy Pop's Lust For Life match the pace of protagonist Mark Renton, tearing down Edinburgh's cobblestone streets away from pursuing security guards. The 1977 song takes on a heightened energy accompanying the now-infamous "choose life" monologue as the shoplifting sequence turns into a soccer-match-and-smacked-out montage that introduces us to our main cast of misfits.

Then there's the soothing ambience of Brian Eno's Deep Blue Day scoring a visit to "The Worst Toilet In Scotland". Or how about Lou Reed's elegant Perfect Day given a fresh, harrowing take soundtracking a heroin overdose?. A nightclub sequence that morphs from battle of the sexes comedy to a meet cute and subsequent one night stand is set to Heaven 17's Temptation, Sleeper's stellar Blondie cover, and New Order wafting in the background of the morning after.

In each case mentioned, the songs "matched and amplified key scenes, especially when they seemed incongruous", no doubt why the soundtrack remained as one of the 50 Most Memorable Movie Soundtracks. Few soundtracks from the '90s have aged as well. 

The film loosely begins in the "mid-to-late '80s … But by the time you reach the end of the film, [the characters] move through the house [music] scene and rave scene. And then we end up with Britpop".

Trainspotting snagged many of the UK musical movement's reigning favourites: Pulp, who'd gone supernova with era-defining anthem Common People; the female-fronted Elastica and Sleeper, and Britpop titans Blur, who were engaged in a media-charged charts battle with Oasis. The latter were a glaring omission from Trainspotting's track list, kept off because Noel Gallagher thought the film was literally about people watching trains.

David Bowie — whose music is referenced frequently in Welsh's original book — also turned down all licensing requests. (His track Golden Years was the first choice for the "worst toilet in Scotland"). However, Boyle says Bowie still provided a "big turning point" in helping access Lou Reed and Iggy Pop, whose solo material Bowie had produced.

Beyond Britpop, Trainspotting presaged the mid-nineties ascent of dance, electronic and big beat music, where the likes of The Prodigy, The Chemical Brothers and Basement Jaxx came for Britpop's crown.

Trainspotting's signature tune is Underworld's Born Slippy (.NUXX): the thumping, euphoric shout-along that closes the film, and Renton's narrative arc. The now-iconic Born Slippy almost didn't make the cut. Boyle was already editing the film when he discovered the 1995 B-side while browsing HMV in London's Oxford Street. "I didn't know they'd released it as a single. [But] I took it home … heard the second mix and thought 'that's the end of the film'!" He reached out to Underworld's Karl Hyde and Rick Smith, who were initially reluctant.

Boyle convinced Underworld after screening them a sequence, and the duo sanctioned not only Born Slippy, but also Dark & Long for Renton's disturbing detox sequence, featuring a baby crawling on the roof.

Another influential electronic group that gave Trainspotting their blessing was Leftfield, who had released their seminal 1995 album Leftism before the film's arrival. The duo of Paul Daley and Neil Barnes had also supplied music for the title sequence of Boyle's first film, Shallow Grave.

The energy and vitality of the film chimed with the Zeitgeist and mid-to-late '90s youth culture: Britpop, YBA [Young British Artists], New Labour," as Primal Scream's Bobby Gillespie put it. "There was some kind of hopefulness in the air back then, a post–acid house rush of possibilities, both chemically and politically pronounced. "Trainspotting rode in on that wave and stands as a testament to those times."

Primal Scream recorded a spy-rock instrumental titled Trainspotting, featured in yet another quotable sequence in which Renton's frenemy Sick Boy (Johnny Lee Miller) is educating him on a cultural phenomenon.

Trainspotting soundtrack has been regarded as the 7th., best motion picture soundtrack ever made in history since. 

 

Trainspotting: Music From The Motion Picture Track List:  

 

1. Lust For Life - Iggy Pop

2- Deep Blue Day - Brian Eno 

3. Atomic - Sleeper

4. Temptation - New Order

5. Nightclubbing - Iggy pop

6. Sing - Pulp

7. Perfect Day - Lou Reed

8. Mile End - Pulp

9. For What You Dream Of - Bedrock featuring KYO

10. 2:1 - Elastica

11. A Final Hit - Leftfield

12. Born Slippy Nuxx - Underworld

13. Closet Romantic - Damon Albarn

Rocktrospectiva: The Heavily Influential "Music From Twin Peaks" Turns 35

Released on 11 September 1990, "Music From Twin Peaks" was a soundtrack album by US composer Angelo Badalamenti, and it was the official soundtrack to the television series Twin Peaks (1990–1991). Though mostly instrumental, three tracks feature vocals by Julee Cruise. The soundtrack spawned a single "Falling". 

The series' co-creator David Lynch produced the album alongside Badalamenti and wrote lyrics for several tracks, including the series' theme song "Falling". Music From Twin Peaks, featuring songs written and composed by Angelo Badalamenti and David Lynch, is a 48-minute ethereal music odyssey, combining jazz and ambient soundscapes with the dream pop of Julee Cruise… particularly on The Nightingale, in all its haunting majesty.

The album’s opened in the manner in which the soaring Twin Peaks Theme segues into the brooding, yet optimistic Laura Palmer’s Theme is a juxtaposition worthy of any classical symphony. Upon its release, Soundtrack from Twin Peaks placed in several international charts—including the top 10 in Norway, Sweden, Australia and the Netherlands.

Elsewhere, Lynch’s ability to surprise is evident on tracks such as Audrey’s Dance (“it’s so… dreamy”), which is permeated with alarming horn stabs, giving an otherworldly sense to an otherwise jazzy groove. Ditto the orchestral crescendo in the middle of Into The Night (did we really hear that, or imagine it?) and the frantic drumming in the background of The Bookhouse Boys. Unsettling, yet masterful.

The highlight of the album’s B-side for many was undoubtedly Dance of The Dream Man, with its epic saxophone solo – if ever there was a track that made you want to learn how to speak backwards and shuffle around the room in a red suit, this is it. 

Badalamenti discussed how he managed to get inside Lynch’s head and provide a suitable accompaniment: “I could see David was so happy,” he explained. “He had his eyes closed. He was seeing pictures in his head. That music, Laura Palmer’s Theme, set the tone for everything that followed. “The whole mood of the show is in there. I never changed a single note.” The Soundtrack has been awarded and described as the most influential soundtrack in TV history.

 

Music From Twin Peaks Track List: 

 

1. Twin Peaks Theme (Instrumental)

2. Laura Palmer's Theme (Instrumental)

3. Audrey's Dance (Instrumental)

4. The Nightingale (vocals by Julee Cruise) 

5. Freshly Squeezes (Instrumental)

6. The Bookhouse Boys

7. Into The Night (Vocals By Julee Cruise)

8. Nigth Life In Twin Peaks (Instrumental)

9. Dance Of The Dream Man (Instrumental)

10. Love Theme From Twin Peaks (Instrumental)

11. Falling  (vocals by Julee Cruise)

Rocktrospectiva: The Trangressive "Pump Up The Volume (Music From The Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) Turns 35

Released on 14 August 1990, "Pump Up the Volume (Music From the Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)"  was the soundtrack to Allan Moyle's 1990 drama film Pump Up the Volume. The album peaked at number 50 on the US Billboard 200 chart. 

"Do you ever get the feeling that everything in America is completely fucked-up?” following that premise said by Hard Harry and still relevant 35 years later, the film told the story of Mark Hunter (the cool as fuck Christian Slater), a depressed high schooler in suburban Phoenix, Arizona, who hacks his shortwave radio and launches a pirate radio station. Under the moniker Happy Harry Hard-On, Mark slowly earns a cult following amongst his fellow screwed up students, doling out bullshit-free advice, dropping graffiti-worthy catch phrases (“So be it,” “Talk hard”) and challenging his school’s questionable expulsions of at-risk students.

It was a macabre idea for a teen movie, but even Moyle's suicidal DJ had his roots in actual 1960s history. Growing up in small-town Quebec, Moyle had a high-school classmate who had an amateur printing press in his basement. The classmate would write fiery screeds and then distribute them via anonymous pamphlets all over the school. Some of them were deeply felt musings on life, while others boldly criticized the principal and the school itself. Moyle admired this student from afar, and regarded him as someone unusually sophisticated for his age and his environment.

Going back with soundtrack, Moyle, who adored underground music, would have to make concessions, like naming the film Pump Up The Volume after a mainstream late-’80s dance hit by M|A|R|R|S. Still, much of Pump Up The Volume revolves around Harry and his unconventional musical tastes. In the same way that Moyle’s defiance towards homophobia had been shaped by working on Times Square, he also brought the underground instincts that had been showcased on that film's soundtrack to Pump Up The Volume. Featuring Sonic Youth, Concrete Blonde, Soundgarden, and the Pixies, Pump Up The Volume’s soundtrack would end up introducing its teenage audience to bands they’d never heard of—a year prior to the alternative explosion that Nirvana’s Nevermind (1991) would ignite. 

"You have to remember where music was at the time," recalled Dave Grohl at SXSW in 2013, listing Billboard’s Top 10 artists of 1990 when Nirvana was in the midst of signing with a major label (Bon Jovi, Billy Idol, En Vogue, Phil Collins, Mariah Carey, Madonna, Bell Biv DeVoe, Sinéad O’Connor, Roxette, and Wilson Phillips). “How Kurt could even think we’d make a ripple in this ridiculous mainstream world of polished pop music was beyond me.” 

Pump Up The Volume absolutely paved the way. "It felt like something was happening," observes Samantha Mathis, who was 19 when she portrayed Mark's poetry-writing love interest Nora in the film. "We were moving away from that synthesized sort of sound and moving into something edgier, and we had the dissonance of being around the ‘greed is good’ era of filmmaking and finance in the world. There was anger, and I thought Allan really tapped into that with this movie."

Moyle understood that there was no way Hard Harry could deliver blistering screeds on how his Boomer parents—and the school faculty—had sold out '60s ideals while blasting Phil Collins. The soundtrack and film itself borrows from the '60s—Leonard Cohen, the MC5, Sly Stone, and Mark’s obsession with Lenny Bruce's How to Talk Dirty and Influence People—but it doesn't idolize the era. Instead, it filters those influences through a late '80s/early ’90s haze of cultural exhaustion, skepticism, and Reagan/Bush fatigue. The soundtrack's juxtaposition of counterculture relics with then-rising bands like Soundgarden and Sonic Youth forecasts the coming explosion of '90s alternative, but the vibe is still characteristically Neighties—in-between, defiant, in honest search of definition and meaning.

At the same time, the film captured our awkward, stubborn '80s-ness—the part everyone wants to forget still existed in 1990. "It felt like the eighties might live forever when the Berlin Wall fell in November of '89, but that was actually the onset of the euthanasia (though it took another two years for the patient to die)," writes Chuck Klosterman in The Nineties.

Pump Up The Volume's soundtrack kicks off with Concrete Blonde's cover of Leonard Cohen's "Everybody Knows," Johnette Napolitano singing in a sultry, whiskey-soaked tone. Cohen's original version of "Everybody Knows" became the semi-official theme of Hard Harry's show after Moyle had fallen in love with the brooding song, which his then-wife had worked on as a sound engineer. 

But not everyone was a fan. The head of New Line, Bob Shaye, thought Cohen's version was too down head to be the opening song of the movie. He said, God that's dreary! Moyle recalls. So the studio had Concrete Blonde, a band with indie cred, do a cover. The Cohen song, however, was still used throughout the film, no doubt due to Cohen's '60s roots and its anti-establishment message.

The album then takes a romantic, melancholy turn with Ivan Neville's soulful "Why Can't I Fall In Love." After all, it's Mark’s relationship with Nora. Liquid Jesus performs a very '80s-sounding version of the 1969 Sly Stone song "Stand!," which calls for standing up for one’s principles and community.

Next up comes "Wave of Mutilation (U.K. Surf)," which would introduce many listeners to the Pixies for the first time, prior to Kurt Cobain's naming them as a major Nirvana influence. Moyle liked the song because it references a Charles Manson lyric, "Cease to Exist," which was released by the Beach Boys as "Learn Not To Love," about the tensions Manson witnessed between the Wilson brothers (Manson, oddly, struck up a friendship with Dennis in 1968). Peter Murphy's "I've Got A Secret Miniature Camera" contributes a lo-fi '80s vibe to the soundtrack, while a version of "Kick Out The Jams" by Bad Brains with Henry Rollins adds a snarling, '80s-steeped take on the late-'60s proto-punk classic.

Next one's "Above The Law's "Freedom of Speech" offers a welcome hip-hop addition—a genre that was about to explode alongside grunge. And speaking of grunge, Soundgarden's trippy, psychedelic "Heretic" draws parallels between Hard Harry's plight and another bygone era. "Titanium Exposé" by Sonic Youth was inspired by the ban's bohemian beginnings in early-'80s New York, when Thurston Moore and Kim Gordon were falling in love. "I wanted to write a straight-ahead urban love song, and when I say urban I mean I always love ideas about two people living within their means," Moore said.

The Canadian band Cowboy Junkies presents "Me And The Devil Blues" which was a remake of a song by Robert Johnson, who the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame describes as "the first-ever rock star." The album ends with the rare "Tale O' The Twister" by Chagall Guevara, the first verse describing the type of Manic Panic alterna-chick you’d see at Lollapalooza: "She was a cool blue redhead / She was a virgin vixen / She had the eyes of Lassie / She had the lips of Nixon."

In the final scene of Pump Up The Volume, as Hard Harry is being pushed into a squad car, he raises his fist and encourages his listeners to “steal the air.” We then hear a gathering of multiple voices, all with their own pirate stations. “You know how it ends with these voices announcing themselves?” Moyle said. “That is so internet! Blogs and podcasts! That scene still gives me the shivers because it’s such a powerful idea that kids in their rooms all over America can be expressed. And then wow, it happened!”

Pump Up The Volume went on to earn a modest $11.5 million in the U.S. and earn critical acclaim, not to mention help Christian Slater capitalize on his bad-assery in Heathers and become the hottest young actor in the universe. But perhaps more than anything, the film's soundtrack introduced unsuspecting viewers like myself to a whole group of artists that were on the verge of bringing alternative music to the masses. On the album were Sonic Youth, Soundgarden, Pixies, and three fantastic covers: Concrete Blonde covering Leonard Cohen, Cowboy Junkies doing Robert Johnson, and Bad Brains with Henry Rollins offering a disorderly take on the MC's "Kick Out The Jams." A number of songs prominently featured in the film did not appear on the officially released soundtrack, including the original version of "Everybody Knows" by Leonard Cohen, which appeared on his 1988 album, I'm Your Man. Although Cohen's version serves as the theme song for Mark's (Christian Slater) pirate radio program during most of the film, he opens his final broadcast with the Concrete Blonde cover that appears on the soundtrack. Another Cohen song appears briefly when Mark is talking about Malcom's suicide on the air. The song is "If It Be Your Will" from Cohen's 1984 release Various Positions. Also present in the film but absent from the soundtrack are "Hello, Dad, I'm in Jail" by Was (Not Was) from their 1988 album What Up, Dog?, "Fast Lane" by Urban Dance Squad from their 1990 album Mental Floss for the Globe, "Weinerschnitzel" by The Descendents from their 1981 EP Fat, "Love Comes in Spurts" by Richard Hell and the Voidoids from their 1977 album Blank Generation, and "Talk Hard" by Stan Ridgway. "Girls L.G.B.N.A.F." by Ice-T is played on a boombox outside of the school by some boys.

Not as prominently featured is a legendary early track by the Beastie Boys entitled "The Scenario". Although the song appears only briefly in Pump Up the Volume, it is notable because it never appeared in any official release, however is available on hard to find bootleg recordings. The song was cut from the Beastie's Def Jam album Licensed to Ill after being deemed too explicit. Christian Slater's character explains this when he introduces it on the air saying, "Now here's a song from my close personal buddies, the Beastie Boys...a song that was so controversial they couldn't put it on their first album. "The Scenario," which to date has never received a commercial release.n the last few years, Pump Up The Volume has received its share of retrospective love, not only in how unappreciated it was at the time of its 1990 release, but also how the film was also far ahead of its time, predating blogs and podcasts as a way of teens dealing with social anxieties.

 

Pump Up The Volume (Music From The Original Motion Picture Soundtrack Track List: 

 

1. Concrete Blonde "Everybody Knows". 

2. Ivan Neville "Why Can't I Fall In Love"

3. Liquid Jesus "Stand!"

4. Pixies "Wave Of Mutilation (U.K. Surf)"

5. Peter Murphy "I've Got A Miniature Secret Camera"

6. Bad Brains & Henry Rollins "Kick Out The Jams"

7. Above The Law "Freedom Of Speech"

8. Soundgarden "Heretic"

9. Sonic Youth "Titanium Exposé"

10. Cowboy Junkies "Me And The Devil Blues"

11. Chagall Guevara "Tale O' The Twister

Rocktrospectiva: The Succesful Soundtrack For The Movie "Xanadu" Turns 45

Released on 27 June 1980, "Xanadu Original Motion Picture Soundtrack" was the soundtrack to the 1980 musical film of the same name, featuring the Australian singer Olivia Newton-John and the British group Electric Light Orchestra (ELO). The original LP release featured on side one the songs of Newton-John, and on side two the songs of ELO. In 2008 the soundtrack album was digitally remastered as a bonus CD as part of the film's DVD release titled Xanadu: Magical Musical Edition. The Soundtrack spawned six singles "Magic", "I'm Alive", "Xanadu", "All Over The World", "Suddenly", & "Don't Walk Away". 

Although the film was a critical and commercial disappointment, the soundtrack was a worldwide success and received positive reviews from music critics, earning double platinum certifications in the United States and Canada. The singles "Magic" and "Xanadu" reached number one in the United States and United Kingdom, respectively. "Magic" became Olivia's ninth Number One single in The Netherlands, while "Xanadu" topped the chart in Italy. All in all, the album was the fifth most popular US soundtrack of 1981.The soundtrack featured songs on side one by the film's star, Olivia Newton-John, written by her long-time producer, John Farrar. The songs on side two were written and performed by ELO; the title track which closed side two featured Newton-John as lead vocalist. The Newton-John side also featured Cliff Richard, the Tubes and Gene Kelly.

At the time of the album's release, Olivia Newton-John was signed to MCA Records, while ELO were signed to Jet Records. A compromise was worked out between the two companies in that the album was released on MCA in the US and Canada, and on Jet in the rest of the world. Not every song from the soundtrack was included on the album, with the Newton-John solo, "You Made Me Love You" released only on the B-side of the duet "Suddenly", "Fool Country" released as the b-side of "Magic", and ELO's "Drum Dreams" released on the b-side of both "I'm Alive" and "All Over The World".

In their review, Billboard praised the album. "Newton-John's first soundtrack since the multi-platinum Grease has her romping through a variety of cuts, ranging from the bewitching ballad "Magic" to the rock-inflected title cut, written by Jeff Lynne. Newton-John duets on three of her numbers - ballads with her costar Gene Kelly and one time mentor Cliff Richard and a hot rock number with the Tubes. The other side of the soundtrack is dominated by four ELO tracks, including the hot single "I'm Alive." Since Newton -John and ELO are both coming off top 10 albums -"Totally Hot" and "Discovery" - it's hard to see how this single-disk package can miss."

Other reviews noted that the soundtrack is fluff stuff to be sure, but some pearls float amongst the mire. Lead-off "Magic" remains a fine single. "Suddenly," a duet ONJ ekes out with British luminary Cliff Richard, seems better than most love themes. The second half glows from the Electric Light Orchestra, soaring at its commercial height, escaping this crippling fairy tale fairly untarnished with three more hit bits: "I'm Alive," "All Over the World," and the Olivia Neutron Bomb showcase title track. "Don't Walk Away" and "The Fall" stand as two of Jeff Lynne's finest.

In the end, by listening to this soundtrack may beat watching the actual film and it works in some way, at least for me. 

 

Xanadu Music From The Original Motion Picture Soundtrack Track List:

 

1. Magic

2. Suddenly

3. Dancin'

4. Suspended In Time

5. Whenever You're Away From Me

6. I'm Alive

7. The Fall

8. Don't Walk Away

9. All Over The World

10. Xanadu

Film: The Ecclectic "American Psycho: Music From The Controversial Motion Picture" Turns 25

Released on 4 April 2000, American Psycho: Music from the Controversial Motion Picture is the soundtrack to the 2000 film American Psycho directed by Mary Harron. The soundtrack featured music from the 1980s performed by artists such as David Bowie, Huey Lewis, Eric B. & Rakim, the Cure, amongst several others. 

The musical selections included on the soundtrack were inspired from the characteristics of Patrick Bateman and also authentic to the film's setting as Harron wanted it to set the film's tone. Velvet Underground co-founder John Cale's film score was also featured in the album subtitled as "monologues".

Distributed by Koch Records unfortunately and despite the positive reception, the soundtrack was also controversial in regard to music licensing, due to the film's violent content. The American Psycho soundtrack boasts some classic rock and pop hits from the 1980s. Like most movies set in the '80s, American Psycho features the music of the era, also almost entirely represents the tastes of its protagonist.Songs by New Order and Genesis have even become synonymous with the movie, given the crucial scenes in which they play. 

Based on the novel by Bret Easton Ellis and directed by Mary Harron, American Psycho revolves around a New York City banker who doubles as a serial killer at night. Rather than delving into familiar psychological thriller tropes, and takes a darkly comic approach as it decodes the consumerism and toxic masculinity that drives its twisted lead character, Patrick Bateman in the 1980s era. 

Music plays a key role in the film, given that Patrick has quite an interesting playlist. Despite the dark, homicidal things brewing in his mind, he listens to cheery songs while walking to the office. When he has visitors at his home, Patrick can also flaunt his record collection and break into monologues about various music groups and the solo careers of their members.

So Patrick Bateman uses songs to change his world in many movies, and therefore, Oftenly, movie directors choose music that might fit the scene's mood or pick out songs that they love and want to hear in their movies. However, for American Psycho, the songs were added for a very different reason. The songs used in this movie were all inspired by Patrick Bateman's characteristics and remain authentic to the specific moment in his life that is playing out on the screen. The music also plays a strong role throughout the movie as Bateman listens to his headphones and his favorite songs, once again seeing himself in the lyrics before he undertakes his murderous rampage. Patrick uses the songs to both understand his surroundings and to morph and change them to fit what he wants the world to look like.  

 

American Psycho also uses many instrumental tracks, which help show the changing personality of the serial killing protagonist, allowing all the music to help tell the story rather than superficially play over it.

 

Critics were favourable, depicting the sound and tracks as something that cinematically illustrated the nature of Bateman and also felt that it "holds up as fresh as anything out today." Definitely each song in the soundtrack has a distinct role in the movie, reflecting different scenes and revealing aspects of Patrick Bateman's personality, so practically we can say Music is another key actor throught the film.

 

American Psycho: Music From The Controversial Motion Picture Track List: 

 

1. You Spin Me Round (Like A Record) - Dope

2. Monologue 1

3. Something In The Air - David Bowie

4. Watching Me Fall - The Cure

5. True Faith - New Order

6. Monologue 2

7. Trouble - Daniel Ash

8. Paid In Full (Coldcut Remix) - Eric B. & Rakim

9. Who Feelin' It? - Tom Tom Club

10. Monologue 3

11. What's On Your Mind (Pure Energy) Mix - Information Society

12. Pump Up The Volume - MARRS

13. Paid In Full (Remix) - The Racket

14. Monologue 4

15. Hip To Be Square - Huey Lewis And The News  

 

Rocktrospectiva: The Largely Forgotten Album "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Original Motion Picture Soundtrack" Turns 35

Released on 16 March 1990 "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Original Motion Picture Soundtrack, was the soundtrack to the 1990 New Line Cinema film Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. The Soundtrack spawned two singles "Spin That Wheel" and "Turtle Power".

 

It was released by SBK Records and contained a collection made up mostly of hip-hop and new jack swing styled tracks who were pretty hip at the late 80's early 90's with several film score cues at the end. 

 

A largely forgotten album from the first motion picture related to Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles who made their worldwide debut in the late 80's and early 90's, came in a time when these were the fifth selling toy item and this motion picture was designed to further imprint the accessible, memorable characters, even though the movie effects now it seems like something pretty much primitive compared the latest one, but pretty much in depth that was the magic of this first movie of the franchise, a particulary odd one, but that was the way early in the 90s.

 

The soundtrack were formidable, containing tracks that basically catch up the sound that dominated pop radio in the late 80's and early 90's a collection full of good rap/hip hop, new jack swing, and some R&B tracks. Partners in Kryme's hit single "Turtle Power" was awesome,  as is John Du Perez's martial arts movie theme, other tracks deliver the swinging, punchy sound's of early nineties R&B just like "Spunkadelic's "9.95" and Johnny Kemp's "Let The Walls Come Down", and of course rap/hip hop tunes such as M.C. Hammer's "This Is What We Do" released during the time when Hammer was the hip hop king, and of course some dance rap tunes pretty much in the sound of Technotronic's Hi Tek 3 in collaboration with Ya Kid K in "Spin That Wheel". 

 

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Original Motion Picture Soundtrack Track List: 

 

1. This Is What We Do

2. Spin That Wheel

3. Family

4. 9.95

5. Turtle Power

6. Let The Walls Come Down

7. Every Heart Needs A Home

8. Ninja Thieves

9. Splinter's Tale I & Splinter's Tale II

10. Turtle Rhapsody 

Rocktrospectiva: The Original And Weird "Pretty Woman: Original Motion Picture Sountrack" Turns 35

Released on 13 March 1990 "Pretty Woman: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack" was the soundtrack album to the 1990 US romantic comedy film set in Los Angeles, a hit movie that revitalized Richard Gere's career, and made a superstar of Julia Roberts. The album features the song "Oh, Pretty Woman" by Roy Orbison, which inspired the movie title. The soundtrack spawned three singles "Wild Women Do", "It Must Have Been Love" and "King Of Wishful Thinking". 

 

A sort of modern Cinderella film, portraying a hooker with beautiful heart that captures the attention of a multimillionarie business man, a dark romantic comedy that made it big into the big screen in 1990, whether you love it or not. 

 

The soundtrack is kinda of rare, a collection of diferent sort of bands and artists, maybe because the album belonged to an era when soundtracks were the songs used in a film, and weren't ways to synergistically cross-promote artists using songs that had nothing to do with the movie, or were "inspired" by the film, but don't actually appear within it. 

 

So you have here, Roy Orbison's "Oh, Pretty Woman," for obvious reasons, a nice remix of David Bowie "Fame '90" which was released simultaneosnly with the compilation "Changesbowie" the day before, and of course plenty of ‘90s pop, including Roxette and Go West who were used as a singles, even though many critics believe most of the songs are place in a very specific time and haven't aged well, but are a fantastic testimony of simpler times.

 

Roxette's "It Must Have Been Love", originally released in December 1987, reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100 in June 1990. It also includes "King of Wishful Thinking" by Go West, the odd one "Show Me Your Soul" by Red Hot Chili Peppers, "No Explanation" by Peter Cetera, "Wild Women Do" by Natalie Cole the first single and "Fallen" by Lauren Wood. 

 

Pretty Woman: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack Track List:

 

1. Wild Women Do

2. Fame '90

3. King Of Wishful Thinking

4. Tangled

5. It Must Have Been Love

6. Life In Detail

7. No Explanation

8. Real Wild Child

9. Fallen

10. Oh. Pretty Woman

11. Show Me Your Soul  

Rocktrospectiva: The Assorted Soundtrack For The Motion Picture "The Breakfast Club" Turns 40

The film's soundtrack, The Breakfast Club (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack), was produced by British pop musician Keith Forsey and released on February 19, 1985, by A&M Records. The album peaked at No. 17 on the US Billboard 200 album chart, due in main part because the song "Don't You (Forget About Me)", performed by Scottish rock band Simple Minds, this was released as a single on February 23, 1985, in the United States and reached No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100. It was released on April 8, 1985, in the United Kingdom.  

 

John Hughes' The Breakfast Club was the quintessential '80s high school film, and it had a soundtrack full of songs that went on to become just as beloved as the movie itself in some ways. Released in 1985 to rave critical reviews, the film follows a group of disparate students who come to know each other over the course of a day in Saturday detention. The Breakfast Club captured the high school experience in a way that had never been attempted before, and it felt completely tuned into the culture of the 1980s. Besides launching the careers of "The Brat Pack", it also changed teen movies forever. 

 

The film's music was perhaps its most underrated aspect, and the new wave sounds firmly placed it in its time period. The soundtrack album was mostly a vehicle for the hit single "Don't You (Forget About Me)" by Simple Minds, but supplemental music from the score and pop songs from artists like Wang Chung were just as strong.

 

The album opener was the huge "Don't You (Forget About Me)" by Simple Minds, was not only the biggest hit on the soundtrack, but it was also one of the biggest hits of the entire decade. The epic new wave tune plays over the film's opening credits and continues in instrumental form under the film's opening monologue about the adult perception of students. "The Reggae" by Keith Forsey, the instrumental tune plays several times throughout the film, and essentially serves as the tension hook in the score. "Waiting" by Elizabeth Daily, while most of the music used in the film was overt, the song "Waiting" was actually snuck into a scene rather subtly through the use of diegetic sound. next is "Didn't I Tell You" by Joyce Kennedy, "Fire in the Twilight" by Wang Chung, now this was the other big pop song on the soundtrack album, Wang Chung's hit song plays during the memorable scene in which the teens run through the hallway while trying to avoid being caught by Vernon. 

 

"Dream Montage" by Gary Chang is the bluesy instrumental piece plays during the hilarious moment in the film when the teens all imbibe in Bender's stash of weed. "I'm The Dude" another one by Keith Forsey was a hard-rocking instrumental plays during the scene where Andrew comes out of the closet after smoking weed and dances furiously around the library punching the air and jumping over furniture. "We Are Not Alone" by Karla DeVito was essentially the anthem for the finale of the film as it explored the idea that the teens in the film had finally found community with each other. Finally the ballad "Love Theme" by Keith Forsey which was another piece of the film's underrated score that made it onto the soundtrack, and the finally "Love Theme" plays during the scene where Claire gives Allison a makeover and rolls over into the moment when Andrew is suddenly struck by her looks, and "Heart Too Hot to Hold" by Jesse Johnson & Stephanie Spruill used to close out the movie on a good note.

 

Despite the huge succesful the movie enjoyed, the soundtrack was different, it was reviewed eith a terrible note called it a bunch og "utterly negligible" songs, and he commended  except for the magnificent "Don't You (Forget About Me)", which is the undisputed masterpiece", tthen he album is largely "disposable" and marred by "'80s artifacts" and "forgettable instrumentals", something like a pack of forgotten '80stracks.

 

The Breakfast Club Soundtrack Track List:

 

1. Don't You (Forget About Me)

2. Waiting

3. Fire In The Twighlight

4. I'm The Dude

5. Heart Too Hot To Old

6. Dream Montage

7. We Are Not Alone

8. The Reggae

9. Didn't I Tell You

10. Love Theme

New Music: Leash

           

Sky Ferreira released a new single in two years, "Leash," the singer’s first track since 2022's "Don’t Forget" taken from the upcoming A24 film Babygirl. It was co-written with Jorge Elbrecht and produced with Elbrecht and Evan Voytas, the film out on Christmas day, stars Nicole Kidman as a CEO who has an affair with her intern. Her character is very self-destructive and destructive with other people's lives, but she kinda has to go through this whole experience for the sake of growing as a person.

Rocktrospectiva: The Fairly Odd Soundtrack "Give My Regards To Broad Street" Turns 40

Released on 22 October 1984, "Give My Regards To Broad Street" was the fifth studio album by English rock musician Paul McCartney, it's also the soundtrack to the film of the samen name, featuring covers of the Beatles, Wings and solo track by Paul McCartney with a few new songs, the album peaked at No. 1 on the UK Charts and lead and solo single "No More Lonely Nights" featuring the David Gilmour guitar, peaked at No. 6 in the United States and No. 2 in The UK. 

About the album/soundtrack, it's a sort of retrospective-sequenced that follows the order of the songs appearance in the film, many of these songs features re-interpretations of McCartney classics with The Bealtes and Wings such as "Good Day Sunshine", "Yesterday", "Here, There and Everywhere", "Silly Love Songs" , "For No One", "Eleanor Rigby" and "The Long and Winding Road". 

There were also interpretations of songs from McCartney's more recent albums back then such as "Ballroom Dancing" and "Wanderlust" (Tug Of War) and "So Bad" from (Pipes Of Peace). "No More Lonely Nights" also heard in a dance version, was the last songs recorded late 1983/early 1984 for the film, other previously-unheard tracks were "Not Such a Bad Boy", "No Values" and a symphonic extension of "Eleanor Rigby" here entitled as "Eleanor's Dream". 

Back then, the lenght of the album was so long, that its vinyl release had edited versions of the songs, nevertheless, the cassette and the later CD edition preserved the tracks' full lengths, the CD contains a bonus track a 1940s-styled song called "Goodnight Princess". 

Don't remember too much the movie, but many people and critics alike said the movie is utterly awful, and probably this album despite enjoyed a certain worldwide-success it's not amongst fans/critics Paul's favourites, perhaps the fact, Mccartney following-up was "Press To Play" help to released a certain weight, because that album is generally considered as the worst of the worst ever released by Paul, but going back to this soundtrack, critics and fans alike complained a lot about the new re-imagined versions of the Beatles, liketh gasthly sound of “The Long and Winding Road” McCartney does his damnedest to lounge lizard the hell out of what was once an earnest, emotional song.

Sames as "Yesterday", "Good Day Sunshine", and "Eleanor Rigby" all suffer from the same comparing the original version of "Yesterday" where he sounds maybe at least a little broken up about it, compared to the Broad Street version where he sings like he is showing off one of his greatest compositions in a failed attempt to shore up his lame movie. The original "Good Day Sunshine" was bursting with sunny enthusiasm the version here sounds laid back, same with "Eleanor Rigby".

The pointless remake of "Ballroom Dancing" sounds a lot looser than the original, for "So Bad”  the arrangement on this one is pretty bland compared to the Pipes of Peace version, but there are two Beatles remakes on this album that are better than the originals, those are "Here, There, and Everywhere".  with an especial Paul’s acoustic treatment suits the song better than the electric guitars on the original and "For No One".  it blows the original because the song always had an amazing melody, and some of McCartney’s best lyrics, the acoustic guitar and strings are far more emotive in the Broad Street remake than the piano in the original.  And there’s that cool violin part in the last chorus and a marvelous French horn solo is better in the remake. 

"Wanderlust" is a major improvement, this is a more majestic and graceful version than the original from Tug of War. obviously, the brilliant "No More Lonely Nights" is something pretty special.  It’s got a fantastic Paul McCartney melody, emotive vocals, exceptional production, and some incredible guitar work David Gilmour, "Not Such a Bad Boy" is kind of fun, "No Values" is pretty good too. 

Possibly the worst rock movie ever made but there are some things to love about the Broad Street album, which isn't a bad album, at least and enjoyable one depends you're mood. 

Give My Regards To Broad Street Track List: 

 

1. No More Lonely Nights (Ballad)

2. Good Day Sunshine/Corridor Music

3. Yesterday

4. Here, There And Everywhere

5. Wanderlust

6. Ballroom Dancing

7. Silly Love SOngs/Silly Love Songs (Reprise)

8. Not Such A Bad Boy

9. So Bad

10. No Values

11. No More Lonely Nights (Reprise)/"Bor No One"

12. Eleanors Rigby/"Eleanor's Dream"

13. The Long And Winding Road 

14. No More Lonely Nights (playout version)

15. Goodnight Princess

 

Rocktrospectiva: Prince's "Batman" Soundtrack Album Turns 35

Released on 20 June 1989, "Batman" was the soundtrack album and the eleventh studio album by American artists, Prince, his involvement in the soundtrack was designed to leverage the media company's contract-bound talent as well as fulfill the artist's need for a commercial revival. The bet result into another multi-platinum successful album. The soundtrack spawned five singles "Batdance", "Partyman", "The Arms Of Orion", "Scandalous!", & "The Future". 

The soundtrack album stayed at number one on the Billboard 200, and it was Prince's No. 1 album since "Around The World In A Day", and the single "Batdance" his first No. 1 since the single "Kiss". Recorded in six weeks, from mid-February to late March 1989,the artist used also three tracks he had bfore "Electric Chair", "Scandalous!" and "Vicki Waiting", some rumours saind the tracks "1999" and "Baby I'm A Star" from earlier albums were slated to bu usde in the film, but Prince changed that and focused in material related with the topic, back in 2010 during an interview with Rolling Stone magazina, the soundtrack was initially supposed to be a duet colaboration between he and Michael Jackson, Jacko was Batman and Prince the Joker, then Prince would have played funk songs for the villains, while Michael ballads for the heroes. 

 

Obviously this never came true due Jackson's commiments with Bad World Tour, and signed with Epic label, while the film was under production. The album was performed entirely by Prince with a few exceptions with Sheena Easton performing on "The Arms Of Orion", "Trust" features a sampled horn part by Eric Leeds and Atlanta Bliss, and "The Future", features strings by Clare Fischer, "Batdance" includes a sample of Prince's technician Matthew Larson, and "Partyman", features a vocal from Anna Fantastic, Prince's former girlfriend.  

 

All the dialogue sampled on the album, is taken directly from a workprint of Batman, especially noticeable in the beginning of the first track, "The Future", with dialogue of Michael Keaton speaking as Batman. The lyrics of each song are associated with one of the characters in the film: "The Future" and "Scandalous" are credited to Batman; while "Electric Chair" and "Trust" are credited to the Joker. "Vicki Waiting" is sung from the perspective of Bruce Wayne, while "Lemon Crush" comes from Vicki Vale; the two characters share the duet, "The Arms of Orion". "Partyman" was inspired by Prince's first meeting with Jack Nicholson (out-of-character) on-set, Batdance", whose lyrics consist mostly of samples from the film, is credited to all aforementioned parties, as well as Gemini, Prince's Batman-centric alter ego that resembles Batman villain Two-Face—Prince on the right half of the body and the Joker on the left. Prince himself is credited with singing two lines of the album as himself: "Who do you trust if you can't trust God? Who can you trust—who can ya? Nobody" in "Trust"; and the word "Stop!" that ends "Batdance".

 

The album marked a change in Prince's appearance, he switched out the elaborate costumes, polka dots and lace for much simpler attire, usually donning dark blue/black clothing and "Batman" boots. The artist's hair was fully straightened from his signature wavy curls, as shown in the "Batdance" video and his songs in the soundtrack suggest a goofy, perverse, sensuous, somewhat introverted Batman film that so far we've never gotten from anyone.