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Album Review
by SaschaS
20-10-2004
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| 'Alfie': a male 'Bridget Jones''s OST |
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Various/Robbie Williams: 'Alfie'/'Greatest Hits'
(Virgin/EMI:Chrysalis)
'Alfie' OST & Robbie Williams
'Alfie' OST
(Virgin)
‘Alfie’: remake, reshape, retro-sexuality
Sir Mick Jagger admitted he had drown on his life experiences when he teamed up with former Eurythmic Dave A. Stewart to write music for the remake of ‘Alfie’, about a womaniser who must come to terms with the consequences of his actions. Jagger and Stewart wrote and produced most of the soundtrack's original songs in addition to composing the film's score with John Powell.
Stewart and Jagger previously worked together on ‘Ruthless People’ and on Jagger's 1987 solo album ‘Primitive Cool’. Although Jagger co-wrote and performed the title track for the 1986 movie ‘Ruthless People’, and sang on soundtracks for such starring vehicles as ‘Performance’ and ‘Ned Kelly’, ‘Alfie’ marks his biggest foray yet into film music in his 40-year career. And in some scenes, Sir Mick’s delivery more than enhances the imagery - pay attention when ‘Blind Leading The Blind’ kicks in - by giving the visuals life in this fairly static remake, a rather tepid one.
Paramount Pictures' ‘Alfie’, opening on Friday (22 October) in U.K. theatres, is a remake of the 1966 British film of the same name. Jude Law plays the title role originally portrayed by Michael Caine. The Jagger/Stewart compositions have a bluesy-rock tone peppered with R&B and are crafted in such a way that they sound classic yet contemporary. They include ‘Old Habits Die Hard’ (the first single, featuring vocals from Sheryl Crow), ‘Blind Leading The Blind’ and ‘Let's Make It Up’.
There are two versions of ‘Old Habits Die Hard’: one with vocals by Jagger and the other voiced by Jagger and Crow, as well as two takes of ‘Blind Leading The Blind’ [a regular and a “Live acoustic version”]. There are also instrumental tracks on the album in the movie, including ‘Jack the Lad’ (the theme for Law's character), ‘Oh Nicky‘, ‘New York Hustle’, ‘Standing In The Rain’ and ‘Counting The Days’.
Teen soul singer Joss Stone, from Devon, performs on three songs, including a remake of the Bacharach & David nugget ‘Alfie’, which originally resulted in separate hits for Cilla Black, Dionne Warwick and Cher in the 1960s. [But, you gotta stay for the end-credits to hear the whole song.] Stone also teams with Jagger and Stewart for ‘Lonely Without You (This Christmas)’ and ‘Wicked Time’, a Hip-hop reworking of the ‘Alfie’ song performed with Jamaican rapper Nadirah ‘Nadz‘ Seid. Young Stone‘s version of ‘Alfie’ is a bit too rigid, a wee bit too much pushing the nubile’s vocal to the Whitney/Mariah range.
The music is just fine while the movie is… well, like a male ‘Bridget Jones’. An emotionally retarded person who thinks that monogamy is something invented for people blinded by morals while abusing other people is fine until he is subjected to his own ‘medicine’. Too many clichés and film is paced too leisurely - it could have benefited from being edited faster.
8/10
~
Robbie Williams
‘Greatest Hits’
(EMI:Chrysalis)
Robbie Williams repackages selected career highlights
Ronan Keating atop the album’s chart, Sir Mick and the rest of The Stones coming up with a live collection, Kylie’s ‘Greatest Hits’, Tina Turner’s ‘All The Best’, Nirvana box-set, Talking Heads, a cornucopia of music-related DVDs and Robbie Williams… Could it be that there is some festive season on the way?
RW's ‘Greatest Hits’ is a summation of his post-Take That career… It strangely omits his opening gambit, the remake of George Michael’s ‘Freedom’ and his crooning duet with Nicole Kidman but offers two new songs, last week’s top single, ‘Radio’, and ‘Misunderstood’, due for release on 06 Dec. 2004, alongside 17 proven winners.
Familiar, pleasant, (almost) predictable but ultimately - benign. Perfect ‘soundtrack’ to the tormented times we inhabit. Scoring any compilation, and Robbie’s in particular, is useless as he is the biggest solo UK etoile-de-jour and that’s it. Millions love him and will buy it and those who don’t care will equally be hard to persuade to change their minds.
SaschaS
20-10-2004
‘Alfie’ soundtrack is already available on Virgin
[The film's national opening: Friday, 22 October 2004]
Robbie Williams’s ‘Greatest Hits’ has been released on 18 October 2004 by EMI:Chrysalis
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