Saturday, October 18, 2014

MUSIC REVIEW OF THE DAY: GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY - AWESOME MIX VOL. 1



Never underestimate nostalgia. Even though the Marvel movie takes place in outer space, they managed to connect the film to 70's Earth, and use all these classics. Whenever that magic happens in a film, such as The Big Chill or American Graffiti, you'll have a hit soundtrack on your hands. The mix tape-themed disc has gone to #1 in both Canada and the U.S., filled with fun, mostly well-chosen cuts.


The mix starts with the beloved "Ooga-chaka, ooga-chaka" of Blue Swede's Hooked On A Feeling, guaranteed to bring a smile to those old enough to remember, and a giggle from the kids, laughing at those silly old songs. They should hopefully be blown away by the next number, power-pop giants The Raspberries' Go All The Way. And that's the back-and-forth of the set, from fun pop to more serious rock and soul. The marvelous Five Stairsteps' hit O-O-H Child is one of the cool vocal gems from the soul side, along with Marvin Gaye & Tammi Terrell's original version of Ain't No Mountain High Enough (a 60's cut, but no matter). More Motown fun comes from I Want You Back, one of the truly great Jackson 5 cuts. Bowie's Moonage Daydream helps toughen things up, as does the non-hit but still cool Cherry Bomb from The Runaways.


There's only one annoying cut on the whole disc, and really they should have known better. Rupert Holmes' Escape (The Pina Colada Song) is not only bad, it's offensive. Boo. Norman Greenbaum's Spirit In The Sky is the only track I'd say is overused in compilations, so we probably could have done without that, too. But overall, it is a pretty good, if not a truly awesome mix.

No comments:

Post a Comment