Absolute Beginners [Original Motion Picture Soundtrack]

Overview

Most of the music here bears only a coincidental resemblance to the sort of 45s that the Wiz, Dean Swift, and the rest of Colin MacInnes' absolute beginners were buying from department-store gramophone sections in 1950s Britain. But MacInnes' fictional mods certainly appreciated style, and the soundtrack to the film adaptation of his classic novel was, first and foremost, a stunningly cool showcase for the jazz currents that flowed freely through the U.K. pop scene in the mid-'80s, via artists like Sade, Working Week, Eighth Wonder (featuring Patsy Kensit, who also starred in the film as Crepe Suzette), and of, course, Paul Weller's Style Council. (Weller, according to legend, turned down the chance to play Swift; he'd already used the title of MacInnes' book for one of his last hits with the Jam.) The remainder of the collection, meanwhile, is perfectly complementary, instead of odds and sods. The two numbers with the strongest connections to the music of MacInnes' era are both delights; Slim Gaillard's "Selling Out" reprises the hipster jive of his '50s hits, and Ray Davies recommends the "Quiet Life" over a charming trad jazz arrangement. A pair of instrumentals contributed by legendary arranger Gil Evans and ex-Specials leader Jerry Dammers are also memorable -- Evans' playful "Va Va Voom" morphs from straight-up swing to Afro-Cuban sass with ease, while "Riot City" sounds like the jazz counterpart to the Specials' spooky ska smash, "Ghost Town." And the coup de grace comes from a first-generation mod: David Bowie's title track is the gem of his post-"Let's Dance" '80s output, a big, breathtaking ballad allowing him to indulge the Sinatra croon that's driven many of his best performances. Whatever Absolute Beginners lacks in historical accuracy, it makes up for with great songs and savoir faire, and it stands as one of the finest soundtracks from a decade filled with good ones. ~ Dan LeRoy

Product Details

Release Date:	04/05/2024
Label:	Universal
UPC:	4988031627242
Rank:	101359

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Eighth Wonder   Primary Artist
Patsy Kensit   Primary Artist
Gil Evans   Primary Artist
Sade   Primary Artist
Jerry Dammers   Primary Artist
The Style Council   Primary Artist
Smiley Culture   Primary Artist
Tenpole Tudor   Primary Artist
Clive Langer   Primary Artist
Working Week   Primary Artist
David Bowie   Primary Artist
Ray Davies   Primary Artist
Slim Gaillard   Primary Artist
Jonas   Primary Artist
Ekow Abban   Primary Artist
Laurel Aitken   Primary Artist

Technical Credits

Ray Davies   Composer,Performer
Miles Davis   Composer
David Bowie   Composer,Producer,Performer
Gil Evans   Composer,Performer,Brass Arrangement
Alan Winstanley   Producer
Slim Gaillard   Composer,Performer
Clive Langer   Composer,Producer
Robin Miller   Producer
Nick Lowe   Composer
David Bedford   Arranger
Richard Sullivan   Engineer
Julian Wheatley   Engineer
Julien Temple   Performer
Daniel Secunda   Music Coordinator
Jerry Dammers   Performer,Producer,Composer
Francesco Migliacci   Composer
Eighth Wonder   Performer
Laurel Aitken   Producer
Smiley Culture   Performer,Composer
Simon Booth   Composer
Paul Weller   Composer
Tenpole Tudor   Performer
Charles Mingus   Composer
Patsy Kensit   Performer,Composer
Robert Porter   Assistant
Eddie Tudorpole   Composer
Tot Taylor   Performer