Music zone

Tarzan — Motion Picture Soundtrack — Sony
Music *****

TARZAN, another sure shot blockbuster from Walt Disney Pictures, offers an expressive soundtrack led by none other than Phil Collins. The soundtrack is as bold and innovative as the film — both combine adventure and romance. Collins actually sings four of the songs in the film, and his well-renowned rhythmic and percussive approach to writing lyrics gives the film a winning edge and a definite path that helps express the story better. The first single from the soundtrack You’ll Be In My Heart Jumped into the top 10 on both Billboard magazine and Radio & Records’ AC charts just two weeks after its release. Written, performed and co-produced by Phil Collins, this track is the guiding force for the soundtrack.This inspiring ballad is one of the five new songs written by Collins for Walt Disney Records. The album also includes a number scored by Grammy Award winner Mark Mancina, known for his contributions in movies like Speed, Con Air, Money Train, Bad Boys and Twister. He’s worked on Walt Disney’s animated classic. The Lion King, for which he arranged, produced and provided vocal arrangements for several songs. The album also offers an exclusive bonus track featuring Collins who teams up with the teen sensations’ N Sync on Trasin The Camp. The soundtrack is itself the Tarzan of the musical jungle — that will always be remembered with pride.

Metallica — Garage Inc. — Polygram ***

Three cheers for Metallica. The band is successfully making a mark in 1990’s too, as probably the toughest survivors of rock. They are not only offering new stuff to their fans but also have guts to experiment, no, we’re not talking about their short hair cuts or probably a neater looking Hetfield here. Each time the band offers a new album with much bolder steps. Recorded in September 1998, the album sounds like a first-class garage band performing live. There are versions of Black Sabbath’s Sabbra Cadabra, Misfits’ Die Die Darling and Discharge’s Free Speech for the Dumb. The album cranks aloft the coffin lid of uncool with The more I See a howl of purest rock bedlam. Then there are interpretations of Bob Seger’s Turn The Page, Nick Cave’s Loverman and Diamond Heads’s It’s Electric. Thin Lizzy’s 1972 hit Whiskey in The Jar is tackled well by the quartet. Tuesday’s Gone is an acoustic version of Lynrd Skynyrd, with Hetfield doing a great job on it. The second volume is a compilation of every cover version Metallica have previously recorded. Merciful Fate features possibly every rock ingredient. Over and all, Hetfield is the key here, the engine that has hawled Metallica all through these years.And it’s hard not to be swept along by any of his booming conviction here. Now what remains to be seen is whether a little greasing, denting and repairing at the Garage will help the four rockin’ automotives in any way.

The Great Indian Rock Vol. 3 — Various Artists ****

Hail! Hail! Rock N’ Roll. Now whoever said India exists no where in the Rock map, eat your heart out, ‘Coz here’s a powerpacked earth-quaking compilation and it’s very Indian. Presented by RSJ (formerly known as Rockstreet Journal), the album is a fantastic effort to provide a platform to original rock music. Well, the bands here move away from their conversions identity and give a shot screaming ‘we are no less’. This compilation is a result of the final contestants who were selected from a heap of entries invited from all over the country. The bands featured in the album are all from far-flury corners of the country-right from Calicut to Mumbai to West Garo Hills in the North-east. The lucky ones to have been featured here are Orange Street from Delhi doing Candywalk. (Apparently Orange Street managed to become a permanent resident in all the three volumes of Great Indian Rock), The hair-raising Moksha from Chennai with Stay, Suri Sequeira from Bordez, Gao doing Grasshopper’s Groove. Thermal & Quarter from Bangalore with Sevenish and Nightmare On Elm Steet from Delhi with One Last Chance. However, the sureshot rockers remain Cusp from Mumbai doing Water. Another Delhi-based band which is hot on rock circuit is Canzona, who have done an amazing job on Phobia. It’s a pity that despite such talent in the country, many bands fail to get any recognition. Well, thanks to such invaluable efforts that make us roar — We are alive.

Ultra — Ultra — Warner Music ***

With their first debut album itself, these four guys from Buckinghamshire have already established their name in the British music scene. Their first hit single Say You Do has created waves all around the world. It blasted into the UK charts at No. 11 and also went top 5 in several South East Asian countries.With the second single Say if it Once, the band achieved their first No. 1 airplay record (Italy) and again had a top 20 hit in the UK. Rescue Me is a midtempo track with a soulful start offering same wonderful lyrics like "I can’t believe that I ever let you go — and assumed your heart was broken — wanted a love where I could come and go — Now the doors no longer open ..." Other tracks worth checking out are The Right Time, Afterlife, New Dimension and Up and Over. Ultra is breath of fresh air — a bunch of upcoming talent and all that.

Album of the month

The Greatest Movie Songs — Various Artists — Sony Music

This 18-track compilation illustrates how the boundaries between movies and soundtracks are rapidly blurring into insignificance. Today the music plays one of the most important roles in the movies. This compilation is loaded with probably one of the greatest movie songs, Practically all the songs here have been major chart busters. So there’s no second opinion, whether these songs have done their jobs right.The Album opens with Michael Bolton’s Go The Distance from Hercules, followed by Berlin’s mega-hit Take My Breath Away from the movie Top Gun. Other headliners include Roy Orbison’s Pretty Woman from Pretty Woman, Regina Belle and Peabo Bryson doing A Whole New World from the animated top scorer Aladdin, Celine Dion with My Heart WillGo On from the blockbuster. Titanic, Bruce Springsteen with Streets of Philadelphia from Philadelphia. Will Smith tapking to glory in Men In Black from Men in Black, Michael Jackson doing Will You Be There from the emotional Free Willy and Jamiroqual with Deeper Underground from the gigantic film Godzilla.

The album also includes Diana King’s Save A Little Prayer included in My Best Friend’s Wedding, Simon and Garfunkel with Mrs. Robinson from The Graduate, Lauryn Hill with The Sweetest Thing from Love Jones and Kenny Loggins doing For The First Time from One Fine Day. The album curtains down with Harry Connick Jr’s It Had To Be You from the film Harry Met Sally.

— Saurabh & Gaurav