Music Review: Pineapple Express Soundtrack
Published August 20, 2008
I smelled the Pineapple Express soundtrack before my editors even dropped it into my lap. While I don’t normally review music CDs, I wanted to do this one since the movie is the best comedy so far this year. Judd Apatow produced Pineapple Express and he usually picks good songs. However, the music plays better in the film. Hardcore Apatow fans may not mind this, though.
Since the movie is about stoners on the run, you get a huge dose of hip-hop and reggae tunes. The parts of the soundtrack I find interesting are the detours into rock and jazz. In the beginning, you’ll hear Huey Lewis performing the title track from Pineapple Express. The song creates a fun 1980’s vibe. It sounds a lot like the old Huey of the "Sports" album and the Back to the Future soundtrack.
With its kooky saxophones, "Bird’s Lament" by Moondog and the London Saxophonic is the kind of lounge music I’d like playing in my house all day. And I feel the same about "Hilawe" by Arthur Lyman with its Hawaiian acoustic guitar. Composer Graeme Revell’s original score appears on a couple of tracks. Both are nice throwbacks to cheesy 80’s action themes. Robert Palmer, another 80’s rocker, closes the compilation.
The album doesn’t have much filler except for "I Didn’t Mean to Hurt You" by Spiritualized. On the other hand, you can find most of the songs on other records. By comparison, the classic soundtrack for the movie Singles contained many original hooks. I can’t strongly recommend this soundtrack. But if you can’t wait until the Pineapple Express DVD arrives and you’re favorite color is green, this is worth looking at.
Grade: B
Song Samples: (MySpace), (Amazon)
Track Listing:
1. "Pineapple Express" – Huey Lewis & The News
2. "Electric Avenue" – Eddy Grant
3. "Dr. Greenthumb" – Cypress Hill
4. "Lost at Birth" – Public Enemy
5. "Poison" – Bel Biv Devoe
6. "Wanted Dread or Alive" – Peter Tosh
7. "Don’t Look Around" – Mountain
8. "Pineapple Chase (A.K.A The Reprise of the Phoenix)" – Graeme Revell
9. "Birds Lament" – Moondog and The London Saxophonic
10. "Coconut Girl" – Brother Nolan
11. "Hilawe" – Arthur Lyman
12. "Tha Crossroads" – Bone Thugs-N-Harmony
13. "Pineapple Fight (A.K.A The Nemesis Proclaimed)" – Graeme Revell
14. "I Didn’t Mean to Hurt You" – Spiritualized
15. "Woke Up Laughing" – Robert Palmer
- Music Review: Pineapple Express Soundtrack
- Published: August 20, 2008
- Type: Review
- Section: Music
- Filed Under: Music: Classic Rock and Oldies, Music: Hip-hop, Music: Jazz, Music: Reggae and Caribbean, Music: Soundtracks
- Writer: Kevin Gustafson
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- Kevin Gustafson's personal site
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By the way, you're right. This is the best comedy of the year so far. It tops Tropic Thunder and every other major comedy event this year.
About MIA. I know what you mean. Couldn't they have stuck it in the end credits at least? Haven't seen Thunder yet, but I've never been too hot about it. But watching the commercials now, I'm expecting to be surprised with a few good jokes.
whtas the sweet song at the end called
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Hold on a second, the song "Paper Planes" by M.I.A. isn't on the soundtrack? What a rip. I love these songs, I just wish that the theme song for the trailer was on the soundtrack.