Category: Rock, R&B, Pop, Soul, & Metal/Symphonic

SUMMARY:                  RUNNING TIME: 41:11 Min.

Released by MCA Records in 1994, the film soundtrack includes dialogue clips from the movie between tracks.  With twelve songs, the album’s sixteen tracks are as follows:

SIDE 1:  

1. Dialogue Clip: “Pumpkin and Honey Bunny” (voice actors: Tim Roth & Amanda Plummer) explicit (2:27)
2. Misirlou (by Dick Dale & His Del Tones) (1:42)
3. Dialogue Clip: “Royale With Cheese” (voice actors: John Travolta & Samuel L. Jackson) explicit (3:05)
4. Let’s Stay Together (by Al Green) (3:15)
5. Bustin’ Surfboards (by The Tornadoes) – instrumental (with wave sound effects) (2:26)
6. Lonesome Town (by Ricky Nelson) (2:13)
7. Son of a Preacher Man (by Dusty Springfield) (2:25)
8. Dialogue Clip: “Zed’s Dead, Baby” (voice actors: Maria de Medeiros & Bruce Willis) followed by Bullwinkle, Part II (by The Centurions) (2:31).

SIDE 2:

1. Dialogue Clip: “Jack Rabbit” Slims Twist Contest” (credited voice actor: Jerome Patrick Hoban) followed by You Never Can Tell (by Chuck Berry) (3:12)
2. Girl, You’ll Be a Woman Soon (by Urge Overkill) (3:09)
3. If Love is a Red Dress (Hang Me in Rags) (by Maria McKee) (4:55)
4. Dialogue Clip: “Bring Out The Gimp” (voice actors: Peter Green & Duane Whitaker) followed by Comanche (by The Revels) (2:10)
5. Flowers on The Hill (by The Statler Brothers) (2:23)
6. Dialogue Clip: “Personality Goes a Long Way” (voice actors: John Travolta & Samuel L. Jackson) (1:00)
7. Surf Rider (by The Lively Ones) – instrumental (3:18)
8. Dialogue Clip: “Ezekiel 25:17” (voice actor: Samuel L. Jackson) (0:51).

Note: This soundtrack is also available in CD and digital formats.  The vinyl edition has evidently been re-released multiple times.

REVIEW:

Enjoying spot-on audio quality, this highlight reel of an album supplies an ideal accompaniment for Pulp Fiction afficionados.  None of the dozen tunes, curiously enough, are must-haves on their own.  Yet, once assembled as a mostly 60’s retro playlist, the tracks become catchy. 

With this album’s groovy tunes flying by fast, the Pulp Fiction soundtrack cuts an entertaining slice of mid-90’s pop nostalgia.     

PACKAGING:

The album’s contents are accurately included on both the back cover and the record itself.  The included sheath keeps the record well-protected.  To MCA Records’ credit, the parental advisory label is easy to spot.

BRIAN’S ODD MOON RATING:                       8 Stars

SUMMARY:                   RUNNING TIME: 35:08 Min.

Released by RSO Records, collaborators Dean Pitchford, Michael Gore, and Lesley Gore assembled the nine tracks for the 1980 movie soundtrack.  With a few exceptions, the tracks are supplied by the film’s cast.  Two of Irene Cara’s songs: the ballad, “Out Here on My Own,” and the iconic title song subsequently scored Academy Award nominations in 1981 for Best Original Song, with the latter winning the award.

As a hodge-podge of pop sub-genres, the nine tracks are:

SIDE ONE:

1. Fame (Vocalist: Irene Cara – 5:14)
2. Out Here On My Own (Vocalist: Irene Cara – 3:11)
3. Hot Lunch Jam (Vocalist: Irene Cara – 4:10)
4. Dogs in the Yard (Vocalist: Paul McCrane – 3:13)

SIDE TWO:

1. Red Light (Vocalist: Linda Clifford – 6:10)

2. Is It Okay If Call You Mine? (Vocalist: Paul McCrane – 2:40)

3. Never Alone (Vocalists: Contemporary Gospel Chorus of the High of Music and Art – 3:23)

4. Ralph and Monty (Dressing Room Piano) (Instrumentalist: Michael Gore – 1:49)

5. I Sing the Body Electric (Vocalists: Laura Dean, Irene Cara, Paul McCrane, Traci Parnell, & Eric Brockington – 4:59)

Note: This title is also presently available in CD and digital formats.

REVIEW:

The album’s content predictably sounds dated forty-three years later.  For instance, though her track imitates vintage Donna Summer, Linda Clifford’s up-tempo disco track, “Red Light,” overstays its welcome.  The film’s rising-star vibe, otherwise, is still readily accessible hearing tunes recorded by Irene Cara, Paul McCrane, and, most certainly, the ensemble’s show-stopping finale. 

If anything, the album’s legacy is primarily due to Cara’s effervescent vocals.  For this reason alone, Fame is worth re-discovery in whatever audio format listeners prefer.       

PACKAGING:

While the tracks are listed on the album’s back side, the tracks (and their running times) appear on the actual record.  The album’s interior is a vivid double-page spread of film stills. 

BRIAN’S ODD MOON RATING:                          7 Stars