No comments about More Songs About the Reproductive Cycle.

1 comments about Angelsong by the Sea.

1. This album is so beautiful. The chorus truly sounds like angels singing your life in the most honest notes I've ever heard. Many times I have cried listening to this album because it was intensely emotional. The sound of the chorus...the background of oceans crashing... you can almost invision the sun setting on an elegant landscape by the sea while you face the oncoming wind. Recommend Track 1, 6, and 8.

5 comments about Jarhead.

1. Make no mistake - Jarhead proves Thomas Newman's abillity to write music for film. He is not making the music in order to show off his amazing talents, he is making the music so it is perfect for the film. Whereas some composers might score depressing scenes with grand sweeping movements trying to make themselves look like complex composers, Newman knows what will enhance the scene and what won't, and what can convey the message required.
   
   Ultimately, this describes Jarhead perfectly. I have seen the movie and music is seamless and perfect for it. For the most part, there is a sonic texture created, with guitars and drums to represent the bravado of the characters. If you are a fan of Newman's stirring orchestral works this is definitely not something you would like. Newer fans of "American Beauty" and the like will find things to enjoy here, but not in as vibrant or pleasing a way as in that album. The score on it's own is just not as exciting or involving as it could be. It is interesting in it's own right, but not very pleasing to hear. However, there are many good tracks interspersed throughout the score to take you to the good spot.
   
   Overall, Jarhead warrants a 4.5/5 for the film, but on a cd, it's score drops to 3/5. It is pleasant at times, and mostly an interesting CD, but there are too many Newman masterpieces to consider this one high on your buying list. Then agan, if you are a Newman fan, this CD should satisfy you're urge to see what the guy is up to. Final score? Three out of five.



2. Thomas Newman is brilliant as always and delivers beautifully. Having read the book prior to the motion picture, Thomas Newman truly brings Swofford's tale to life. If you enjoyed The Horse Whisperer or the Shawshank Redemption score, then you'll thoroughly enjoy Jarhead.



3. Thomas Newman's original music for JARHEAD is not only typically daring with many unconventional sounds (utilizing samples, electronic treatments and exotic percussion), but one of his most stirring, rock-influenced efforts as well (as with the opening track, "Welcome to the Suck"). At first I thought there were no melodies as memorable as "Dead Already" from AMERICAN BEAUTY or "Road to Chicago" from ROAD TO PERDITION, but the 3/4-time march used in both "Raining Oil" and "Desert Storm" has grown on me. Of course the CD is recommendable for Newman's score alone. But...
   
   ...while one doesn't buy a CD of this nature primarily for the extra songs, one does expect the extras to be competently presented when they appear. So I was taken aback to hear Public Enemy's "Fight the Power" at a faster tempo and higher pitch than usual, as though mastered from a sped-up tape. I can't think of any intentional reason for this, so I'm assuming it was a mistake, but either way I found it not only annoying in itself but because of "Fight the Power"'s thematic significance, with its reference to the Bobby McFerrin tune heard earlier in the movie. ("'Don't Worry Be Happy' was a number one jam/Damn if I say it you can slap me right here".)
   
   So then, while I like the Thomas Newman score a lot, I'm docking the CD a star for the sped-up "Fight the Power". Caveat emptor.



4. If you've watched the previews for this film, you're likely expecting a song called Jesus Walks by Kanye West to be on the soundtrack but it's not there - very annoying. But otherwise it's a pretty good CD of music to listen to while you work out or drive fast.



5. I am reading all the negative reviews of this soundtrack, and most of them mention the absence of Kanye West's "Jesus Walks." One reviewer gives the album one star because he was "misled" into buying the album.
   
   Um, hello? This is an instrumental score for the film! NOT a Various Artists soundtrack! This is, you may have noticed, an album that falls under the name of Thomas Newman! If anyone bought this expecting other music, then it's entirely their own fault. It even says on the front: "MUSIC BY THOMAS NEWMAN."
   
   That said, I'd also like to correct Amazon on something - they said this is Newman's third outing with Mendes, the other two being "Shawshank Redemption" and "American Beauty."
   
   Shawshank was directed by Frank Darabont, NOT Sam Mendes.
   
   Mendes' other pairing with Newman was actually on 2002's "Road to Perdition," which is another great soundtrack I'd heartily recommend purchasing.

5 comments about Ridiculous.

1. I have a fairly extensive collection of comedy albums, and I gatta say this is probably one of the lamest I've ever heard. If you enjoy hearing a one-line joke dragged out to 5-6 minutes (like the worst episodes of SNL), then maybe this is tolerable. maybe ONCE. The people giving this high ratings are either Norm's friends or people too young to have experienced true wit. Trust me, if you listen to this once you will probably never play it again



2. I loved Norm on SNL. I thought his fake news made him the best anchor they had (I like it dry!). But this CD left me shaking my head. A few funny parts here and there earns the 2 stars, but it seems like a handful of one-liners stretched way too far. I'd rather have a recording of him doing stand-up.



3. This CD is funny. All of it. The "Tex Hooper" track gave me laughing fits I couldn't control days after hearing it, which is bad in my profession. (funeral director) I laughed until I got a headache.
   
   Artie Lange, who is always so great with Norm, kills. Will Ferrell, Tim Meadows, and Molly Shannon are also gave very good performances on this CD.



4. Classic Norm. This is a sketch comedey album in the tradition of Cheech & Chong and Monty Python. There are a coulple of tracks on here that are so funny they stick with you for days. Tex Hooper is alone wortht the price of the CD.



5. This CD is, in fact, ridiculous. I LOVE Norm and have been a fan for 10 years. I have always wondered why--and lamented that--he has never released a comedy album. So, when I saw this I thought great, finally a Norm album. Well, yes and no. This is Norm MacDonald and it is ostensibly comedy, but it is not a comedy album per se. This is NOT an album recorded at a performance of any of his stand-up routines. This is a collection of random audio skits which range from really funny to utterly terrible. I'm not sure why he chose to make this his first comedy CD. I listened to it once and I don't think I ever will again. Nothing memorable, and only a few good laughs. Please Norm, release some of those 90's stand-up gems on CD.