TARZAN
The timeless story of the king of the jungle is reprised yet again, this time as a Disney animated feature. Veteran popster Phil Collins was recruited to write and sing five new songs for the soundtrack. Considering people haven't exactly gone ape over his recent material, that's probably a good career move for Phil. His lyric writing is typically trite and sentimental, full of lines like "with faith and understanding, you will journey from boy to man." Collins' crooning and music is blandly inoffensive, though the scat singing he indulges in with teen stars 'N Sync on "Trashin' the Camp" is real irritating. The first single, "You'll Be in My Heart," features a duet by Phil and Glenn Close (one of the film's voices), and is schmaltzy enough to have become a big hit. This album can only be recommended for serious fans of the film. Rating:

BIG DADDY
The soundtrack album from Adam Sandler's The Wedding Singer was a big hit last year, and high hopes are held for this one. Artistically, it's not a total success, though, as it reverts to the annoying trend of having current artists remake classic rock songs. Sheryl Crow's cover of Guns 'N Roses' "Sweet Child O' Mine" is OK, but the bland Shawn Mullins does a boring version of George Harrison's "What Is Life" and Everlast disappoints on the lame cover of Neil Young's "Only Love Can Break Your Heart." Elsewhere, there's some good (Canadian crooner Rufus Wainwright and dance-rockers Big Audio Dynamite), bad (Spice Girl Melanie C. and Yvonne Elliman's disco era hit, "If I Can't Have You"), and downright ugly (the Styx ballad, "Babe"). The package is rounded out with modern rock (Garbage and Limp Bizkit) and rap (The Pharcyde) tracks, plus occasional funny snippets of movie dialogue. Overall, just not that cool, daddy-o. Rating:

EYES WIDE SHUT
It is no surprise that this is such a strong collection. After all, earlier films from late director Stanley Kubrick furnished such legendary scores as A Clockwork Orange and 2001: A Space Odyssey. For this breathlessly awaited erotic thriller, primarily instrumental music mixes new classically based compositions with some cool jazz. The mood swings from sparse and sinister to light and breezy. The musicianship throughout is impeccable. Composer Jocelyn Pook integrates wordless vocals and exotic influences into her contributions to the score, while jazz lovers will dig the versions of "Strangers in the Night" (an obvious choice), "Blame It on My Youth," and The Oscar Peterson Trio's "I Got It Bad and That Ain't Good." The sultry stylings of retro rocker Chris Isaak on "Baby Did a Bad Thing" also suit the film's mood perfectly. These Eyes have it. Rating:

WILD WILD WEST
No current star has a better track record of mixing music and film than Will Smith. It seems that he can do no wrong. The catchy title track leads off, with Stevie Wonder's riffs merging nicely with the hiphop stylings of Will, Dru Hill and Kool Mo Dee. The next cut, "Baillanos," cashes in on the Latin pop craze, and is sung by Enrique (son of Julio) Iglesias. The rest of the album features rap and R & B-flavored tunes, as performed by such genre stars as MC Lyte, Faith Evans, Guy and Slick Rick. Another likely hit is "Bad Guys Always Die," a strong duet between Dr. Dre and hot white rapper Enimen. Given the obvious similarities between the posses of the Wild West and ghetto gangs, the use of gangster rappers here is logical. By mixing in more melodic pop/R & B material, the very shrewd Smith (the CD's executive producer) keeps the album accessible, guaranteeing a winner. Not that there's
anything creatively inspired here, as proven by the amount of sampling done. Elements of songs by Bon Jovi, George Clinton, Wonder and others are used, resulting in the near-farcical crediting of ten songwriters on one song, "Getting Closer." Rating:

SOUTH PARK - BIGGER, LONGER & UNCUT
It's no surprise that you have to leave any notion of good taste outside once you start playing this. The cheerily crude and foul-mouthed nature of the TV cartoon hit is transferred intact to the film and the soundtrack album. Much of the record, in fact, is comprised of the characters talking trash in ditties whose very titles cannot be printed here. Cheesy string-driven music in the background does make for a funny contrast, as does the inclusion of some properly-sung but overwrought ballads like "Eyes of a Child." The upbeat bluesy rocker "Good Love" makes a refreshing change from the mix of schmaltz and filth, while the cool rap groove of "Kyle's Mom's a Big Fat ****" is also effective. References to Canada are sprinkled throughout. In "Blame Canada," the Great White North is held responsible for all of America's problems, while a version of "O Canada" closes out the album. Elsewhere, there are as many obscenities as you'll find on a hardcore rap record, so this is definitely Parental Advisory stuff. Rest assured that South Park buffs will lap this up. Rating:

- kerry doole