Life: Music Inspired By The Motion Picture [Soundtrack]

Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com
Despite the fact that the two share top billing for the soundtrack's credits, R&B crooner R. Kelly plays a much greater role in shaping the sound of Life than does the Fugees' Wyclef Jean. Kelly's slow and languid style of soul gets slathered all over the album--often with mediocre results (Mya's "Why Should I Believe You?," Trisha Yearwood's "Follow the Rain"), though he does manage a gem or two (especially "Speechless," which features the incredible falsetto voice of Ronald Isley). As for Wyclef, he's up to most of his old tricks, including a simply banal (and wholly unnecessary) remix of Minnie Riperton's maudlin "Lovin' You," but he partially redeems himself with the surprisingly good "25 to Life" (featuring Xzibit, Juvenile, Nature, Ja Rule, and Reptile) as well as his own "New Day," which cameos the syrupy-sweet sax of jazz-popster Kenny G. --Oliver Wang

Life: Music Inspired By The Motion Picture,Various Artists,Interscope Records,Hip-Hop,Original Score,Pop,Pop/Rock,Soundtrack,Soundtracks,Soundtracks & Film Scores,Urban

Tracks:

25 To Life - Ja Rule
It's Like Everyday - DJ Quik
Stimulate Me - Destiny's Child
Fortunate - Maxwell
Lovin' You (The Remix) - Sparkle
Every Which Way - Talent
It's Gonna Rain - Kelly Price
Discovery - Brian McKnight
Follow The Wind - Trisha Yearwood
Why Should I Believe You? - Mya
What Would You Do? - City High
What Goes Around - Khadejia
Speechless - The Isley Brothers
Life - K-Ci & Jo Jo
New Day - Wyclef Jean

Amazon.com

Despite the fact that the two share top billing for the soundtrack's credits, R&B crooner R. Kelly plays a much greater role in shaping the sound of Life than does the Fugees' Wyclef Jean. Kelly's slow and languid style of soul gets slathered all over the album--often with mediocre results (Mya's "Why Should I Believe You?," Trisha Yearwood's "Follow the Rain"), though he does manage a gem or two (especially "Speechless," which features the incredible falsetto voice of Ronald Isley). As for Wyclef, he's up to most of his old tricks, including a simply banal (and wholly unnecessary) remix of Minnie Riperton's maudlin "Lovin' You," but he partially redeems himself with the surprisingly good "25 to Life" (featuring Xzibit, Juvenile, Nature, Ja Rule, and Reptile) as well as his own "New Day," which cameos the syrupy-sweet sax of jazz-popster Kenny G. --Oliver Wang

Customer Reviews:

LOVE IT.......2006-12-14

The movie is one of my all time favorites, along with the soundtrack, I watch and listen to them both regularly :)

Life soundtrack.......2006-03-19

A great album that everybody has forgotten about. Great jams and some emotional songs to . It moves me.

Fortunate!!.......2005-10-06

Comprising music that hardly features in the movie (LOL!!) and largely produced by R Kelly and Wyclef (with some help from Darkchild on 1 track), this is a stunning R&B collection from a stellar cast of performers.

`It's like everyday' by DJ Quik (featuring R Kelly) is an outstanding sleek bubbly rap. `Stimulate me' is by the soon-to-explode Destiny's Child. Both are R Kelly compositions/productions. `Every which way' by Talent and Vegas Cats is an R Kelly production with some help from Darkchild.

`It's gonna rain' is an R Kelly ballad featuring the powerful vocals on Kelly Price. Vocally, it starts off delicate and builds up in intensity with Price soaring towards the end.

`Discovery' starts off as a piano/string ballad, with percussion and more instruments filtering in along the way, and featuring an outstanding performance from Brian McKnight. In a similar vein is the ballad `Follow the wind' featuring country singer Trisha Yearwood. Both are R Kelly Compositions/productions.

Next is Mya on the lilting midtempo ballad `Why should I believe you?', followed by the Wyclef composition/production `What would you do' by City High with lyrics about hard living and asking what you would do in her place? This song belatedly became a hit in 2001 hitting #8 on the Billboard hot 100.

'What goes round' by Khadeja, the uptempo reggae-ish `Lovin' you' by Sparkle (the only song I'm not really into on this CD I must confess, cannot compare to Minnie Ripperton's classic original), the rap `25 to life' featuring Xzibit, Juvenile, Ja Rule Nature, and Reptile, and the excellent lilting `New day' with soothing vocals by Wyclef are all Wyclef compositions/productions.

`Speechless' is a tender ballad featuring some dramatic falsetto from Ronald Isley, and the upbeat organ laden `Life' features a fiery vocal performance from K-Ci and Jojo with an almost gospel fervor.

Saving the best for last; Maxwell! `Fortunate' is a tender ballad composed and produced by R Kelly. This song hit #4 on the hot 100, #1 R&B, and was the #1 R&B song of 1999. His biggest hit to date. Multiple vocal layering, a stunning vocal performance meandering from falsetto to full vocals, and moving lyrics about seeing everyday things in a different light because of love.

ONLY TWO.......2004-10-22

THE TWO BEST SONGS FROM THIS ALBUM ARE:
Maxwell's Fortunate
Kelly Price's Its Gonna Rain
and Maybe Brian MCknight's Discovery

3 1/2 stars--Some of R. Kelly's best songs are on here.......2003-04-18

Various Artists - Life: Music Inspired By the Motion Picture (Rock Land, 1999)

Though hardly any of the songs have anything to do with the movie it's named after (maybe because the music is "INSPIRED" by the motion picture as the title suggests), and it's evident that R. Kelly used this as a vehicle to promote his new Rock Land Records, there is still some quality material on here written by Kelly. For instance, the title track really gives K-Ci a chance to shine while JoJo sings background. "Fortunate", also written and produced by Kelly, actually saved Maxwell's career back in 1999. But Kelly Price's "It's Gonna Rain" is actually the best song on the album; it's too bad that it's been overshadowed by "Life" and "Fortunate" in the public's eye. R. Kelly's tunes that he wrote for Brian McKnight, Mya, and Trisha Yearwood are also great, but it's the severely underrated "Speechless" sung by The Isley Brothers that surprised me.

The tunes handled by soundtrack co-producer Wyclef Jean aren't as strong, especially the unnecessary remake of "Lovin' You" by former R. Kelly protégée Sparkle and the weird combination of Xzibit, Nature, Juvenile, Ja Rule, and Reptile (who?) on "25 to Life". City High's "What Would You Do" was so bad that they had to bring it back in 2001 to get some fans, and "Every Which Way" by Talent belies the group's name. But this soundtrack is still worth checking for the R. Kelly-penned tunes. -EJR

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