Rocky Balboa: The Best of Rocky
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Free Music Notes for Rocky Balboa: The Best of Rocky
Free Music Review: Bill Conti should have released a stand-alone soundtrack for the film, BUT...
Hit: 5 Stars
...for what it's worth, as a retrospective of the five previous Rocky movies, "Rocky Balboa" is a fitting tribute to the series.
Like many fans, I enjoyed Bill Conti's classy new compositions for the film itself. But I guess I can understand why MGM and Conti decided to release a "greatest hits" style album instead - after all, the film itself is kind of an appreciation of the Rocky legacy and a reflection on the old days, so it's rather fitting that this compilation would capture that same spirit.
Purists may be a bit upset over the fact that many classic tracks - such as "Going the Distance" - have been slightly edited. For example, in the beginning of the aforementioned song an audio clip from "Rocky II" has been inserted over the introductory instruments (Adrian telling Rocky to "win" as the song is starting up). It's cool, but also kind of annoying for people who just want the original songs in their original forms, and this trend continues throughout the album. Most of the time it's BEFORE the song starts (e.g. on "Gonna Fly Now" there's a quote from the Rocky Balboa film delivered by Stallone to the athletics board which lasts for about 10 - 15 seconds). Some of the quotes make the songs better, and some of them are just out of place and kind of freaky. It's strange to start getting pumped up by the familiar song and suddenly hear some loud voice telling you "WIN!", but whatever.
I particularly liked John X's remix of "Gonna Fly Now." It mixes quotes from the films in the series with updated instrumentals, but it doesn't totally rape the original as many remixes do - it's a respectful remix.
You also get the new Three Six Mafia song "It's a Fight" which is cool.
Overall my thoughts on this are: as a retrospective of the Rocky series with remastered tracks and some new material thrown in, it's pretty amazing. Many "greatest hits" compilations have been far worse. They had the smarts to keep the good tracks and not go for overkill - there's none of that awful early '90s rap soundtrack from "Rocky V" here. (Unless you are a huge fan of MC Hammer, in which case I advise you to go purchase the original Rocky V soundtrack.)
It's missing a few tracks that would have been nice - most notably the training theme from Rocky IV - but I also get the feeling that these tracks are more for the die-hard Rocky enthusiasts and would seem a bit out of place for the casual listener. That Rocky IV training theme was kind of outdated anyway, but hell, I love it for nostalgic value.
I'm disappointed that MGM didn't issue an actual soundtrack for Rocky Balboa (since Conti did some amazing work on the new film reminiscent of the original in many ways) but I'm hoping that may come out at a later point in time. Until then this is a great retrospective that fans will enjoy. Rip it to your PC and put it on your iPod for a workout session, it will have you thinking you're in a training montage in no time at all.
Free Music Review: Excellent!
Hit: 5 Stars
The film "Rocky Balboa" did what "Rocky V" tried but failed to do; namely, wrap up the series in a positive way that left longtime fans satisfied. The same can be said for the soundtrack, which is an excellent combination of Bill Conti's original scores and the original artist rock tracks from Rocky III and IV. "Gonna Fly Now" still sounds great after all these years, as does "Redemption", the terrific theme of "Rocky II" which is a bit overlooked. "Going the Distance" is the perfect boxing theme, as it is both dramatic and triumphant. Softer tracks like "Adrian" and "Mickey" are appropriate because they show the other side of Rocky's character as someone who cared deeply about those who were closest to him. The original rock songs sound great too, and will bring back many fond memories from the films: "Eye of the Tiger", "No Easy Way Out", "Heart's On Fire", "Burning Heart" and "Living in America" all sound as fresh and lively as they did in the 1980's. Many probably don't like the inclusion of 36 Mafia's "It's a Fight", but I don't mind it too much; it was the entrance theme for Mason Dixon, after all, and it does accurately portray his self-confident image.
To be sure, this soundtrack is not perfect: there doesn't seem to be much justification for "Can't Stop the Fire" from Rocky V, though I suppose the producers felt that there should be at least one song from that film. The remix of "Gonna Fly Now", while not bad, sounds as if they tried to make it too modern, and that misses the point; what makes the original version so great is that it still sounds so good 30 years later.
Overall, this is an excellent disc, especially for a fan like me who came in relatively late ("Rocky Balboa" was actually the first Rocky film I saw, and I loved it so much I rented the first five!) It would have been nice if they had replaced "Can't Stop the Fire" and "Fanfare" with some better tracks, but that is a small gripe for an otherwise excellent collection of music.
Free Music Review: I Can't Believe How Incredible This Sounds! Capitol Does It Again!
Hit: 5 Stars
Woah! The remastering here is simply some of the best I've heard EVER! The improvements are striking!!! You would not believe that some of these recordings are a good 20+ years old! Finally, someone gets those Survivor songs right! Previous "best of" releases by both Volcano/BMG Heritage ('Ultimate Survivor', 2004) and Sony BMG ('The Best Of', 2006) have left me wanting more from "Eye Of The Tiger" and "Burning Heart". While these recent masters have improved over the original releases on CD, the mastering jobs still have left these songs sounding rather flat with little depth and punch. They had more potential.
Thanks to the wonderful mastering courtesy of Capitol Records, the sound on these songs on this release is AMAZING! Listen to those opening guitar riffs in "Eye Of The Tiger", and you won't believe that this song was released in 1982. It's the best I've heard these songs sound ever! Thank you to Capitol for yet again another brilliant upgrade.
Then we have "Hearts On Fire" by John Cafferty. I would have never guessed that this recording is 20 years old by playing this CD. It's as punchy and clean as any recording from 2006. The song rumbles and shakes with it's kicking drums and underlying bass. Again, I cannot stress how amazing this sounds! It's like a wall of sound coming at you! I never imagined that it could be this great!
The late James Brown features with his 1986 hit, "Living In America", which benefits wonderfully from the sonic upgrade. The underlying bass line has never been more present. Again, the recording is crisp and full. In fact, the music on the entire disc has never sounded better than on this release. I'm still puzzled as to how these tracks were tweaked so well. I highly recommend this disc for anyone looking for sound that goes leaps beyond any previous releases and for music that shines in a whole new dimension.
Free Music Review: Ultimate Rocky Mixtape
Hit: 5 Stars
If you're enough of a fan to want the most memorable Rocky themes on a CD, but not enough of a fanatic to buy all the individual soundtracks, then this is the CD for you.
All the sound is remastered and is crisp and powerful sounding, and the flow of the mix is pretty good. A neat touch is the dialogue clips from various Rocky flicks being played before certain songs.
My only complaint would be the inclusion of some of the weaker songs from the Rocky mythos like Adrian when they could have included some of the training music from Rocky or Rocky IV like Philedelphia Morning or Training Montage.
But, it's so minor a complaint I can't deduct a star for a mix CD that'll please any Rocky fan. To have Redemption, Rocky's Reward, and Eye of the Tiger on a single disc is just great.
Free Music Review: Inspirational
Hit: 5 Stars
I will never forget that night in 1976 when i attended the showing of Rocky, It transformed my life and inspired me beyond words. I have never felt the impact from any movie as i did with Rocky. It still is the most inspirational film of all time for me. The music matched the intensity of the fight to go the distance in life. The story behind the story about Stallone writing the script and with nothing he refused thousands of dollars to sell it outright but rather stuck to his heart and dreams and negotiated to play the part himself was just as inspiring as the movie. Anyone who has a dream in their heart has to love Rocky because it's obvious that God does. This CD captures all the songs that move and stir your spirit just as the movie did. The original theme from Rocky will be played at my funeral.