Sister Act

Review by Thomas Glorieux:

I must confess, this soundtrack was purchased solely for the songs and never for the score. But what I got was a bunch of good songs and a very enjoyable score to go with it. So Sister Act is just perfect for those that enjoyed this excellent comedy with Whoopie Goldberg in the role we always love. The songs are also seen in category per category because you have the songs that make the film, the adaptations that are sung by Dolores and the Sisters, next you have the classic array of oldies and the new modern bunch that goes equally in the direction of being enjoyable. And last, we have 4 portions of score composed by Marc Shaiman, all being so enjoyable it doesn't matter if its not classy enough for orchestral lovers. Sister Act as a score album looks to be disjointed and just plain awful to listen to, but this is not true because the album is just perfect to get everything out of the movie, and knowing me and others, the general idea is just to do that.

We will start with the various categories, first the songs that appear now and then in the movie, varying from oldies, like the famous 'Rescue Me' or 'Roll with me Henry' to new (but still enjoyable and fitting entries) like 'Just a Touch of Love' which is a longer version then heard in the movie. Next we have the adaptations of songs, those sung by the characters of the movie "Deloris & the Ronelles". These cover really a great medley of all the great oldies of that time and mix them in two enjoyable portions of music. And then we also have the song adaptations by "Deloris & the Sisters" and these are the cream of the album. 'Hail Holy Queen' is just plain amusing, equally as the bouncy 'My Guy (My God)' but for me the absolute treasure is 'Finale: I Will Follow Him', here you especially hear perfect synchronized singing, and a instrumentation that makes it almost as heavenly as it was intended from the start. And consider this also the work of Shaiman, because on the back cover it clearly states that the music and the adaptations are by Marc Shaiman. Now, speaking of the composer, his sole work might not mean much behind all those catchy tunes but he still brought something worth hearing, especially if you dig that personal touch.

The style we are hearing here is good old plain fun jazz (close to portions you can hear in City Slickers 2) and 'The Murder' and 'Nuns to the Rescue' are just plain fun to listen to. Both carry a great amusing spirit and carry above all some nice surprises. Like in the second up mentioned track, it not only shows a small Benny Hill influence (1.24) but also two dialogue sequences. Do not worry, these are heard very briefly and are well chosen moments of dialogue, they will definitely be enjoyed by everyone. For the rest we have a short sneaky moment in track 3 and more of the same in track 10, all so perfectly fitting with any side of the various styles found on this album. Without resorting to Marc Shaiman's score, Sister Act is actually meant for those loving the songs and adaptations. But I also know that some people will listen to the pieces of Shaiman, just because they fit so well with the flow of the score. Sister Act is a fun album for a fun movie and I must congratulate Shaiman for this, because I know that he had a hand in both the song and the music, making it a hoot of an album to casually hear.

Score: ***
Songs: ****

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Tracks

Single Disc

1. The Lounge Medley: Deloris & The Ronelles (3.40)

2. The Murder * (2.18)

3. Getting Into The Habit * (2.39)

4. Rescue Me: Fontella Bass (2.54)

5. Hail Holy Queen: Deloris & The Sisters (3.19) Excellent Track

6. Roll With Me Henry: Etta James (2.56)

7. Gravy: Dee Dee Sharp (2.11)

8. My Guy (My God): Deloris & The Sisters (2.27)

9. Just A Touch Of Love (Everyday): C&C Music Factory (5.38)

10. Deloris Is Kidnapped * (1.42)

11. Nuns To The Rescue *+ (4.46)

12. Finale: I Will Follow Him: Deloris & The Sisters (3.12) Excellent Track

13. Shout: Deloris & The Sisters & The Ronelles (4.15)

14. If My Sister's In Trouble: Lady Soul (4.00)

* Soundtrack composed by Marc Shaiman

+ Containing dialogue

Total Length: 46.24

The use of artwork or photos is posted for non profitable reasons

=== Link to Composer Site: Marc Shaiman ===