Music from Mo' Better Blues | ||||
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Soundtrack album to Mo' Better Blues by Branford Marsalis Quartet featuring Terence Blanchard | ||||
Released | July 31, 1990 | |||
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Genre | Jazz | |||
Length | 37:35 | |||
Label | Columbia | |||
Producer |
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Spike Lee film soundtracks chronology | ||||
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Branford Marsalis albums chronology | ||||
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Terence Blanchard albums chronology | ||||
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Singles from Music From "Mo' Better Blues" | ||||
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Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [1] |
Music From "Mo' Better Blues" is a collaborative album by Branford Marsalis Quartet and Terence Blanchard. It was released in 1990 through Columbia/CBS Records as a soundtrack to Spike Lee's 1990 film Mo' Better Blues . Recording sessions took place at RCA Studios and Sound On Sound in New York. Production was handled by Bill Lee,Delfeayo Marsalis,Raymond Jones and DJ Premier,with Spike Lee serving as executive producer. It features contributions from film stars Cynda Williams,Denzel Washington and Wesley Snipes,and American hip hop duo Gang Starr.
The album peaked at number 63 on the US Billboard 200 albums chart. Music video was released for a single "Jazz Thing". In 1991,the soundtrack received a nomination for a Soul Train Music Award for Best Jazz Album,while the song "Again Never" was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Jazz Instrumental Performance,Group at the 33rd Annual Grammy Awards.
Publication | Accolade | Rank | Ref. |
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Albumism | 100 Greatest Soundtracks of All Time | — | |
Complex | The 50 Greatest Movie Soundtracks of All Time | — | |
Consequence of Sound | The 100 Greatest Movie Soundtracks of All Time | 80 | |
The Boombox | 20 Great Hip-Hop/Jazz Albums of the '90s | — | |
Vulture | The 40 Greatest Movie Soundtracks of All Time | 23 |
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Producer(s) | Length |
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1. | "Harlem Blues" (featuring Cynda Williams) | William Christopher Handy | Raymond Jones | 4:50 |
2. | "Say Hey" | Branford Marsalis | Delfeayo Marsalis | 3:18 |
3. | "Knocked Out the Box" | B. Marsalis | Delfeayo Marsalis | 1:35 |
4. | "Again, Never" | William James Edwards Lee III | Bill Lee | 3:54 |
5. | "Mo' Better Blues" | Lee III | Bill Lee | 3:39 |
6. | "Pop Top 40" (featuring Denzel Washington and Wesley Snipes) |
| Delfeayo Marsalis | 5:40 |
7. | "Beneath the Underdog" | B. Marsalis | Delfeayo Marsalis | 5:07 |
8. | "Jazz Thing" (featuring Gang Starr) |
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| 4:50 |
9. | "Harlem Blues (Acapulco Version)" (featuring Cynda Williams) | Handy | Raymond Jones | 4:48 |
Total length: | 37:35 |
Chart (1990) | Peak position |
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US Billboard 200 [7] | 63 |
US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums ( Billboard ) [8] | 21 |
US Traditional Jazz Albums ( Billboard ) [9] | 1 |
Jazzmatazz, Volume 1: An Experimental Fusion of Hip-Hop and Jazz, is the debut solo studio album by American hip hop recording artist Guru. It was released on May 18, 1993, by Chrysalis Records. The recording sessions took place at D&D Studios, in New York. The album was produced by Guru, who also served as executive producer with Duff Marlowe and Patrick Moxey.
Mo' Better Blues is a 1990 American musical comedy-drama film starring Denzel Washington, Wesley Snipes, and Spike Lee, who also wrote, produced, and directed. It follows a period in the life of fictional jazz trumpeter Bleek Gilliam as a series of bad decisions result in his jeopardizing both his relationships and his playing career. The film focuses on themes of friendship, loyalty, honesty, cause-and-effect, and ultimately salvation. It features the music of the Branford Marsalis quartet and Terence Blanchard on trumpet. The film was released five months after the death of Robin Harris and is dedicated to his memory, being his final acting role.
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