The Transformers: The Movie (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)

This article is about the soundtrack to the 1986 animated film. For the soundtrack to the 2007 live-action film, see Transformers: The Album. For other uses, see Transformers (disambiguation).

The Transformers: The Movie (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)
Soundtrack album by Various Artists
Released	(US) July 24,1986 (JP) 1989 (US Re-release) 1992
Genre	Glam metal hard rock film score
Length	37:45
Label	(US) Scotti Bros. Records (JP) Pony Canyon (US Re-release) Volcano Entertainment
Producer	Richie Wise Ernie Burns Vince DiCola Ed Fruge Randy Bishop Spencer Proffer Rick Derringer
Singles from The Transformers The Movie: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack
"The Touch / Dare to Be Stupid" Released: July 1986

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[1]
Sputnikmusic	[2]

The Transformers: The Movie (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) is the 1986 soundtrack from the motion picture The Transformers: The Movie . It was released in the United States ahead of the theatrical release on July 26, 1986 ^[3] by Scotti Bros. Records on LP and cassette.

“Stan Bush’s ‘The Touch’ was released as a single and issued in the United States as a 45 RPM by Scotti Bros., with Weird Al Yankovic’s ‘Dare to Be Stupid’ on the B-side.” In the United Kingdom, Epic Records also issued the single as a die-cut picture disc featuring toy box art for the G1 Transformer Superion. ^[4]

In 1992, Scotti Bros. released the album on CD in the US. By 1999, it was subsequently re-issued by eventual successor company Volcano Entertainment, ^[5] and was re-released in 2007 with updated cover art and four bonus tracks.

In the fall of 2015, the soundtrack was reissued by Sony’s Legacy label as a limited-edition vinyl release for Record Store Day, marking the upcoming 30th anniversary of the film. ^[6]

The soundtrack was originally released in Japan by Pony Canyon on CD in 1989.

Reception

The soundtrack received little media attention or commercial radio airplay prior to or during the film’s theatrical release. The single issued from the album, “The Touch", also received minimal airplay in the United States. “The Touch” fared somewhat better on German radio; RTL Luxembourg named it one of its “Records of the Week” for the week of 1986-10-04. ^[7] It also received airplay on stations in Hamburg and Munchen stations.

Ivan Brunet of British Columbia’s Nanaimo Daily News described the soundtrack as “Basically heavy metal music.” He singled out “Nothin's Gonna Stand in Our Way” by Kick Axe and “Instruments of Destruction” by NRG as standouts, but identified the key track as Stan Bush’s “The Touch,” which he called “a fiery rock tune.” He added, “Uneven as this album is, it will more than likely fare well on the strength of the film.” ^[8]

In Marianne Meyer’s A/P column “Rock View,” she described it as “A rock soundtrack featuring generally obscure musical acts” and used it as an example of the industry’s “soundtrack mania” at the time, writing that it was released in “an effort to bring older kids in to the theater for this toy-inspired cartoon.” ^[9]

Track listing

Side A

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Artist	Length
1.	"The Touch"	Lenny Macaluso Stan Bush	Stan Bush	3:57
2.	"Instruments of Destruction"	Ernie Pertangelo Robin Ward Steven Serpa	NRG	3:21
3.	"Death of Optimus Prime"	Vince DiCola	Vince DiCola	2:58
4.	"Dare"	Scott Shelly DiCola	Stan Bush	4:01
5.	"Nothing's Gonna Stand in Our Way" (John Farnham cover [10] )	Randy Bishop	Kick Axe [11]	3:38

Side B

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Artist	Length
1.	"The Transformers (Theme)"	Anne Bryant Doug Aldrich Ford Kinder Norman Swan	Lion	3:35
2.	"Escape"	DiCola	Vince DiCola	4:46
3.	"Hunger"	Brian Gillstrom George Criston Larry Gillstrom Raymond Harvey Spencer Proffer Victor Langen	Kick Axe	3:45
4.	"Autobot/Decepticon Battle"	DiCola	Vince DiCola	4:18
5.	"Dare to Be Stupid"	Al Yankovic	"Weird Al" Yankovic	3:27

2007 bonus tracks

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Artist	Length
11.	"Unicron Medley"	DiCola	Vince DiCola	5:26
12.	"Moon Base 2 - Shuttle Launch"	DiCola	Vince DiCola	2:34
13.	"Megatron Must Be Stopped - Parts 1 and 2"	DiCola	Vince DiCola	6:15
14.	"The Transformers (Theme)" (Alternate Version)	Bryant Aldrich Kinder Swan	Vince DiCola and Stan Bush	2:39
Total length:				54:40

Legacy

• Power-metal band N.R.G. has since been reborn as Damn Cheetah, with a first album release titled Primal. ^[12]
• The Lion cover version of the main Transformers theme was itself covered on the NES by chiptune artist Inverse Phase and renamed to "NESformers". ^[13]
• "Subsong 2" from the Commodore 64 game Turrican is actually the song "Escape" from The Transformers: The Movie soundtrack. ^[14]
• Unicron’s theme appears in Transformers: Rise of the Beasts .

In popular culture

• The song "The Touch" is performed by Mark Wahlberg's character Dirk Diggler in the 1997 film Boogie Nights . His performance appears as a hidden track on the soundtrack album to the film.
• Stan Bush's original version of "The Touch" was used in the 2008 Chuck episode "Chuck Versus Tom Sawyer". ^[15] The song also appears in the games Shadow Warrior and Saints Row IV , along with an episode of American Dad! and The Goldbergs .
• The "Passiona High" sketch from cult Australian radio show Get This was based around several songs from the Transformers soundtrack, reworked into the storyline of an underdog nerd winning the eponymous school's annual synthesizer solo contest. The album tracks featured are "The Touch", "Autobot/Decepticon Battle", "Escape" and "Dare". ^[16]
• The "Get Psyched Mix" from Barney Stinson and the "Bro Code" in How I Met Your Mother point "The Transformers Theme" as a "Classic Get Psyched Song".
• The Cybertronic Spree covers much of the album at conventions.
• "Dare" is featured in The Goldbergs Season 4 episode "Fonzie Scheme" during the scene when Barry is attempting to jump a golf cart off of a mound of dirt.
• "Dare" is featured in "Live Studio Audience," the seventh episode for the first season of the Netflix series GLOW , during a wrestling training montage between main characters Ruth and Debbie.
• "Dare" is used during the fight training scene in Goon: Last of the Enforcers .

References

1. Fisher, Murrday. "AllMusic review". AllMusic .
2. Geriak, Christopher. "Soundtrack (Film) - The Transformers The Movie". Sputnikmusic.
3. Title: Richie at His Best, Daily News, July 22, 1986, p. 36, https://www.newspapers.com/image/492893475/, accessed December 5, 2025.
4. "Stan Bush / "Weird Al" Yankovic – The Transformers The Movie (The Touch / Dare To Be Stupid)". Discogs. Retrieved December 5, 2025.
5. "Transformers The Movie - Original Motion Picture Soundtrack 20th Anniversary Edition". IGN . Archived from the original on February 16, 2012. Retrieved October 12, 2010.
6. "Various – Transformers: The Movie (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)". Discogs. Retrieved December 5, 2025.
7. "STUDIO REPORT: Records of the Week — RTL Luxembourg names "The Touch" by Stan Bush" (PDF). Music & Media. October 4, 1986. p. 10. Retrieved December 5, 2025.
8. "Music Update," Nanaimo Daily News, 1986/08/27, p. 13, https://www.newspapers.com/image/325939862/ , accessed 2025/12/05.
9. Title: Rock View, El Paso Times, 1986/07/27, p. 114, https://www.newspapers.com/image/431296548/, accessed 2025/12/05.
10. Cover of the 1984 original first performed by John Farnham for the Savage Streets soundtrack.
11. The Canadian band Kick Axe was credited on the soundtrack album under the pseudonym "Spectre General". The film's producers thought the name "Kick Axe" sounded "too threatening," so they listed them as "Spectre General" instead. The band was not notified about the change.
12. "Area 403". Archived from the original on February 27, 2008. Retrieved November 7, 2009.
13. "NESformers". Inverse Phase.
14. "Facts about Turrican". Archived from the original on August 18, 2003. Retrieved November 7, 2009.
15. Phil Klemmer (writer), Norman Buckley (director) (October 27, 2008). "Chuck Versus Tom Sawyer". Chuck. Season 2. Episode 5. NBC.
16. Passiona High on YouTube. Retrieved2009-11-07.