Austin Powers in Goldmember [Soundtrack]

Various Artists (Artist) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (July 16, 2002)
• Original Release Date: July 26, 2002
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Soundtrack
• Label: Maverick
• ASIN: B000068DA0
• Also Available in: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 3.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (24 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #117,764 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

Whereas the first two Austin Powers soundtracks concentrated on swinging-'60s mod, soul, and rock shagadelica, Goldmember shakes its '70s funk and disco groove thing. Angie Stone turns in a silky cover of "Groove Me," while Beyoncé Knowles belts "Work It Out" in fierce diva style over rickety but slinky beats. Soul Hooligan add cheesy vocoded vocals and synths to their version of Electric Light Orchestra's "Evil Woman"; Paul Oakenfold mashes up "A Fifth of Beethoven" with a dark, Mission Impossible-like melody; and the Rolling Stones' disco excursion "Miss You" is imbued with an intoxicating step-beat and throbbing strings by Dr. Dre. Even Mike Myers gets into the groove action, drolly spoofing Jay-Z's "Hard Knock Life" as Dr. Evil, to hilarious effect. But like the hedonistic '70s, there's not much substance underneath the songs. While understandable--Austin Powers isn't meant to be brain surgery--glitzy dance tracks by Foxxy Cleopatra, Britney Spears, and Oakenfold especially drag and become clunky. --Annie Zaleski

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The "Soul" of Austin Powers, July 16, 2002

By 

Karl Miller "kemspeaks" (Phoenixville, PA United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Austin Powers in Goldmember (Audio CD)

Taking a "let's toss it all in the blender" appraoch, this soundtrack features a bunch of grooving tracks, along with a few missteps.
Beyonce Knowles (Destiny's Child) kicks the CD off in high gear with a knowing glance at Chaka Khan in "Work It Out". While she doesn't have Ms. Khan's pipes, Beyonce knows how to work with the right materials (and right producers), and she creates a throwback jam that has Rufus wirtten all over the bassline. It's a shame, however, that, a few cuts later Angie Stone's "Groove Me" reminds you how limited Beyonce's vocals are.
Brittney Spears, working with N.E.R.D. (flavor of the month in the producer's category) serves up an enjoyable "Boy", which is mixed to perfection (maybe a little too perfect).
Dr. Evil take on Jay-Z's "Hard Knock Life" is very funny the first time you hear it, particularly with his usage of "street" lingo. And Susanna Hoffs (from The Bangles) throws up a wonderful version of "Alfie".
Skip Dr. Dre's remix of the Rolling Stone's "Miss You", though. Throwing aside the thumping New York beat of the original for Dre's tradition LA "g-thing" groove was a big mistake. Fortunately, the producer of this CD left Earth Wind and Fire's "Shining Star" intact, and this song still sounds great after 25+ years.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars a funny story..., July 16, 2002

By 

Nick (Louisville, KY United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Austin Powers in Goldmember (Audio CD)

I was in best buy today picking up new CD's and i came across the new Austin Powers CD. Looking at the back of the CD i scanned down the track listings and saw "Dr. Evil- Hard Knock life Ghetto Anthem Remix". I literally started laughing out loud. I thought to myself "well, i do like that new beyonce song on there" and decided to buy it just for the hard knock life. Imagine Dr. Evil singing a rendered Jay-Z classic! As i proceeded to the register, a guy picked up my CD to scan it, and while the reciept was printing he looked at the tracks. he noticed the same Dr. Evil song on it, started cracking up and showed another employee. After i was done they both went to where it was sitting and picked up a copy.

Well now that that story is over, this soundtrack is actually pretty good. It captures the magic of the music of 1975 pretty well; from Beyonce's great neptune-produced "work it out", that sounds like it came straight from the 70's with a 2002 twist. Angie Stone sounds just like a soul diva with the likes of Gloria Gaynor with her song, and Oakenfolds' 1975 is an irresitible flashback of great tunes. The only thing that feels out of place on this album is the britney spears track. Now to the Dr. evil song. Its just as incredibly hilarious as i anticipated. You really have to hear it to believe it, but in the 2nd verse he starts cussing like a maniac and it bleeps it all out. This is an essential soundtrack to what is going to be one of the greatest movies of the summer.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars a pleasant surprise, July 25, 2002

By 

Robert G Yokoyama (Mililani, Hawaii) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Austin Powers in Goldmember (Audio CD)

Work It Out by Beyonce Knowles and the Boys co ed remix by Britney Spears and Pharrell Williams are the two best songs on this CD. They are excellent dance tracks as are all of the songs on this soundtrack. I loved hearing Shinning Star by Earth Wind and Fire and Angie Stone's groove me. The sampled songs on sound just as good though. The Dr Dre remix of the Rolling Stones classic is pretty good. Susanna Hoffs version of the song Alfie is just beautiful. Hey Goldmember is a nice track that uses sampled disco songs from KC and the Sunshine Band from the 70s. This is a really good soundtrack for anyone who likes to dance.