High School Musical
Disney has struck platinum withHigh School Musical, a made-for-cable movie that was mega-popular on the Disney Channel before spawning a mega-popular soundtrack. EchoingGrease,the plot involves two students (Zac Efron and Vanessa Anne Hutchinson) who fall for each other while on vacation, only to realize they go to the same high school—though they belong to different cliques. Fortunately they both love singing! The songs are typical Disney pop: on the bland side but also very well-crafted, they stick to your head like strawberry-flavored gum. Among the standouts are "Get'cha Head in the Game," which incorporates noises from a basketball game (squeaking sneakers, bouncing balls, whistles) to great effect; the fab tribute to 1970s piano-pop "What I've Been Looking For"; and the old-school show-tuney "Stick to the Status Quo." The music falters when it tries to go "caliente suave" (a la Gloria Estefan's substandard "Bop to the Top") but overall this CD could get kids to bounce and sing along nicely. Bonus tracks include a reprise of "Get'cha Head in the Game" by R&B; group B5 and, fittingly, karaoke versions of the hits "Start of Something New" and "Breaking Free."--Elisabeth VincentelliNOTE: This two-disc edition of the soundtrack includes the original album on the first disc plus karaoke versions of "Start of Something New," "Get'cha Head in the Game," "What I've Been Looking For," "When There Was Me and You," "Bop to the Top," "Breaking Free," "We're All in This Together," and "I Can't Take My Eyes Off of You" on the second CD+G disc. Also included are a music video for B5's version of "Get'cha Head in the Game" and a foldout locker poster.