How Stella Got Her Groove Back Soundtrack: Music From The Motion Picture
Let's see. The book and film incarnations ofHow Stella Got Her Groove Backconcern an African American woman who reignites her passion during a trip to the Caribbean. So, of course, the movie's soundtrack album effects a match of U.S. R&B; and hip-hop stars and globetrotting reggae crossover royalty. Unfortunately, it's the kind of merger that works better on paper, as they say, than in the grooves. Rapper Big Punisher and dancehall superstar Beenie Man, toasting and singing over an INXS sample on "Makes Me Sweat," are amusing; however, the rest of the CD is more often marked by dreary balladry (K-Ci & Jo-Jo's "Never Say Never Again") and other irrelevancies. Worst of all is "Mastablasta '98," for which Stevie Wonder and Wyclef Jean somehow decided it would be a good idea to dump the original's deep-dish skank in favor of a generically "up to date" Jeep-beat thump. Hey, guys: come home to Jamaica, already.--Rickey Wright