blondewave

25th Anniversary Retrospective

In the 80s and 90s especially, movie soundtracks were a regular part of our music rotation. I danced to the Pulp Fiction soundtrack, drove around listening to Judgement Night, and eased my aching teenage heart with music from the motion picture Romeo & Juliet.  

Some of the best soundtracks of this era featured original songs and unlikely collaborations created just for that film experience. I don’t always love the film as much as the soundtrack, however, there is one exception: Go! 

It’s one of those: does the movie make the music great or does the music make the film great? Correlation or causality be damned because it does not matter. 25 years after its release, Go! remains one of the best film soundtracks of all time. 

Doug Liman directed Go!, his sophomore effort after the indie breakout hit Swingers. Go! is an ‘if you know, you know’ kind of film. It doesn’t seem to have branched out in popularity the way other 90s films have. Regardless, those who have experienced it almost always speak of the wild ride in a favorable way. It’s hard to categorize – part action, part comedy, some drama but overall, it’s just COOL. And of course, what enhances this (and every) trip? MUSIC. 

The film opens with raw footage cuts from actual raves in the Los Angeles area. These scenes are set to the backdrop of Lionrock’s Fire Up the Shoesaw, the soundtrack’s opener. Where’d you learn how to shake that booty? 

No Doubt – Julianne Jordan, music producer for the film was pleasantly surprised when No Doub agreed to write an original song for the film, New. This plays in the background when Claire, Ronna, and Manny are playing Dead Celebrities on their break. It resurfaces, perfectly, to close out the film as they peel out of the parking lot of last night’s rave. 

Todd Gaines. Fucking Todd Gaines. Todd Gaines is a huge part of the reason why I love this movie so much. His character, his voice, his body, the Santa hat. 

Okay, I digress. In one of the best, most suspenseful scenes of the movie, Claire (Katie Holmes) serves as human collateral. They have an awkward exchange and Katie Holmes perfectly encapsulates that feeling of trying to stay cool while you are really shitting bricks on the inside. Massive Attack’s Angel plays in the background but takes center stage as Todd blasts the volume as he checks Ronna, upon her return, for a wire. It’s a simultaneously obnoxious, dangerous, sensual scene.  

An ethereal dreamy score emerges in several backdrops, and is especially notable when Ronna gets (no other way to say it) run over. The instrumental serves as a haunting buzzkill. Shit just got real. When I rocked the ‘ol Shazam during this part, an artist named BT popped up. BT was a young composer and DJ that music supervisor Julianne Jordan recommended to Liman. 

His Believer track blasts through the rave scene as Ronna’s business is on the upswing. it’s really smooth, right? 

Another original (remix) plays as we relocate to the Vegas scenes, Jimmy Luxury & The Tommy Rome Orchestra’s Cha Cha Cha. Later, as Simon crashes a wedding, we are implored to Let Your Love Flow by the Bellamy Brothers (sadly, didn’t make it to the soundtrack listing). 

It is in this vignette that Simon meets two girls that he eventually brings back to a hotel room, one the best scenes in the movie. A threesome ensues as Air’s Talisman plays in the background. However, this love flow is sadly interrupted by flames racing up the curtains. Tantra, baby! 

Simon then runs into Marcus and off they head to the strip club in a stolen car, of course. 

Danger and sex once again converge as they both receive lap dances to Ethero’s Song For Holly 

And if you won’t let me go

I’m just harder to hold, no

I’ll never let you gain control, no, no…

Once again, Simon can’t seem to stop doing dumb shit and they embark on one of the coolest car chase scenes of all time. According to IMDb, three quarters of the film’s budget was allocated for it. 

I have never really been a fan of the song Magic Carpet Ride by Steppenwolf, but when this hyped up version (Steir’s Mix) plays during this scene it just gets me HYPE. 

My favorite ballad on the soundtrack plays during the comedown. Claire, after being separated from Ronna and Manny (pre cell phone) era, surreptitiously reunites with Todd in a diner. She is wet from the rain, cracked out, and stunning. You can see in Todd’s eyes that he agrees. Here we see a softer, more real, and dare I say a protective side of Todd ( I can fix him). As they are reacquainting, defenses down, Natalie Imbruglia’s Troubled By The Way We Came Together plays softly in the background. 

My heart carries on, mmm 

But my head knows better 

Troubled by the way we came together

Go! Is a film where both the actors and soundtrack musicians had something in common – most were young and emerging talent. Executive producer Ricky Strauss described Go! as being a “scrappy” film, stating, “we didn’t have a ton of money, so it was definitely scrappy, but it was wildly creative.”

If you want to hear more geeking about this movie and soundtrack, I guested on the podcast “Does It Suck Now?” Listen to it here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/does-it-suck-now-season-2-episode-13-go-1999/id1035182483?i=1000631943782