Although the Jon Lovitz movie
High School High was a juvenile, predictable low-brow parody of Dangerous Minds and other inner-city dramas, the soundtrack to the film is considerably sharper and more attractive. Assembled (and marketed) with the knowledge that the film would likely alienate its target audience of hip-hop and urban R&B fans, the soundtrack is a stellar sampler of mid-'90s musical styles, featuring everything from hardcore rap to smooth new jack balladry and alternative rap. Over the course of its 20 tracks (the sheer number of songs makes the album a worthwhile purchase),
Faith Evans,
the Braxtons, Quad City DJs, D'Angelo,
De La Soul,
A Tribe Called Quest,
Jodeci, Scarface & Facemob,
Lil' Kim,
the Braids (who cover Queen's "Bohemian Rhapsody"),
Spice 1 with E-40 & the Click, and the Roots all deliver excellent cuts; there are also two
Wu-Tang Clan cuts, including the first solo track from RZA (the song-as-commercial "Wu-Wear: The Garment Renaissance") and
Inspectah Deck & U-God's collaboration with Street. Though its momentum sags in a couple of places,
High School High remains a thoroughly enjoyable and surprisingly eclectic listen, and is easily one of the finest soundtracks of 1996. It's certainly more fun than the film it supports. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine