Various Artists – Rock Of Ages: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack (2012)

A 60-minute musical slice of the 1980s jets to 2012 thanks to the soundtrack recording of the movie version of the Broadway hit Rock of Ages. And though the covers of hits from the likes of Pat Benatar, Foreigner, Guns ‘N Roses, and REO Speedwagon, among others, won’t replace the originals (or even other pop and rock covers of the tunes), there’s enough personality and panache on the recording to warrant a listen.

The vocalist most people will want to know about is Tom Cruise, who’s playing Stacee Jaxx, a swaggering, arrogant rock god — a bit of a cross between David Lee Roth and Michael Jackson. He acquits himself decently on a couple of his tracks, notably “Paradise City” (which plays just as the film opens) and “Wanted Dead or Alive,” which he shares as a duet with Julianne Hough, who plays the small town girl, Sherrie, who comes to Los Angeles in search of fame and fortune. It’s unfortunate that Cruise isn’t as persuasive or as effective elsewhere, where his work is strained, particularly during his performance of “Pour Some Sugar on Me.”

Hough, whether singing solo, in duets, or in the film’s ubiquitous group montages, brings a sweet good-girl sound to her frequently powerhouse vocals, and her perhaps most impressive turn comes as she holds her own with the estimable Mary J. Blige in a surging duet of “Harden My Heart.”

As Sherrie’s love interest, Drew, a barback with his own dreams of stardom, Diego Boneta brings a blend of innocence and fierceness to his numbers, which include the iconic “I Wanna Rock,” as well as “Undercover Love,” which he delivers once Drew has been repackaged as a member of a silly, faux gritty boy band.

Of the other A-list cast that’s been assembled for the film, Tony Award winner Catherine Zeta-Jones, who plays the Tipper Gore-like first lady of L.A., delivers a couple of numbers with sultry gusto, including “Hit Me With Your Best Shot,” and it should come as no surprise that Blige’s work throughout is remarkable.

Perhaps the most unique (and curiously satisfying) turn on the album comes from the mercurial and exceedingly charismatic Russell Brand, who plays Lonny, the second fiddle to Alec Baldwin’s Dennis Dupree, the guy who runs The Bourbon Room, the club where much of the movie takes place.

He uses his personal style and innate sense of flair to compensate for what he lacks as a singer, making both “I Can’t Fight This feeling” (sung with Baldwin) and the mashup of “We Built This City” and “We’re Not Gonna Take It” (where Zeta-Jones is the other lead vocalist) real winners.

1. Paradise City (Tom Cruise)
2. Sister Christian / Just Like Paradise / Nothin’ But A Good Time (Julianne Hough, Diego Boneta, Russell Brand, Alec Baldwin)
3. Juke Box Hero / I Love Rock ‘n’ Roll (Diego Boneta, Alec Baldwin, Russell Brand, Julianne Hough)
4. Hit Me With Your Best Shot (Catherine Zeta-Jones)
5. Waiting For A Girl Like You (Diego Boneta, Julianne Hough)
6. More Than Words / Heaven (Julianne Hough, Diego Boneta)
7. Wanted Dead Or Alive (Tom Cruise, Julianne Hough)
8. I Want To Know What Love Is (Tom Cruise, Malin Akerman)
9. I Wanna Rock (Diego Boneta)
10. Pour Some Sugar On Me (Tom Cruise)
11. Harden My Heart (Julianne Hough, Mary J. Blige)
12. Shadows of the Night / Harden My Heart (Mary J. Blige, Julianne Hough)
13. Here I Go Again (Diego Boneta, Paul Giamatti, Julianne Hough, Mary J. Blige, Tom Cruise)
14. Can’t Fight This Feeling (Russell Brand, Alec Baldwin)
15. Any Way You Want It (Mary J. Blige, Constantine Maroulis, Julianne Hough)
16. Undercover Love (Diego Boneta)
17. Every Rose Has Its Thorn (Julianne Hough, Diego Boneta, Tom Cruise, Mary J. Blige)
18. Rock You Like A Hurricane (Julianne Hough, Tom Cruise)
19. We Built This City / We re Not Gonna Take It (Russell Brand, Catherine Zeta-Jones)
20. Don’t Stop Believin (Julianne Hough, Diego Boneta, Tom Cruise, Alec Baldwin, Russell Brand, Mary J. Blige)

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