Editor’s Note: The Albumism staff has selected what we believe to be the 100 Greatest Soundtracks of All Time, representing a varied cross-section of films and musical genres. Click “Next Soundtrack” below to explore each soundtrack in the list or for easier navigation, view the full introduction & soundtrack index here.
Friday
Priority (1995)
Selected by Justin Chadwick
By 1995, a few years after Dr. Dre’s The Chronic (1992) and Snoop Doggy Dogg’s Doggystyle (1993) had fundamentally altered the hip-hop landscape and pushed it into the realm of the mainstream, it’s fair to say that the west coast strain of the genre held the lion’s share of commercial, if not critical, power. And save for entries by Scarface (Houston) and 2 Live Crew (Miami), the song selection that soundtracked the cannabis-imbued shenanigans of best buddies Craig (Ice Cube) and Smokey (Chris Tucker) represented a veritable who’s-who of California rap including the likes of the aforementioned Dre, the film’s co-writer and star Ice Cube, Mack 10, Tha Alkaholiks, Cypress Hill, Threat and Funkdoobiest.
Appealing to a more seasoned contingent of moviegoers and listeners, the collection included throwback jams by funk pioneers (Bootsy Collins, Rick James, Roger Troutman) and soul staples (The Isley Brothers, Rose Royce), which made for an all-around balanced affair that most definitely kept heads ringin.’
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