GenQ - For the not so straight individual

As most people know me can attest, I'm a big fan of musicals in general. One in particular that sparked my interest years ago was the Original Broadway Cast recording of "Hairspray," a vibrant and energetic 60's pop-themed show that was basically just a great time. I was leery, then, when I heard the announcement of the new movie that was recently released. Luckily I was very suprised that the soundtrack for the movie (released July 10th, 2007 on New Line Records) more than exceeded my expectations: it exceeded my enjoyment of the original!

Usually, when something (especially a Broadway musical) is recreated, it doesn't live up to the feeling and energy of the original. The new "Hairspray" definitely does just that, to a point where I liked it even more. The main thing I was listening for when I picked it up was how the new singers compared to the originals. Here are the main ones that I picked out that made a big difference to me (keep in mind that I am purely going off of the music for this, as I have yet to see the movie, sadly):

Nikki Blonsky (Tracy Turnblad) - As the leading character in the movie, Nikki Blonsky has to kick it up to live up to the original's portrayal of her character. For someone who just a year ago was a normal teenager working in a Coldstone, she is fantastic! Her voice fits the character amazingly without the sometimes grating quality that was present in the Broadway show.

Amanda Bynes (Penny Pingleton) - While I like Amanda Bynes, she probably should stick to plain acting and away from singing. While she wasn't bad, you can really tell that she's not a singer. She fit the character well though, and in context of who Penny Pingleton is in the story she didn't need to be an amazing singer.

Zac Efron (Link Larkin) - One of the two actors I was most worried about, Efron's portrayal of Link was way more enjoyable to me than the original. He made the character, in a word, hot. I had my reservations since he was in that godawful "High School Musical" (which makes me want to kill myself for liking the music a little), but in the end he was perfect for the role.

Michelle Pfeiffer (Velma Von Tussle) - Before I got the CD, I had no idea Michelle Pfeiffer was in the movie to be quite honest. I was wondering who would play the role of the catty Velma Von Tussle. When I first listened to "(The Legend Of) Miss Baltimore Crabs" I really disliked her in the part, but after a few times she really grew on me. Another actress who would probably do better to stick with acting rather than singing, but did better with it than Amanda Bynes.

John Travolta (Edna Turnblad) - This is the big dark smudge on the album for me. I heard that he's pretty good in the movie, but his singing is atrocious. At least the original Edna Turnblad had that deep scratchy vocal-chords-through-a-cheese-grater voice that made it obvious that the actor was a man and not really trying to disguise it. Travolta has a mock-falsetto half the time while the other half sounds like he's singing/talking in his normal voice. I will say that after a few listens to the album I got used to it and it doesn't bug me too much.

Those were the main actors that I registered as influencial on my feelings about the music. The other actors and singers are very good (especially Queen Latifah as Motormouth Maybelle), but I honsetly expected them to be.

There are also three original songs on the album that weren't in the original Broadway production: "Ladies' Choice," "The New Girl In Town," and "Come So Far (Got So Far To Go)." All three are are fun, but "Ladies' Choice" is so energetic and perfect for Zac Efron's voice and character that it's quickly become one of my favorite tracks of the whole CD.

In addition, the songs "Cooties" and "Mama I'm a Big Girl Now" (which were in the original but didn't make it into the movie) are included as the last two tracks of the CD. The way they did "Mama I'm a Big Girl Now" is really awesome too, they took all three Tracy Turnblads (Nikki Blonsky from this version, Ricki Lake from the original movie that the musical was based off of, and Marissa Jaret Winokur from the Broadway show) and had them sing together. You can tell how well they're matched to their parts since all three sound remarkably similar.

The soundtrack for the new "Hairspray" movie is pretty fantastic and has had me singing really loudly in the car for the last two days. It's one of those remakes that just makes you fall in love with the music/story all over again! If you're at all a fan of musicals or just of good 50's and 60's style music, definitely give this one a listen.

Audiogasm is part of the Mediagasm project.