Various artists
Hairspray: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack
(MCA Records)
As good as the recent Broadway and film versions of John Waters' original production are, there's one factor that lets them down: the songs.
Overly camp and at times, let's face it, just plain silly, they fill in the narrative nicely enough but they leave no lasting impression - a trait that afflicts most modern musicals. The likes of Gershwin and Porter must be turning in their graves.
For the soundtrack to his film - which remains stunningly vibrant almost 20 years on - Waters thumbed his way through his own 1960s record collection. They are 'real' songs that, he admits, still get his hips moving 'late, late at night after three martinis in the privacy of my own home'. And they are mostly lost treasures.
As Waters has shown in the years since Hairspray's release, he has a keen ear for compilations - check out A John Waters Christmas (2004) and this year's A Date with John Waters for proof. The songs might be obscure, sometimes even a little odd, but once heard they are impossible to forget.
