VA - The Hurricane - Music From And Inspired By The Motion Picture (2000)

The soundtrack to Norman Jewison's The Hurricane, which tells the true story of wrongfully jailed prize fighter Rubin "Hurricane" Carter, gathers an equally powerful collection of songs, including Bob Dylan's classic title track. Gil-Scott Heron's "The Revolution Will Not Be Televised" also heightens the album's social consciousness, as does the hip-hop version of "Hurricane," which unites the talents of the Roots, Black Thought, Common, Mos Def, the Jazzyfatnastees, Flo Brown, and Dice Raw. Ray Charles' "Hard Times No One Knows" and Etta James' "In the Basement" add an authentic touch of the '60s, while Me'Shell Ndegocello's "Isolation," Melky Sedeck's "Still I Rise," and K-Ci & JoJo's "One More Mountain" are among the best of the contemporary tracks. As a companion piece to the film or on its own, The Hurricane is a worthwhile album, uniting classic and contemporary R&B, soul, and hip-hop into a gripping musical statement.~Review by Heather Phares