Grosse Pointe Blank Soundtrack CD

Producers include: Brian Ritchie, Gordon Gano, Tom Grimley, Guy Stevens, Bob Sargeant, Freddie Mercury.
Personnel: Peter Balestrieri (vocals, baritone saxophone); Steve MacKay (baritone saxophone).
Audio Remixers: Chris Hughes ; Jack Hues; Tim Oliver.
Unknown Contributor Roles: Jacquie Perryman; Christine Edwards; Bill Green ; Chris Thomas ; Kathy Nelson.
Director George Armitage's Grosse Pointe Blank (which probably should be called John Cusack's Grosse Pointe Blank, since he not only starred in it, but also co-wrote and co-produced it) is set at a ten-year high-school reunion in Grosse Pointe, MI, in the present day, that being the spring of 1996. Thus, ex-Clash member Joe Strummer, credited with the original score, could call upon music dating back to the mid-'80s for songs the characters, now in their late twenties, would know. You might expect, then, that those 1986 graduates would be grooving to, say, Heart's "These Dreams" or "Greatest Love of All" by Whitney Houston. But, of course, Cusack and Strummer are much too hip for such popular fare. Instead, they put together a collection of edgy, British-oriented new wave and alternative rock, mostly from the early and mid-'80s, tracks by the likes of the Clash, the English Beat, the Specials, and the Jam, plus Americans Violent Femmes and Faith No More. Then there are ringers like Johnny Nash's "I Can See Clearly Now," which was a hit in 1972 when the main characters would have been about three years old, and Guns N' Roses' version of "Live and Let Die," which wasn't a hit until 1991. Okay, so this isn't really the music that would have been popular with the 1986 graduating class in Grosse Pointe. Who cares? The soundtrack album works well, including a relaxed "remix" (actually a different version) of Pete Townshend's "Let My Love Open the Door" as well as a new take on Violent Femmes' "Blister in the Sun" called "Blister 2000." Like the movie, which grossed 28 million dollars, the soundtrack album was a modest success, peaking at number 31, which inspired a follow-up collection, More Music From the Film Grosse Pointe Blank. ~ William Ruhlmann
The ostensible theme of this film is John Cusack's occupation as a hitman, but the real hook is his visit to his 10-year high-school reunion. Cusack's lovable assassin graduated in the mid-'80s, a much-maligned time in music history that actually provided some of the freshest, most exciting new sounds of the last 20 years. The GROSSE POINT BLANK soundtrack proves this point by dishing out one irresistible '80s "new wave" classic after another.
From the reggae-rocking paranoia of the English Beat's "Mirror In The Bathroom" to the restless angst of the Violent Femmes' "Blister In The Sun," the album delivers high-energy reminders of what it was like to come of age in the Reagan years. For many, these songs were all that got them through those times. For those too old or too young to share that experience, the music stands up just fine on its own.Entertainment Weekly (5/16/97, p.112) - "...caters to an aging '80s underclass--namely, the kids who survived the Reagan years on a steady diet of punk and ska..." - Rating: B+