From Amazon.com
The 1997 film
Austin Powers did more than create a new sound-byte lexicon for radio personalities and strip-club commercials. It also took nostalgia to a new comic plateau. Almost every element of Mike Myers's composite title character is rooted in some obscure enigma from the annals of swinging-'60s film. Powers's fashion-photography fetish and his vamping sidekick, Vanessa Kensington (Elizabeth Hurley), for instance, are obvious nods to
Blow-Up, the first English film by Italian director Michelangelo Antonioni. Likewise, much of the music on this soundtrack would find campy camaraderie in the music of
Austin Powers. The true quality of these performances, then, is a matter of context. Herbie Hancock's original compositions--much more pop-friendly than his previous work--are either supple or dated, depending on your perspective. One thing's for sure, though: the contributions by the Yardbirds (featuring Jeff Beck and Jimmy Page), and Tomorrow (featuring a pre-Yes Steve Howe) sound as scorching today as they did decades ago.
--Matt Hanks
