Terence Blanchard

Item: She Hate Me (soundtrack)
Author: Marie Asner

She Hate Me (soundtrack)

(2004)

Reviewed by Marie Asner

Discogs Apple Music TIDAL Amazon Music Spotify YouTube Music

Label Milan RecordsThe Phantom Tollbooth2004

classical jazz

Film critics savaged director Spike Lee's film, She Hate Me. Its box office run was low and the film soon went to video. The story of misplaced love and looking for love in all the wrong places was not well received. However, out of the dust there comes a flower and that is the soundtrack by Terence Blanchard. His trumpet takes your cares away and his musical arrangements bring back the memory of the late Elmer Bernstein ("Man With A Golden Arm," "The Magnificent Seven" and "Far From Heaven.") Blanchard has written for several Spike Lee films including "Jungle Fever" and "Malcolm X."

The soundtrack for She Hate Me has 22 tracks, some short to evoke a mood and others long enough to be an entire composition. The first selection, "Adam 'n Eve 'n Eve" has vocals by Raul Midon. This smooth composition is a good opener as the rest of the CD is smooth jazz with a trumpet sound like hot butter. Ah, a pun intended here, as Terence Blanchard does sound like Billy Butterfield.

"Alex & Fatima" and "Godfather" are reminiscent of Bernstein's soundtrack for "Far From Heaven," with keyboard and haunting trumpet. The arrangements blend from one into the other so the listener has over an hour of smooth jazz. What more could you ask for?

3 tocks