Life Moves Pretty Fast: The John Hughes Mixtapes

Overview

Without their soundtracks, John Hughes' classic 1980s movies would be very, very different films. In a way that set the tone for an entire generation of youth culture, the song selections for his movies reflected the emotional travails of his characters while they added depth and detail to every triumph and struggle. Life Moves Pretty Fast aims to capture the very specific mood delivered by Hughes' soundtracks by collecting songs used in his iconic '80s run in one place. Across four discs and 74 tracks, Life Moves Pretty Fast includes music from more than ten films Hughes either wrote or directed. Though this includes selections from movies like Uncle Buck and The Great Outdoors, the most recognizable entries come from Hughes' coming-of-age and teen comedy-drama masterpieces like Sixteen Candles, The Breakfast Club, Ferris Bueller's Day Off, and others. Songs like Simple Minds' "Don't You (Forget About Me)," Yello's "Oh Yeah," the Psychedelic Furs' "Pretty in Pink," and Oingo Boingo's "Weird Science" are all but inextricable from their respective films (with the latter two even sharing titles with the movies they were theme songs for), but digging a little deeper into the compilation reveals some hidden gems. Kristy MacColl's cover of the Smiths' brutally pessimistic "You Just Haven't Earned It Yet, Baby" (featured in Hughes' 1988 film She's Having a Baby) sounds almost cheery compared to the original, and the goofy synth pop of Silicon Teens' "Red River Rock" is a perfect counterpart to the slapstick misadventures portrayed in Planes, Trains and Automobiles. Listening straight through will expose overlooked moments and remind one of such all-but-forgotten tunes as General Public's lilting "Tenderness" and Flesh for Lulu's "I Go Crazy." Experienced one song at a time, Life Moves Pretty Fast is sweet and nostalgic. Listeners who immerse themselves in the box set will get happily lost in the promise, possibility, and youthful excitement of the music, and realize just how essential the soundtracks were to establishing those feelings in Hughes' films. ~ Fred Thomas

Product Details

Release Date:	11/11/2022
Label:	Edsel
UPC:	5014797907850
Rank:	35819

Album Credits

Performance Credits

The Lords of the New Church   Primary Artist
Pop Will Eat Itself   Primary Artist
Kate Bush   Primary Artist
Dave Wakeling   Primary Artist
Blue Room   Primary Artist
The Flowerpot Men   Primary Artist
Belouis Some   Primary Artist
Emmylou Harris   Primary Artist
Dr. Calculus   Primary Artist
Gene Loves Jezebel   Primary Artist
The English Beat   Primary Artist
General Public   Primary Artist
Joe Turner   Primary Artist
Lick the Tins   Primary Artist
Pete Shelley   Primary Artist
Hugh Harris   Primary Artist
Lindsey Buckingham   Primary Artist
Love and Rockets   Primary Artist
Propaganda   Primary Artist
Penguin Cafe Orchestra   Primary Artist
Perry Como   Primary Artist
Marvin Gaye   Primary Artist
New Order   Primary Artist
The Jesus and Mary Chain   Primary Artist
Kajagoogoo   Primary Artist
Los Lobos   Primary Artist
Oingo Boingo   Primary Artist
Nick Heyward   Primary Artist
Ray Anthony & His Orchestra   Primary Artist
Otis Redding   Primary Artist
The Psychedelic Furs   Primary Artist
Revillos   Primary Artist
Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark   Primary Artist
The Specials   Primary Artist
The Vapors   Primary Artist
The Rave-Ups   Primary Artist
Bryan Ferry   Primary Artist
Thompson Twins   Primary Artist
Darlene Love   Primary Artist
Zapp   Primary Artist
Yello   Primary Artist
Patti Smith   Primary Artist
Sigue Sigue Sputnik   Primary Artist
The Association   Primary Artist
Spandau Ballet   Primary Artist
Steve Earle   Primary Artist
Steve Earle & the Dukes   Primary Artist
Silicon Teens   Primary Artist
Ray Charles   Primary Artist
Simple Minds   Primary Artist
Billy Idol   Primary Artist
Balaam & the Angel   Primary Artist
Boston   Primary Artist
Killing Joke   Primary Artist
Kirsty MacColl   Primary Artist
Book of Love   Primary Artist
Topper Headon   Primary Artist
Echo & the Bunnymen   Primary Artist
The Divinyls   Primary Artist
Suzanne Vega   Primary Artist
Big Audio Dynamite   Primary Artist
The Chordettes   Primary Artist
Joe Jackson   Primary Artist
Carmel   Primary Artist
Flesh for Lulu   Primary Artist
Furniture   Primary Artist
The Dream Academy   Primary Artist
Westworld   Primary Artist

Technical Credits

Aaron Cohen   Sleeve Art
John Hughes III   Project Manager
John Conlon   Design
Paul Myers   Sleeve Art
Ben Stanley   Project Manager
James Hughes   Sleeve Art,Project Manager
Josh Eustis   Mastering
Tom Fournier   Design
Ron Payne   Sleeve Art
Tarquin Gotch   Sleeve Art,Project Manager