The Great Gatsby (Music from Baz Luhrmann's Film) [Deluxe Edition]

Editors’ Notes

Although the gilded tragedy of Jay Gatsby epitomizes the pitfalls of Roaring ’20s hedonism, the soundtrack to Baz Luhrmann’s adaptation of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s novel is laden with synthesizers and samplers, not saxophones. By filling the album with new music by Beyoncé, Jack White, will.i.am., and Jay-Z (who also serves as the executive producer), it makes a shrewd parallel between Jazz Era glitz and the indulgent bling of contemporary pop charts. The best track? It’s hard to choose, but the unchecked sleaze of Beyoncé and André 3000's cover of Amy Winehouse’s “Back to Black” has a sinister brilliance, while Sia's torchy, melancholy closer "Kill and Run" is downright chilling. With its striking contrasts and unexpected execution, this soundtrack rivals the programmatic genius of the one for Luhrmann’s 1996 film Romeo + Juliet.