Track Listing

1. Danger Zone - Kenny Loggins
2. Mighty Wings - Cheap Trick
3. Playing With the Boys - Kenny Loggins
4. Lead Me On - Teena Marie
5. Take My Breath Away [Love Theme from Top Gun] - Berlin
6. Hot Summer Nights - Miami Sound Machine
7. Heaven in Your Eyes - Loverboy
8. Through the Fire - Larry Greene
9. Destination Unknown - Marietta
10. Top Gun Anthem - Harold Faltermeyer/Steve Stevens
11. (Sittin' On) The Dock of the Bay [*] - Otis Redding
12. Memories [*] - Harold Faltermeyer
13. Great Balls of Fire [Original Version][*] - Jerry Lee Lewis
14. You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin' [*] - Righteous Brothers
15. Playing With the Boys [Dance Mix][*] - Kenny Loggins
16. Playing With the Boys [12" Version] - Kenny Loggins

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #2757 in Music
• Brand: Sony
• Released on: 1999-08-31
• Number of discs: 1
• Formats: Extra tracks, Original recording reissued, Soundtrack
• Original language: English

Amazon.com
Top Gun (1986) must be counted one of the most influential movies of the 1980s. It propelled Tom Cruise to superstar status, and jetted director Tony (True Romance, 1994; Enemy of the State, 1998) Scott's career into the stratosphere. It also allowed producers Don Simpson and Jerry Bruckheimer to perfect their multiplex-friendly blockbuster formula of join-the-dots plot, MTV-inspired visuals and rapid-fire action. Not least, it all but invented the modern pop soundtrack. Certainly it was the success of Simon and Garfunkel's The Graduate (1967) which inspired many song soundtracks in the pre-Star Wars (1977) decade, but since Top Gun, soundtrack pop has been gunning for the top like never before. Two singles dominate the album, Berlin's massive hit, "Take My Breath Away", and Kenny Loggins' "Danger Zone", both co-written by Giorgio Moroder, who also scored Midnight Express (1978) and penned Blondie's "Call Me" from American Gigolo (1980). Most of the remainder is up-beat, energetic American AOR stadium pop-rock by bands like Cheap Trick and Loverboy, huge names at the time of the film's release. Rounding out the collection is the electro-instrumental "Top Gun Anthem" by Harold Faltermeyer, the man behind "The Heat Is On" from Simpson and Bruckheimer's previous box-office bonanza, Beverly Hills Cop (1984). All in all, a landmark soundtrack. --Gary S. Dalkin

Customer Reviews

Without any doubt, the best rock soundtrack of the 80's
Top Gun the Motion Picture Soundtrack (1986). Remastered in 1999 with bonus tracks.

For the most part, movie soundtracks have always had their high spots, but oftentimes fail to be consistent from front to back. That is, until the movie Top Gun came out. Featuring a score by Harold Faltermeyer, Tom Whitlock, Giorgio Moroder, and several famous rock/pop artists, the Top Gun soundtrack became the first truly phenomenal rock movie compilation, and a definitive 80's music staple. It conjurs up the best parts of the mid-80's music scene while throwing away any real cheeziness that many people often associate with the period, making this a great introduction to a better time in rock music history. This was how I was introduced, so let's take a look at each of this disc's fifteen tracks:

1) Danger Zone (Kenny Loggins)- An awesome melodic, fast, hard rock number, and one of the two tracks off of here which became popular. Loggins has always crafted some great rockers in the past for other movies (Footloose, Caddyshack), and this one is no exception. 10/10

2) Mighty Wings (Cheap Trick)- Another melodic fast hard rocker, yet much different from anything Cheap Trick has been known to do. This one is one of my favorites, yet strangely it was never popular. Excellent guitar solo. 10/10

3) Playing With The Boys (Kenny Loggins)- Loggins has another fast one, though this track is more of a happy party pop number. Good, but not great. 8/10

4) Lead Me On (Teena Marie)- An upbeat, driving, mid-tempo track which proves to be very strong, coming from a somewhat popular artist at the time. Great passionate vocals. 9/10

5) Take My Breath Away (Berlin)- Top Gun's slow, melodic, and powerful love theme, this track became one of the most famous ballads of the 80's, and with good reason. 10/10

6) Hot Summer Nights (Miami Sound Machine)- A bouncy party pop song. This shows MSM's sound before Gloria Estephan joined and brought them fame. Not as good as the others, but definitely worthwhile. 8/10

7) Heaven In Your Eyes (Loverboy)- Another great ballad, this time done by Loverboy, who were normally known for their party rock songs. Therefore this song might seem a bit different than what their fans may be used to. Still, it proves to be excellent. 9/10

8) Through The Fire (Larry Greene)- This track is more like Danger Zone and Mighty Wings in its sheer power and speed. Apparently, Larry Greene wasn't a very popular artist and his works can only be found on here and on the Over The Top soundtrack. Such a shame his career never took off like the others. 10/10

9) Destination Unknown (Marietta)- Very melodic, yet upbeat number which stands out moreso than some of the other tracks. Like Larry Greene, Marietta is also a very little known artist, and her song here is the only song of hers that I know of. 10/10

10) Top Gun Anthem (Harold Faltermeyer/Steve Stevens)- Here's the movie's main theme played in the beginning, though the version on here is accompanied by the guitarist Steve Stevens of Billy Idol fame. A very catchy instrumental. 9/10

And the bonus tracks:

11) Dock Of The Bay (Otis Redding)- These new bonus tracks introduce the slower, oldies songs which came from various parts of the movie. This song is quite mellow and memorable. 8/10

12) Memories (Harold Faltermeyer)- Another instrumental, this one is very sad and melodic, reflecting a rather mournful scene in the movie. 9/10

13) Great Balls Of Fire (Jerry Lee Lewis)- A real oldies classic, though the actual song wasn't in the film. Instead, it was sung by several characters. 9/10

14) You've Lost That Loving Feeling (The Righteous Brothers)- An oldies love ballad, which although fairly popular when it first came out, was made more famous by its inclusion in the movie. Very good. 9/10

15) Playing With The Boys Dance Remix (Kenny Loggins)- Basically an enhanced version of the original song. It becomes longer, and therefore benefits the track. 9/10

To this day, the Top Gun soundtrack stands tall as one of the best compilations to ever be put out, especially with a songwriting team of Faltermeyer, Whitlock, and Moroder. I give this soundtrack my highest recommendation to anyone who even remotely likes rock music. Even if you've never heard of any of the artists featured on here, you still won't go wrong with this disc. Add to that a linear notes interview with producer Jerry Bruckheimer and you have a near-perfect package.

The definitive 80's soundtrack
One of the definitive and best-selling soundtracks of the 1980's was the Top Gun soundtrack. It yielded two Top Five singles, one in the Top Twenty, and two in the bottom half of the charts. With the success of the first two singles, the soundtrack took off without needing any help from the other three.

The racing rocker "Danger Zone" evokes an image of F-14s soaring through the air and cements Kenny Loggins' reputation as that guy who did soundtrack songs (Caddyshack, Footloose, Over The Top). This is definitely his best soundtrack song. The searing guitar solo he does after the bridge is just hot.

Cheap Trick's "Mighty Wings" is a thematic rocker in keeping pace with the movie when Robin Zander and company implores: "Take me on your mighty wings and fly." This shouldn't have flopped in the bottom 50 of the Hot 100. Both this song and "Danger Zone" is refreshing for long car trips.

It's the song afterwards, a mild rocker titled "Playing With The Boys", by Mr. Loggins, that is good, but none one of his best.

With 80's synthesizers blaring, Teena Marie performs the 80's dance pop of "Lead Me On." A similar sound and voice is present in "Destination Unknown" by Marietta. No, this isn't the Missing Persons number. Teena Marie had enough songs to have a greatest hits CD, but whatever happened to Marietta?

Berlin's "Take My Breath Away" was one of those immortal love themes for movies, highlighted by Terri Nunn's vocals. Since I first heard it on radio and MTV, I never got sick of it.

Compared to the material on their first two albums, "Hot Summer Nights" by Miami Sound Machine is totally a throwaway dance song, but at least it's better than when Gloria Estefan overshadowed the machine and turned her back on Cuban dance pop to disco.

"Heaven In Your Eyes" by the Vancouver-based group Loverboy is a prime and splendid example of a power ballad, which should've done better than the #12 peak on the Billboard singles chart. Mike Reno really lets it rip in the last line of the bridge: "Oh this feeling inside, in your eyes" before that wailing guitar kicks in.

"Through The Fire" by Larry Greene, another artist who I'm not sure made any other songs, has a rock guitar nearly as crunchy as "Danger Zone" but overlaced with synthesizers to produce that 80's rock-synthesizer sound. His voice kind of reminds me of a restrained version of Jimi Jameson of Survivor.

Harold Faltermeyer ("Axel F") and Steve Steven (Billy Idol's shaggy-haired guitarist) do the instrumental "Top Gun Anthem," a splendid power-ballad type marriage of keyboard synthesizer and piercing electric guitar. "Memories", the sad elegiac instrumental, which I assume was played when Maverick mourns his best friend's death.

As for the five additional songs, the three 60's classics work to the point that it's more of a complete soundtrack, although it's kind of jarring for those used to having the album end with "Top Gun Anthem." The 6:41 dance mix of "Playing With The Boys" is a welcome addition, but that's because it was remixed by Jellybean Benitez, Madonna's pre-Sean Penn boyfriend?

The CD sleeves includes an interview with Top Gun's producer Jerry Bruckheimer and his fond recollections. According to him, it's difficult doing a soundtrack with certain artists in mind because they might have other obligations. The key is getting the songwriters to do the songs, then approaching the artists whenever they're free. Giorgio Moroder and Tom Whitlock were real assets here, considering they wrote the songs done by Berlin, Teena Marie, Larry Greene, and Kenny Loggins' "Danger Zone." Still, the perfect example of a packaged soundtrack that's actually good.

"I feel the need....the need for speed".
I wouldn't call this the ultimate 80's soundtrack like some do, I even like "Footloose" more, and there's too much filler here. But there's no doubt it was huge, and has alot of 80's anthems. Obviously "Danger Zone" was the song for many a maverick, though I like the almost-gay "Playing With The Boys" as much. "Take My Breath Away" was a massive hit for Berlin, even though they were more of a new-wave band really. There's also the minor hit "Heaven In Your Eyes" from Loverboy. I'll admit the bonus tracks here are a huge bonus, because a few of the added songs are much better than some of what was here before. Truth be known, unless Tom Cruise is your favorite guy ever, or you're Air-Force bound, I'd get the best of Kenny Loggins or Berlin first. That's just me.