Gustavo Santaolalla - Babel

As its title suggests, Mexican director Alejandro González Iñárritu's film revolves around the transcultural difficulties of human communication. But the linguistic dysfunction that drives the film's characters towards causal connection and inevitable tragedy has paradoxically inspired just the opposite on this adventurous musical mélange of a soundtrack. The meditative, often hypnotic fretboard inventions of Iñárritu's previous soundtrack collaborator, Argentine composer Gustavo Santaolalla (a 2005 Oscar winner for Brokeback Mountain), serve as the restless soul of interlocking plots in the film, the final chapter of a fatalistic trilogy that also includes the Santaolalla-scored Amores Perros and 21 Grams.

But on this expanded, double-disc collection, the South American composer's culture-bending film cues (including mastery of indigenous Arab stringed instruments and incorporating field recordings of Moroccan tribal music) also serve as artistic axes, reflective anchor points for a pop collection that's as ambitious and far-ranging as the film itself. While the "music from and inspired by" tag often indicates cynical record company marketing schemes, here it's an invitation to transcultural musical adventure that links Santaolalla's North African musical conjuring with the contemporary styles of Japan (the atmospherics of Ryuichi Sakamoto and Susumu Yolota, Shinichi Osawa's sly Earth, Wind & Fire/Fatboy Slim mashup, the teen pop of Takashi Fujii's "Oh My Juliet") and Tijuana (a generous sampling of effusive Norteño that includes Los Incomparables, Daniel Luna, and Agua Caliente). --Jerry McCulley Amazon.com

"Bibo no Aozora" by Ryuichi Sakamoto is worth the price of the CD

I don't think I've ever seen a film in my 40 odd years wherein a final piece of music helped the entire long, arduous, wonderful work gel and come together on so many gorgeous, tender levels as I did in "Babel", thanks to the hypnotic, simple music, "Bibo no Aozora" by Ryuichi Sakamoto. I loved this exceptional, humane film after seeing so much H-wood junk and clutter for a decade. And this piece of music will pierce your heart. January 3, 2008

One soul, one spirit

Babel is just one of those movies that exemplify the fact that we are all one sharing the consequences of each one's actions. Whether we realize it or not, our behavior at one place ripples all over reaching everywhere there is life. It will make you think and reflect. December 22, 2007

5 stars, for all the stars in the sky...

Wonderful ... So much music to transport us to "another world," from so many fine artists I had never heard of before. Arab, Argentina, Latino, Indian, Indonesian, Moroccan, North African, Nordic, Japanese, American... so many styles I do not really know the names of, but the overall sound is a trip to the far east and around the world, as if I too have flown.

I have imported both CD's TWICE into iTunes in order to enjoy them over and over again, and a number of songs 4 or more times. Example: "The Phone Call," "World Citizen - i won't be disappointed/looped piano," "Bibo no Aozora/Endless Flight/Babel," "Bibo No Aozoro / 04 - Ryuichi Sakamoto, Jaques Morelenbaum & Yuichiro Gotoh" and more.

New artists (new to me, anyway): David Sylvian/Ryuichi Sakaomoto/Amadeo Pace/Keigo Oyamata/Sketch Show, susumu yokota, Takashi Fuji, Hamza El Din, Ryuichi Sakamoto, Jaques Morelenbaum & Everton Nelson / , Nortec Collective, and of course one of my favorites of all time, Senor Gustavo Santaolalla.

I leave it to the listener to match the song titles to the artist names; it's a journey well worth taking.

Wonderful CD, highly recommended. Leaves me as breathless as the film, with the wind blowing through my shirtsleeves raising me up into the dream of flying high into the air. Rising above the turmoil and strife of daily life surrounded by Life and "humans" everywhere. This is one dream most of us share.

The CD cover photos of the boys arms raised into the wind feeling as though they could fly "says it all." Then comes the dark turn and turmoil of "when things go wrong." No matter who is to blame, when things go wrong everyone suffers in the end. How can we begin to hear? How do we find a cure? What language can speak from the heart and cure our ills? Speaking can so often fail. What will bring people together, parents and children, men and women, adult to adult? Will people ever learn to "hear" and to "heal?"

No one listens, as can be seen even here in the comment and reviews.

One reviewer called this CD "excessively heterogeneous." What the heck does this mean? (Ah, just looked it up: "definitions for heterogeneous consisting of elements that are not of the same kind or nature; "the population of the United States is vast and heterogeneous"

Does this person never "dream to soar?" Indeed!

The great mix of music and of sound reflects the great mix and chaos and mud slipping and sliding as we Babel our way through life... even though the songs are quite different in many areas, one can delete those songs from their play list and duplicate others to make for a longer meditative song as I have learned to do. The entire premise of "Babel" the film is well-represented in the mix of musical styles that bring us together and keep us apart.

I applaud the musicians and the director of this fine and moving film to continue leading the way on this journey we call "life."


I have been shot in the heart and this "symphony of sounds" has become my own Red Cross. Today, listening to this sweet "cacophony of sounds" has kept me alive. We are all "Citizens of the World."

Like it or not. Cacophony or Symphony?

It's all in how we play... October 5, 2007

Excessively heterogeneous

Some pieces are outstanding (in particular those by Santaolalla, Sakamoto and Sylvian) but, at the end, the double LP is too much heterogeneous. October 2, 2007

Soundtracks make a difference

I can strongly say that music caught me more than the film and theme itself. When the movie was over I couldn't wait to buy it :)
Gustavo Santaoallo is a great great artist, also known from Motorcycle Diaries and Brokeback Mountain.
I really love this guy's work. May 15, 2007

More reviews at Amazon.com ...