Back catalogue: 50s/60s

Review: The upcoming soundtrack for Joker: Folie a Deux has film and music fans on the edge of their seats, with its highly anticipated fusion of drama and musicality. Produced by Joaquin Phoenix, Lady Gaga, and an impressive team including Jason Ruder and Todd Phillips, the album promises to be a vivid and bold departure from traditional film scores. Hildur Gudnadottir, who composed the haunting score for the first Joker film, returns, but this time her music is interwoven with 15 cover songs, transforming the film into a jukebox musical. Drawing from Hollywood's Golden Age, the soundtrack teases the inclusion of songs like Fred Astaire and Judy Garland's 'Easter Parade' and 'Cheek to Cheek,' with the trailer already showcasing Gaga and Phoenix performing 'Get Happy.' These classic tunes are expected to be reinterpreted in ways that are both 'logical and surprising,' according to Gudnadottir herself. The mix of Phoenix and Gaga's vocal performances with the score's dark undertones promises an audacious contrast, offering a new lens through which the psychological descent of both Joker and Harley Quinn can be experienced. Coming on red vinyl, this release is set to blend nostalgia with intensity, making it a defining musical moment for the film.

Review: One of the most startling aspects of Todd Philips' Joker sequel - aside from the creepy, claustrophobic, horror-leaning moodiness of Hildur Guonadottir's original score - was the director's decision to get its lead character to belt out cover versions of well-known songs, jukebox musical style. It's that aspect of the film's soundtrack that's showcased on this release, rather than Guonadottir's incredible score. Joaquim Phoenix and Lady Gaga, then, are the undoubted stars of the show, belting out - individually or collectively - such familiar favourites as 'That's Entertainment', 'That's Life', 'When You're Smiling (The World Smiles With You)' and 'To Love Somebody'.