Mo' Better Blues (soundtrack) explained

Music from Mo' Better Blues
Type:	Soundtrack
Longtype:	to Mo' Better Blues
Artist:	Branford Marsalis Quartet featuring Terence Blanchard
Cover:	MoBetterBlues_soundtrack.jpg
Released:	July 31, 1990
Studio:	RCA (New York City) Sound on Sound (New York City)
Genre:	Jazz
Label:	Columbia
Prev Title:	Do the Right Thing: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack
Prev Year:	1989
Next Title:	Music from the Movie "Jungle Fever"
Next Year:	1991
Chronology:	Spike Lee film soundtracks

Music From "Mo' Better Blues" is a collaborative album by Branford Marsalis Quartet and Terence Blanchard. It was released in 1990 through Columbia/CBS Records as a soundtrack to Spike Lee's 1990 film Mo' Better Blues. Recording sessions took place at RCA Studios and Sound On Sound in New York. Production was handled by Bill Lee, Delfeayo Marsalis, Raymond Jones and DJ Premier, with Spike Lee serving as executive producer. It features contributions from film stars Cynda Williams, Denzel Washington and Wesley Snipes, and American hip hop duo Gang Starr.

The album peaked at number 63 on the US Billboard 200 albums chart. Music video was released for a single "Jazz Thing". In 1991, the soundtrack received a nomination for a Soul Train Music Award for Best Jazz Album, while the song "Again Never" was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Jazz Instrumental Performance, Group at the 33rd Annual Grammy Awards.

Accolades

Publication! scope="col"

Accolade	Rank
Albumism	100 Greatest Soundtracks of All Time
Complex	The 50 Greatest Movie Soundtracks of All Time
Consequence of Sound	The 100 Greatest Movie Soundtracks of All Time
The Boombox	20 Great Hip-Hop/Jazz Albums of the '90s
Vulture	The 40 Greatest Movie Soundtracks of All Time

Personnel

• Branford Marsalis – soprano and tenor saxophone, co-producer (track 8)
• Kenny Kirkland – piano
• Robert Hurst – bass
• Jeff "Tain" Watts – drums
• Terence Blanchard – trumpet
• Cynda Williams – backing vocals (track 1), alto vocals (track 9)
• Denzel Washington – vocals (track 6)
• Wesley Snipes – vocals (track 6)
• Keith "GuRu" Elam – rap vocals (track 8)
• B. David Whitworth – backing vocals (track 8)
• Mark Ledford – backing vocals (track 8)
• Tawatha Agee – backing vocals (track 8)
• Brooklyn Crooks – chorus shouts vocals (track 8)
• Clare Fischer – string arrangement and conductor (tracks: 1, 9)
• Peter Hunstein – programming (track 8)
• Raymond Jones – producer (tracks: 1, 9)
• Delfeayo Marsalis – producer (tracks: 2, 3, 6, 7)
• William "Bill" Lee III – producer (tracks: 4, 5)
• Chris "DJ Premier" Martin – producer (track 8)
• Larry DeCarmine – recording (tracks: 1, 9)
• Larry Ferguson – mixing (tracks: 1, 9)
• Patrick Smith – recording and mixing (tracks: 2–7)
• Rob Hunter – recording and mixing (track 8)
• Shelton Jackson "Spike" Lee – executive producer
• Ken Kochman – design

Charts

Chart (1990)	Peak position
US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard)^[1]	21
US Traditional Jazz Albums (Billboard)^[2]	1

Notes and References

1. Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums Chart: Week of October 20, 1990. April 3, 2021. Billboard.
2. Traditional Jazz Albums Chart: Week of October 27, 1990. April 3, 2021. Billboard.