The songs are so consistent in their 1920's character that each has a hand in creating a remarkable whole. Like Moulin Rouge, it's difficult to point to a single song as the defining number of the production, though for most viewers there will be some likely candidates. The high class song that serves in a title role, so to speak, is "And All that Jazz," Zeta-Jones' acclaimed opening piece. Better remembered by mainstream viewers is the very catchy and well-layered "Cell Block Tango," an extremely well recorded song that is lengthy in its humorous character rotation. Zellweger's confidence begins to exert itself in "Funny Honey" but erupts in "Roxie," when her character and song take center stage. One of the later laughers, "Class," is performed by Zeta-Jones and Queen Latifah with a great spirit of lamentation, though this piece was for some reason cut from the final edit of the film. This song's beauty is countered by its profane topics and language, which are not only a central part of all the songs, but a definite plus. The album, by the way, has no explicit language sticker to warn wayward prudes. To counter the loss of "Class" in the picture, Kander and Ebb added the song "I'll Move On" as a duet for Velma and Roxie. The songs, on the whole, are so consistent in their accuracy for the period that casual listeners need not choose a favorite. Those overwhelmed by the raucous nature of the majority of them may attach themselves to a piece like "Mister Cellophane," which tones back the story to the level of slight melodrama. The ensemble of performers that assists in the background instrumental accompaniment for the singers is consistent with the size of a group that may have actually been in the kind of club seen in the film. It is a miniature orchestra that relies, much like the vocalists, on the spunk and pizzazz of the swing in the composition itself to provide the necessary environment. The film did, unfortunately, add a few contemporary adaptations and additional pop material that did detract from the package. The Queen Latifah remix of "Cell Block Tango," renamed "He Had It Comin'," is a truly hideous rap adaptation of that song, and was met with almost universally negative criticism at the time. In this case, Latifah had only herself to blame. The end credit piece by Anastacia, "Love is a Crime," is adequate, but the film would have been better served by resisting the temptation to modernize the swing of the original songs and instead provide a strong medley of Kander's material.

Film score devotees were initially curious to see that veteran composer Danny Elfman was listed on the posters and advertisements for this film, and even Elfman himself was surprised by how quickly this project came up for him. With the film late in production, it was realized by director Rob Marshall (and likely others) that a handful scenes outside of the realm of singing needed score to serve as bridges. Elfman proceeded to write new music for about four scenes, along with one source cue, which amounted to fifteen minutes of total score material. His contribution is an excellent match for Kander's original songs, and Elfman collectors will recall from his work on Dick Tracy that he can really swing in the genre of 20's jazz when the opportunity arises. Elfman was happy to provide a last-minute recording for that genre, and two cues (representing exactly half of his fifteen minutes for the film) are offered on the album presentation. The exuberance in these cues exposes the obvious fact that the composer must have enjoyed the sessions; the level of dynamic spirit in this material is about as thoroughly upbeat as anything the composer has ever written in his diverse career. While speculation existed that Elfman might be nominated for major awards due to voters' mistaken associations with the names on the project, it should be noted that like Evita in 1996 and Moulin Rouge (unfairly) in 2001, Chicago didn't qualify as having enough new, original material for the film to be considered eligible. Enthusiasts of the musical's history will be pleased by the performances in the film, though you really have to be able to tolerate lengthy doses of that style of rambunctious jazz in order to enjoy Chicago in any of its incarnations. For film score and Elfman collectors, the two score cues will likely not be worth the price on album, but his music will be a riot in the context of the film. The two modern songs inserted at the end of the product are an inexcusable finale to an otherwise strong adaptation. The mixing of the album's songs is sometimes executed with gain levels so high that it causes distortion; the instrumental recording during the conclusion of "Class" suffers particularly from this unfortunate blunder. Overall, Chicago, along with its recent predecessors, reaffirmed the hopes of longtime fans of musicals that the genre was indeed not dead, but this production was not destined to extend such successes in Hollywood over the remainder of the decade. As such, Chicago is fondly remembered as an attractively singular event.  ****   @Amazon.com: CD or Download