Customer Reviews
Great soundtrack but too much left out - By: C. E. Pearce, 18 May 2008 
One of the many strengths of Ashes To Ashes, along with its predecessor Life On Mars, is the use of music from the periodin which the drama is set, perfectly capturing the 'feel' of that momentin time & giving extra impact & meaning to the action on the screen. The music on the soundtrack ranges from hits that are still very well known today such as Duran Duran's 'Girls On Film' & 'Let's Stick Together' by Bryan Ferry to songs that may not have been familiar to some of the Ashes To Ashes audience but have been a real pleasure to discover, such as the fabulous 'Staring At The Rude Boys' by The Ruts. The soundtrack features a good cross-section of both, many of which will bring images from the series straight back to mind - Gene & Alexin the Quattro racing to 'The Finish' pub in the docklands to the glorious 'Swords Of A Thousand Men' by Tenpole Tudor or hurrying through the subterranean labyrinth of corridorsin the Edgecome nuclear installationin search of the vault containing the mysterious Artemis file to 'Reward' by The Teardrop Explodes. The soundtrack also contains one of the songs which I, for one, now simply cannot divorce from the contextin which it was usedin the series - Ultravox's 'Vienna'. I don't think I'll ever be able to listen to the first few bars of that song again without my mind's eye picturing that jaw-dropping slow motion shot of falling shards of glass as Gene steps through the shattered window to save Alex.
So why have I only given it three stars? This is entirely due to what has been left out rather than what was included. The quality of the music usedin Ashes To Ashes is such that the soundtrack could easily have merited a double CD. As it is, some absolutely key tracks from the series have, astonishingly, been omitted. These include Duran Duran's 'Careless Memories' which we hear as Gene makes his triumphant entrancein the Quattroin episode one, the edgy & disorientating 'Ghosts' by Japan from the end of episode six when Alex realises with a shock who the manin her bed from her recurring dream actually is, 'The Man With The Child In His Eyes' by Kate Bush which is playing on the radio as Gene puts himselfin the uncharacteristically vulnerable position of asking Alex if she would like to go out to dinner with him, & Supertramp's upbeat 'Take The Long Way Home' from the end of episode eight, which promises that this is exactly what Alex will do, having further adventures with Gene & learning more about herself & him along the way. But most mystifyingly, the one track which for me was as much the theme of the series as Bowie's 'Ashes To Ashes' itself - Roxy Music's 'Same Old Scene' - is also not included. This track was usedin the ultra-cool sequence at the end of episode one which contained virtually no dialogue. The piece of music that the show's producers were originally going to use for this was 'Imagine' by John Lennon; considering how much the mood of the sequence would have been altered if they had gone ahead, it becomes clear how essential this Roxy Music song actually wasin setting up the dark, brooding, sexually charged atmosphere so successfully evoked. For me, a comprehensive soundtrack of the series has to include all of these tracks & so I've resorted to iTunes to fill the gaps, but I would much rather have bought these songs as part of a single package.
Also, I would have liked the soundtrack to have included the epic Western-inspired theme that we hear when Alex first recognises Genein episode one & again when he makes his rousing 'unbreakable' speech to Lord Scarmanin episode eight. It's this piece of music that I think of as 'Gene Hunt's Theme' rather than the incidental music with that title which appears on the CD.
Although some dialogue from the series has been included, this is another area where too much has been left out. With the wealth of Gene Hunt's brilliant one-linersin Ashes To Ashes, to include only two of themin the soundtrack is so positively criminal that Special Branch should be on the case.
Fantasic 80s Compilation - By: Jamie Stocker, 20 Apr 2008 
A good variety of songs from the show, including some classics. Definitely worth a look. Too bad they're not all on there though
citrus headed excelence - By: DEANO, 12 Apr 2008 
get this album if your into citrus based fruit heads i.e karl pilkington. a must buy.
evocative, nostalgic, fantastic. - By: sam155, 12 Apr 2008 Playing thisin the car is amazing. There is something iconic about "Vienna"- played to deathin the 80s, but a seismic classic these days. There are beautiful songs too that I'd almost forgotten, especially track 7- "Souvenir" by OMD, & the typically eighties "Fade to Grey" by Visage, & of course, the incomparable David Bowie to kick off with the eponymous "Ashes to Ashes". There are two bits of dialogue inserted to remind you where the compilation came fromin the first place. The first bit is Keeley Hawes' voice over intro "My name is Alex Drake & I have just been shot"etc. It sounds a bit weirdin amongst the music but I didn't really mind it. Then you have the Gene Genie himself arresting some hapless criminal with a succint "You're nicked speech" which gave me a laugh every time I hear it sandwiched between tracks. Allin all a great album, & a good mixture of styles & tracks which brought back fond memories of a top quality & much missed TV drama. Not to mention memories of the decade that style forgot. Or did it? That white leather jacket started to look quite good to me!
Great complilation, shame about the case - By: Ms. S. K. Martin, 12 Apr 2008 Thought the songs on the album were great, but disappointedin the case, was expecting a plasic case but its just a card type one
