Cool Hunting

The recently-released Once In A Lifetime, is a solidly put-together documentary about the rise and fall of the New York Cosmos football club, but is probably not for those who aren't fans of the sport. However, It's immaculately-produced soundtrack is worth anyone's attention, taking in the sounds of the 1970s when the Cosmos was the most glamorous club in the world. It's easy toimagine star players like Pele and Franz "The Kaiser" Beckenbauer partying post-match to these tunes down at that other famous New York club, Studio 54.

Largely made up of funk and soul from the time, there isn't a duff track here. The pick, though, are Marlena Shaw's six-minute groove, Woman Of The Ghetto, Kool & The Gang's proto-chillout Summer Madness, and Maceo And The Macks' sax-
classic, Cross The Tracks (We Better Go Back) penned by James Brown. A couple of more recent remakes are included in the form of 4 Hero's excellent Les Fleur and the haunting Sugarman, re-recorded by David Holmes and The Free Association. Primal Scream's Rolling Stones pastiche, Rocks, rounds things off nicely.

A slight downer is that on the British copy I got sent, the doleful song that closes the film, Steely Dan's Dirty Work, wasn't included, although it looks like it will be on the US release. Regardless, it's still a superb soundtrack that perfectly matches the ebb and flow of the beautiful game.

Once In A Lifetime Soundtrack is available now on Amazon UK, and is released on 15 June 2006 in the United States.

Also worth investigation: Africa Plays On from French label Because Music. It's released on 12 June 2006 and features giants of African music like Baaba Maal and Fela Kuti paying homage to football.